Caught in the debris of words

Quiet please, be quiet,
drown in silence, and slowly
discover consciousness.
Petty conversations, a mere
step towards conflicts,
it has only reaped competitions,
intoxicated in an exchange
of poisonous potions;
it had polluted sounds
where reside true wisdom;
the seat of Brahma’s
unique, priceless kingdom,  
an ambit where disappear
jealousy, discords, fear;
where peace, that inevitably
leads from darkness
to enlightenment, prevails;
rest assured, your body, mind,
and spirit will be freed from
disease, if in every moment,
you bathe in the pure,
quiet of silence.

Quiet please, be quiet
be in tune with Thakur’s
Kathamrita*, settle down
in the juice of the elixir,
stay inebriated in insane
bliss of silence; caught in
the debris of words,
you are ruined, bruised;
therefore, bid adieu to
meaningless, deadly, lethal
letters; like a thief, surreptitiously
steal into consciousness
and experience the phenomenal,
supreme happiness.

 

Note:
Brahma - (Sanskrit: ब्रह्मा, IAST: Brahmā) is the creator god in Hinduism. He is also known as Svayambhu (self-born), Vāgīśa (Lord of Speech), and the creator of the four Vedas, one from each of his mouths.

Here, Thakur refers to Sri Sri Ramakrishna Kathamrita (Bengali: শ্রীশ্রীরামকৃষ্ণ-কথামৃত, Śrī-Śrī-Rāmakṛṣṇa-Kathāmṛta, The Nectar of Sri Ramakrishna's Words) is a Bengali five-volume work by Mahendranath Gupta (1854–1932) which recounts conversations and activities of the 19th century Indian mystic Ramakrishna, and published consecutively in years 1902, 1904, 1908, 1910, and 1932. The Kathamrita is regarded as a Bengali classic and revered among the followers as sacred scripture. Its best-known translation into English is entitled The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna (1942).

শব্দগুলি

শব্দগুলি শবের মত পড়ে
ছিল, জীর্ণ পাতার 'পরে,
নিতান্ত অনাদরে;
সযতনে, অনুভবের ভরে,
উচ্চারণের গুণে, 
প্রাণপ্রতিষ্ঠা হল তাদের
যখন, একটু একটু করে,
গুনগুনিয়ে উঠলো তারা
গদ্যে, পদ্যে, গানে
নীল আকাশে মেলে ডানা
উড়লো অসীম পানে। 

Entertainment

Sex and violence came as new forms 
of entertainment, now they’re old and
bold residents of the world, they’re
tearing our happiness apart, violating
the peaceful coexistence of the world.
Snatching, looting of flesh and bones
have become the new normal of the day. 
The stubborn viruses are deeply rooted
in our indulgent nerves and veins, they’re 
here to ruin us, they’re determined to stay.
We have forgotten what entertainment is,
it holds you aloft, it puts you at ease.
It doesn’t provoke you with lust and anger,
but gives you unabated peace, effaces all danger.

Faith

My most expensive faith, broken into pieces,
like a shattered bottle of a priceless wine;
the nectar that could offer me happiness
is giving the ground a sordid, bloody whine.

I see men, women, and children engaged
in wars, against the enemies of God;
it’s impossible to clarify and explain,
struggling with these terrible odds.

That you are unconditionally benevolent
and kind, even to those who don’t believe
in you, that you are beyond petty sentiment,
must be known to those unfortunate,
ignorant souls who are so hell-bent
in your godly way of ‘live and let live’.

My vineyard had become a graveyard,
grapes had turned bitter and sour,
only you can save the wailing world
in this most destructive hour;
I genuflect before you, with folded arms;
restore my faith in the elixir that’s supposed
to mesmerize us with its intoxicating charm.

Darling

I have always loved you, darling
you were always present in my mind;
the curtain that covered your twinkling
stars had made you unconscious and blind.

Plant your flag

Plant your flag of peace in an open field
dear human beings, no more of the same
timid gestures of insecurities, let patriotism
develop wings to cover the entire world,
let it not divide the lands and the sands
into pieces; let the symbol of our unique
nest generate abundance and prosperity for all,
let the real growth and development put all
hollow, worthless differences to rest.
Before the world perishes, let us all
taste the fruit of true interdependence.

United by needs, divided by words

 

How did the words come into existence?
How is translation possible, to a large
extent? It’s because words have come
from feelings, from experience. Same
meanings of words are therefore to be
found in every language? Isn’t that a
discovery to show us how we are united,
rather than how we are divided? We look at 
the difference between tongue and taste; the way
we look, eat, play, pray, and dress; but
we overlook the need to communicate,
and survive; the yearning to know, celebrate,
and worship life is one and the same!

Under the tutelage

Death is beautiful, it is
also a good teacher; without its
tutelage, we commit senseless
murders here, for meaningless
position, power; we forget we’ll die;
the teacher has to come to the limelight
in schools and colleges now, the pupils
will bring the forgotten file of death
to life, in every moment the selective
amnesia will cease to delude and lie,
peace might prevail in the world
if we knew that we’d also die.

The greatest myth

 

I focus on the movements of the planets,
I see no conflict! In fact, I recognize it
as a designed lie, the greatest myth!
I used technology and looked at the
beautiful earth, from the outside I saw
the place where I live, I could figure all
the neighboring countries without walls;
they were in unison, moving at peace.

Birds of the world

Birds of the world
caged, their wings unused,
abused for eons of years;
they had been taught to parrot
plastic words that had poisoned
their chirps, they sit and talk
of competition, anger, hunger,
killing, slaying, terror, war;
drowned in worries, they wryly
smile, silently cry; they do
everything that’s against their
nature, they don’t even try to fly.