Dolly the dog, Kurien the sheep

The day you came home you were so confused

To accept a sheep as a friend you refused

Eventually both of you made a great duo

You no longer took Kurien as your foe

I saw to it that of bones there was no dearth

Yet, every single bone you hoarded under the earth

What a big hole you dug; it was so hilarious a sight

I had a good laugh at your pathetic plight

A fond memory certainly you did etch

When imploringly you looked at me to play throw and fetch

A stone or stick you dropped at my feet

At this game you were adept and quite neat

A chilly night by the fire I sat

You huddled beside me, your back I pat

I stroked your fur and appreciated your loyalty

Through your dark beautiful eyes love emanates silently

Every evening you and Kurien would take a walk

I wonder in what language both of you talk

I watched you thoughtfully when your meals you spurned

The day when Kurien never returned

Your lonely walks you gradually stopped

Disinterested, at my feet you plopped

The sorrowful news in disbelief I denied

That away from home you had died

I know you are happy wherever you are

You are not near me neither are you far

We shall meet again, our bond will see to it

I will return your love, to eternity, bit by bit.

Bindu Vidyadhar

22.07.2009

The Drama of Life

Life, they say, is a drama stage
You play your part without a wage
Equanimity, say the men who were wise
Will fetch you the everlasting prize

Trust not the nature of happiness or sorrow
Each, the other, will always follow
Beyond these there exists a state
We reach there if patiently we wait

Beyond good, beyond bad
Neither happy nor sad
The stage is set for us to act
Accepting all as a matter of fact

Life is not serious; it’s just a play
Act well; we’re not here to stay
Through mistakes nothing we lose
Another day, another stage, the drama continues

The act played to the very best
Will put all illusions to rest
Act well, expect no encore
Act well in order to act no more

Life indeed is very strange
Different acts as our roles change
Life is a gift; it demands no toll
Till we realize this the curtains will not fall

Pepal Tree
20th Nov 2009

A Drama Played As Designed

Ingrained in me these few happy memories
With us when you were around
The rest were cause for many worries
As father and daughter we were bound

I wonder how you are coping there
Since you are no longer in the physical dimension
Everyday when I say my prayer
You are the first one I mention

I shall not rake up the past
Let bygones be bygones
The lesson learnt; let that last
Lest fresh karma spawns

I have known this to be true
The peace which forgiveness begets
Whatever unpleasantness we went through
For that I have no regrets

In the silent darkness of midnight
On my bedroom wall shadows cast
The night games played by trees and the streetlight
In fear my heart beat very fast

I heard a stray dog howl and a yelping pup
Petrified I lay still with no other choice
With all the courage I could muster up
I called out to you in a feeble voice

You came running to the side of my bed
It was only a shadow; to my senses you made clear
With a gentle smile you lovingly stroked my head
I slept peacefully with no more fear

Decades have passed and I have wondered
Where your heart lost its tenderness
If only you had sat and pondered
On fleeting illusion and your own blessedness

With no judgment I do however opine
You did what you thought was right
A drama we played perfect to the design
With your memories I no longer fight

Pepal Tree
May 2009

Aging with Grace

As years go by

I look back and sigh

Not for my hair which has now turned grey

But for what could have been done in a better way

Not for the eyes tipped with crow’s feet

But for those deadlines I didn’t meet

Not for the dry, sun tanned skin

But for those prizes I never did win

Not for slowed down hobbling gait

But for those I preferred not to wait

Not for the fingers frail and bent

But for those moments in vain I spent

Years gone by are never a waste

One life at a time I’m given to taste

If not now there is always the next

A wish, a hope, of being the best

Lifetime upon lifetime given to surmise

To become wise and break all ties.

Pepal Tree
16.05.2011

Roses

A man with a question wandered around

And finally the man with an answer he found

He who had the answer was none other than the Buddha

He walked the earth long ago; The Tathāgata

The man with all the courage he could muster

Stood with folded hands before the Great Master

With all compassion the Enlightened one enquired

For what was needed to be done as required

“What is the difference between your love and mine?

I ask you humbly, Master, please do opine”

The man with all humility the question he poses

The Master replied with an example of two roses

“Your love”, said the Master in all compassion,

“Is still devoid of all dispassion”

The Master went on for the man to understand

“Your love is like a rose you hold in your hand”

“My love”, the Master continued to explain,

“Is intended to give Joy, never pain,

Like a rose in a bush left alone

With no intention to possess or own”

Pepal Tree

23^rdDecember, 2009.

Stillness

Never lose touch with the inner stillness

Lest you get lost in the worlds wilderness

This stillness is who we really are

For caste and creed there is no bar.

What is good and what is bad? What is this duality?

Illusions causing vitality

Stillness is equilibrium

In this Time-Space Continuum.

Listen to the silence all around

To the listeners it is so profound

With this stillness when we do connect

Everything seems so perfect.

Life is neither a comedy nor is it tragic

Be still and allow the Universe to do its quiet magic

Time and place; Never and Nowhere

Stillness is when we are Aware.

We only have to be open and properly see

That everything is as it has to be

Nothing really needs to be changed

In time and space we are not framed.

The culprit is not the mind

It is but a naughty child; Be kind

Befriend it and it will succumb

To your charm; It will open up new vistas with aplomb.

Against this stillness the outside world is perceived

As impulses in the brain the world is received

This stillness is the background of reference

Words are insubstantial to express, to this Stillness, my  reverence.

The created Universe is rushing back to its Source

Every unit of matter taking its own course

Can we compare, differentiate or divide?

When All is One, whom do we deride?

The mind is running nowhere on a treadmill

We have to be aware of this and make it still

Breaking away from eons of conditioning

Beyond thoughts, words or reasoning.

The space around us allows everything to Be

The Universe is not all what the eyes do see

What we see out there is not ultimate reality

Simple yet difficult, self created  complexity.

Thousands of possibilities; Each moment is new

No beginning or end, if only we Knew

Awareness disguised as a person

Realize and break free from our conceptual prison.

Physical matter when it is frozen

As mind and thoughts, when allowed to loosen

The same is however always formless

Who we are as pure Consciousness.

Reverberating through the vast galaxies

Every blade of grass and the seven seas

The only One rooted in this quantum program

“I Am”, “I Am”, “I Am” ,”I Am”

Pepal Tree

April 2009