a little flame of love

I will care about my love,
What is it?
A little, fragile flame
of a Diya,
so beautiful, so lovely,
like a little gift from
God, alighted like a flower
in my heart,
Oh! How will it survive
the ruthless winds of passion,
and storms of jealousy!
It will, it will,
I will be vigilant, caring day
and night, for the little flame,
I cannot let it go out,
for it is all that I have....


© Manan sheel.

वो आसमाँ, जहाँ...

चलो,
वो आसमाँ ढूँढे,
जहाँ फ़िक्र भी है,
और मस्ती भी।

जहाँ मस्ती सच्ची है,
और फ़िक्र मगन है।

जहाँ प्रेम बहता है,
और अपनी राह भी जानता है।

© मनन शील। 


"Come, Let us find a sky..."

Come,
Let us find a sky,
where there is care,
and ecstasy too.

Where ecstasy is true,
and care is love.

Where love flows,
knowing its way...

© Manan sheel.

जुड़वाँ..

मेरे अंदर एक ऐसी जगह है,
जहाँ आँसू और खुशियाँ आपस
में लिपटे रहते हैं,
कोई मानता नहीं, के ऐसी भी
जगहें होती हैं,
जहाँ आंसुओं में ख़ुशी खिलती है,
घुलती-मिलती है,
इस तरह दोनों रहते हैं,
जैसे जुड़वाँ बच्चे हों,
आपस में खेलते रहते हैं,
शक्लें इतनी मिलती हैं,
के लोग-तो-लोग,
माँ भी कभी धोखा खा जाती है,
और ख़ुशी को आंसुओं के नाम
से बुला देती है....


© मनन शील। 

कोई संगीत चलता है....

कोई संगीत चलता है....

कितनी कमाल की बात है,

जितना दूसरे हमसे दूर होते जाते हैं,

उतना ही परमात्मा हमें ज़्यादा प्यार करता है,

अंत में, जब हम उसके प्रेम से भर जाते हैं,

तो पता चलता है, के सब प्रेम उसका ही था,

हम अपने अंदर प्रेम लिए जीते थे,

हमारा कण-कण परमात्मा था,

हम प्रेम थे, और डरते थे,

के कहीं कोई प्रेम न दे

ठोकरें खाते थे, 

अकेले नहीं होते थे,

अब, अंदर कोई संगीत 

चलता है, जो मग्न करता है,

जो सदा था, 

पहले उसकी कभी कभी,
धीमी धीमी
रौशनी-सी सुनती थी,
अब वो निरंतर गुनगुनाता है,
जैसे धूप - सी खिलती हो,
मन में, हृदय में...  

© मनन शील।  

A New Born Baby

I will now let my consciousness

slip into the watery eyes of a new born child

And will know tenderly the secrets of this universe…

O new born, your eyes

with the big black circle

And the lesser white are amazed

Because you are knowing again, seeing through new eyes, 

what you already know inside that delicate heart of yours…

As I look upon you,

Infect me with your innocence

Let me take in the news you bring of the other world...

© Manan sheel.

Comrades of the stars, Us the Fireflies....

0.

Fireflies, We.

We are comrades of the stars,

 yes, yes,

we are...

Unbelievable, We.

Come, Come, Hear

Our story...

1.

The dark God,

With eyes like

 a beautiful ocean 

twinkling, sparkling in

wondrous glee....

lived beyond space,

beyond time, beyond this

starry night....

2.

Stars were his playthings, 

Fools call stars big,

they were but tiny sparks 

for him, he made his Diwali

creating a few,

changing the symmetry 

of a few...

3.

He came, He came

to visit this abode of men 

Listening to their science,

he laughed..

People told him about the 

size of stars...

He who played with them

like a child plays with crackers...

4.

So, on a Diwali Day,

He did some Abracadabra display,

We, Fireflies were born,

'You are Stars on Earth', He lovingly

whispered to each one of us...

5.

From that day on

 whenever the dark God whispers

the same phrase, 

We are born for the magnificent display,

for his love....

6.

We are the comrades 

of those fireflies in the sky,

they are not huge,

just like us they are

little and beautiful,

and dazzling and lovely...

What if their name is different,

they are stars and we, the fireflies!!

-Manan sheel.

The Strange Request of a Tender Heart....

A poet visited heaven.
With his wonderful ability to spin
the magic with words,
he was permitted to live there forever.

A few days passed.
Then one day, as the poet sat in a corner, brooding,
God appeared in magnificent splendor
and asked him, "How are you doing here, noble soul?"
His answer surprised the God.

He requested to go back,
to leave that perfect world.

His request was incomprehensible.
No one who gets the taste of heaven ever
wants to go back.
God asked the poet the reason
for his strange request.

Poet said in a tender voice
with melodious tears
swimming in his faraway eyes,
"I felt something missing,
After careful thinking,
I now know what :
Life is too perfect here,
I miss the imperfections
of my dear world, the imperfections
that suffuse life with warmth."


-Manan sheel.