As long as I can breathe
I’d want to live
I believe I can live
A thought that gives
me reprieve
Doing the chores
Studying more as I mature
Painting life under a tree
Writing a requiem, a poem
Amid camaraderie
Or in the middle of animosity
I’d perform live wherever life is,
Maybe at ease or with unease
This body with its weight
It may not be worth the wait
The organs may hum a tired song
Attuned, I’d still move along
Choosing to stay, not go
Away, trying to dance anon
Fall on the ground
The steps could falter
The rest of the way
Yet I’d laud myself
That withal I’m around
Before the moment arrives
When belatedly I have to leave
I’d rejoice in that I’m alive
And fulfilled my dream
That I chose to live.
যতদিন বেঁচে থাকবো
বাঁচতে চাইবো
যতই আসুক জরা ব্যাধি
আসুক প্রাচুর্য, আসুক
সঙ্গী, আত্মীয় পরিজন
আসুক আমার ছোট্ট
পৃথিবীতে ঝড়ঝাপটা
একাকিত্ব, অভাব, অনটন
শ্বাস প্রশ্বাস পড়বে যতক্ষন
তোমার বুকে, আমার যুদ্ধ
চলবে দুঃখে, সুখে
মানে অপমানে প্রতিক্ষণ
জানি তুমি জর্জরিত
প্রেমের পিপাসু তুমি
আমারই মত
আমি তাই তোমার হাত ধরে
তোমারই মতন করে
বাঁচতে চাইব
দিকে দিকে প্রেমময়
করে রেখেছ তোমার
গ্রহ তারায়
আলো বাতাস মাটি
শস্য, ফল, ফুলের পরিপাটি
স্নিগ্ধ জলের ধারায়
যারা জ্ঞানের অহংকারে
সভ্যতার অন্ধকারে তোমাকে
নিহত করার প্রচেষ্টায় উদ্যত,
সেই উদ্ধত মানুষের বিরুদ্ধে,
সেই অচেতন নিষ্ঠুর গোলাবারুদ
ক্রেতা-বিক্রেতাদের হাটে
নিষ্পাপ জনগনের বিভ্রাটে
বনে, পর্বতে ঘাটে মাঠে
বেঁচে থাকতে চাইবো চিরন্তন
হে মাটি, হে জল, আলো, বায়ু
জানি যতদিন আছে তোমার
আয়ু, তোমার হৃদয়ে আছে
যতদিন প্রাণ বাঁচিয়ে রাখবে
তুমি সকলেরই জান
ক্ষতবিক্ষত করছে যারা
সবার একমাত্র স্থান তোমার
করুণাধারায় হোক পুনরায়
তাদের পবিত্র স্নান, ধ্বংস ছেড়ে
গড়ুক এক সুন্দর ভুবন
বেঁচে থাকুক তোমার কোলে
শতসহস্র বছর ধরে
সমস্ত জীবন
the wind was the flute
the rain was the piano
both sincere to their roots
yet light as a rainbow
your flute had a song in it
my piano had mine
for days they'd tune
in with the mountains,
with the brooks,
with the dunes
flowers would fall in
love with the bees
the sky with the earth
birds would chirp
a magic in their wings
celebrate flying moments
their deaths and their births
the sun would swing
in the sky, the moon
would without words
spread a lullaby
touch the ground
with its silent lazy light
busy words buzzed,
the charm was lost
in the contest
the content was gone
there was no fun
instruments, forlorn
transformed into guns
what could have been
a poem turned into
a mayhem, nature was
unheard, wars won the
noise; none, nothing else
had their voice
the flute and the piano
no matter what, will
survive their dawn
words may die
they may be born
Like the law of gravity
there's this law of energy,
the former is visible
the latter we cannot see
both are infallible;
the gift of forgiveness
energizes, liberates the giver
the receiver at times, unaware;
to use high-energy words
from dawn to dusk
is the most sincere task
to change our world;
gratitude, acceptance
to top the list
complain, intolerance
low-energy words
make no sense
to say the least.
Tug of war
What a beautiful game
with a horrid name
tug of war
we see here
winners fall first
flat on the ground
losing their balance
heaven bless them
everyone upon each other
borders, sides disappear
A tug of peace if it were to
be renamed
it would alas miss
the buzz of entertainment
Combat sports
players hitting each other
bleeding to death
the audience applauding
a nail-biting finish
the crowd’s out of breath
…
flashback
the slave fighting the beast
high-strung spectators
watching Spartacus
entertain us, kill or die
to say the least
I want to live in a world where
every country safeguards
the interest of their neighbours,
helps them flourish and nourish
a fresh style of life to cherish.
I want to live in a world where
those deadly arms and weapons
unfortunately marketed,
manufactured, are preserved
in the museums with a tag
'do not touch' for the children
of the future generations.
I want to live in a world where
money is not wasted on security,
where leaders move as freely
as the commoners, where nitwits
sponsored are liberated to enjoy lives
with their friends, and families.
I want to live in a world where
soldiers fight against the force majeure
where the blue-eyed fighters
in the interest of things, protect
the flora and the fauna with skill,
not slay and kill human beings.
I want to live in a world where
opulence speaks, poverty leaves
where wars, warfare, battles don't live,
where freedom heaves a sigh of relief.
Oh science, invent technologies
to make this happen for that
would be the truest development
under the tired firmament,
Oh defenders of arts, cultures, painters, thinkers
poets, dancers, musicians, singers, writers, and authors,
imprint peace in the minds of the
sad, despondent, dwellers
for that would be the texts to prevent
the men, women, children
of our only beautiful blue planet,
Oh religious and political leaders
theists, atheists of the village
change your scripts and scriptures
for that would be the real privilege,
a calling to respond as the saviour,
for that’s who you truly are
to rejuvenate the patient, a moving star.
In the interest of things,
for the sake of all sentient beings
I want to live in a world
where peace isn’t just a word.
In politics, every party,
the capitalist, the socialist,
in private, or in public
has copied their modus
operandi and et al
from the Das Kapital.
A mystery. The world harks.
Full marks to Marx.
আমি দেখতে পাই না
সমুদ্রের গর্জন তবু অনুভব
করি আমার ক্লান্ত পায়ে
আছড়ে পড়া সতেজ ঢেউ
আমি দেখতে পাই না
কঠোর পর্বতে উঠছি
কিন্তু অক্লেশে করি জয়
মনের অজেয় হিমালয়
আমি দেখি, শুধু দেখি
যুদ্ধ আমার চারপাশের
জগতে যুদ্ধ, যুদ্ধ, যুদ্ধ,
কিন্তু চোখ বুঝলেই
কল্পনার পৃথিবীতে
অনুভব করি শান্তির
আলিঙ্গন, উষ্ণ বন্ধুত্ব
I cannot see the
roaring sea
but I can feel
the fresh waves
kissing my feet
in ecstasy
I cannot climb
the stiffest mountain
but I mount it in
my fantasy
I can see war
only war in the
world around me
but I imagine the
moving planet
with warmth
affection
camaraderie
