Serpentine

Hiss.. Hiss..
A slither, a kiss
As he crept, underneath that silver
Wind rushing, sober and over
An endless seam of leaves and light
A squeal, a swoosh, the owl took flight
And there beneath the tree, she waited
With her poise, breath bated
She shone, dark, soft, slimy
Gasped, stunned by her beauty was he
And swiftly, quickened his pace
Struck by her looks, her grace
Overcoming every leaf, every sliver
He would, wait, gasp and slither
And to end that endless wait
He stood, hood spread, at her gate
She saw, her eyes gleamed, hissed
Stoned was he, for he missed
Her sense, angst, as late he was
She turned, delved without a pause
Into their haven, below the tree
He was alone, in this hour of wee
And as unexpected would it seem
Not in thoughts, not in dream
Came from nowhere, a mighty kite
Pricked him, and took another flight
Caught in the midst of toxic love and shock
He fumbled, fret, but found no way to flock
His strength, his will, for he was blown
By this force so evil, so unknown
And as his breath slowed, as the blood drained
The wind went still, he went still, earth stained
Then she came, with forgiveness in her eyes
They turned red, boiling, spotting where he lies
Bloodshot, she fumed, her fork unstable
Sparkled her fangs, control herself, she wasn’t able
For a moment, it seemed, everything froze
And then she leapt, as her anger rose
So did the kite, and leaped down mid flight
Pecked on her, to her left, to her right
She waited for this, for she was ready
Took her moment, when the kite was unsteady
Flicked her tongue, and pierced her fangs in
Screeched into the night, paying for his sin
The kite smote her more, in all, in his rage
And tumbled to a side, concluding his age
Could not live for more, not even a moment
And she remained, mortally wound, to lament
She picked up all she was, all she could
Wished to love him more, oh how she would
Slithered down the strains, her blood dropped on his
She calmed down on him, perfecting a simple bliss
To die with him, him, whom she loved
She lay on him, all bruised, all roughed
And again as wind blew, on this night of Nov
Lay there, two long beings, bound by their love

Trekking into sedentary lives : Volume 1

6:30 on a winter morning, the time one loves the most to be cuddled up beneath layers of wool and sheet. The time, when nothing can actually shake you off that cozy and warm comfort. Well, not exactly nothing. The irritating ring of your cell phone surely does.

Too much of exaggeration there and I forgive myself for the same. Continuing on my tale of our day-long endeavor, it was Uma’s call that woke me up from my winter morning dream. Time to get ready.7:00 AM and we are in an auto rushing through the unexpected chill in Pune towards our next team member (Emily), hampering down on our cell phones trying to reach out to our other team member (Ayan), who in fact, was blissfully unaware of our state.

Not torturing you through with how who met whom at what time and blah blah blah, we all were boarded on the 8:00 AM Local to Lonavla as they would call it. Hmm…Local trains… Whatt-a-charm…. Guess not.

As they say, Indians are the greatest consultants in the world, who never stop giving endless advises and solutions to others’ problems in spite of themselves drowning deep down in worries of unlimited extent. And if they don’t say, hmm..., I do. But for this very nature of a fellow traveler that our day turned out to be not at all what we expected. (Not that we had any expectations at all). Well, as he said, “ I work in Lonavla, why the hell are you going there at this point of time. All you’ll get is chikkis. And nothing that one would otherwise go to Lonavla for. Better go to Malavali.” Well, reluctant initially, we did start listening to him though. And as he explained, Malavli was the station before Lonavla where you have a choice to go to two different caves – the Bhaje & the Karla. And so we drastically reformed our plan, dropped out of the train at Malavli, crossed over atop the Mumbai-Pune-expressway and started off towards the Bhaje Caves.

With a 2km trailing road, hardly a few houses and less than 10-15 folks coming in our way, we reached the base and started our climb. Mind you, I had not climbed even a hillock, leave a mountain, for the past 4-5 years. And after the wonderful food and sedentary life for the last 6 months, this indeed, was a BREAK.

Not counting the ‘n’ number of times we stopped while climbing up, we stopped for the tickets with the wonderful notice of … ahem… preferential treatment for being an Indian.

Anyways, so walking, climbing, sitting, waiting, drinking, huffing, gasping, awing, and loafing, we finally reached the Bhaje Caves.

All this while we thought it was called the Buddha Leni. Whereas it is now that I come to know that it is not simply Leni but Pandavleni Caves - a group of about 20 caves in this region, that is central Maharashtra. Well, some history lesson.

Carrying forward with my story, my journey rather, what we saw in t

he Bhaje caves was beauty. Beauty, silent and serene and stoned in… Sorry, my mistake, stoned out into our eyes, out of the mountain rocks, speaking a story, speaking about a time, over 2000 years ago. The moment we looked at the caves, we were struck by their beauty, their intricacy and their logic. They were not just some structures but were built with a purpose. And we kept trying to look into them and give reasoning to the way they had been built. A set of rooms, perfectly matching our hostel rooms, with stone bed, stone shelf and a place in the wall to keep a lamp. Water tanks etched out of the mountains on the outer walls of the caves suggested of the efficient engineering skills that the workers would have had then. Who could believe that the way those tanks had been carved was to trap the water flowing over the rocks in a way that it provided for minimum evaporation thus storing the water.

And what we had to our back was a scene worth reminiscing. A grand view of a land dotted with mountains and ranges. And then the path ahead to Karla….

Wish it'd be true

The sun, moon and stars, they sway
As they come, in my way
My way across the multi-verses
To find love and caress
As i fly, from my abode
No wish to stop on this tiring road
Wind, unwind across the seas
Of Solar dust and bliss
And then i open my sleepy eyes
To her face, there she lies
That lovely face, so round n soft
Pure, light aloft
I think and i pray as i see
For this lovely gift, to the almighty
No thing, no wish could compare in price
So sweet and nice
I look at you, and bother not
All my fears, tears forgot
With you i feel, I am free
Ma, be with me
To picture you, and sing this song
Feel the rhythm ,and sing it along
Wish, i'd freeze this moment with you
Be it true

I saw Beowulf a day before, listened to those songs in that movie - Gently As She Goes and A Hero Comes Home - was too much for me to get inspired and write for my mom.. :-)

To fly, free and me...

All I need is to be free,
Soaring through the worlds on a flying spree
Flapping my tiny little wings
Facing all the winds' mood swings
Hiding between the green and yellow
Grasslands and forests, both deep and shallow
And swiftly brush against the wet moss dew
Be happy being one of those few
To know what is true and real
To know how it would feel
All I need is to be me
Not the tiniest of dirt to see
Feel myself, feel true, feel pure
Treasure every smile, for sure
Disregard and fight every tear
Move over the moments i fear
Feel safe, feel firm, feel strong
Do no bad, no wrong
And let the good flow through me
Let myself be what i'd be

LOVE !!!

Do you think
Is love a crime
Whilst we all
Perform a mime
When mouths are shut
And eyes do speak
And feelings are not
Weak and bleak
In this state
Of higher being
We do laugh
And we do sing
We do care
And we do bear
And in all hopes
We do swear
To behold the spark
From the start
That’s kindled
In our heart
Love is serene
Love is pure
Love is above all
That’s for sure
Then why on earth
Do we have to fear
About things that are
Far from dear
Things of hatred
That come to war
With the forces of love
And to mar
A world so fine
A world so nice
A world devoid of
All malice
The world of love
As I see
So soft so smooth
And so free
Where we speak
But use no words
Where we think
Only of Gods
Of Goddesses
Who share the power
To love the beings
And to shower
Love unperturbed
Love undivided
Love so strong
Love unchided
The world of beauty
The world of joy
Where everyone’s free
Free of all coy
The touch of tenderness
That sends a shock
That causes lovers
To love and flock
A kiss so sweet
A blush so lame
Beloved’s delight
And a lover’s aim
And dare I say
As people would
It’s infatuation
Not to be rude
But they’re wrong
All of them
They don’t know
That love’s a gem
That’s been from the
Past and the ages
That’s been worshipped
By saints and sages
That stands in itself
Even today
To fight them all
In its way
They who don’t know
What it is
The source of joy
The source of bliss
When one’s not
What is one
But in fact
It is someone
Else who gains
Superiority over us
Selflessly we care for
And it is thus
We’re not ourselves
Not anymore
For we love someone
From our core
Our heart is fast
And pulse is slow
Where body is slump
And fast is mind’s flow
As it is love
Maybe sometimes blind
And that is what
Affects our kind
We’re not focused
At times I see
That comes to the
Haters’ glee
This is not what
Is my wish
Let the wind
Come with a swish
Let the nature
Find its way
We have to love
And them to pay
For their deeds
They’ve done
We’ll live and love for
That war would’ve been won

And thus would have been established the KINGDOM OF LOVE in all its sense and genuinity………

My Family....

In the sun, in the stars

On Saturn and on Mars

As I glide and as I go

With the sweep, with the flow

Through the white, through the dark

With remorse and with a spark

Of a never ending hope

With a dream, with a scope

Of getting what I yearn

To receive and to learn

The source of the good

Of the mind and its food

That the cosmos has inspired

The fire that has been fired

That glows amidst all gloom

For the flowers of life to bloom

And I get and yes I get

In the joy not do I fret

For its amazing what I see

In this world what a family?

Where diversity acclaimed, is of its members

Who burn and glow like the embers

Spreading the fire of love and joy

Bereft of harshness and of coy

To carry the torch of gaiety, aflame

And I know they’re all the fame

Forever...

I saw and i wondered why
The grass was green, blue was the sky
The rise of sun, was it a boon
The silvery river, source was the moon
creepy nights and the wispy fog
Fresh morning dew drops on a wet log
Ricketty crickets, colourful butterflies
A sweet song, the wind cries
Carrying in it, call from a mother
To those, who dont care, dont bother
A mother so old, yet incarnates beauty
Calls her children, once who swore fielty
To love and live, in her shadows
Golden grasslands, ever green meadows
Unfathomable forests, sweet streams
A world of colours, a world of dreams

She cries, She wails, to no avail
Her children unbothered, hearty n hale
Lost in a world,supposedly their own
Seemingly lost, consequences not known
They fight, they kill, life of all kind
No more they have, no heart, no mind
Greed n lust, power is wht rules
Plundering this paradise like fools
Butchering the mother, bit by bit
Till no one's left, no saint, no git
A dark shadow, i can see it loom
Feeding on happiness, spreading all gloom
Throwing us all, back to the past
It won't stop, if we dont act fast
Stop this madness, being wreckless as never
Else our mother, will be lost forever

Dunno What It Was !!

As i wept beneath the starry sky
As no one cud hear or see me cry
The air, the wind, the leaves though moved
The insides of me, grief within, grooved
No means can i find to convey my loss
No song, no letter, no beer gloss
But then i saw
With an open jaw
Right above me
A miracle to see
Up above, from the sky it fell
As it caused my heart to swell
With a feeling unknown
A touch so dear, i cud own
The star of life, the star of love
As sweet as honey, as soft as dove
There right there, it stood
A fairy, glowing under a hood
She was my life, i knew
Like bread and jam, honey and dew


Well there actually were two more lines, but i thought that can wait for long now... :-)
Enjoy !!!

A Sweet Little Gift…

As I see in your eyes, so soft, so clear

A peace that never dries, my love, my dear

Much was awaited, this moment, this time

Just a glimpse of, your smile, your mime

The touch of your skin, so supple, so pure

It sends a chill, does frighten, does lure

For I feel possessed, by you, your touch

Drawn to your presence, not enough, not much

All I wish is, to feel, to see

My darling, with you, to be

Every worth it is, the longing, the pain

Until this moment, the emptiness, the strain

As I feel, your air, your presence

I wholly disregard, all logic, all sense

To caress you I have, an urge, a drive

But the moment I feel, so timid, so naïve

A gift bestowed by, my God, my wife

The best of all in, my world, my life

A smile so priceless, so sweet, so airy

My daughter, my child, my little fairy

The Land, The Lore, The Lady...

A gust of air, a smell of unmatched kind

Enchanted, one puts all else behind

To look into this land, so serene, so pure

Would leave all gratified for sure

Ellesmera, the land of life

No cries, no sorrow, no war, no strife

The land inhabited by divine

Creatures, innumerable, all benign

Conscious to their very existence

Beauty unmatched in every sense

Overwhelming all, it seems, life exists

In the very air that one breathes

The rays of the sun on moss laden leaves

Sparkling little stones, as it heaves

A new dawn, a new day

A new hope, keeping all ill at bay

All one wishes is to have one’s brethren

Here, at a place, no more than heaven

To sing to the glory of nature’s height

Sing along to all’s delight

As wind whistles, as the birds twitter

Life bites all sour, all bitter

As the flowers dance to the tunes

Of nature, as if the very runes

Of life, are being written

At this place, carefully hidden

From all, that it excludes

The earthly world, which it deludes

Behold, as I speak of the lore

Long ago, before the days of yore

Their lived a race, not elf, not man

A race extinct, when it all began

The age that wrought the present day

When the Varya had their way

Of flesh, they were fashioned

That link with men they rationed

Of great power they possessed

That link with elves they raised

Of beauty, they had unmatched

That link with nature they hatched

A race that purged all evil from this land

With strength undaunted they had at hand

But then they swore fealty to nature

Not to fight being of any stature

There was peace as never had been

And to behold their legacy, they were keen

They used their power for all the good

They sang to the air, to the water, to the wood

Their power flowing in their voices

Upholding the pact of their made choices

They created this world with wonders

Their force, here, still lingers

They sang to the air, beyond all dreams

They sang to water, in one of every streams

They sang to the woods, to every tree

They sang to all life, all that was free

With their voices ringing, and love at heart

They sang their way and made a start

To create Ellesmera, their homeland

Where peace resides in every grain of sand

Thus was born this land of fate

Where all loved, and none could hate

But how long was this to prevail

For there were forces elsewhere, frail

Frail, yes, but full of malice

Teeming with all wretched vice

For long had the Varya been eyed

But with fear, they never tried

To scourge this land of pure good

Where stand, no evil could

Not until a day when they heard of it

The oath of theirs, not to fight any bit

Began a strange amassing of army

From land, from air, and from the sea

As it was, the Varya were unaware

Busy with their duties and fare

Within the Varya, lived one

A lady with elegance matched by none

With power and strength supreme

But full of love, that none could dream

She was but hailed as the mother of all

She was respected, every rise, every fall

Songs she sang, so all fare well

To clean the land, no wicked could dwell

Lya was her name, tall and fair

An aura around her rested, so rare

Her locks flowed as the softest river

Her smile was such, that all would revere

She sang, from the Saea tree, her lair

A song a day to the tree, would be her fare

In the heart of Ellesmera, lived she

From all predicaments was she free

And it happened and the day arrived

With war on them, the Varya strived

For it was their oath that held them

And was soaked with blood Ellesmera’s hem

The streams was red, the so was the soil

Powerful yet harmless, they could not foil

The evil that had befallen on their grounds

As death took tolls, rounds, and rounds

Thus the grace of Ellesmera was lost

All this, at such a huge cost

The race was butchered, one and all

But there still was Lya, ignorant of her kin’s fall

For she was lost in her songs, in her world

But when such unhappy tidings unfurled

Broken was she, losing all her might

Enraged was she, ready to fight

Breaking her oath, she swore to her friend

Nature, asking her helping hand

To avenge her kin’s murder

Wasting no time, no energy to ponder

On the consequences that were to follow

She sang to every leaf, every grain, and every willow

She sang and sang, growing wilder and wilder

Never had her song been filled with such power

With her song’s force, the land was alive

Unimaginably enraged was she and her drive

As if there was life in the trees, in the air

They took the wretched creatures unaware

Frightened were they seeing her force

They had nothing to do, no plan, no course

She killed them all, one by one

She sang till survived none

Such rage, such anger she possessed

She wasn’t tired, she wasn’t stressed

She only wished to hunt and hunt

Killing them all, she did grunt

For then she realized what had she done

A sin, an act of evil, of extreme form

Her pain, her regret reached far into her

Into her mind, her self, growing stronger

She wept, wiled and walked

For it was the Saea, she stalked

She stopped there, dead still

And let her voice, her tone fill

With all her power, her pain she could muster

Recounting her power to love, to foster

Around Saea, she spread and wound her arms

Full of regret, guilty of all harm

That she had done to her Nature

To prevent an unholy tainted future

She began her song, the song to mend

Flowing with the power she wished to send

Mending the hell that had befallen

On Ellesmera, making it all the more sullen

She sang and sang, her voice drowning

With every note, her power growing

She cleansed the land, but still didn’t halt

She sang and sang, to mend her fault

She sang, till Saea and she

Were one, her existence was wee

Her existence became higher and higher

Reaching beyond limits, a godly order

She was one the tree that was her lair

Thus existence of Lya ended, the lady so fair

But her song, still rings there

In Ellesmera, the land where

Nobody goes, for the fear they harbor

Of pain inflicted on them by Lya’s ardor

For still she lives, in the land

She has no body, no face, no hand

She still sings through the winds, the trees

In the drops of rain, in the humming of bees

For in love and life, whoever believes

She lives, she lives, she lives………..

[Inspired by the Eldest]