Tag: #English-Poetry

(Dr. Rita Malhotra is a mathematician, poet, essayist and translator. Former Principal, KNC, University of Delhi, Post-Doctoral Fellow, University of Paris, she holds the august offices of Academic Advisor SI College Chennai and World Poetry Ambassador India (courtesy WP Canada). With sixteen published books, her writings are globally published and translated into fourteen languages. Recognitions include The Honour by World Congress of Poets, ‘Distinguished Poet’ Award Canada, Honour for international Cultural Relations Romania besides others.)

☆ ~ ‘Play of light and dark…’ ~ ☆ Dr. Rita Malhotra ☆

(The Prize-winning entry in the Literary Warriors Group Contest. The subject of the contest was “परछाइयां” /Shadows”.)

☆

endearing shadows echo the self

in diverse shades, in varied hues

shaping identities in beams of light

in enchanting changing patterns

as time walks in sunshine steps

shadows hold light in soulful love

curl up thin at noon

elongate with the sun’s adieu 

embrace creative calm

through the golden twilight hour

as they trace our unseen beings

and follow us in shadow steps                       

they paint life and sculptures alike

add depth to the scape around

light whispers cajolery

to these tranquil shadow-mates

in poetic complexion

time now slips from within my palms

rhythms change in spaces void

my own shadow parts with me

a stranger to my being

receding shadows of broken dreams

hide the face of tragedy

his descent in the land of silence

makes memories bleed

calm and storm alternate

like shadows light and dark

today in my aloneness

as shadows turn to dust 

i recall but his through agonised tears.

☆

(Mrs. Rupa Bhargava, a.k.a “Ajaat Anant” is a bilingual wordsmith, consultant by day, mother of two and is a seeker of life’s mysteries. Her poems delve into love, life, relationships, spirituality and philanthropy. She has performed at various local and international poetry platforms. She embraces adventure sports, loves to travel, paints, serenades with her voice and guitar.)

☆ ~ ‘Floating in the Dark viscosity…’ ~ ☆ Mrs. Rupa Bhargava (Ajaat Anant) ☆

(The Prize-winning entry in the Literary Warriors Group Contest. The subject of the contest was “परछाइयां” /Shadows”.)

☆

How I play?  and get played, 

By reticent energies thick as tar,

Dark viscosity smears clairvoyance,

Obscure, heavy & opaque as they flow, 

Slithering through the twisted spine, 

Like visceral vines of the dimensions,

She sits there laughing and dancing,

with her supposedly dominant glow,

Unaware shamelessly of her darkness,

and the sifting sands of her existence, 

Parables and eternal paradoxes summons,

The vicious multitude of rhetorical blows,

As I struggle to move, 

stuck in the maze of dense tar,

Pulling myself out with all my 

might and strength,

Everytime aiming to cut through 

the stifling blur,

Fighting the dark viscosity,  

I continue to flow…,

I will always continue to flow.

☆

(Mrs. Poornima Rao is from Jabalpur, India.  A teacher by profession, teaching Physics at the +2level.  She pens down her thoughts either as prose or poetry on issues that touch her heart.  She also hosts and coordinates in online poetry meets. Her poems have been published in four anthologies, Goonj the breaking of Shackles, Mosaic of poetical Musings, Waqt ek rahasya and Unscrambling of time and Yug Purush Shriram Yogi Series. She is Interested in understanding the scriptures in depth and is currently persuing Gita chanting and study through online classes.)

☆ ~ ‘SHADOW WORLD…’ ~ ☆ Mrs. Poornima Rao ☆

(The Prize winning entry in the Literary Warriors Group Contest. The subject of the contest was “परछाइयां” /Shadows”.)

☆

Shortest we at noon

But pretty long by evening

And merge into the darkness by night.

Short lived is our span

But regrets we have none

Welcome to our world of shadows

Loyal to rectilinear propagation

No 3D spaces we encroach

Two dimensionally we waltz

We are content with cool areas

Spread beneath a large tree

Or a colourful humble umbrella

We rejuvenate and protect.

We soothe and rest tired feet

And cool a tired brain

As the Sun, Earth and Moon align

And play hide and seek at eclipse,

Lucky ones on the umbral path wait

 With bated breath for Baily’s Beads

And the diamond ring in dazzle

Discriminate we not and will never

Between the kind world and the cruel

Nor the coloured clan and the fair

Nay,  judgmental is not our job

Picture perfect contours

We are an artist’s envy

In this brightly lit world

A parallel presence we are

You can’t miss or ignore

☆

Dr. Balesh Jindal is an author, artist, poet, photographer and a Physician, practicing for forty years. She has written two poetry collections and one nonfiction.

• She was awarded the Day of Compassion award by Stanford University and has been mentioned by BBC.com and other international journals. 
• Her art adorns the walls of collectors around the world. 
• Her publications include Dear Father, A Hundred Dreams and The Reluctant Doctor. Her poems are a part of at least ten anthologies.)

☆ ~ ‘Evening Shadows…’ ~ ☆ Dr. Balesh Jindal ☆

(The Prize-winning entry in the Literary Warriors Group Contest. The subject of the contest was “परछाइयां” /Shadows”.)

☆

The sun cast variable shadows,

As it became purple and deeper

Descending sharply

On the placid lake

For its daily repose.

Clouds stood restful 

In the skies above,

Even  as I recounted 

The happy day that was..

The evening shadows slithered and 

Coalesced into sheets of darkness

And engulfed us in a strange

Moonless night.

Cirrus clouds frolicked

In the skies above,

even as I thought 

We were happy.

By evening, 

The slivers of shadows

coalesced into a 

sheet of darkness

that engulfed the Earth 

Around us.

Suddenly, in the dark, I saw 

We were just pretending.

☆

(Dr Anshu Sharma is a bilingual poet, writes in Hindi as well as English, in addition she’s a medical graduate & postgraduate from Delhi university and pursued a successful career. She worked as a public health officer and an avid Covid warrior.

Her debut poetry collection in Hindi ‘Antarman ke Samvaad‘ was published in 2020. Her poems are focused on various social, environmental issues and nature, have been published in Anthologies and in Magazines.)

☆ ~ ‘Shadows of Yesterday…’ ~ ☆ Dr. Anshu Sharma ☆

(The 2nd Prize winning entry in the Literary Warriors Group Contest. The subject of the contest was “परछाइयां” /Shadows”.)

☆

The shadows stretch from days gone by,

Whispers of echoes, a hollow sigh.

They creep along the silent walls,

A past that haunts, a voice that calls.

*

They walk ahead, I follow behind,

A silent echo, a shape undefined.

Born from light, yet draped in the night,

A fleeting form, never truly mine.

*

They tell of scars, of battles lost,

Of bridges burned, of heavy cost.

They weigh like stones upon my chest,

A sleepless mind, a soul distressed.

*

Yet shadows form, where light still glows,

Beyond the dark, the sunrise grows.

The past may call, but it won’t define,

A fleeting ghost, no longer mine.

*

I rise again, though burdened still,

With a weary heart but an iron will.

For every shadow cast in time,

Proves there’s a light my soul will shine.

*

I will not bow, I will not break.

The dawn is mine, my path to make.

For even when the night is long,

I walk with hope, I sing my song.

☆

(Mr. Shivanand Pandey is an English educator and Master’s scholar with a deep passion for literature, storytelling, translation, and creative writing. Hailing from the culturally rich city of Lucknow, they draw inspiration from its artistic heritage. Their works span short stories, novels, and poetry.)

☆ ~ ‘The Shadow’s Dirge…’ ~ ☆ Mr. Shivanand Pandey ☆

(The First Prize winning entry in the Literary Warriors Group Contest. The subject of the contest was “परछाइयां” /Shadows”.)

☆

I walk where golden beams allow,

A slave to light, yet never seen,

No voice to break, no solemn vow,

No kingdom lost, no realm to glean.

*

I spill in length when evenings wane,

I crouch and fade ‘neath noon’s command,

Yet though I follow, mute, in vain,

He never seeks to understand.

*

I twist on walls like whispered sin,

Or pool beneath his weary tread,

No breath to lose, no bones within,

Yet tethered still, though long since dead.

*

I mock his gait in silent jest,

A mimic bound yet never whole,

His closest kin, his voiceless guest,

No weight to bear, no wandering soul.

*

At dawn I rise, by dusk I drown,

By starlit hush, I cease to be,

Yet when the night unchains the town,

Then he is lost—and I am free.

*

For in the dark, where none remain,

Where light has bled and time runs thin,

The world is mine to roam again,

And he, not I, is locked within.

☆