Discern

I floated carelessly,
as my bubble was big and bright.
Full of joy and happiness,
basking in the dazzling light.

The bubble didn’t know unhappiness,
it often shone with splendid glee.
It felt safe and secure,
always protecting me.

The others loathed me,
and tried their best to bring me down.
But I drifted far from them,
I couldn’t bear their malevolent frown.

I often asked them to laugh,
and said a smile could light a day.
But they only yearned for sadness,
so I never bothered about what they’d say.

The furious demons chased me,
the pursuit wore my bubble thin.
In a blink of an eye,
it had burst from within.

Like an unwanted newborn,
from my comfort I was expunged.
Deep into a world of pain and hatred,
my life had now plunged.

They caught me by my veins,
and pulled them till I bled from the heart.
All my joy and happiness,
slowly began to depart.

Consumed by their heinousness,
I didn’t bother to look around.
Clenching my fists on my knees,
with tears I sunk to the barren ground.

Once the pain became familiar,
through enlightening darkness I could see,
the world was engulfed in suffering,
there was only unrelenting misery.

I saw starving children on their bellies,
people who begged for shelter and food.
So many struggled for their life,
while I had enjoyed all that was good.

Many were dying of war and famine,
there were victims of murder and rape.
So many chained to bitter circumstances,
with no means of escape.

All these years I stood like a fool,
looking down on the unhappy and sad.
Without even a clue of the world,
and how tragedy drove people mad.

I took everything for granted,
my will, my freedom and my life.
Ignorant to the pain of others,
unable to understand their grueling strife.

As I walked this excruciating path,
there was so much to learn, accept and realize.
I had to step out of my comfort zone,
to reach out to others and empathize.

Parasite

Ravens came flying,
the stench of death was creeping near.
Those who smelt the malodor,
cowered and ran in fear.

Their gods couldn’t protect them,
the dreadful plague had settled in.
Newborns cried in anguish,
as it slowly killed them from within.

Vultures followed suit,
rotting corpses were on the plate.
Feasting like kings,
unable to fly because of all they ate.

The land was diseased,
primitive urges took control.
They locked themselves and raised their hands,
praying from each and every scroll.

Their rituals betrayed them,
unable to change their sordid fate.
They even offered sacrifices,
but death’s hunger they could not sate.

Immortality was absurd,
a dream they thought they could attain.
To live and squander forever,
their youth they wished to contain.

But in one mighty swing,
the scythe of truth slew them all.
No matter where they chose to hide,
one by one they were meant to fall.

Their sins had piled over,
bitter judgment came to collect its dues.
Lying tongues of prophets swirled,
unable to see the cues.

Their ignorance led to this,
they opened doors they shouldn’t touch.
Dire consequences caught their throat,
unable to escape this clutch.

Eventually, death comes for all,
a concrete fact the fools failed to see.
Trying to conquer everything,
by attaining immortality.

Let it all go!
The fragile thread of life runs thin.
Embrace the grim realities,
before they consume you from within.

Futile

You found me in darkness,
like a ray of blinding light.
When I was cold and empty,
like the shadows of the night.

You showed me what hope was,
love and all things nice.
Then dragged me to the unholy altar,
and offered me as sacrifice.

The happiness vanished quickly,
just as it had come.
Relentless and viciously cynical,
just what had I become?

I moved alone with empty veins,
like an apparition after dark.
Taking a journey with solitude,
to the depths of the void I must embark.

In the cold depths of darkness,
the truth of life revealed to me.
Taking off my blinders,
so this grim reality I could see.

This world is hollow,
there’s only pain, misery and emptiness.
To not accept it,
was nothing short of ignorance.

This life is temporary,
and nothing lasts forever.
Attachments cause suffering,
these close bonds we must sever.

In an instance I let it all go,
and embraced the truth of nothingness.
Conscience and death smiled,
this worldly strife was meaningless.

Quell

Silence could cut through paper,
and drill holes in a metal wall.
It could unleash actions,
that no one thought of at all.

There’s always a price to pay,
when vile actions fall to silence.
Keeping quiet encourages the wicked,
and it always leads to violence.

Crimes go unpunished,
when our voices are turned low.
How else will they be punished?
How will they reap what they sow?

It’s not just crime,
silence takes a toll on everything.
Driving people to emptiness,
reducing their souls to nothing.

It has the unbridled power,
to create a distance between close friends.
Set apart forever,
voiceless, unable to make amends.

Silence can create a divide,
between the most passionate lovers.
It can cut the precious ties,
between the dearest of brothers.

But silence is also a gift,
that lets you think before you speak.
It makes you ask questions,
for which answers you must seek.

It is a double-edged sword,
that can cut you if not used right.
It can shine light, like the day,
or  darkness, like the night.

So why do people run to silence,
leaving their close ones behind?
Isn’t the pain of life enough?
What are they trying to find?

Can’t they have a conversation,
foregoing ego needs that much fortitude?
For in the absence of words,
you’ll only be bound by solitude.

Fleur De Vie

There was a field of Lilies,
that shone as bright as day.
It basked in the sunlight,
where the children used to play.

It shed aromas of heaven,
grass softer than the lips of a lover.
The breeze sang soothing melodies,
to which you could dance forever.

Though unbelievable at first,
one glance could captivate,
your heart and your mind,
to tranquility it would elate.

It became my abode,
my safety net and resting place.
Together with the field I’d run,
distant dreams we used to chase.

Alas, trifles were not far away,
for soon we’d see the face of gloom.
The field I once worshipped,
had fallen to the hands of doom.

A fire spread across the land,
fierce like a lion’s roar.
All our dreams went up in flames,
nothing was the same as before.

Everything burned in front of me,
the field was as black as tar.
The winds became violent,
aggressively pushing me afar.

Was this my fault?
Am I the one to blame?
Why is this field so empty?
My helplessness made me writhe in shame.

There were no sweet aromas,
the field was barren and cold.
How could I bring joy to this land?
Would a miracle soon unfold?

With hopelessness and despair,
my body slowly hit the ground.
Crying incessantly,
no one else was around.

Fresh raindrops hit my forehead,
but to darkness my heart would fall.
The pain was unaccountable,
nothing could extinguish it at all.

The anguish kept me up for days,
drenched in the pouring rain.
Would I fall in love,
or feel anything ever again?

The rain had stopped,
the Sun was shining bright.
Yet unable to pierce the melancholy,
that had taken over my sight.

Shattered and broken,
I looked at the land around me.
Gleaming at a distance,
blossomed a radiant Lily.

Understanding

I like how people glorify peace without ever tasting war. I like how they talk about all their moral bullshit without ever stepping foot into immorality. They remain deluded and run the risk of turning their backs on their beliefs when things are going south for them. That’s what happens when you talk about things you don’t fully understand. Till you’ve seen war, you will never know the true value of peace. Till you hate, you will never know the true value of love. Till someone dear to you dies, you will never know the true value of existence. Everyone experiences different pains in life and because of the difference in pain, we can never truly understand each other. This lack of understanding leads to strife. The sad part is that in spite of the lapse in understanding, we continue to run our mouths like we really know each other.

Tipple

I wished to take a journey,
to the middle of nowhere.
To escape this cruel reality,
of hopelessness and despair.

So I left behind the memories,
the friends and the foes,
setting sail into an abyss,
to where dark water flows.

It got lonelier,
the deeper that I went.
Reality became blurry,
merging with fantasies I dreamt.

Familiar faces vanished,
like ghosts at the end of a hallway.
All the whispers were futile,
I began to forget everything I’d say.

The nights became longer,
the days were lost to fuzzy haze.
The dark water mesmerized me,
I became a victim to its craze.

Soon it consumed me,
I gave in to its captivating charm.
It drowned me completely,
only myself left to harm.

It wasn’t long before the water,
destroyed me with all its might.
It was too late to save me,
I couldn’t tell wrong from right.

Why did it end like this?
Did I lack self-control?
My ship lay in pieces,
and reality began to unfold.

Pain is a necessary part of life,
so is hopelessness and despair.
How else will we learn and grow?
How else will we be aware?

I realized it too late,
for my life had slipped through this crevasse,
that all the answers lie in reason,
and not at the bottom of a glass.

Opus

Sunlight leaked through the window,
shedding light on a lifeless book.
The book began to glow,
but the pages were empty, hollow.

There wasn’t a drop of ink on it,
the name bore the author’s mark.
What sort of a writer writes a book,
that no one can read.

The book remained still,
the author’s workshop was abandoned.
The broken pillars barely supported the roof,
the wood fell victim to dry rot.

The air around was stale,
there was only emptiness and misery,
the evening approached gently,
setting the sun on those crippled ruins.

A strong wind came gushing in,
turning the pages of the book violently,
reading through them, feeling them,
the wind stopped at the beginning.

The pillars began to crack,
a portion of the roof had fallen off.
Night spread its eerie cloak over the land,
everything turned pitch black.

As the darkness placed its claws on the book,
the pages came to life.
Words began to appear,
the book was no longer empty and hollow.

Light was incapable of seeing the words,
buried in each page like a scar beneath clothes.
Purged from the memory like a disease,
of life’s hopelessness and despair.

A gush of cold wind swept the land,
the pillars broke and the roof collapsed.
The pages turned violently to the last,
to reveal the most beautiful words – “The End”.

Cyanide

Reality couldn’t give,
desires the heart sought.
Fighting the emptiness,
that time slowly begot.

Wandering through bitterness,
love always leads to hate.
Like dice rolled on life and death,
as chance swiftly seals the fate.

Never enjoying comfort,
life means struggle and pain.
Pushing through each day,
even when there is nothing to gain.

Happiness always slips,
as sadness quickly enshrouds,
a mind falling to pieces,
covered in dark, murky clouds.

Memories rancorously wither,
as malevolent demons begin to poke.
So what is this reality,
if nothing but a cruel joke?

Even from jubilant skies,
if pleasant lights do descend,
there are cracks everywhere,
from which vicious shadows ascend.

If we are to fall and break,
what are these sacrifices for?
In order to maintain mental peace,
the conscience is always at war.

When will it stop?
This anxiety sees no fitting end.
There is no warmth or refuge,
in a bitter foe or better friend.

Even dreams can’t compensate,
for the losses incurred in this life,
whether father or mother,
or the death of a sibling or wife.

Soon it all crumbles,
the truth no one can deny.
Even if you run and hide,
or shelter yourself with a lie.

This world is nothing,
why can’t you see?
That death is the only way,
you’ll ever be free.