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Poetry

Cloudscape

A striking upward scene
Dazzle tear filled sight
The noon ball of fire
Disseminating bright light
Spaces occupied in blue
A cloud filled nuance
Comparative to the sun
Vivid formations of cloud
In a syncronised movement
Travel sky's length and breadth
Thin strands of pure white
Compacted blobs of fluff
Rain clouds as they are called
Dark patches in silver lines
Floating undetected to all
Purple mountains yellow sun
Lightning thunder and rain
Creamy moon twinkling stars
Guides, arranges, cloudscape
All eyes feast on the sky
An abyss of light and colour
Awaiting a poignant moment
To see a cloudless sky.


Samanera monk


Picture by Chaminda Hiththetiyage

He walks along the street
with downcast eyes
and in measured steps
begging bowl in hand
The saffron clad
'Samanera' monk
visiting houses
for his pindapatha
young in years-the monk of the Holy Order
A great sacrifice made
To seek freedom from the shackles of life
following the Buddha vacana
The serene look of
Nigrodha Samanera
glittering eyes with compassion and tolerance
Preached the importance of reaching
world of bliss
That changed the lifestyle of warrior
to pious king Dharmashoka
The noble yellow robed monks
of the sangha samajaya
stand to this day
To help the worldlings


Anticipation

Tomorrow, I thought,
I'd surely meet her,
The sweet trouble-maker,
Persistently taxing my time,
But enrapturing my lonely heart,
With her sunshiny presence,
And warm, loving, blithe words,
Irradiating my heart's gloom....

But now I feel,
I'd not meet her tomorrow,
And that our rendezvous,
Would have to be postponed,
For an indefinite time.....

Thwarted expectation,
Stymied hope,
Distress my childish heart,
Constantly yearning,
For her warm, wonderful friendship,
Her blithe smiles,
And warm affectionate words,
But anticipation is still alive in my heart,
For a longer, lovelier, better rendezvous!


Are you there?

As we all know
You are mighty above all
To take us with you
In a sudden blow
Holding unanimity
And the enormous popularity
You do it only once
But not incessantly

Do you know?
Competitors are around
Overtaken your powers
To become emperors
Using numerous ways
Blasting into pieces
Under such circumstances
And continues turbulence
Our shrunken breath
Experiences death
Every now and then

You should know
There could be one
To obey, but none
You have the sole right
Make them to come to light
Of your pedigree
Swat the distress that exists
Stop us dying
Often and often
At every single moment
As we got the right
To die only once


Evening on sea shore!

Waves came and crashed on the rocks,
I was near them and they washed my socks.
The sun was bathing, ending his day,
I went back and sat near the bay.

The sea shore seemed like golden ground,
Wind blew with a very sweet sound.
The sky looked like its burning,
I really felt myself too sailing.

One after the other stars shone,
Shadows of coconut trees were human to my mind,
Moon peeped through clouds,
So far I heard the sound of a hound.

My mind rested as I sat on the sand,
Sounds of the waves were merry as a band.
I got up and went away very slowly,
Saying goodbye to an evening on sea shore.


Vision and creation

The Bible says "The Lord said let there be Light"
And there was light, objects grew bright,
To those born blind, pre darkness prevailed,
Yet God created Man, some hailed
If so He was unjust, unkind,
To create maimed, deaf and blind,
Theologians prate Go created Man,
Then, when, where, how did God get his 'Life Span'.
Cried the Bishop of Canterbury after the Tsunami Devastation,
"Is there a God"? baring his soul to his Nation.
The wise say Man evolved from the 'Chimps',
A God creates no blind or those with 'Limps',
Left handed 'Chimps', exist, maimed use branches as walking sticks.
Leaving God Believers in a tangled 'fix',
Possible say scientists the animate form the inanimate,
From the animate surged life and fate,
For by the Mosque the blind with outstretched palms
Cry for the love of Allah grant us alms
Surgeons when eye lens turns opaque, dense,
After deft removal replace a glass lens,
Dr. Makuloluwa restored my dark world to one of light,
Gentle, kind, courteous a beacon bright.
Prof. Physics 'Myla' of yore intoned "Vision is Infinity",
A God begets no 'defects' or drive some to Insanity",
A part from these, there are some that be,
Blessed with good sight yet do not see.


The yellow grasshopper

A yellow grasshopper looks through a black hole
The dim light gives a fierce paralysed notion
The iron demon rolls over once more, it's frightening
The long dark-haired damsel at the bistro still pours coffee
The little fellow in the buggy cries out loud
The sun is dark? thinks the grasshopper
It's midday light never changes
Stars have fallen and eaten the leaves
Grasshopper thinks it's winter
The greenhouse bears tomatoes as red
As the sunset but they are closed
Grasshopper is not allowed there;
A strawberry vendor yells at the market
People flock to pick up bargains
The energy gap is increased
Not for the grasshopper though;
Waiting for one fine day
The new born calf gets warmer near her mother
A yellow-beaked crane stoops down to the lake
Picking up an unfortunate fish who knows little of life
Van Gough drew something on canvass
They had colours and stripes
Chopin composed the E-minor
It was just too much
Grasshopper tried to remember something
That was the spring
The fight for land continues
In a mythical far away land
Grasshopper never says much
My little child asks for mother
Do I know?
Life is a tragic thought stream ebbs and flows
They are as morning dew
When the light drops they disappear
The heat, sweat and anger rage within
The grasshopper still wonders just surviving under
A giant dead oak leaf
Just about


A Street Scene

The gypsy placed the round wicker basket
and sat on his haunches.
The gypsy woman was seated cross-legged
a short distance away.
She was holding a full grown mongoose on a leash.
Suddenly-
The gypsy jerked off the top of the basket.
A huge cobra whipped out of it
and spread its baleful head
Its heady eyes flashed in fury;
Its forked tongue flickered like lightning.
The gypsy woman let loose the mongoose.
He darted forward,
and the cobra struck viciously.
The blow missed the target
The mongoose leaped at the cobra's throat,
and hung on fiercely.
The snake lashing violently,
pulled the mongoose to the ground.
Its coils were wound around the mongoose's body,
and began to tighten.
It appeared the mongoose was doomed.
But with a quick movement,
Its sharp teeth sank into the snake's back.
The gypsy was playing the flute frantically.
The tightening coil relaxed.
The mongoose with another violent leap
seized the cobra's lower jaw.
The cobra was helpless.
It was half dead.
The mongoose came out a victor.
The cobra was wincing with pain and anguish
The amazed spectators threw coins and notes
into a metal container.
The gypsy stood up.
With his stick he picked up the writhing
blood soaked cobra
and shoved it onto a prickly bramble bush
a little beyond.
It writhed with more pain and more agony.
and died a horrible death.
A very sickening scene, indeed.
A street entertainment most deplorable


The prince and the calf

The cow was grazing in a meadow
with its newborn calf playing
in the nearby narrow road.
The royal prince on a joy ride
driving his royal chariot in a cloud of dust
ran over and killed the calf on the spot.

The mother cow lamented furiously
over her dead son lying in a pool of blood.
She thought for a moment and ran
to the royal palace far away
and rang the 'Grievances Bell' in the palace.
The king ordered the royal guards to enquire.

The guards followed the cow and found
the dead calf by the roadside.
They made inquires and were convinced
that the king's son was the offender.
On hearing the findings the king ordered
that his own son be killed the same way
the cow's little son was killed.


On extension

When I go on my usual morning walk
There is a sight that catches my eye
The pictures pasted on pillar and post
Are usually black and white
They are faces of people who are dead and gone
And the dates of birth stand out
It very often seems to be
People who are born after me
Then at once my mind seems to say
Hey you are on extension!

 

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