the muse

the muse

ah the muse

always the muse

spoke

silence is sin

it said

who is it that

has not sinned

i cynically asked

all have

came the reply

then why not sin

and be silent

for, it said again

the time to be silent

has passed

and the first stone

has to be cast

sinner or saint

all have to now

stand up and

be counted

then i’d rather be

counted

in those who

sinned twice

and silent remained

for they who speak

are stoned

by those who don’t

 

the muse shrugged

raised an eyebrow

sulked and said

remembered are those

who speak, not those

who don’t

ah quote material

my utterances are not

quipped i, smiling

sure i had

the better of it now,

but the muse

being the muse

had more to say

recall a day to live

against a hundred lived

ah the one who the

keeper of the throne

of delhi had named

his pet for,

consider this

the words

and the name

you remember

mused the muse

and so many more

i can recount

but now if you will

let me fade

and with that

 

the muse faded

as it was

a concept put in place

by the muse of muses

leaving me

to inward look

ponder

think

muse

what if

my voice is that

which will

evoke and awake

the multitude

and in doing so,

will to be lost,

be too great a price

or will silence

be its own reward?

and inside reared

another muse its head

and said

even in shackles

the lips are free

the choice is yours

to let groans escape

or praise his being

speak the truth

or curse your luck

for either way

the end will be

the same

a stroke of the guillotine

outwardly

or inwards

slow or quick

and i shuddered.

and the muse rose

smiled and said

choices

and faded, leaving

my mind undecided

for now or forever

sinner that i am

to sin again

in silence.

somewhere at the back on my mind perhaps faiz ahmed faiz reciting ‘bol kay lab azad hain teray,’ and maybe the zardari interview in which even i as a layman unlettered in statesmanship could see though the untruths, and felt sorry to have to bear the wrath of the gods for making us such that we deserve rulers like these. but whatever, the sadness that we are the silent majority who do nothing but repeatedly sin the sin of remaining silent remains foremost.

 

january 8, 2012

12:10 – 19:30 hours

 

a nation unsung

(the energy crisis and the unacceptable to people solution to it resulting in lines at gas stations, and strikes to protest the way the issue is being handled, led to this outpouring of words)

a nation

to whom is lost

the wisdom of the queue

at last

stands in lines

for energy to run

the wheels of life

and turning their anger

to breaking windows

road lights

and burning cars

someone’s hard earned asset

turned to ash

in a flash

roads blackened by the soot

of burning tyres and debris

playing hide and seek

with them who should

guard but are

turned to hound.

and the house on the hill

millions a day

for its upkeep spent

enough to power a town

day and night for a week

but unmindful of the plight

of those who pay

for their sustenance

burn the nation’s wealth

leaving in the wake

broken homes

shattered dreams

hurt egos

empty hands

hunger pangs

wasted life’s

bitter tastes

nothing

and still

it goes on

the charade of life

a kaleidoscope

of black and white

like night after day

for them to stand

in lines

another day

and curse!

january 05, 2012, 10:10 hours

January 2012 and us!

recent events in Pakistan, made me write these lines

shenanigans

caesar’s people

lacking brutus

throw to the lions

the very publics

watching from the stands

the fight of brawn and gore

happy in the thought

it‘s not their turn yet

to be fed to the lions.

and caesar’s sly smile

for another day passed

his throne intact

people going home

after a day at the games

more tired of the jostling

than the gladiators themselves

who get fed a potion

and a geese

waiting with aching body

for the morrow in the rink.

no rights here

no doubts cast

no rides to take

no ides to fear

neither a friendly foe

nor to be left out the door.

just a bubble

getting larger

reflecting hues of colors

myriad

empty within

like the coffers

of the kingdom

ready to burst and show

more of nothingness.

promises broken

thoughts askew

hopes shattered

even the last

semblance of life

taken

and still

they flock to the arena

to hear the music

for the dance

must go on!

january 3, 2012. 09:30 hours

It Only Takes a Girl

it sure does only take a girl – as it takes a human being to be human. poignant and interesting video, very worth the 4:09 minutes it takes to run.

Lest We Forget – by Angela King from Life After Hate

glad to have angela king as a friend and to be concerned about the same things together

http://lifeafterhate.org/2011/12/lest-we-forget/

new year resolutions!

23 days to new resolutions – and 366 to forget them, yes its a leap year 2012 is!

now what is it i am not to do next year?

Reuters – Best photos of the year 2011

i wish the pictures from Pakistan were non-terrorism related – but ces’t la vie!

http://blogs.reuters.com/fullfocus/2011/11/21/best-photos-of-the-year-2011/#a=1

Natalie Warne – Being young and making an impact

anonymous extraordinaries, invisible children, and other information, interesting and worth the 13 minutes.

forced me to think, that although there is no study on this issue, i personally know that children are abducted, brainwashed, and families blackmailed in Pakistan to make the children suicide bombers.

this is neither anonymous, nor extraordinary, but certainly it is invisible an ostrich head in the sand or the pigeons eyes closed syndrome – just another ordinary act on just another ordinary day! only we do not care.

Talks | TEDx – Natalie Warne: Being young and making an impact

thought for the day

right but irrelevant – interesting combination!

rulers …..

Watching the media replay the end of Gaddafi endlessly, prompted this piece.

 

And he said

I am king

But nobody

Accepted that

But he kept on

Doing things

For no one could

Dispute that.

 

Running between

Pillar and post

Not knowing

What was better

The devil

Or the deep blue sea

Lost and bewildered

Captive, although free.

 

For the price

Of life was

Made cheaper

Than the cost

Of living

A farce created

By demi-gods

Subjugating minds.

 

And he said

I am king

Only forgetting

The wrath of

Things stirred

Recoiling when

Pushed to the wall

Like the weakest of things.

 

A while more

And then who knows

Which king

Where throne

What kingdom

When time

Why lost

All blank eyes!

 

23 October 2011. 07:05 hours