Windows to the Soul

Sitting there on the railway platform
 having nothing special to do
 except wait for Shatabdi Express
 and watch the melee in the milieu
 tired of WhatsApp messages
 and Facebook posts
 and in no mood to tweet
 started taking a peek
 into people's faces passing by
 and what did I see
 when I looked into their eyes
 no, I couldn't tell
 which god they prayed to
 nor what they did for a living
 all I could see was 
 a glint of pride here
 a look of shame there
 a hint of fear here
 a trace of disdain there
 a divine serenity here
 a debilitating despair there
 people could hide
 what they wanted to
 but not the look in their eyes
 which told me more
 than their turbans or their hijabs
 than their sacred threads
 or their calloused hands
 and I thought to myself
 a pair of eyes
 are more than a pair of eyes
 they can see
 what reach or distance there is
 in another pair of eyes.