National Poetry Month: Art Synergy’s Collection for 2023
‘Poetry is not a turning loose of emotion, but an escape from emotion; it is not the expression of personality, but an escape from personality.’ — T.S. Eliot.
With escapades, extension, and expansion of personalities this National Poetry Month, let’s take a moment to reflect on the snowballing practice of poetry since it got recognized as a form of expression. A poem being more than just a shadow of the poet’s personality; is, in essence, a representation of the entire civilization, its tradition, its ways and worldview, and the poet, only a part of a larger whole.
Here, we’ve put together some eclectic works of students, poetry enthusiasts and budding authors for National Poetry Writing Month 2023.
1. Streetlights
Stars in the sky;
Too many to count
So, I look at lamps instead;
Streetlights not so bright.
Flickering and alone,
They stand through the night.
Bowing their heads,
They illuminate everything beneath;
Never asking for more
Than others to be with.
So close and yet so far;
Maybe they’re better than the stars.
Invisible in the day
And no less than a companion at night,
They’re all equal;
No north or south they know;
No forever do they promise
Or a map they draw.
Till whenever they say
And love us no matter what.
- Santapan Saha, poet
2. Lost
I am lost,
Lost on the track of life
Not knowing where I will end up dying.
I pass through every street
Streets that look similar
Oh! It’s my town
Town where I am not supposed to live a single breath.
The red colour of evening was mourning
mourning the blood on the ground,
blood of my people which believe it will end tomorrow.
The town was so silent,
So silent even the breeze of death could be felt
but am I the only one to feel it??
Wait, I felt the presence of a living force
maybe it could be my mom, maybe it could my dad, maybe it could be my friends….
No, it’s just a crow, rumbling over a dead dog
They say, after this everything will be fine
the sun will shine on us again
But everything went in vain
Why the hunger of conquering is satisfied by the thirst of blood
Why the rise of someone is simultaneous with the downfall of someone
Why is war the only solution?
I am lost,
lost in the guilt of not getting killed along with my people…
- Saksham Singh, student
3. बहती हुई दरिया ने तय एक मुकाम किया होगा
बहती हुई दरिया ने तय एक मुकाम किया होगा,
आज फिर पत्थरों-पहाड़ों को नाकाम किया होगा
अनजानी राह पर निकलो तो ये सोचो,
हर बार की तरह इस बार भी किस्मत ने कुछ इंतज़ाम किया होगा|
ये कामयाबी मिलने पर कामयाबी की आस,
समदर को जो खाली करदे एसी तलब एसी प्यास,
सताइश की तमन्ना में, अंजाम की परवाह में,
न जाने कितनी सुबहों को शाम किया होगा|
फिज़ूल बातों पर हामी न भरना,
समझौतों की इल्तजा को ठुकरा देना, न झुकना,
तौर-ए-जिंदगी पहले एसा तो नहीं था मगर,
ज़रूर खुद पर बहुत काम किया होगा|
बहती हुई दरिया ने तय एक मुकाम किया होगा…
- Ankush Sam Thorpe, author
4. Perfect
The girl they want her to be
The girl she pretends to be
She can’t look herself in the mirror
Breaking the shackles
She ran away
Away from the angels
Right into the arms of the devil
He didn’t care,she wasn’t perfect
He didn’t care, she wasn’t ideal
The angels came to get her back
But if it meant being perfect
She’d rather dance with the devil, than sing with the angels.
- Vanya Sadana, student
5. कागज कोरा?
ये कोरा कागज है तुम्हारे पास,
तुम स्वतंत्र हो जो चाहे लिखो,
जैसे चाहे, जितना चाहो लिखो,
और जब चाहे लिखो,
तूलिका से लिखा या उकेरा हुआ,
मिटाया जा सकता है,
उस पर नया लिख सकते है,
परन्तु पुराने के निशान नहीं छुटते पूरी तरह,
धुंधला जाते है पर मिटते नहीं।
अब दो ही रास्ते हैं,
वो कागज को चीर-फाड़ कर फेंक आओ,
जिससे फिर कभी कोई उसपे कुछ ना लिख सके,
और उस कागज की कहानी को विराम मिले,
या फिर उन धुंधले मिटे अक्षरों को,
नजरअंदाज कर कुछ नया उकेरो,
नई लकीर खीचों नए अंदाज से।
कागज भी तुम्हारा, कलम भी तुम्हारी,
निशान भी तुम्हारे, विकल्प भी तुम्हारे,
पर शायद एक बार लिखने के बाद कागज कोरा न रहेगा,
परन्तु लिखा फिर भी जा सकेगा।
~ Aarti Beniwal, aspiring writer
Poetry is called a ‘dying art form’ by many, and reasons manifold, but will something else hook our attention the same way as poems do?
Dylan Thomas, a Welsh poet and philosopher perceives a poem to be more than just a few rhyming lines compiled together. Good poems, as he sees, contributes to reality and changes the world as we know it. The dynamics of the universe and people’s knowledge about them are shaped by poetry.
Have poems shaped you as you too?
(Image Credits: Generative AI, DALL E)
