Dreams That You Sent

Let me sink into the dreams, you sent tonight
Perhaps my eyes wish to live one more time
The canvas that was blank witnessed a pour
Of emotions exuding from a melancholy soul.

Spreading its hues haphazardly, around me,
My heart palpitates again, amidst this spree
In the dilemma of truth entwined with illusion
My eyes oft take refuge in melting emotions.

A momentary relief to my eyes before it rains
An outpour that has crimson hues of my pain
But the dreams you sent, appear so strange
I feel like they’re oblivious to my presence.

Your dreams are the mirror image of you dear
Dismayed, I retreat again into the darkness near
But a string of hope pulls me out before I sink
And in a splash of your dreams, my eyes blink.

Those dreams that you sent, might not assuage
Soon its hues will vanish from my parched page
My heart would scream again in the dark nights
Searching the traces of dreams you sent tonight

copyright@Manoj Krishnan

Saint Teresa

Long ago, a divine savior reincarnated in Skopje
As a rosebud that bloomed in an Albanian family
When all girls dreamed of the flight of fantasies
This little angel chose the stories of missionaries.

At the tender age of eighteen, she left her family
With a firm resolve, to serve and protect humanity
The misery of the destitute manifested her destiny
She landed in Bengal and got a teacher’s identity.

Soon, to embark on benevolence’s divine journey
She decided to leave her job for serving humanity
For abandoned she opened missionaries of charity
And lit a lamp of hope in the lives of needy families.

The divine saint, in a cotton sari with a blue border.
Dedicated her life to serve the poorest of the poor
And the world revered this divine charismatic nun
A noble voice for the disabled, poor, and orphans.

She left behind an indelible legacy for generations
To serve all irrespective of their religions or nations
Let’s bring change in us and inculcate compassion
As Saint Teresa for whom altruism was her passion.

copyright@Manoj Krishnan

Never Been Proud

My eyes have seen now, my share of this world
Perhaps souls near me, value me and my words
Keeping myself away from the tag of being proud
That allures the egos, offering a deceptive crown.

An illusion of being widely discussed and adored
A trait of being proud often incarcerates the souls
Loved ones abandon, still, those eyes don’t resist
Lost in the chase of fame, evolving as a narcissist.

By the time they realize this, they are left all alone
Nothing remained in the hand and time had flown
Pride is the mirage that plays tricks with this mind
Turning a beating heart into stone and eyes blind.

I don’t see anything that I can flaunt as my pride
But I do treasure life’s lessons in my pair of eyes
Everything surrounding us is destined to change
In life’s odyssey, nothing has remained the same.

Embracing life’s hues with a smile and open arms
All I wish to remain is just a dot in the vast swarm
New roles, revamped stage, and wild pantomime
And my vestiges would vanish in the mists of time.

copyright@Manoj Krishnan

The Hidden Letter

There is a hidden letter in the closet of my heart
That, often I read as if we have never been apart
The letter, you inked with your warmth and smile
No words weaved on it, still, I can feel your vibes.

In the silence of the night, when the breeze is still
I unlock the dark closet to read the letter kept in it
And I grope around, I know, where would you be
As often, I envision you close as if you live in me.

That letter, with miles of emptiness, staring at me
Might be an enigma for all, but it unshackles me
From a mask of delusive contentment that I don
Dark nights solace me as I am wary of the dawn.

From the miles of void, I pick the moments of glee
And stack in my eyes to embark on a new journey
Might be a secret, unspoken word buried beneath
My eyes can decipher all the patterns etched on it.

Often I wonder, where would be those letters I sent
Are they still undelivered, if so where they all went
Who knows, they lie in the closet, you read in dark
As on the crossroad, I noticed your cursory glance.

copyright@Manoj Krishnan

Lullaby

One day, when you grow into a young man,
You’ll see my wings on your shoulder blades
When I would watch you fly and kiss the sky
These eyes well up in mirth and bid goodbye.

You are the sole purpose of life I’ve realized
When you are around, I forget all pain of life
Every moment that you spent in these arms
I folded up and cherished it deep in my heart.

Far from the ruthless shackles of this world,
I would let you blossom, with hues unfurled
All I wish whenever you recall days with me
No curbs or strings, just there would be glee.

One day, when you grow into a young man,
You would look like me, as My Gentleman!
When you fly and see the world left behind
Somewhere, far away, you will find my eyes.

Every moment that you giggled and laughed
I folded up and cherished it deep in my heart.
One day, when I would glitter as the pole star
You can call me, Dear! I would not be too far.

copyright@Manoj Krishnan

The Brief History of Dinosaurs

Let me usher you to a world millions of years ago
In the lush green dale of ferns, cycads, gingkoes
In the time of monstrous jaws and gigantic claws
It was the earth where dwelled mighty dinosaurs.

The jumping, roaring creatures in leathery scales
Swarmed Earth with long necks and spiked tails
Eons ago when there was no trace of humankind
Dinosaurs ruled the planet as invincible Knights.

Million years of rule was destined to a tragic fate
It’s a law of nature, every beginning has an end
A massive asteroid slammed the planet one day
Rulers of such a vast kingdom were wiped away.

That Reign of Dinosaurs, vanished into oblivion
Once a thriving planet now plunged into delirium
As every dark night beckons the day of sunshine
Life rekindled leaving vestiges of the past behind
If the earth-time could be compressed in 365 days
Their reign lasted for nine months; our’s just a day
Still in such minuscule time, we devalued its worth
There was no need of asteroid, we ruined the earth.

copyright@Manoj Krishnan

Radha

Inspiration from Amir Khusro’s “Chhaap Tilak Sab Chheen Li Re”

I looked for you frantically running around
My heart pushed when feet tumbled down
If my eyes won’t find your feathered crown
How would I return home before it’s dawn?

When I got your glimpse into a merry crowd
Leaving me in a lurch, my heart shouts loud
Amid the jovial throng, I envision your smile
And you rescued again before I drift awhile.

Color me in your love with the crimson dye
Let the moments standstill, before night fly
With these glances of your enchanting eyes
You have snatched away, all traces of mine.

I wish you could make me the radiant bride
Till my last sigh, let this illusion be my pride
Embrace me as your flute’s music O my life
In your arms, let Radha live one more time.

I yearn there be no dawn, only eternal night
Let me be in your mist, O your love is divine
With these glances of your enchanting eyes
You have snatched away, all traces of mine.

copyright@Manoj Krishnan

I Exist in You

When the sun illuminates your lane, I see my plight
You are the blush of morn, I am a glitter of the night
Your home is the abode of love that woman aspires
And I dwell in a dusky world of the crushed desires

You’re the altar’s fragrant bloom, I’m withered smile
I remain in a closet when you bask in the sunshine
All respect when you walk with your head held high
And I wander in shame, being wary of familiar eyes

In the warmth of the lover when your eyelids droop
Far in the murky lane, I enchant the restless moods
It’s the charm of your Kohled eyes that bring a smile
And in the throng of lust and deceit, every day I die

How opposite we are! Yet my soul never complains
I relive your life whenever I happen to see your lane
The life that you lead as if is every woman’s dream
And I confess I too had lived it albeit in few pieces

However different we are, a string connects us two
The man whom you worship, he visits my lane too,
The love that paints your life, colors me in his hue
Not sure if you noticed ever, but I also exist in you

copyright@Manoj Krishnan

Song of Silence

When everything around me appears so dark
This heart looks for you in the silence of stars
I know in a deep silence there is a symphony
And I confess, I adore this strange company

Because, in the song of silence, I can feel you
And my heartbeats dare to reach the sky blue
Where dusky clouds spread on the empyrean
Welcome my fatigued eyes as if I’m in heaven

A glimpse of you that is so close, yet miles far
And I return dismayed from the clouds left ajar
Because the song of silence that you taught me
Often tells me, eternal separation is my destiny

Although this heart sobs, still eyes find the rays
Who knows it may mark the beginning of a day
Because I see you in me and live in your frame
As if you exist in me and I call you by my name.

While crooning the song of the silence my heart
Jerks, as if you whispered in my eyes, O! Hark
Weary eyes envision your shadow once again
And I fall into deep slumber before night ends.

copyright@Manoj Krishnan

The Mask

I have heard, there are miles of darkness around me
Still, I don’t wish the mask that constantly chokes me
What will be the panacea for the pain that haunts me
When the days torment me when the nights taunt me.

Though I am in the lull, these eyes see the wild storm
In this chilling breeze, how would I be safe and calm
The mask hides me from those desperate to pounce
From a swarm of deadly shadows, waiting to trounce.

When the world sleeps, I dare to take off a thin mask
Donning that one, I had finished life’s umpteen tasks
I stare at my bare face without the mask, un-agitated
I shudder, blink my eyes, and my soul feels liberated.

Far from the stings of loneliness making me restless,
I wish… to have a life without a mask, just be myself
But the moment of relief, far from the world, I belong
Abruptly ends with the knock from the jocund throng.

From the world that glitters and shrouds a multiverse
Of lonely souls, wearing masks, weaving own verse
I don again the mask cherishing the moments I lived
Wearing a smile, hiding from all, the pain deep within.

copyright@Manoj Krishnan