28 February 2023

House of Hearts

Beyond 
The confines of
Right and wrong.
There's a house.

Of neither white
Or black,
There's a cat. 
That doesn't cut
You on the road, 
Casting curses. 

There's a dog,
That doesn't bark
At your appearance. 
Bend to criticisms, 
Or wriggle its tail 
Snipping your
Affluence. 

Settled beyond 
The negations of
The crowd. 
There's a memory
Of an evening,
That laughed with
The day and the night. 

To console the
Green and saffron,
There is colour,
The white.
To calm down
Your anger and
Anxieties,
Pair of ears that
Can really listen. 

There are dreams,
Shared realizations.
Spread over
The divide of 
Differences... 
There is hunger, 
Which is such a 
Sympathizer.

There is even
A kitchen that 
Can serve both
Kheer and biryani. 
Egg-rice and
Avalakki. 

If you can shed 
Your wicked thoughts, 
Toxic perception 
And bitter judgments. 
To sit and chat for 
Some hearty laughs.

You too are 
Invited. 

26 February 2023

Seeking

Anxiously, 
Why do my fingers
Keep measuring
The shade of 
The trees.

The moon seems
To be taking his time
To come up tonight.
.. 
Secretly, 
Why does my heart 
Keeps running,
Into her streets. 

No letters from her.
The winds seem to 
Always disappoints. 
.. 
And why have the
Stars abandoned
The sky.
The universe isn't 
Alight?

She usually does..

She usually does..
But hasn't she 
Opened her 
Windows tonight? 
.. 

Hunger

The huts and 
The houses haven't 
Been spared.
Even the forests
And mountains
Stand obliterated. 

Burning everything 
It touches, 
The fire, 
Can it be any more 
Hungry? 
.. 
The flames and
Hopes have been
Doused.
Even the stars 
And galaxies are
Eclipsed.

Gulping everything
That glows. 
The darkness,
Can it be anymore
Thirsty? 
.. 
Slowly it effaces
And erases.
All the evidence
Of existence,
Even the traces
Of breaths are
Done away with.

Creating voids,
In the memories. 
The oblivion, 
Can it be anymore 
Empty? 
.. 
Holding the fire
And the dark
Under the helm 
Of oblivion.
The Time, feasting, 
Even on the voids
And vaccums.. 

Isn't it the 
Real glutton? 
.. 

25 February 2023

ಹಸಿವು

ಗಿಡ ಮರ ಗುಡ್ಡಗಳ
ಸುಟ್ಟು ತಿನ್ನಬಲ್ಲ 
ಆ ಬೆಂಕಿಗೆಷ್ಟು 
ಹಸಿವಿರಬಹುದು.

ಇದ್ದ ಬಿದ್ದ ಬೆಳಕ,
ಹರಿದ ಮುರಿದ‌ ಆಸೆಗಳ,
ನುಂಗಬಲ್ಲ ಆ‌ ಕತ್ತಲಿಗೆಷ್ಟು,
ಹಸಿವಿರಬಹುದು.

ನಿಂತು, ನೀರವತೆಗೆ 
ಕಾಯ್ದು.‌ ಪುರಾವೆಗಳ 
ಹೆಕ್ಕಿ ತಿಂದು.
ನೆನಪುಗಳ ಅಳಿಸುವ,

ಆ ಮರೆವಿನ ಹಸಿವು 
ಹೆಚ್ಚೋ?

ಅಥವಾ, ಬೆಂಕಿ-ಬೆಳಕ, 
ಮರೆವಿನ‌ ಸೂರಲ್ಲಿ ಸಾಕಿ.
ಅವುಗಳ ಮೇಲೆ,
ರಾರಾಜಿಸುವ..

ಆ‌‌ ಕಾಲಚಕ್ರದ
ಹಸಿವು ದೊಡ್ಡದೋ?

24 February 2023

The Flow

Through the wild
And the kind.
I shall pass.

Through the times
And the rhymes.
I shall pass.

Through the mountains
And grasses.
Valleys and passes.

Through the crowds
And crevices.
And feeble horizons.

Like the thief
Who has lost his
Way.

Like a soldier
Who has forgotten
His face.

I shall bend, mend,
Sometimes
Meander and blend.

Rolling, falling, 
Slowing if 
Needed.

Ebbing, jumping, 
Striking if 
Demanded.

I shall pass
To make way,
I shall pass
To move ahead. 

I shall pass 
Because, I've to
Survive. 

Blankness

On the stillness
Of the lake lies
A blanket of 
Blankness. 

Birds are not
Allowed here.
Not stones.
Nor tones.

It's not like
The blank of
Canvas or 
A paper.
Where you
Can paint
Or write.

This blankness
Is self-imposing.
Life-consuming. 
Colors die here. 

Often, things 
Are forgotten. 
They fall within
Themselves. 
They implode,
To have themselves
Erased here. 

Sometimes
It's the dark.
Sometimes the
Eerie silence.
Can be oblivion
Or the blinding
White.

It can be you too,
Even me.. on
Those numb
Lonely nights. 
When we lay dead
On that thin line,
Not knowing
Whether we're
Awake or asleep. 
Dead or alive. 

You and I

On the eastern
Edge of western
Ghats.
Amidst the bustle
Of tall trees and
Green grass.
Beside a lake or
A small pond.
We shall build
A hut, 
You and I.

When the 
Herdsmen come 
Playing flutes 
And the hornbills 
Hoot to the 
Footsteps of the 
Sheep.
Picking them
Nuts and fruits,
We shall spend
Our days,
You and I. 

The running water
Of the river is
Sweet they say.
Tubers and roots
In the wild are 
No less than
A feast they say.

So we shall 
Befriend a beast.
Nurse something
Feeble and weak.
And confining all
Our secrets to
The whispers of
The trees.. 

We shall become, 
Those nameless 
Lovers in folklore,
You and I. 

16 February 2023

Pretense

The flower that
Has bloomed,
Looking upto the sky,
Has forgotten the
Smell of soil.

To the false 
Promises of 
The moon and 
The stars. 
It has lost the 
Sense of where 
It belongs.

The leaves and
Twigs feel like
Restrains.
The foliage like
A prison it has 
Been held in. 

To the illusion
That is set in,
Should it mistaken
It's petals for 
Wings?

Who doesn't
Want to scale
The sky?
Knowing its
Limitations
Hasn't the Hen
Given up on
Its own flight?

Our flower has
Fallen in love
With its own
Reflection. 
Narcissistic pride
Has grown out
Of proportion. 

Unrealistic
Aspirations has
Messed its head, 
When it looked
Beyond  its roots 
And learnt to 
Pretend. 

15 February 2023

Escape

The oasis 
I sought 
Out of thirst, 
Has dried up. 
The mirage
I overlooked
Must have been
A river.

The shelter
I longed all along,
Has been
Abandoned.
The ruins, 
I've been avoiding 
Must have been
A house I belonged. 

To get rid of
My ill fate,
I ran away from
Myself.

In a far-fetched 
Place where
No-one could be
Seen. 
I met anyone 
To everyone, 
To realize.

The toxic person
I was trying to 
Escape was hiding 
Within me. 

Hopes to Regrets

The light has
Quenched the dark.
New hopes have
Come to life.
To the songs
Of a nightingale.
Lilies have decided
To dance.

An old tree has
Fallen down to
Make a way to
A new plant.
A dream to
Open its eyes,
The possibilities
Seem infinite.

The child in me
Seems to have
Grown a beard,
Age has taken
Over time.
Days seemed
Hopelessly long.
Yet years have passed
In the blink of an eye.

The night has
Clocked twelve.
Shards of memories
Have returned back,
And my longing to
Drench in the rain.
The water has
Caught fire.

14 February 2023

ಮರೆವು

ಉಕ್ಕಿ ಬಂದ 
ಹೃದಯದಲೆಗೆ,
ಕಡಲ ಉಸುಕು 
ಸವೆದಿದೆ.

ಹಾಲು-ಬೆಳಕ 
ಚೆಂದ ಇರುಳ,
ಕಪ್ಪು ಮೋಡ 
ಮುಸುಕಿದೆ.

ಹಾಯ್ದು ಹೋದ
ನೆನಪುಗಳೆಲ್ಲ
ಹಳೆ ಕಥೆಗಳ
ಕುಲುಕಲು.

ಮರೆಯಾಗಿದ್ದ,
ಕವಿತೆಗಳೆಲ್ಲ,
ಕಣ್ಣೀರಾಗಿ ಹೊರ 
ಹೊಮ್ಮಿವೆ.

Hurt

A philosopher is
Complaining in 
My head.
A rapper is 
About set an 
Obsolete trend.

Poet of fall.
Singer of a
Doomed dawn.
I'm a comedian
Who's being
Laughed at.

I for sure am
An astrologer
Banished by the stars.
Like a politician
Who talks less
And is kind.

An overthinking
Piece of charade.
A self-sabotaging
Kind of facade. 

On the surface
I look calm.
Take no offense,
Or mean harm.
But inside,
On myself, I stand
Holding a knife. 

Hurt people,
Hurt people,
They say. And 
If you come close, 
The knife can 
Turn around. 

13 February 2023

ವಿನಂತಿ

ಮಿಡಿ ನೆನಪ
ಬೊಗಸೆಯಲಿ.
ತಿಳಿ ಬೆಳಕ 
ಕನಸಲಿ ಹಿಡಿದು,
ನಿನ್ನರಸಿರುವೆ.

ಬಯಕೆಯ 
ಬೇಗೆಯಿಂದ 
ನೋಡೊಮ್ಮೆ.
ಕತ್ತಲಿನಾಚೆಯ,
ಕ್ಷಣವೊಂದ 
ಕದಿಯೋದಿದೆ.

ಪ್ರೀತಿಯ 
ಪಣತೆಯಲಿ
ಪ್ರಣಯದ ಹಣತೆ
ಉರಿಸಿ.
ಹೊಸ ಜೀವನಕೆ
ನಾಂದಿ 
ಹಾಡೋದಿದೆ.

07 February 2023

ನಗು

ತೆಂಕಣ ಗಾಳಿಯು
ಸುಯ್ಯೆಂದು ಬೀಸಿ,
ಚದುರಿದ ಮೋಡಗಳ
ಸೇರಿಸಿದೆ.

ಮೋಡಗಳೆಲ್ಲ ಸೇರಿ
ಒಟ್ಟಾರೆ ಗುಡುಗಲು,
ಮಳೆಯಾಗಿ ಕಿಸಿ-ಕಿಸಿ
ನಕ್ಕಿವೆ.

ತಣಿದ ನೆಲದಲಿ,
ಮೊಳಕೆಯೊಡೆದ
ಬೀಜವು, ಗಿಡವಾಗಿ 
ಸೆಟೆದು ನಿಂತಿದೆ.

ವಸಂತ ಬರಲು
ಅರಳಿದ ಮರಗಳು,
ಹೂವಾಗಿ ಕಿಸಿ-ಕಿಸಿ 
ನಕ್ಕಿವೆ.

ಸೊಬಗಿನ ಸೆಳೆತಕೆ,
ಮಾರುಹೋಗಿ
ಹಕ್ಕಿಗಳು, ರಾಗದಿ
ಹಾಡು ಹಾಡಿವೆ.

ಲಯವಾದ ಹಾಡು
ನಗುವಾಗಿ ಮುಗಿಲೇರಿ,
ಬೀಸುವ ಗಾಳಿಯ
ಸೇರಿದೆ.

ಬೀಸುತ ಬೀಸುತ
ಎಲ್ಲೆಡೆ ಹರಡಿ,
ಎಲ್ಲರ ಹಾಯಾಗಿ
ಮುದಿಸಿದೆ.

ಒಂದೆಡೆ ನಗುವ 
ಇನ್ನೊಂದೆಡೆ‌ ಹಬ್ಬಿ, 
ಗಾಳಿಯೂ ಕಿಸಿ-ಕಿಸಿ 
ನಕ್ಕಿದೆ.

ಅಮಲು

ಕನಸಿನ ಲೋಕಕೆ
ವಾಸ್ತವ ಸಿಲುಕಿ,
ಮಂಚಕೆ ರೆಕ್ಕೆ 
ಬಂದಿದೆ.

ಮೇಲಿಂದ ಕೆಳಗೆ
ಧೋಪ್ ಎಂದು 
ಬೀಳಲು, 
ನೌಕೆಯಾಗಿ ತೇಲಿದೆ.

ಅಂಬಿಗ‌ ತವಕದಿ
ಹುಟ್ಟನು ಹಾಕಿದ,
ನೀರೆಲ್ಲ ಹುಗ್ಗಿ
ಆಗಿದೆ.

ಹಬ್ಬದ ಊಟದ
ಬಯಕೆ ಹುಡುಗನಿಗೆ, 
ಅಮಲಿನಲೆ ಆಸೆ 
ನೀಗಿದೆ.

03 February 2023

ಸಂತೆ

ಮಾತುಗಳಿಲ್ಲದ,
ಮರುಭೂಮಿಯಲಿ
ಮೌನದ ಹೆಮ್ಮರ.

ಭಾವನೆಗಳಿಲ್ಲದ
ಬಯಲನಲಿ,
ಉದ್ವೇಗದ ಪರಿಮಳ.

ಮುಖಗಳೇ ಇಲ್ಲದ
ಜಾತ್ರೆ ಇದು,
ನಗುವೇ ಇಲ್ಲಿ ಅಪಸ್ವರ.

ಗಮ್ಯವಿಲ್ಲದ 
ದಾರಿಯಲ್ಲೇಕಿದೆ
ಇಷ್ಟೊಂದು ಗದ್ದಲ?

ಕಳೆದು ಹೋದವರ
ಸಂತೆಯಲಿ, ನಿಂತು 
ನಕ್ಕವನೇ ಜಂಗಮ.

01 February 2023

Give it a try

A mountain 
Might be wanting
You to climb it.
To see you gasp. 

The rain might
Be wanting you
Make your moves.
To see you dance.

Fear of the dark
Might just be
The delusion your
Mind has cast.

Who knows what
The devil wants.
He must have been
Waiting for you
To light a match.

A poem might
Be wanting to
Fall suitably in
Your lines.

A story might be
Wanting to take
Refuge in your
Diary all along. 

The distance of
Longing, might 
Just as well be
Deceit of mortal eyes.

Who knows what 
She might say.
Hurl a smile and 
Give her a try.

Gap in Your Name

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