The Grandeur of Kindness
Alone, down and dull, lost in my thoughts, at a chaotic airport I stood in a queueA raspy voice said, “after you”, my heart warmed, my eyes tearedIn a toxic…
Poetry
Happening
Out of a seed in the groundcomes a flower. Miracle!Out on the branch of a treecome blossoms in spring.Out from the blossoms fruit growsdelighting senses.And an offering of food. Out…
Mama Miti
1 I made Sisters out of branch and leaf 2 I met the Earth and called it brother 3 The only prison is the denial of the Sun 4 I…
The Way of Community
1 There is only one border: Destiny 2 There is only one community: The Living 3 There is only one homeland: The Earth 4 A child is born: it is…
The Way of Doubt
1 What is greater a brother or a sister of the flesh or of the soul? 2 Put out a fire with another fire 3 Strength is the deepest knowledge…
The Way of Eternity
1 It is speaking to you; ever speaking 2 Dip your hands inside the Waters: it is You. Breath in the Air: it is You. Eat: it is You. Love:…
Understanding Urdu poetry
Urdu poetry often has a literal, direct, superficial meaning, and an indirect, deeper, real meaning, which the poet conveys through metaphors, hints, suggestions, allegories and indications. So often one has…
The Way of Art
1 Listen to the wind and dream 2 When creating always keep one eye on the Creation 3 Always ask: does my work serve Life? And if not, explain your…
The Way of Prayer
1 You have hands. The Universe has hands. Put them together 2 Flowers open. You open. Endless opening 3 Water flows. You flow. Endless flowing 4 The sun gives. You…
The Song of the Stormy Petrel
' The Song of the Stormy Petrel ' ( see online ) was a poem written in March 1901 by the great Russian writer Maxim Gorky, and became known as…
A POLITICAL ACT of MURDER
a few seconds an old man, in torn dirty clothes, cautiouslyemerges from the blown-out shellof a charred building he walks with a canestooped, his head loweredthe old man’s eyesight is…
The Way of Every Day
1 I say: the Way is the Sacredness of Life. And you ask: But what of this day? 2 You are sad? You are angry? You fear? Ask yourselves: how…
The Way of God
1 The quest for God is a holy one; the quest for Life even more so 2 And you shall ask; and ask again; All is Asking 3 And you…
Walls
I am stupid.We are all stupid.We worship the idolsof human stupidity.We build walls. The alternativeis intimate and easy. People everywhere are waiting…Individually, people everywhereare waiting. Not for the promiseof perfection…
The Way of Love
1 To love Life is logical. To love is logical. Understand this and thrive 2 Suppression of emotion is not the way. Rather understand and transcend 3 It has been…
A February Poem – Ekusher Kabita
Written By Al Mahmud Recitation: Abdur Rahman Translated by Zeenat Khan Mir Abdus Shukur Al Mahmud (known as Al Mahmud; (11 July 1936 – 15 February 2019) was a Bangladeshi poet,…
The Way of Creation
1 What is greater than life? The Creation. What is greater than the creation? The Creator. Love life, understand Creation, and, then, and only then, see The Creator 2 The…
Logos
1 Logos is Life 2 Logos is the argument of the universe; its divine message to Man. 3 Logos is not speech; although God is talking 4 Logos is not…
Proem: Traumas & Scholasticide
We are closed in, and the key is turnedon our uncertainty…We had fed the heart on fantasies,the heart’s grown brutal from the fare,more substance in our enmitiesthan in our love;…
The Way of Wisdom
1 Stoicism is cowardice disguising itself with reason. It is not a belief, but a psychological tactic. It is the ultimate defeat handed to us by the philosophers. 2 A…
The Way
1 You say: I shall commit evil for no one shall see. Know this: All is Seen 2 You say: You are a false prophet for behold: I, king, do…
Nazrul’s Reply to Nargis
Jaare Haath Diye Mala Ditey Paaro Nai / Keno Mone Rakho Taare The one you have not adorned with a floral garland / Why hold that onein your inmost memory…
100 Theses of Faith
1 I do not ask you to believe in me. I do not ask you to love me. I do not command you to fear. I but ask you to…
The White Rose
The light of reasonAnd the Higher LightAnd there is sanity in the light The fire of passionAnd that is LoveThe flow of passionate life Believe in the River of Crossing…
The Vanishing
behind the shadow of her nakednessthe vanishingbehind the vanishingsilencebehind the silencecowardicebehind cowardicethe maskbehind the maskthe shattered mirrorbehind broken realitythe drought of shallow tearsthe frothing spate of ragethe hating fleshbehind the…
A Day at The Dorchester: A Proposal
Let's meet up at The Dorchester,that posh hotel in the heart of London.Afternoon tea is the talk of the town.Damask table cloths, linen napkins,impeccable service, and a pastry cartthe envy…
The First Day of King Trump
In the first hour of TrumpdomMy new King gave to meMillions o' deportees In the second hour of TrumpdomMy new King gave to meOne border closingand Millions o' deportees In…
Rabindra – Sangeet (Tagore song): Chitta Pipashito Re / Geetoshudhar Torey – My eternal mind is pining in thirst
Translation by Zeenat Khan A portrait of an unknown woman Artist: Rabindranath Tagore Parjaay: Prem (1) Upa-parjaay: Gaan Taal: Jhaptaal Raag: Khambaj Written on: 1895 Swarabitan: 10 Notation by: Jyotirindranath…
The Lost Children of Gaza
The crimson sky, vast and high, made way for a reluctant dawnThe morning light, soft and shy, peeped through my window blindI was woken from a dream, pounding heart, my…
Five Poems for Gaza
How Can I Write a Poem for Gaza’s Children? When white men or women,especially Christians, raise their voice for the people of Gazaor for the Palestinians,they are usually praised for the…
The Era of Elonization
Is Elon Musk’s connection to the latest US Election somewhat similar to the movie The Manchurian Candidate that stars Denzel Washington? In the movie, the multinational corporation Manchurian Global deploys a candidate …
Bohe Nirontoro Ononto Anondodhara – (“The Shower of Eternal Bliss Forever”)
A tribute to Kobiguru Rabindranath Tagore. The translation of the song from the Geetabitan Rabindranath Tagore (7 May 1861 – 7 August 1941) Parjaay: Puja (324) Upa-parjaay: Aanondo Taal: Jhaptaal…
The Apolitical Intellectuals of Our Time
No, dear Otto René Castillo,[1]the apolitical intellectuals of our time,won’t be mute in their shameif they’re asked by those undeadwhat they did when the people of their countrywere dying tragically…
Gaza
Children in dozensbombed each dayadd to thousands in no timebut there is no one leftto sing the parting songas they are laid to rest the poetswho would have rent the…
A Bangladeshi Speaks to Indians
Once we used to live together,perhaps like a joint family,or maybe like the inmates of the same prison,which Lord Mountbatten probably knew very well.Our history of sharing is of many…
Hymn To Freedom
Ὁ Ὕμνος εἰς τὴν Ἐλευθερίαν(Hymn To Freedom) Σὲ γνωρίζω ἀπὸ τὴν κόψητοῦ σπαθιοῦ τὴν τρομερή,σὲ γνωρίζω ἀπὸ τὴν ὄψη,ποῦ μὲ βία μετράει τὴ γῆ. Ἀπ᾿ τὰ κόκαλα βγαλμένητῶν Ἑλλήνων τὰ…
Kalinganagar
(“The commissioning of India’s largest blast furnace at Kalinganagar (on September 20, 2024) is a momentous occasion for the steel industry.” – T.V. Narendran, Tata Steel CEO & MD) jal-jangal-jameenthe…
Echoes of Resistance: Music and Poetry in the face of tyranny
Music and poetry have long been part of dissent, a tool of resistance, and an art form to express concerns, jubilation, remembrance, and heartbreaks. They are worthy forms of summation…
A Promise to Keep
[In memory of my mother Atia Salim Kidwai*] The sun is down, the birds returned home; The trees stand cold as the leaves hold in embraceThe moon is out, the…
A Year Of Israeli Genocide In The Present War
(7th October 23 to 7th October 24…) A long Year and the year is not going to end soonHow does a poet measure an endless year? When the Second World…
Looking Up
I realized recentlyThatIf you look up at a pine treeFrom a certain angleWith both of your feetPlanted deep in its shadowIts branches become never-ending.Standing there like that, you can seeHow…
Night
The night never was oursIt was by them, for them, of themNot made soft for the rest of a tired bodyNot made fragrant for the ease of sleepLullabies didn’t play…
Was
I don’t want to be nice and decentI want to tear off my skinAnd bludgeon my patienceAnd rip apart my smilesI want to exposeAll that’s inside of meRugged, sharp, tornShorn…
Tomorrow Someone Will Rape You
(After Meena Kandasamy) Tomorrow someone will rape youAnd no one will careAnd they will give justifications-You are Dalit, so impureWho will rape you, huh! Tomorrow someone will rape youAnd it…
Four Poems by Mazin Qumsiyeh
I slept barely three hours last night so I worked, took a vigorous walk, and contemplated life. I force myself to watch the horrors of the genocide and destruction around…
Heaven is Only for Humans
If I were to flyWhere would I go? To the distant shoreswhere water sparklesblue and green, wavesfoam in tumultuous glee… Or, to wayward Wayanad,where plantations nurturedemerald dreams till hillsdeluged mud…
Hindu Nation Vs The Unconsoled
Finally, the long awaited summons camefrom the Ministry of Utmost Happiness.(1)Relayed via Meenachilar(2) to a cemeteryin Ayemenem (2) and via Jamuna toJannath Guest House (3) in Delhi,to Sarmad- Hazrat of…
Arise! Prisoners of Hunger (Jago Anashana Bandi Otho Re Joto)
(An English translation of Kazi Nazrul Islam’s Bengali version of The Internationale from 1927) [Current translation by and copyright © Monish R Chatterjee (2024)] Arise! Ye prisoners of…
A Resolve So Bold, A Cause So Pure
Sons and daughters in faraway lands, give promise to justice, a resolve so bold,White, black, and brown speak to power, in defiance, their unity refuses to fold, Then, there are…
Operation Rainbow Wash
It seems inconceivable, I know,but it happened, it's happening now.No one can say how it beganor where or with whom.But once it began, it spreadlike an airborne virusor an inextinguishable…
A Call To Prayer
come to me hereyour eyes widelike the bride of morning i have pitched my tabernacle tentneither near nor faron the routes of passage where dust of travelersfills my nostrilsand the…
The Angels of Gaza
(Based on true and almost true events) the weeping is an immense angel,the weeping is an immense violin,the tears muzzle the wind,nothing else is heard but the weeping. From "Casida…
Lament
For the sake of Godhe saidhis voice in tremor. For sake of the Earth and moon.For wind over trees.For the sake of mirror-wateron a moonlit lake. He shaped his heartinto…
Words I Can’t Find Anymore
Children eating grass, innocent, hungry and lostMothers soaked in red, wombs tremble in terror Searching for words I may write of the pain withinSearching for words I may speak of…
Sundays
I sit still, lethargicAnd add new wordsTo the great tapestryOf female sorrows From a distant cityOver the ruinsOf a war he never foughtA boy cries, there is no wayBack to…
Operation Gold Rush
It's all about the gold.Hasn't it always been?The allure, the beauty of goldin whatever form it takes —wealth, power, fame, ironclad security. In Gaza the rush is on.Tanks, bombs, missiles,…
IN the HUMAN WORLD
In the human worldwe have heroesand villainsand cowards. Those who defend lifetaking risks aboveand beyond self interestthose who destroy lifeand those we do not carewho play games ofselfish detachment and…
Faces
The world is full.Filled with hardships.Filled with courage.Filled with suffering. EverywhereThere are human faces.Everywhere the pathosOf conscious mortality.Everywhere the pathosOf human faces. The world is full. Filled with struggles and…
The First Stone
If it were me in Palestineand I found you on a stretcherin a shell-shocked hospital,I would kneel beside youand take your hand in mine,wipe the blood from your faceand pray…
Ann Frank Meets Hind: The Girl Who Sat Amongst the Corpses
Palestine is a painA constant pain in our necksLike every Muslim is born with the Pain of Palestine in his her heart.Barring UAEians, House of Suads, etcYou fools, allGo and…
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