Night

It claws back
The fragmented
And broken senses
It motions
Into unison
The vacillating desires
It seeks
And devours
The Fear within
And wards off the gloomy plight
It casts
A dark blanket of nonchalance
And wakes up the nocturnal sight
It deceives
The inner maelstrom
And plucks the plug
To outlet the whirlpool
Spiraling inside
It musters
The embers of daily chores
To quash them
Into oblivion
Before the struggle ends
At the morning yawn
With the imminent arrival
Of the monotonous light
For its life lasts
Only between
Dusk and Dawn.



PS: Gaping above at the dark expanse, kissed and caressed by the cool night breeze. Just kindles that old-repetitive-optimistic feel.

"Avenger" for ease

That breezy wind
That nature’s drifter
Sliced and spaced
As the motion
Approached its brim
Shuddering leaves
Perched on twigs
That wont quail
In all seasons
Save autumn
Shuddered and shrilled
Subjugating
To the mechanical will
And that tormentor of ease
Those broken tar roads
With those dissembled
Patches of shallow
And uneven depths
Couldn’t snare
This maverick
Bedecked with zest
And this desirer of long miles
Kindled by the fuel it fires
Just breathes vigor and sails
Yearning for roads above
In those lofty open heights
Just to get that feel
Of "god" riding the skies!!


PS: No wonder you feel like god when you ride this piece...surely an "avenger" for ease!!

Perturbations of the month

(Didn't have much fillers for this month...though there were few flutters in the wind)

*Had a revitalizing trip to Panchgani, Mahableshwar...on the slopes of the Western Ghats... A much needed break from the morose professional machinery.

*Caught up with the good old college days , banters, cussing and leg pulling, and that recursive yearning of having "figures" (babes, as we call them in the Madraasi jargon) in the all guy trip.

*Tested my new water proof camera in the resort swimming pool , clicking some dare bare , one piece clad, shedding-inhibitions-with-vengeance , underwater Adonis' (or wannabe adonis')....whom i commonly call friends...

*Vowed to have the next reunion trip only if male to female ratio is 1:1. ( Though the timeline for that proportion to be attained seems to be post marriage :) )

*The reclaimed vitality only lasted little time though, till the work related chores invaded and ended the momentary departure, fueling an urge of becoming that wanderlust escapist I always wanted to be.

*Bought a bike (my first one) the very next weekend.......with that fortifying thought of doing a bike trip across the Himalayas before turning 24....just like Che Guevara and his motorcycle diaries.

*Met with an accident the very next day......just to be reminded that Che knew how to ride a bike .

*Also learnt that bicycles to 200 cc power bikes is not the smoothest and swiftest of transitions...and that too when you last rode a two wheeler 6 years back (bi cycle ..as I mentioned).

*Started mild indulgence in beer (only socially). My teetotaler-till-I-die pledge broken. (Though can call myself quasi-teetotaler as beer is generally considered low on alcohol and I don't smoke )

*Educated myself in the art of 'making' whiskey pegs on one late night drive to Mussorie. ( I always thought of taking whiskey in the bottle in one straight gulp).

*The saying "Old wine is good" was practically justified, when my tongue fell hard on a 10 year old 'Lancers. Vowed never to sip another drop of 'old' wine of all drinks.

*Fell hard and down on an uncontrolled mental fission resulting after 6 glasses of 'light' Kingfisher during an a-high-on-ethanol office party. Awakened to the fact that a beginner is always prone to the most excruciating of reactions to the slightest infusion of alcohol.

*Finally reiterated to myself

-that there's more to life than just work and sedentary routine & that brothers can never frolic and fraternize the way they do with (or the thought of) ' figures' around , ;)

-that you don't scale mountain paths and highland roads on alloy wheels with disc breaks when all you got is peddle experience,

and last but not the least,

- that there is no better liquid than water, fresh fruit juices, soda water and few carbonated drinks (to be followed in that order), and that any organic liquid out of that sequence will be a quash to the natural existence of mind and body.

Never ever booze, never ever smoke!..An afterthought to sign off with!!

Try,Quantify

Try claim the measure
The depth of oceans
For they still don’t match
The distending notions
Light years apart
Be that faint speck
Of red dwarf
Not hazier
Than the gloom
That human doubts scarf
Try mustering,
The fusion count
Lighting the core
Fueling the fire,
That,
Fumes in contrast
To the visceral desire
And the freezing arctic
May just
Enough congeal
The barometer
Which,
Won’t even shirk,
In the placidness
That the hatred sires.

Queries to the Vagabond

Where do you wander?
Someone asks
Quiet and alone
From dawn to dusk
Where do you sleep?
Somebody inquires
Awake in the dark
Forgetful of home
Forgetful of rest
And someone speaks
To somebody
Curiously
Questioning your craft,
Your strange upkeep
About what do you do?
And what do you reap?
For you don’t look so prolific
In that normal garb
And simple sleeve
And isn’t there any
Pleasant lady,
On whom your love
pours and heaps
Or friends and brethren
Who share and mourn
Your sorrows and griefs
But how do we know,
Everybody queries,
The measure of your emotions
Set deep
In those impassive expressions
You keep
And if love and loss
In all the true sense,
Really make you feel?

But of all,
We at least believe,
That for you hope is
An unknown thought
Under imperceptible limits
Of the visible sky
And the long road is
Just a physical path
To traverse modestly
Without any urge
To pace and
Without any hurdles
To leap!

A short verse for the sloth

Rest at ease,

Oh you impatient

Your day,

Depend on the hours

Don’t scamper

You ignorant seconds

Without you

Minutes don’t recede

And the sloth that sleeps

Oblivious of your stare

In perpetual peace

Unbeknownst of thy existence

Will only awaken and ask-

And that too,

If and only if exhausted by sleep-

“Well..ahh... when did the alarm beep??”

PS: Heck!!...5 months and I havent seen 7 AM in my watch!!..So much so for the somnolent morning air of Dehradun!!

Yearning and missing.... (the associated past)

I will miss that
early morning warmth
Rousing me up from my sleep
To a strange urban calm
Continue dreaming, I will
About the vibrant and lush
Those distant yet inviting landscape
Of the unseen country farms
The sparkling white marbles
Of the holy ‘Sikh’ temples
Won’t weaken the timid eyes
While impassive feet so restless
Will miss the soft walks
On the fine roads,
Crested with,
Fallen leaves of autumn life
Only memories will remain
Of those pleasant winsome lasses,
Some with those chic dark glasses
Carrying that uplifting scent
Stirring the sundry air
And the open urban boulevards
Welcoming always ,
as if you are,
One among the masses
I will yearn for the solitary walks
Along the comforting lakeside
Where the gentle breeze
Bearing the listlessness
Of the nearby mountain peaks
Would set the thoughts free
And that strolls,
During cool late nights
In the empty market squares
Supplying the worked up mind
Much needed respite.

Do take me back,
If you want to, oh endearing sights
Even though I cursed you
During our first few nights
But I am not the master of my fate
At least, not for this while…..
So wait till the time bears
The change of tide
And I will be there
To fall again , into your arms
On the very first ride.


PS: Some entrancing aura this city wields, even to a impassive passerby like me.... No wonder they call it the 'city beautiful'...Chandigarh.