The Traveler

You can take me far away
Where the sun and moon meet
Where the sound of the river echoes
In the valley beneath

You can take me to a place
Where the stars don't just collide
They fill the air with a shining light
And are dancing till sunlight

You can take me to the road
That winds to eternity
When each stone has a story to tell
But everyone is asleep

You can show me rings of smoke
As I breathe in mystery
They play dirty tricks with my mind
And don't leave me till my dreams

You can fill my soul with tunes
With notes that sing me
Resounding in that quiet space
Till the last rest is complete

You're a dreamer today
And a traveler tomorrow
Paving the road
You intended to follow
You may have to look down to the world below
But it ain't home

Rebellion

Even between the breathless rocks
The survival of weed is in flocks
Their undying voice to be heard
Through the myriad reasons to silence their word

Their undying will to exist
Though evolution and stagnation persists
Their roots deepen in sunlight
And the plot thickens through starlight

Black and Yellow Cat Crossing

You there, in your khakhi fit
Rusty old windows, and dirty tricks
Madman crossing, loonies beware
He'll mow you down while combing his hair

Beetle leaf blues, And redneck hues
The sole of his feet are lightening infused
Dont get in his hair, get over his stare
Rest your back on his half springed chair

On a hundred and ten on a broken road
Sweet meat shops you've never seen before
Sachin should retire
And the congress should come clean
He's got all the answers
And you cant intervene

Rickety doors, and chattering screws
If you listen hard enough
You'll (want to) hear a tune
Plaster a grin, and order a wheelchair
Black and yellow cat crossing
Onlookers beware

Masjid Lane

Sneaking around this colourful dream
having just escaped from the waves
through bustling gulleys and nine coach trains
we entered the hallways of eve

She lay all night on the marble floor
with the moonshine in her hair
the passage looked inside with envy
that she was the most beautiful there

Just an ordinary brown skinned lad
i must love her naked sight
her wavy hair, her desirous stare
and that sadness in her eye

Lying on yellow floral comfort
with crimson toes and sleepless eyes
under the hot noon sun she lay
taking her picture i sighed

Wrapped in robes of devious black
with water on her thigh
the calendar read the previous month
where do her memories lie?

Ground Zero

Stop signs smeared with bloody ink
The burning palace under the grey moon
The smell of fear in the canines moan
Their wretched arrows of pious intent
Vengeful follies after mis taught learnings
Where does their master lead them?
For all that is holy and sacred lies bleeding
And all your love for the creator beneath

Is there love in space?
On land there is hate and in sea there is hostility
In the air we breathe there is a painful futility
Care for a selfless creator?
Who leads us to space not in his shuttle
Who takes us for a walk not in his garden
Humanity is kind, humanity is unjust
In straight lines we go around in circles
In shame we laugh and in jest we cry
In blooming daisies we give our alibis

We mustn't rest till this night passes
We mustn't weep till the naked women are clad
And the men with knives are made to belong
The warm smell of victory and the perfumed essence of joy is lost in vanity
The meadows are bare and the fodder is stale
Venture we more into this placid nightmare we smell belonging
Righteousness and sanity in a stew of solace
From juvenile missions we disembark to an outland
Where there is no night
Where there are no fortresses
Where there are no kings
An infinite state of being
Where ground zero disappears

Justice

Sleeping in these flames i fight
My evening with you had been so dear
The warm tea and your presence with me
I deceive you with the love i smear
Looking at you with your auburn hair
Sitting near the gentle shore
There's a hole in the sky and a hole in my heart
In empty skies my feelings soar

I cant breathe under your breath
I cant live in this debt
You and me we're just having fun
What justice have i done?
What justice have i done?

The masquerade is on lets go watch
Pretentious faces maybe familiar
They march along with their pinup glee
Over the cliff they walk heartily
As i depart your empty eyes i see
The path we paved is at its lands end now
Swim to the closest boat in the water
I'll watch you till my eyes can see

I cant breathe under your breath
I cant live in this debt
You and me we're just having fun
What justice have i done?
What justice have i done?

The Last Celebration

In the whisper of the graveyard
luminous chimes swim adrift
in the madness of my wake
shine bright as a joyous firefly

the dreams descend, obscured,fragile
color me a palette of lust
the desire rises,destiny refuted
sense sans illusions
cry me a sky of colors

the weight of the void
let me think cuz i am alive
the song sung, unspoaken,unheard
unsaid words cry for a say
celebrate thy self, listen, see
heavier things weigh on me

it struck me, the lightening struck me
light my way oh sweet sunbeam
the distance screams the light fades
elevate me to this mellow state
joy within peace without
i'll hear you when you have nothing to say

the last smile, the last sip of wine
the infancy now leaves my mind
the dusk smiles, the night arrives
the smoke in my mind settles now
the end is here, the end is now.


           - Karan Kumar, Aritra Das
              29/11/2007