For in dreams, we enter a world that is entirely our own.
~J. K. Rowling
Dreams dwell in the place nostalgia leaves empty,
the silver space between late autumn and and winter’s embrace~
please, make my bed of dreams beneath the old willow tree.
Always Silly
For those who matter,
For those who don't,
It comes on a platter,
But still they won't.
In dubious clarity
Often they sink,
Behind painted walls,
They smoke and drink.
Love never dies,
They love too well,
In beautiful lies,
They peacefully dwell.
A mythical poverty
Punishes with gifts,
Defining with pity,
They relish the rifts.
A nursery rhyme
Fools all with ease,
And leaves no time,
For us to cease.
A silly poet often,
Writes silly lines,
They awfully soften,
While the reader shines!
Will you please be so kind as to explain why,
gentlemen of your ilk or, much as you,
on first meeting, soon after greeting,
or within a conversation or two,
to those like me, or such as I,
feel the need, to bring up to speed,
and are compelled to dwell on and extol,
their personal proclivities, propensities,
predilections, predispositions,
inclinations and tendencies?
Come what may, we are who we are, it is what it is,
whereby, we have no say and, by all means,
it's preordained, hereditary, chance or happenstance,
and, as does diarrhoea, runs in the genes.
For, as to the preferences of others,
I must admit, be aware, I don't care one little bit,
and for their penchants, not a lot, in fact, nary a single jot,
altho', I wish they wouldn't swish, as they look silly doing it.
But, in the end, they may tend to extend,
or rise to the occasion,
and participate in the bringing of
brotherly love to those of their persuasion.
When what life gives is so profound,
Why on what-not woes we dwell on?
Things of joy are found all around,
Why on shadows should we dwell on?
Sweet memories in life abound,
Why on sorrows should we dwell on?
When flowers everywhere are found,
Why on prickly claws we dwell on?
Copious spells Spring on earth’s home ground,
Why on celestial rose dwell on?
________________________________
Ghazal |18.09.2025 | earth, heaven, joy, life
Note: This ghazal is slightly off the traditional. There are five couplets, all the first lines of which rhyme, whilst the second line has the refrain (Radif) ‘dwell on’ following the rhyme (Kafia) like woes, shadows, sorrows, claws, and rose.
You dwell in my poems
Not everyone can
It is a place
For your eyes only
For your lovely smile
Your hair dancing in the wind
Your arms with gentle embrace
Your beautiful lips
That leave traces
Red and blue
All over...
Yes! Why are you smiling
Acting ignorant?
Like you don’t know!
And then, in the morning light...
Oh, look how lovely
My silk scarf fits
Around your neck...
People notice it, you know,
My beloved...
My poems are your realm
You rule my heart
And my soul
You run happily through my veins
Your realm are these words as well
You belong to my heart
And my soul
I love you
Hold thy hope, happy scene shall come,
To parched and keen, ocean shall come.
Rest nor relax O wayfarer,
Thy dream with joy within shall come.
________________________
Epigram | 09.08.2025 | dream, hope, patience, traveler
Note: Inspired from the original Urdu:
Rakh hauñslaa, voh mañzar bhi ayegaa,
Pyaase ke paas chalkar samañdar bhi ayegaa,
Thak kar na baith O mañzil ke musaaphir,
Mañzil bhi ayegi aur milne kaa mazaa bhi ayegaa.
Heaven or yet beyond,
where do we wish to dwell?
Heart’s desire is soul’s aim,
as we seek, so it is,
fulfilled in life’s end game.
Heaven or yet beyond,
is the question we’re asked;
‘beyond’ meaning no form,
where all that is is Self,
deprived of love’s bliss storm.
Heaven or yet beyond,
concept unknown to mind,
so let’s first discover,
the light of Self within,
as God’s ardent lover.
Heaven or yet beyond,
left the Buddha perplexed.
He chose to bilocate,
as the vaporised Self,
yet poised at heaven’s gate.
Not between heaven and earth,
but between “yes” and “why.”
Not in the mouths of philosophers,
but in the wounds of those who had no time to read.
Doubt is a woman with bound hands
who waits for me night after night
to say I no longer love her.
But I come,
and keep silent,
and lie down beside her
like beside a mother who forgot to give birth to me.
On fruitless life how long dwell on should I?
On needless strife how long dwell on should I?
Let me salute my foe’s fairest friendship,
On faults and gripe how long dwell on should I?
That far off dweller we fail to follow,
His irks so rife-- how long dwell on should I?
On her dreams to flower that have faded--
On bud not ripe how long dwell on should I?
Despite my lifelong love who twirls her face,
On such a wife how long dwell on should I?
______________________________
Ghazal |03.07.2025| life, heartbroken
A ghazal fashioned on one in Gujarati by Harsh Brahmabhatt-- nakam zindagi pe socha karenge kab tak.
Gentile Spirit
Dwell With Me;
I Myself Would Gentile Be!
And With Words That Help And Heal;
Would Thy Life, In Mine, .... Reveal?!
I choose to dwell in the clouds
If that’ll boost my self-esteem aloud
No need to be showy or proud
Humility will lift me up, no mist shrouds.
Loneliness, self-pity, anxiety and depression
are far remote if I don’t pay attention
Simply focus on selfless loving and generosity
Be trustworthy always, forget about negativity.
Life is full of ups and downs
Hard to please all loved ones and friends around
Just give my best to all, without regrets and sound
And I know God’s love and blessings on me astound.
I choose to dwell in frothy clouds…
with a mindset unfixed
Random instincts spaced out
In the cumulus mix
An expansive effusion
Far out and beyond my temporal shackles
Free are my thoughts without prompt
Closed minds shallow and
desolate debacles
dissipate in this airy romp
On wispy clouds I dwell in…
high above I’ve risen
Here no need to reason
nor the blends of interpretation
Far away, so far from you, ascended
From the fiery pit below
which awaits my return
Where blazing saddles shame my name
where gross gossip lives and
bloody rumors stain,
Ablaze are the blame games
I dwell in cirrus pillows…
The scoped hemispheric
veils, bands and billows
Musings— using me
I chose to dwell in halo clouds
My mind with no refrains
Nothing to lose nothing to gain
A spirit free from hate
Soley my mind
Opens heaven’s gate
The world has spun out of it's axis.
Gibraltar is crumbling down below.
Sequential order
Scattered to the four winds;
E n v e l o p e d
In the conflagration of chaos.
Oh, trouble...
Once again, you greet me
From the stygian abyss.
You beckon from the hopeless place
We departed,
But I must refuse you.
I've drifted away from you
Like tendrils of smoke.
It's too cold and isolating
Where you reside;
I'm afraid I can no longer be
Your ally in loneliness.
I choose to dwell in the clouds
Where the sun shines brightest.
I'd rather float up here
With hope
As you lie in despair's ruins.
I'm comfortably at home
In my meridian splendor.
Life can be so very sad,
sometimes making me mad.
I am missing my dad,
when you were here I was always glad.
At times like this,
I Choose To Dwell In The Clouds~sending you a kiss.
Life can be so very happy,
sometimes making me sappy.
I Choose To Dwell In The Clouds of blue,
up here I have a great view.
I love to see the fluffy clouds of white,
hiding behind the sun so bright.
I Choose To Dwell In The Clouds light,
dwelling here makes me want to write.
In verdant valleys, where wildflowers sway,
A tranquil village, where my heart stays,
A place of serenity, where love abounds,
Where laughter echoes, and memories resound.
The thatched roofs, the rustic doors,
The gentle streams, that forever roar,
The scent of earth, the warmth of sun,
A sense of belonging, forever begun.
In this haven, I took my first stride,
Where innocence bloomed, and dreams reside,
The village elders, with wisdom so bright,
Guided me through life, with love and gentle might.
As I wander through, the familiar lanes,
Memories of childhood, forever remain,
The joy of simplicity, the peace of mind,
A sense of connection, forever intertwined.
This pristine village, where I was born to dwell,
Remains forever, a part of me to tell,
A place of solace, where my heart finds rest,
A haven of love, where I am forever blessed.
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