Poems (English)

In the year of Christ MMCC

2021-04-28T23:01:00.000-07:00

In the year of Christ

MMCC ,

will descend from the Skies

A death almighty ;

And lay asunder

Nations Over and Under

Air will get filled with enemy unseen ;

The stealthy Demon will enter the lungs

And manifold multiply

To fill the air with exhaled germs,

Claiming victims

Those who dare to venture nearby ;

Gasping millions will grasp for cure,

Consuming every word, written or spoken

By Charlatans gore ;

Shutting out the Sun

Darkness will descend from the Sky

Turning days into dreadful nights

Of unfathomable despair ;

Men will go mad

And perform pagan rites,

To collect in millions

Immersing leper-like bodies in waters

Or to elect from among them

The Madder and the Maddest ;

Medicine-men will give a name

To this Disease Divine

calling it Covid - Ten plus Nine ;

In the year of Christ 2M and 2X

As people wail

Greed will prevail,

Even for a ton of Silver

Medicines will stay Un-avail ;

And the dead will need to wait their turn

In long serpentine queues

For hasty half -dug graves

As the Earth runs out of space to spare

To bury the brave ;

Not only will people die

Amongst millions

Desire to Live , too will die !

In the year of 2M and 2X

Hope for 2M and 2XI

will die

==================================

www.hemenparekh.in / 29 April 2021

Simple Sojourn of a Solitary Soul

2021-01-21T23:19:00.001-08:00

Simple Sojourn of a Solitary Soul

Sudha is life-partner of good friend ( an ex-colleague ) Girish Trivedi

Following is her unique way to imagine what my soul might have felt while penning the poems in my book “RIPPLES “

Sudha ,

Thanks for taking me on this journey down the Memory Lane ( - which, I was always afraid to take ! )

Thanks for bringing into my life, a ray of hope – and a new sense of purpose

Many a friend and family member, have “ appreciated “ my poems

Some more who click below ( bold ), might like these

You are the only one who have “ empathized “

- Hemenbhai

22 Jan 2021

===================================================

RIPPLES

Rode on ripples as an eternal quest of joy. Enjoyed waves, waters and winds.

With setting of springs and songs of cuckoo, a mighty foe of mankind lurked beneath. Soon thorny headed evil roared like Niagara.

Tides of time hid the shadows and laid their misty icy hands making every heart weary.

Covid ! now you are here in the dark valleys, slums and multiplexes. Every home is a lonely cloud.

But media tells us :

we are so near - so far. Is the disease destroyer's master joke ?

Or His certain joy without a purpose ?

People are dying like autumn leaves.

The gravedigger of JFK is tired. Gone are voids of spaces. Lack of lilacs on mass graves.

Who will cry ? Who will whisper sayonara ?

Omnipresent death is dancing and unlocking the gates of everlasting premonition.

Hour glass is tilted. Even sphinx is stunned

Shadow of misery stalks showing scars and haunts from Coral Isles to Kanyakumari, from Anand to Urbana, from Powai to Lawrence.

Man is a commodity now.

Disease is the master of ceremony, claiming I have no form but variants.

Western wind blows on this ancient world. Rays of hope are peeping on the shore of ever changing truth.

Instead the Tik20 like, bottles of vaccine move round and round.

After all, the monster is not here forever.

Darkness of night will vanish. Human race will be breathing again beneath the sun , singing the song of love and life.

Corona is not forever. It may be the last storm.

Life will again be an everlasting picnic.

Only you- the creator of cosmos shall bring ambrosia of health to mother earth. She will rejoice- I am free.

Tomorrow is new year day - 2 0 2 1. As a pillion rider of Girish I send my pranam and regards to you and Bharatiben.

Sudha

31 Dec 2020

===================================================

To take me through the Web

2019-07-05T05:08:00.001-07:00

Penned on Aug 09 1956

======================

O Saraswati,

Fair Goddess of learning

Open my inner eyes

To behold the wonders of His creation :

The singing sky, the roaring ocean,

And forever twinkling stars,

To come to know

That they are but the shadow,

Of that form Divine .

Oh , you Sharda,

Who are lighter than the petals

of a lotus white :

Give me wings

To take me through the Web

Of Life and Death,

To merge into the eternal Brahman ,

Which alone IS,

And pervades the cosmos

Without being seen

========================

From pages of diary

My only friend

2018-12-15T21:31:00.000-08:00

My friend Horst Helle from Germany liked / shared from Facebook, the original Hindi poem :

खयालो की यहाँ बेवफाई है [ 30 April 1980 ]

Following is my English transliteration of the same

=================================================================

Vanquished by wishes

In this land of lovelies ,

I stand defeated by my dreams .

What was my destiny ?

and , where did my path lead ?

I just kept walking ,

kept watching ,

forever asking :

" Are you my true companion ? "

Were my thoughts true

or mere treacherous treason ?

Why did desires

rise from the depths of my soul

- then failed to leave my lips ?

In everlasting nights I dreamed

to hold you tight

and love you right -

Never knowing

loneliness was my only friend

======================

15 Dec 2018

Maia Is a breeze

2018-01-31T21:13:00.001-08:00

https://youtu.be/9ES1NCJIwDA

Maia ;

Our little Fairy,

Who likes to fly

Perched atop the wings

Of a summer Swallow ;

with hair blowing in the breeze

And eyes gleaming in the sun ;

But before she takes to sky

She likes to run

A mini marathon ;

She is not the one

To miss a chance

To jump with joy

on a trampoline

and

perchance , on Dadu's back !

Maia ,

Is a breeze

that flows through the flute

of our shriveled selves

- a tune

of everlasting bliss

=========================

Mumbai

01 Feb 2018

This summer noon

2016-05-20T22:04:00.016-07:00

https://youtu.be/KG_5Lsl6R1Q

__________________________________________

This summer noon ,

Gushing winds and ,
music
Of the fallen leaves ;

remind me all
of the days,

There is not
the slightest glimpse of which
today

------------------------------------------------------------

Anand / 14 March 1954
===============================

As per Google Translate on 06 Dec 2017

इस गर्मी की दोपहर, हवाओं को गश करना और, संगीत गिरती पत्तियों में से; मुझे सभी को याद दिलाना दिनों की, वहाँ नही है जो की थोड़ी सी भी झलक आज -------------------------------------------------- ----------

My own transliteration ( 12 Dec 2017 )

गर्मिओं की इस दोपहर

इक हवा का झोंका आया ,

पतझड़ के पत्तों ने जैसे
कोई गीत गाया !

मुझे आज भी याद है ,

वो दिन ,
झलक ना रही जिसकी ,

मुझे आज भी याद है वो दिन

======================================

Added on 27 Dec 2022 :

Translation done by MoxWave software :

इस गर्मी के दोपहर,

हवाओं और पत्तियों का संगीत;

मुझे सभी दिनों की याद दिलाएं,

जिसकी आज सबसे थोड़ी झलक नहीं है

-----------------------

This is almost as good as Google translation - or slightly better

_________________________________________________________________________________

Message Divine

2016-05-20T21:56:00.000-07:00

https://youtu.be/JHRpONJV-CY

__________________________________________

When
The ever-lengthening shadows
Of Kailas,
Cast their dark mantle
Over the placid waters of lake Daal ,

I have often perceived thee ,
Dearest One !

In the hues of the
Western sky ,
where
Southern wind blew ,
laden with the fragrance of thy
Message Divine

---------------------------------------------

Anand / 15 Feb 1954

Lest the soul succumb

2016-05-18T21:47:00.000-07:00

https://youtu.be/XUavt0poyvQ

__________________________________________

Oh !

Lest the soul succumb ,
Be weary led,
To treacherous path
of Mephistophilian Mind :

These mighty dwarfing walls,
of all engulfing vortex ;

The sliding , winding , ever-narrowing vision
To the centre
of this wall of extinction ;

Lest that be the fate
Of this,
Someday soaring Soul of high heavens ;

To be steeped low
With this gutter's stench,

To be drenched
In murky , filthy waters

Of rotten thoughts ,
Of infernal Schemes ,
Of vulturous appetite ,
Of devilish mirth :

Oh !

Be this not,
This self's
Beginning of the End

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Shivaji Park / 18 April , 1960

www.hemenparekh.in > Poems ( English )

Make Life Your Ever-lasting Picnic

2014-09-08T14:46:00.002-07:00

https://youtu.be/-Bw2uFGK5c8

______________________________________________________

She was only three
But , she as different,
Aneree , in my eyes :

She said :
Dadu , take me for a picnic
On the yonder hill

She carried the picnic basket
And I carried the fiber carpet

And as I grasped
Her tiny hand
Climb we did
All the 19 feet of that yonder hill ;

She ate the biscuit
And a small piece of Apple
As we sat and watched the traffic
- the lengthening shadows
In the setting sun ;

Today
As my 3 year-old girl
( in the corridors of my memories
she , for ever
will stay three )
Returns from
Climbing Kilimanjaro ,

I say,

" Let not shadows of sorrow
Spoil your Life's picnic
Climb every mountain
Climb every tree,

When Dadu is not around
Never give up,
God will hold
Your tiny hands "

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
0300 Hours

09 Sept 2014 / as Aneree returns triumphant from Mount Kilimanjaro - all of 19,000 feet !

song - eternal

2013-08-30T23:30:00.003-07:00

https://youtu.be/D2KGc5EJzEo

__________________________________________
There ,

Over the distant horizon
the sun is setting
in majestic solemnity ;

Over the clouds ablaze ,
hovers the veil of
placid , azure sky ;

And behold !

Across the stretching plains ,
in fields green ,
a new life springs
from the bosom of Mother Earth ,

-- that song eternal

-------------------------------

31 Aug 1953

My song - eternal.

2013-08-30T23:23:00.000-07:00

https://youtu.be/Jv5ZlaRdXto

__________________________________________

From over the blue horizon
comes the call
of my beautiful maid ;

O , Fair One ,

Your voice has pierced
my heart
and the pain
is unbearable !

My Love !

My heart is aflame
with your memories
and
my soul alust ;

You are my song - eternal ,
for
you come of my life !

----------------------------

29 Jan 1952

Your memory

2013-08-30T23:10:00.000-07:00

https://youtu.be/yNwYXMC8Upk

__________________________________________
My Love ,

To my soul
have I pledged ,
thy burning flare of love
to keep alive ;

And dwell
happily ,
and roam
in the realms
of your memory

-----------------------------------

29 Aug 1953

Song of life

2013-08-30T23:06:00.003-07:00

https://youtu.be/z2QaNA3vcsI

__________________________________________
Over thy breast ,
in rhythm of stormy crest ,

Amazon ,

I will sing,
a song of life

--------------------------

05 Sept 1953

coral isles

2013-08-30T23:03:00.002-07:00

https://youtu.be/OedYhv4vlw8

__________________________________________
Yonder there ,

In the blues of pacific ,
on coral isles ,
where gulls scream by the day
and rest by night ,

is the abode of my dreams

--------------------

31 Aug 1953

K - 2

2013-08-20T22:18:00.003-07:00

https://youtu.be/n-X6ooM0Eh0

__________________________________________ Thou standed high
like Hercules of old,
resting the fathomless depths
of azure sky,
on thy mighty sinews ;

Man ever strived,
to kiss
the hovering veil of mist ,
concealing a vision , all divine ;

Centuries rolled on ,
with each of them ,
thy towering heights
lured the man from distant lands,
who whispered ,

" Excelsior ! "

Year after year ,
the little dwarf
crossed glaciers
scaled precipices steep ,
defying the raging blizzard ,
only to have a faint glimpse
of your victorious smile !

You
K-2

-------------------------------

04 Aug 1954

_________________________________________

This Western Wind

2013-08-20T22:00:00.001-07:00

https://youtu.be/6skur3JpOlc

__________________________________________
Beloved One ,

This western wind
brings to me,
thy call irresistible,
from over the distant horizon ;

As you revealed yourself today ,
disclose everyday

---------------------------

23 March 1954

__________________________________________

Song of Love

2013-08-20T21:56:00.000-07:00

https://youtu.be/1_PGq5M3FUA

__________________________________________
Oh, You !
Who is sweeter than life ;

with my forehead rested on thy breast ,
glad shall I be,
to depart this ugly world ,
and hear you sing a song of eternal love ,
incessantly

-------------------

12 March 1954

__________________________________________

Divine

2013-08-20T21:51:00.001-07:00

https://youtu.be/nBGy4MvGMx8

__________________________________________
Thou hast filled
The blue above
and the dust below
With thy beauty divine

---------------------------

18 March 1954

_________________________________________

Who Knows ?

2013-08-20T21:45:00.000-07:00

https://youtu.be/ACCZXWFOSk4

__________________________________________
Is this my mind ?

Or , is it another galaxy ?

Who knows,
who cares ,
when life is so short
why waste time
on such stupid questions ?

Why not just be happy,
stupid , ignorant happy ,
and stop tearing soul apart,
stop dying
daily ;

This ignomious thousand deaths,
this immolation
of the self ,
to rise again and again from ashes
to die

-----------------------

22 Mar 1964

_________________________________________

What shall I sing ?

2013-08-20T03:52:00.001-07:00

https://youtu.be/mypB0JbAkbM

__________________________________________
How can I sing
without betraying myself ?

And what shall I sing ,
of spring ,
in far away wilderness,
that I cannot feel ?

------------------

25 Apr 1962

______________________________________

Lilacs

2013-08-20T03:43:00.002-07:00

https://youtu.be/JUkAS6sQ0oY

__________________________________________
Tomorrow
when I am dead
you will cry ;

But life ought to be beautiful
and
bring you such happiness

that I should be soon
forgotten,
as also the sorrow,

except when you bring
lilacs to my grave

--------------

26 Mar 1964

_________________________________________

Cloudless Sky ( Banyan Tree )

2013-08-19T23:47:00.000-07:00

https://youtu.be/Ut_YH6lBAEE

__________________________________________
Away ,
some thousand thousand fathoms ,
away
from a lonely stone ,
under the shade of
a still more lonely banyan tree ;

The land strewn far
under a blazing sun,
parched and dark ,

and rose to a hillock,
where the earth
the thirsty earth,
kissed the cloudless sky

----------------------

17 Oct 1955

__________________________________________

O , My Cleo !

2013-08-19T23:08:00.000-07:00

https://youtu.be/EwYnda3GqYc

__________________________________________
I am happy to have
known you ,
and borne you
so constant ,
in the anguish of my heart ;

Oh , happy , happy , happy !

To you this I owe
and if I could ever say,
it has always been
You ,
O , my Cleo !

-------------------------------

13 Mar 1964

_________________________________________

TO FORGET ( memories )

2013-08-19T23:03:00.001-07:00

https://youtu.be/X5Prf3RCIO8

__________________________________________
Isn't it best to forget
than forever to remember,
the memories
of the yester-years
that bring
more pain than pleasure ?

----------------------

Lawrence
09 Dec 1957

________________________________________

Ripples in the ocean

2013-08-19T22:51:00.002-07:00

https://youtu.be/p_66nRSjoBI

__________________________________________
Many a cruel blow
the fate has dealt ,
only to dissipate
in time ,
like ripples
of disturbed waters ;

On
all but one,
a torture
the torment of a lonely heart ;

Unyielding foe
from within ;

That fades away in daylight ,
moon-inspired
overpowering in the night

-------------------------------

Lawrence
18 Dec 1957

__________________________________________