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Ghazals and Enlightenment


Unguarded thoughts pierced his existence,
Tales of eventful passions, lost loves,
Miseries of hate, lust and hunger continued.
Impoverished streets in his mind was
Tormented with winds of revolt, but
Easier was it to remain inert, to let
The weather clear, to remain the same.

Each night when peaks of love was forced
Onto his meager heart, he thought of the saint
Who came to talk to him during his sleep,
Who said, "Peace shall come from within".
A storm was nearing his mind,
An apocalypse always leads to calm,
Like bullets to head do calm a brain.

Ghazals were staged in his dreams,
Wails of a sorrowful harmonium, with
The broken voices of an aged singer
Agitated his flesh and bones, he sang
Along with the singer, they mouthed words
That praised a fading God in the midst
Of frauds that wrapped the weeping Earth,
They praised the Lord's benevolent soul which
Gave life to buds, tunes to birds and love
To children, who were all beads in a single string.

Like how a singer from the past forced
Rains onto a burning Earth, their song
Made a downpour in his life. In a puddle
That settled forever in his mind, he saw
The reflection of himself standing bowed
With the saint who talked to him in dreams.

With a relieving pain, he saw the Sun
Shine brighter than ever,
Earth spinning slower than before,
Leaves making food with devotion,
Ants building homes before the rains,
And felt the peaceful notes of a divine Ghazal.

He remembered, the saint once said, 
"The teacher shall appear when the student is ready."

Notes
Ghazals in this context means the musical rendering of Sufi poetry. To know more check : Ghazal
And the 2 times when the saint in the poem is advising the narrator, I have used words of Gautama Buddha, which have been slightly modified to fit well into the poem.

Comments

  1. mpoverished streets in his mind was
    Tormented with winds of revolt...was an early line i found to be really evocative....nice wise end as well...i like how you bring on the tension than bring us down to that...

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  2. A very powerful and moving poem, in your Ghazal style, which worked well, as I could imagine the words set to an appropriate piece of music. Very reverent and hymn-like in its qualities.

    Eileen

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  3. A most moving and thoughtful piece.

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  4. "The broken voice of an aged singer..." Magnificent!

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  5. This poem is astounding - most especially the stanza "ghazals were staged in his dreams" with the wailing and the "sorrowful harmonium".......the torment in the poem resolves wonderfully with the words of the Buddha. Really remarkable writing, very powerful.

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  6. I liked the "easier was it to remain inert, to let the weather clear, to remain the same" It resonated with me as a way we have found to deal with a difficult person who is indirectly involved in our lives. I also liked the buddha references. We have been watching old Kung Fu on the computer lately and your poem reminded me of that.

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  7. Yes, I have heard it said as well that the teacher will appear when the student is ready. I believe that 100%. Well expressed ideas in your poem. Complex, but worth reflecting on. Thank you.

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  8. like the struggle within ,specially the image of the burning earth....and enlightenment at the end.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Thanks to all for your kind views. :)

    ReplyDelete

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