Ms Neelam Saxena Chandra

☆ Fear of Future ☆

(Ms. Neelam Saxena Chandra’s  poem “Fear of Future”  is amazing.  Feeling of an unborn child in a foetus can be only imagined and felt by a women author.  Truly, as a gentleman author I can only honour the  feelings of a women.)

Embedded in the womb of time,

The foetus of an unborn child stretched its feet;

It kicked and growled and roared,

Tremendous energy existed in the frame petite!

It troubled the mom by playing mischief,

Now and then it would kick the womb’s wall;

As if that was not enough

It would move around violently like a football!

Pestered by the waywardness of the foetus,

The desolate mother would wail tears;

Perturbed by its tricks and guiles,

The pitiful mother would shiver with fears!

An illegitimate and unwanted child it was,

The mother knew not how to abort it;

Her nervousness kept multiplying every moment,

And her forlorn tummy grew bit by bit!

The foetus was nothing but the fear of the future

And though it didn’t exist, it hounded the body,

Let not anxiety and phobias torture your heart,

Live the present with happiness and glee!

Ms Neelam Saxena Chandra

☆ Bequest ☆

(Ms. Neelam Saxena Chandra’s  poem “Bequest”  will definitely compel you to think that how dark night and dark side of life follows like a ghost for whole life, particularly in dark.  Still, I find a silent message to struggle with present for the future.)

So peaceful was her life,

The sea provided her a peaceful calm;

The waves were lovely and soothing

Having a composed charm…

Suddenly it was dark

The albatross shrieked;

There were wild tremors

Jeopardy reeked…

Life changed for her

In the fraction of a second,

There was water and water

And then everything blackened…

The enchanting sea

Engulfed her near and dear ones;

The waves which had been tranquil erstwhile

Suddenly became destructive like dragons…

As she was helplessly watching the destruction,

There was a loud uproar-

One particular large wave jumped at her

And she was dragged ashore…

The harbour waves kept

Pushing and pulling her;

But she kept holding on

Like a providential survivor…

Although she could endure and live on,

She still feels hapless and sad-

Her near and dear ones

Have left for the other world and are dead…

The sea has given her a bequest

She does not want to remember at all;

The waves: they still come and go

But she no more listens to their call…

The ghosts of the past

Shall live on with her forever;

Life shall normalize and she may forget it in the daylight

But the silent night shall make her remember it forever…

© Ms Neelam Saxena Chandra

Ms Neelam Saxena Chandra

☆ Woman ☆

(Ms. Neelam Saxena Chandra’s  poem “Woman”  will definitely compel you to think not only “woman’s emotions” but “Woman Power” too.  Amazingly scripted.)

Everyone thought that I am a breeze

Flowing gently over hills and vales,

Regaling all those who come my way,

Revitalizing those whose heart ails.

Air, that I am, I have various shapes

And the tender breeze was just one form;

When time summons me to rise,

My own strength I outperform.

Stronger and stronger I blow and blow

Stirring all those who come my way;

Affection does win me over anytime

But arrogance makes me harder sway.

The more the hostility, the more my outburst,

My anger then assumes the form of tempest;

Crushing everything that comes in my path,

Submerging the vast cities and the forests…

I am a woman

The way you perceive me, a reflection you shall see;

If you love and admire me, I shall be a gentle breeze,

If you downcast me, I shall rise like a phoenix!

© Ms Neelam Saxena Chandra

Ms Neelam Saxena Chandra

☆ Illimitable You ☆

(Ms. Neelam Saxena Chandra’s  poem “Illimitable You” amazingly describes each and every aspect of life, memories and existence after death without using the word ‘soul’.  I can only say a word ‘mesmerized’.)

They say that gone are you

Gone forever…

They say that your body has with sand mixed

All the traces of your existence taking away…

I try to grasp the facts

But my heart to disagree continues…

When your body burnt

Something called you on the ground below fell…

Grown there are small shoots of plants-

Didn’t they see?

When your ashes were in the water dispersed

A part of you touched the shores

Sprouted there is life in the form of small plants-

Can no one see?

When a part of you with the river water mingled,

A few fishes drank you bringing new zest in them-

Didn’t they see?

When the remaining of you

With the sea mixed

You brought hope in the whole world…

To a few of us solely you belonged

Till a little while ago

But now you are omnipotent

Giving your zest and enthusiasm to the whole milieu!

You are boundless

You are unlimited

You are infinite

And traces of you here and there and everywhere

Make me feel that you are still alive

In different forms!

Ms Neelam Saxena Chandra

☆Tearful Adieu  ☆

(Thousand salutes to Ms. Neelam Saxena Chandra’s pen to pen down such emotional poem. Only an author/mother poet like Ms Neelam ji can write such poem. I could not stop my tears while reading this poem being a human being and an author/father of a daughter who is now mother.)

Mom, so secured was I in your womb;

My life inside you was a real miracle!

My tiny feet swam in glee; my little hands cuddled you merrily;

My toothless mouth would often giggle and cackle!

Mom, so happy was I in your womb;

But, one day, some quivering clatters I could hear –

I heard someone scream and roar, “I don’t want daughters anymore!”

I sobbed as I listened to your helpless tears…

Mom, how could I smile in your womb

When I had understood that being a daughter was so bad?

My little eyes cried and heart yelled; something in me had already failed

Alas, I realized that I would soon be dead!

Mom, although I shall no longer dwell in your womb,

Your warmth and affection I shall surely miss….

To you, I shall not lie; I had not expected to die:

But fate had in store for me this deathly kiss!

Mom, so happy I am to have been a part of your womb,

Although the togetherness was destined as a short boon !

As death pounces and approaches near, I bid you a tearful adieu mom dear,

May a hundred sons be born to you soon!

© Ms Neelam Saxena Chandra

Mr Piyush Lokhande

A Journey called Life!

Darkness of the night sky with diamonds twinkling,

The stars don’t disappear, they keep blazing.

Mystic and supernatural is the aura rendered blissfully,

For the stars whisper the dialect of the unspoken instinctively.

Roaming-about, discovering places and unraveling hidden secrets sounds so intriguing,

All this doubles and triples while embarking.

Travel ain’t just an activity but a part of our very life,

Making one’s mind ain’t as tough as fire and ice.

Soaring high up above the horizons and limits,

Carving a niche amongst the not so infamous.

Diversified food, culture, ethnicity and religion delivers immortal meaning,

For journey is not meant to be traveled but lived without intervening.

Trivial and insightful thoughts have their value in gold,

Being reciprocative of what your dreams are about knows no threshold.

© Mr Piyush Lokhande

Mr Piyush Lokhande

When the Night Goes Dark!!!

(e-abhivyakti welcomes Mr Piyush Lokhande.  Mr Piyush is a brilliant young poet and we present his amazing poem When the Night Goes Dark!!!.) 

It feels so lonely and fearful when the night goes dark,
Hear the hounds from the distance while they bark.
Embarking on an unending journey, a traveler starts,
Nocturnals coming out from their shades and the moon’s dim arc.

The wanderer wanders amidst the dusk so black,
Seeking and searching the purpose of his very existence
Like a lost duck separated from his trustworthy pack.

Haunted and bewildered by the wilderness around,
The poor soul’s eyes lit up sighting a hut by the nearby ground.
Topsy and curvy pavements lead onto a ray of hope,
Only to be obstructed by a dim shadow lurking in a bright night cloak.

Shimmy gray eyes of an aged damsel inquire the traveler’s intentions,
Food, thirst and a place to rest gain an instinctive ascension.
Touched by the tourist’s sorry state, queen nods hesitantly,
Warm cup of soup and soft cozy blanket renders the feel pleasantly.

Invigorated traveler resumes his exhaustive outing,
Passing the wild forests while the sunlight starts crowding.
Such philosophical and profound this life has been,
Clouding judgment from a damsel to the noblest queen.

While one prefers to run away from the darkest of shadows 
The other bathes in the rays of faith and hope that follows.

© Mr Piyush Lokhande

Hemant Bawankar

Heart, eyes, and tears

(This poem has been cited from my book “The Variegated Life of Emotional Hearts”.)

These tears are surprising

which are very close to every heart.

There is a strange relationship

amongst heart, tears and eyes.

Even though,

staying away from the heart,

these are close to every heart.

By the way

Eyes cry many times in life.

Sometimes they cry in joy.

Sometimes they cry in sorrow.

Sometimes they cry when we are awake.

Sometimes they cry when we are asleep.

People Say –

the woman is so sensitive

having a source of tears in her eyes.

However,

I had seen him turning away,

and wiping his eyes

at the time of his wife’s adieu.

I had seen tears in his eyes

at adieu of

his sister

and daughter too.

I had seen tears in his eyes

even when, as a social responsibility

he brought one daughter from another home

with the feeling of adieu of

his sister

and daughter too.

I had still seen tears of joy in his eyes

when you had given presence

in your mother’s womb.

I had still seen tears of joy in his eyes

when he preached the good stories

when you were in the womb

so you may get lessons of life

to overcome the life’s trap.

I had seen tears of helplessness in his eyes

when he found himself constrained

to meet your urgent needs.

I had even seen tears in his eyes

when someone could not understand him

when someone could not honour

his feelings

his relationships.

I had still seen tears of joy in his eyes

when you moved ahead

to fight with life’s lessons

rejuvenating yourselves.

These tears are surprising

which are close to every heart.

There is a strange relationship

amongst heart, tears and eyes.

Even though,

staying away from the heart

these are close to every heart.

© Hemant Bawankar

Ms Neelam Saxena Chandra

The Guest

(The English version of Ms. Neelam Saxena Chandra’s   poem revealing the truth of life  पाहुणा )

I am myself on this earth

Like a guest,

I don’t have the right

To call the house as mine,

To call the things as mine,

To call the jewellery as mine!

Relationship is also not mine,

Relatives are also not mine,

You are also not mine,

I am also not yours,

Everything is but an illusion!

There is only one truth-

We have come to this earth only for a little while

And if we can spend it with love,

It will be the best!

© Ms Neelam Saxena Chandra

Hemant Bawankar

Tragedy of Humanity

(34 years ago in the night of December 2-3, 1984, MIC gas was leaked from the Union Carbide, Bhopal. My poem is a tribute to all those people who lost their life in this incident.  This poem has been cited from my book “The Variegated Life of Emotional Hearts”.)

I heard that

in unknown nations

unknown human beings were

knowingly or unknowingly

burnt alive

killed in gas chambers

burnt in radiation…..

Since then

our humanity

has been lost in space

and slept in vain.

Remember those moments

when MIC¹ was leaked

from a pesticide factory

in that dark night

when

the entire world was sleeping

and

an innocent child was weeping

embraced by

the poisonous gas

in the dead mother’s lap.

A youth

just slept

taking his last breath

on a nearby road

who was blessed

for longevity

by an astrologer.

Alas!

That innocent child…. and

so-called long-lived youth

are the sign of

thousands of dead human beings.

On that night

black or white

rich or poor

and

beyond the definition of racism

were not running

but,

entire humanity

was running.

Those

who smelled MIC¹

slept with last breath

and

those who could not…

they are sick

and

approaching to slow death

with the side effect.

We can only remember

their souls

in anniversaries

of such tragedies

that is becoming

the dark side of

the humanity

the history.

1. MIC – Methyl Isocyanate.

© Hemant Bawankar