लट

शायान खुसरो द्वारा (By Shayaan Khusro)

 

ना चिट्ठी ना बोल बतलाए मेरे पिया का प्रेम।

सवेरे जब उठी मेरे बाल ना उलझे ना बिखरे।

जब पिया के आँखों पे काले घेरे देखी

तब जानी कि पिया ने रात भर मेरी लटें सुलझाए।।

 

Transliteration:

Na chitthi na bol batlaye mere piya ka prem.

Savere jab uthi mere baal na uljhe na bikhre.

Jab piya ke ankho pe kaale ghere dekhi

Tab jaani ki piya ne raat bhar meri late suljhaye.

 

Translation:

Neither letters nor words express my beloved’s love.

My hair wasn’t messy or tangled when I woke up this morning,

Seeing dark circles under my husband’s eyes

I understood that he combed my locks throughout the night.

What if Mother Earth is feeling suicidal?

By Shayaan Khusro

 

What if Mother Earth is feeling suicidal?

And human evolution is nothing but

The longest ongoing suicide attempt?

After all, of over eight million species

She could choose from why select the one

With no regard for her fate or wellbeing

Except to end it all in smoke and polythene?

 

But wouldn’t a comet to the surface suffice,

To end the suffering since before the age of ice?

Earth already tried that, several times in fact

Yet, except craters and dinosaurs, she is intact.

On the other hand, though slow as a snail

Mankind is a deadly poison seeping through

Air, water and land, killing one life at a time.

 

But why end a life meant to last aeons more?

Perhaps she misses her siblings Mars and Venus?

Maybe she is wary of being the only living planet

In a cold dead universe void of others like her?

Maybe she feels overwhelmed by her fate

Of being swallowed by a burning red giant.

Perhaps all of the above in varying proportions?

 

So, if Earth is depressed and committed to suicide

Should we see this euthanasia through the end

And jump onto the next ship and then another

Till all the worlds end the same way she will?

Or do we wrap Earth with trees and flowers

And give her the therapy she always required

To show her that life isn’t as woeful as it seems?

ईंट

ईंट उठाया

सपनो का महल गिरा,

ओ महल बनाने वाले

इस बच्चे ने तेरा क्या बिगाड़ा?

– शायान ख़ुसरो 

Transliteration

Iint uthaya

Sapno ka mahal gira,

O mahal banane wale

Iss bachche ne tera kya bigada?

– Shayaan Khusro

Also, check out the Urdu version (here) and the English version (here).

Words Don’t Flow Anymore

By Shayaan Khusro

 

At the tip of the tongue

Like my own name

But now I can’t

Recall the words anymore.

 

Once clearer than crystals

Like the truth itself,

But now the verses,

Don’t make sense anymore.

 

Ink once flowed on paper

Like a river through the plains,

But now my thoughts

Don’t flow anymore.

 

They used to hide

Like a treasure

But now meanings don’t lie

Between lines anymore.

 

Once sought after

Like an antique

But now my books

Don’t sell anymore.

 

Once refreshing

Like the morning tea

But now my sonnets

Don’t please anymore.

 

Once hummed

Like a song

But now my lines

Don’t rhyme anymore.

 

They once adorned my poems

Like paintings on a wall,

But now no metaphors

Come to mind anymore.

 

Were once played

Like a piano

But now the syllables

Don’t have rhythm anymore.

 

They once spread

Faster than rumours

But now people don’t

Recite my stanzas anymore.

 

Once stuck in the head

Like a jingle

But now my readers

Don’t know my name anymore.

 

Once put together

Like bricks in a wall,

But now my paras

Don’t stick together anymore.

 

Once crafted elegantly

Like Nadir Shah’s throne,

But now my works

Don’t employ techniques anymore.

 

Once laid out

Like a battle plan,

But now my elegies

Don’t follow directions anymore.

 

Once precise and concise

Like a bull’s eye,

But now my rants

Don’t end anymore.

सही डब्बे में फेंके

कविता:

जनाब अर्ज़ किया है, कि  

डब्बे में तो फेकता है हर कोई।  

डब्बे में तो फेकता है हर कोई।  

मगर आक़िल वो जो सही कूड़े को सही डब्बे में फेंके।

मगर आक़िल वो जो सही कूड़े को सही डब्बे में फेंके। 

काग़ज़, लोहे, प्लास्टिक को नीले डब्बे में डाले। 

छिल्के, गुठली, चिंगम को हरे डब्बे में डाले। 

क्यूंकि हर चीज़ की एक सही जगह है। 

क्यूंकि हर चीज़ की एक सही जगह है  

और कूड़े की भी अपनी सही जगह है।  

इसलिए सूखे को नीले में फेंके। 

और हरे में गीले को फेंके।  

वातावरण को बचाए। 

कूड़ा अलग करके, सही डब्बे में फेंके। 

कूड़ा अलग करके, सही डब्बे में फेंक।। 

– शायान खुसरो 

Transliteration

Janab arz kiya hai, ki 

Dabbe mein to fekta hai har koi

Dabbe mein to fekta hai har koi

Magar Aquil wo jo sahi koore ko sahi dabbe mein feke

Magar Aquil wo jo sahi koore ko sahi dabbe mein feke

Kagaz, lohe, plastic ko neele dabbe mei daale 

Chhilke, guthli aur chingam ko hare dabbe mei daale 

Kyunki har cheez ki ek sahi jagah hai

Kyunki har cheez ki ek sahi jagah hai

Aur  koode ki bhi apni sahi jagah hai 

Isliye sookhe ko neele mei feke 

Aur hare mei geele ko daale 

Vatavaran ko bachaye  

Koora alag karke, sahi dabbe mei feke

Koora alag karke, sahi dabbe mei feke.

-Shayaan Khusro

Brick

By Shayaan Khusro

Picked a brick,

The Palace of Dreams fell,

O castle builder,

What did the kid ever do to you?

 

Also, check out the Urdu version.

Hills Wrapped In Stars

By Shayaan Khusro

Among the foothills of Him,

Lie hills like any other

But less green from man’s touch.

But when the night sets in,

Bringing cold but no moonlight,

The hills wrap themselves in

A black shawl studded with stars.

Stars which shapeshift constellations

With every mile crossed.

The stars which flow in galaxies

In the valley between the hills,

Which will lead you home,

If you dare to dive into it.

Beneath The Red Moon

By Shayaan Khusro

Beneath the red moon,

Over Thar’s sand dunes,

As men shiver during the chilly night,

Shadows take flight,

Men roam the streets with naked swords,

Out there to protect their wards,

Mothers tuck their children sound and safe,

Though they are themselves unsafe,

Travelers find no refuge,

For every guest is a suspect,

Temples and mosques hold prayers,

All day long,

Witches and warlocks perform rituals,

All night long,

For the shadows aren’t out for fun,

They are out on a hunt.