अब तक साँस जो नही रुकी

What a charged up Sunday morning! And this one is in my very own rashtrabhasha!


ना कहीं रुकना है अभी, ना है पीछे जाना,
वक्त का यह खेल है, कभी डूबना कभी उभरना,
पर तैरता रहूँगा मैं सदैव, लहरों से झगड़कर,
हारा नहीं हूँ मैं, अब तक साँस जो नहीं रुकी ।

फीर आयी एक लहर, मुझको अपने अन्दर खीचकर,
पानी के तूफ़ान के बीच , हालत थी बुरी,
गोल गोल घूम रहा था मैं, सोचा भीतर अब और भीतर ,
हारा नहीं हूँ मैं, अब तक साँस जो नही रुकी ।

हाथ पैर हिलाते हुए, पहुँचा तट पर आखीर,
मीठी नर्म मिटटी पअहुंचा पूरे पानी पानी ,
कल फिर होगा एक और संघर्ष , एक और मंजिल, लेकिन,
हारा नहीं हूँ मैं, अब तक साँस जो नहीं रुकी ।



पोस्टस्क्रिप्ट

है यह मेरी पहली कविता, ना हूँ मैं कवि,
ना हूँ लेखक, साधारणता के लिए माफ़ी,
पर लिखता रहूँगा, जब तक मेरे हाथ में कलम नहीं नाचती,
हारा नहीं हूँ मैं, अब तक साँस जो नहीं रुकी ।।

Stories of Honour.

"I say Japan was made of a handful of brave men. Warriors willing to give their life, what seems to be a forgotten world. Honour."

And the story began. A story that I will never forget. A story which will egg me on to stand up for what I do, for what I am. May even death come in my way.

19th Century
Captain Nathan was a retired US military personnel who had curbed the rebellion of the Red Indians. After the victory in the battle with the Red Indians, he had a passion for drama and used to act in street plays before he was sent to Japan to train the Japanese Army and fight this clan of warriors called Samurai.

For those of you who do not know what I am talking about. See the movie. It's called The Last Samurai. One of the best performances of Tom Cruise.

This movie shows how it is just not about what is, what you are, it's only about what you want to become. Passion of the ambition.

The movie depicts the Japanese culture of the Samurai, their discipline. Says Captain Nathan, "They are an intriguing people.The moment they wake, they devote themselves to the perfection of whatever they pursue."

Captain Nathan Algren trained the Japanese Army for a very short period and inspite of insisting that the army wasn't ready for the battle, was forced by his superiors to go to battle with the Samurai clan. The result was what the army also expected, having seen the Samurais fight. Many were killed, many fled home from the battlefield, but Capt. Nathan was taken captive. The only reason he wasn't beheaded was that he kept fighting till the end and showed immense bravery, impressing Katsumoto, the Head of the clan.

He was kept hostage for two years and in the process got acquainted with their culture and very well appreciated it. Katsumoto also allowed him to train as a Samurai.

The last battle of the Samurai and the Japanese Army is extremely moving. After seeing it one will know what is passion, what is honour. Because a Samurai shall only die of his own sword, or that of his enemy.

The story goes on to show how every Samurai but for Captain Nathan was destroyed by the Japanese Army in the end. But something was born out of their death;the respect that was born on this planet for the Samurai, the clan and their culture.

My mind, where art thou?

The first lecture of Unit VI in Quantitative Techniques namely, Job Sequencing, with an adorable, energetic professor and a class full of great learners, except for one. Any guesses? Yes, that's me! Well I do not seem to have time for phone conversations, math, accounts or laws! The reason is that I am often not in this world. There are other worlds that I live in.

Well I would like you to meet my friends-Krishna, Arjuna, Macbeth, Hamlet, Claudius, Romeo, Juliet and Brutus. I often travel a billion years back to Kurukshetra to view Krishna racing Arjuna's charriot into the wind for the battle. Well, I also travel abroad. Just yesterday I met the three witches who were waiting for Macbeth on the foggiest part of the Dutch Highlands. Socializing has reached to new levels in my world. For those of you who are in sheer disbelief of my intense eccentricity, let me tell you, "To be or not to be, that is the question."

My passion for drama can only be imagined. Well, all that I'm waiting for is to get onto the the stage, with lights, music and people waiting to be transported to another world. It does not matter whether I act, direct or am in production. It's the spirit of drama, the opportunity to explore another's life nevertheless, through me. The privilege of creating the spirit of a play, through direction, coordination or production is only experienced by a few.

Another reason why I love plays is because it is so much of a 'play'. Music, lights and positional dynamics, all can be played around with to fine tune moods, tones and emotions. Stalwarts like
Satyajit Ray, Shyam Benegal, Prithviraj Kapoor and Naseeruddin Shah inspire me infinitely.

All in all, theatre 'plays' in my blood !
Thoughts, scenes & dialogues in my head flood
Of wars, deceit, romance and tragedy
And take me into a state of rhapsody!