The   goddesses,   they  dominate  our  life…….
The   visages   they  show….true amazing……..
The   serene   saraswathy….benign,all knowing
The   smiling   lakshmi……graceful, plentiful…..
The   rudra  kali,  anger  personified, revenge..
In  every  breath  of  hers……………………………
The  doe  eyed  parvathi…….docile,,,with  her
Kabalika  of  a  husband……………………………
What  range,,,,,What  depth……………………….
Which  race  has  venerated  their  women,,,,,
In  such  variety…….such  forms…………..?
Then…….why  do  we  treat  the  girl  child…
as  unwanted………………………………………..
Then…….why  do  we  treat  her  as  inferior ?
Bad  economics..? mistaken  male  superiority?
We  worship  our  goddesses in  temple……….
Forgetting  the  ones  who  live  with  us……….
      Will  we  ever  change…………….?
RAJ.

This  is  interesting……This  anonymity……………
On  this  wide  net  world……………………………..
You  get  away  with  anything,,,everything……..
[Giftson,  are  you  listening......? ]…………………
Closet  writers   exhibit  their  talents….wares….
But  what  is  touching…..is  the need  for……..
Fellow  travellers  on  the net  to  seek………….
To  find  the  touch  of  friendship…………………
They  express  themselves  in umpteen  ways…
Their  need  to  be in  a  peer  group…palpable
Yes,,,sometimes  you  do  get  weirdos……,,,,
Obnoxious  messages……But  then  it  is  part
of  life……..
         You  do  get  brilliantly  written  posts….
And  wonder  why  they  are  not  published…
Poems  pulsing  with  life,  words  dancing…
To  the tunes  of the  writer….witty  posts  with
brilliant  characterisation, jokes  that  make you
laugh  out  loud………………….
           Thanks  to  you  all,,,my iland  friends.
RAJ.

I sit  here………….delusions……at   rest…………..
My  quest,,,,for  things  new,,,ending……………..
Realization  came  late…..The  more,  things…..
Change…..the  more  they remain the same……
All  that  running around, All the ambitions…….
Of a brave  new  world………………………………..
The  world  at our  youthful  feet…………………..
What  cannot  be  achieved,What peaks  can’t…
Be  scaled…..Everything  possible…enthusiasm
Unlimited…………………………………………………..
              Sitting  here….older,,,,wiser [?]………..
Realizations……come  late…………………………..
The  more  things  change,,,the  more they……
Remain  the  same……………………………………..
              The  baton is  passed  on……………….
Now  it’s  your  turn……………………………………
               Run  my  young  friends………….run..
I  shall  wait  here…..patiently……………………..
               For  you  to come……………………….
Deja  vu…..or  things  never  change…………..?
RAJ.

There  I stand….suited  and  booted……..
Trying  hard  to impress…….A man of the
World…………………………………………
Trying to look  important,,,among many…
Who  too,  try  very  hard………………….
Me, a little boy from a small,dusty town…
Which  nobody has heard about………….
Trying to be Big among Bigmen  of this…
Metro………………………………………..
Nervous inside, sometimes the mask slips
Insecurity  shows…………………………..
But  then,, my  friend………………………
I  realize…..that  the Bigmen,,the movers
And  the  shakers…….are  nothing  but…
Little  boys  themselves….under  their…..
Armani  suits  and  Gucci  shoes………….
No  better  than  you  and  me……………
Trying to  impress  other little,,grown up
boys………………………………………….
       Like ……you   and   me………………!
RAJ

The  rocking chair….rocks,,,…creaks……..
Thoughts  flow  maddeningly……………….
Thither  and  hither…………………………..
Activist  that I am…want to find solutions..
For  all  ills….that  bog  the  world…………
    The  rocking chair…rocks,,,…creaks…..
Why the world…doesnt’….find  me……….
And  my  answers…….exciting…………..?
Puzzled………………………………………
I rock  in my chair…This ungrateful world
Never  realizes……………………………..
Genius…..even if  it is…thrust in face…..
        The  rocking chair….rocks,,,..creaks
Iraq….Ayodhya…..Kashmir….whatever…
Ask  me….I  will tell….how  to  solve……
        But….dont…ever….ask…………….
Have  I  ever………………………………..
Solved…..any  of  my  own………………!
RAJ

The  deviants….different,,preferences…different
What the world says as normal…not for them….
They tread a different path,,hear a different tune
World…at a loss to understand..stares,,,curses..
Why cant’ they be like us..fearing that which is..
Different….’they’ will corrupt our young,we rant
Fearing,,wondering what makes them different
This is unnatural,,we fume…Nature never meant
It  to  be like  this…………………………………………
    We shut our eyes tight…we dont want to see,,
We dont’ want to hear…The chronicles,,that say
This was always so….from Time immemorial……
Let history be damned, After all we rewrite …….
History…whims of the rulers of the moment……
     The  three monkeys,,they shut only…………. eyes,ears and mouth…………………………………..
     The Moral police,,, they make us shut our….
Minds  too…………………………………………………
     The  Deviants……..let  them  be………………..
     Tolerence   Never  Kills……………………………
RAJ.

There   she  was……..My   Muse…………………….
Graceful  as  a  swan,,,melody….her  voice………
First   Sight,,,,I  knew,,,she  will  remain…………..
Rest  of  my  life…….remain  with  me,,for  life…..
         Years  have  gone  by…she  remains………
A  dream..,,An elusive image,,in the mists of ……
Time,,,Her physicality….long  faded………………..
She  remains………………………………………………
Why  I  remember her,,,,what I remember………..
A  spirit,,A laugh that lights up surroundings……
A  sense  of  shyness…………………………………..
A  liking……A fondness ……A  warmth…………….
She  is………………………………………………………
After  all  those  years…..long   gone…………..
………….   gone………………………..
A  memory……lighting  up  moments………………
With  a  warm  glow…………………………………….
              My  Muse……………………………………..
RAJ.
[Note: for Giftson,SJ,  A  rewrite ]

The  scavenger…..doing  what  others  hate…
Cleaning  up  toilets……menial,, demeaning…
Gandhi  did  show  the  way….identify  with….
Them……show  them…..respect…………………
Sixty  years…..down  the  drain………………….
Time  stands  still  for  them….where is  dignity
The  magazine,,chronicles—Dalits  continue to
carry  human  waste  on  their  heads………….
For  paltry  six  rotis………………………………….
We  talk  about  Chandryan, manned  mission
to  moon…………………………………………………
Irony………lopsided  development…who  is  to
Blame……………………………………………………
         WHEN  IS  GANDHI…..COMING  BACK…?
RAJ.
[ NOTE: Article  in  'THE  WEEK'-JAN 28TH ]
And  the  excellent  article  DILIP KRISHNAN
wrote  in  his  post  about  duality  that  is….
INDIA  and  BHARATH.  Thanks,  dilip……RAJ.

White  is  magical,,,white  is  supremacy……
Ask  would-be  mother’s-in-law, Ask them….
Ask the  boys…..white  is  magical……………
White  is  supremacy……………………………..
Ask  the  girls….the  fair  skinned confident..
The  darker  ones   timid,  worrying…………..
Ask  the  companies  that  sell  fairness creams
They  scream……..white  is  magical…………….
White  is  supremacy…………………………………
This  obsession….madness…..  worshipping…
SHYAM….,the  dark skinned  cowherd…………
Black  we  say  is  beautiful……lip  service…….
Unconsciously  searching  for  that  fairness…
Because……White  is  magical……………………
White  is  supremacy………………………………..
And  we  talk  passionately  about  Apartheid…!
RAJ.

The  sweeper…..bent,,,sweeping  away…………
The  dust  the  others  bring in, the wind……….
Blowing….the  dust  and  dirt  of the  streets….
Seeing  footprints  vanishing  under …………….
The  sweep  of  her  broom,,wondering…………
About  a  magic  broom  which  will  sweep……
Away  her  worries……the  drunken  husband…
The  children,, demanding….wanting  things….
Ashamed,, that  she  is  a  lowly  sweeper……….
The  rulers,, promising….reservations  going  to
The  undeserving….the  bottom of  the  pyramid,
There,,,  where  it  was…..fiftyseven  years…….
Gone  up  in smoke……They  talk  about………
India  shining……….India  rising……………………
Which   India……….Whose   India………………..?
RAJ