Whither “Life”
It is hard to live life
When you have seen through its charade.
It is hard to live life
When you have realised the “I” is false
And yet you cannot let it go.
It is hard to live life
When you have to keep feeding the stomach
To keep life alive that you do not care for.
It is hard to live life
When you want to laugh at and ridicule everything
Yet you have to defer to others’ sentiments.
It is hard to live life
When neither “love” excites you
Nor “hatred” troubles you.
It is hard to live life
When everyone on earth seems to love life
And you have to keep pace with them.
Some New Year Eve Advice
Folks, don’t be fooled by “love”
Least of all that of oneself for others
We are all in it for ourselves
We can’t love others? Yes we can
But only to a very limited extent
When there’s something in it for us
No one to blame, not even ourselves
Such is the human condition sadly
But we shield ourselves from this truth
Since we are oh so emotional and needy.
Whither Truth
Beyond all angst about wars and homelessness
Beyond all anxiety about one’s mortgage due
Far beyond any heart-wrenching break-ups
Far beyond the talk about climate change
Unconnected with our dreams and ambitions
Unconnected with our bipolar schizophrenia
Unconnected with weddings and anniversaries
Unconnected with any pandemic whatsoever
Unmindful of the child orphaned on the street
Unmindful of the incredible promise of ChatGPT
Unmindful of our dream of colonizing Mars
Unmindful of what we write, paint, sing or sculpt
Exists the Truth, untainted, unchanging, and serene.
The Now
I am not today
Who I was yesterday
Nor are you
Does it make sense then
To make me account for my past?
Let us live today afresh
Who knows what we will be tomorrow?
Dinner at Jo’s
Friends can make you feel
Feelings you’ve long forgotten
Making life seem very livable
As I found out in Chakri’s house
Sitting around a campfire
With Vishy, Ranga, Nira, Kamal
Tillu the recluse though absent
Music blared but ever so softly
With Doors, Black Sabbath, Floyd
Streaming into our ears gently
On that open lawn in Jo’s place
With cigarettes and alcohol on offer
Along with some snacks served
Women as usual got the short shrift
But happy they seemed by themselves
Content to see their men folk enjoying
I wonder what they discussed to pass time
A thoroughly enjoyable night ’twas
Hosted so graciously by Chakri and Jyo
And we all got lulled into thinking
Life is not that bad after all.
To J “Darling”
To hell with heaven and hell
What’s more, to hell with earth
I care not to exist in any manner
I have no need for this so-called life
Thrust on me without any consent
What’s there in this so-called life
A few pleasures, a few pains
A few smiles, a few tears
With no meaning, no substance
Kicked around by heartless fate
Not desiring the estate of emperors
Nor despairing the life in a shanty
Nothing worthy to detain us here
Neither sunsets and loving hearts
Nor friendships and forgiving souls
Just a mass delusion and hysteria
Is what life is, believe it or not,
Give it not your attention or heart
Let the hours and days tick by
Till we return to the womb of us all
The earth for no reason keeps erupting.
Thou/I
It is not that I think but Thou
It is not that I speak but Thou
It is not that I do but Thou
Yet all this affects not Thou
Thou the master of illusion
How easily you make me feel it’s me
Make me feel it is I who think
It is I who speak, it is I who do
If it pleases Thou now to end this
End this at least for me, if not for all,
Surely Thou dost get nothing
By keeping me thus in illusion
What, it is I who choose to remain so?!!
When I am nothing but an illusion
Subject to nothing but illusions
How can I be willing anything
Surely it must be Thou pretending
Pretending that Thou art I, somehow.
Diversionary Tactic of Maya
This attraction
Between a man and a woman
Is there for a reason
‘Tis meant to throw you off track
From the scent of Truth.
To Shun or Not to Shun, a Choice in the Making
It seems like
I want to embrace life
And also
Get enlightened
Who’s to say
I am stupid
Or not
To think there’s a choice to make.
Real Death
Care not I
When I die
Thousands die
Each day
World goes on
Tears are shed
Doubtless
Living can’t tarry
With grief
No guarantees in life
So why the surprise
Expect death
Any moment
Anyhow
Death of body ain’t it
Real death is that
When we die to the ego
Which is no death
As we attain self-realization
Dying to the false
And living on as Truth.
Goodbye, Dear World
I care not much now
Care not about the world
This all too illusory world
The world interests me no more
I am diving in, deep into myself
To see from where I spring
What my source is
How I have come to be
What I have come to be
And who I am, really speaking,
I find no reality compelling
In the physical and mental world
Aside from what attachment I form
My speech is not mine
Your speech is not yours
Speech arises from our whole past
Intersecting with the present moment
Agency we have none
Neither over speech
Nor over any thought or action
The ego is a chimera
So-called ‘I’ is not what it appears to be
‘Tis time to dig in and see
What I am, really speaking.
Forgiveness
Ah, to forgive
All those who hurt me
And to be forgiven
By all those who I hurt
That is the path
To happiness and peace
But we are stubborn
Holding on to old hurts
We go on hurting others
And others keep hurting us
Making life oh so colorful
And gossip and rumors abound.
Loss of Interest in Life
There is not that interest in life
That once was there
When I would get excited
Holding a book in hand
Rapt in anticipation
About its contents
Or about meeting a friend
To discuss some idea or other
But now over the years
I have wizened up
And I despair
No book contains what I seek
Nor any friend’s heart contains
That space for engaging
With what I want to say or share.
Know Thyself 