the loving god - Priyanshi Punia

women falling to their knees

protests stifled in their throats

and yet they would claim equality

lie about a world where i can walk at night

houses keep getting rebuilt but the trauma always stays

it is a part of the soil that makes the bricks that make this country

it is a part of the women that make the soil that makes the bricks that make this country

my fear is mine first

yet they somehow intertwine it with religion, with otherness

but this fear is a collective, it is communal

the monsters of the night do not discriminate

the monsters of the night gain too much confidence

they don’t remain in the shadows anymore

but our fear always does

because how can you be woman without biting your tongue and swallowing blood

how can you be woman without making yourself small enough to digest

my ache is my mother’s and her mother’s and her mother’s and her mother’s

it runs in the bloodline

and despite this sacrifice everything becomes about god

we are no strangers to nightmares that follow us even when we are awake

and there are still prayers made to a god that doesn’t listen

his arrogance increases as his interest in this place decreases

if i am accidentally safe for one day, they thank god

and on days when i’m not, they beg him to protect

but protection is for things you care about

protection means you love

but the only thing he could love is watching our misery

watching us disintegrate into shame and fear and nothingness

because after all you have to be nothing to be woman

and they make our screams heard and voices silenced

it is quite the contradiction

living locked in our houses for the fear and still having our souls crushed

and i am scarred in the name of a loving god

knees bruised

tears down throats

biting down tongues

swallowing bile and blood

how can you be woman without being mangled corpses

The price of being a "Diamond"-Deveani Suri

You had been through stuff enough,

had been pushed at all odds so tough,

You had been burdened too much,

escape an option had not been given as such,

You had received many cuts and bruises,

had been deprived of things that amuses,

You had been shoved in darkness,

trapped on all the sides like mess,

But here you are;you have survived,

you win and have risen alive,

With an untamed and limitless shine,

you have ripped apart the darkness so fine,

And,the world is stunned because you have now become a "Diamond".

सभ्य होने का ढोंग- Anil Singh

इतना कुछ बदल गया है  हमारे चारो ओर कि

अब तो हमने

सभ्य होने का ढोंग रचाना भी छोड़ दिया है।

अपने सारे मुखौटे उतारकर ,

हम प्रायः हंसते हैं एक निर्लज्ज हंसी

अपनी समस्त विद्रूपताओं के साथ,

हमें अब किसी बात का भय नहीं होता ,

अलग -थलग पड़ने का डर नहीं होता,

क्योंकि शायद अब यही व्यवहार

सहज स्वीकार्य है ,मान्य है,सराहनीय है।

Goddess- Amrita Rath

Sometimes I take birth

sometimes I'm denied,

unsure of my future

I look at God as my guide.

Growing up is a task

yet all I am taught is silence,

if I dare speak out

I get a look, so tense.

I bear violence, taunts and

even when they scold,

keeping it all to myself

according to every situation I can mould.

You visit temples

religiously worship and pray,

on the thrones sit the women deity too

if you cannot respect women, from the

temples stay away.

I agree not everyone is alike,

many love me,

raise me with love

those who don't, I pity.

I can be a mother, daughter, sister, wife

and what not,

treat me like a human, raise me like a princess;

just like Durga, Lakshmi, Sita and all of them

I am one, with names many like a Goddess.

A Little Peace- Arjun Malhotra

A little peace

I cry my world down.

It feels like shadows ripping me out.

It's the fear of my actions repenting.

It's the fear of an unhappy sound.

Emotionally, physically, life's a let down,

The bright stars in the night sky are the little hopes that I hang on.

I am breaking down,

A little peace I am crying now

No one understands the threads I hold onto,

How easy would they break,

You scream on and on, and how my heart's holding on to a lonely smile.

Easy I come and, Easy I go,

Everywhere of lonely woes,

I feel you are here and then

In seconds there's no one to turn to.

There's a fall coming and I have no one to turn to.

Then life's looking me down, it's hanging me out, would anyone just hug me tight?

A little peace,

I hope for,

a little hope that it'll be alright.

This Story is About We- Emine Sharma

This story isn’t about me.

They always ask, what’s your story?

Ego jumps up and says I, ME!

Ego puts that mask on and

Performs!

Says HERE.I.AM!

But then is shattered by the breeze

Because

We forget the pronoun We.

This story starts in 1951

A baby boy was born in Turkey

This story starts in 1954

A baby girl was born in Detroit.

And the many babies before that,

Until one day this baby was born.

This story is about the Turkish boy

Holding his baby brother

Saying, “Anne make him stop bleeding!”

After the bang of a gun.

This is story is about a girl living

In a country that screamed FREEDOM!

But credit cards aren’t for you ladies, that and so much more.

A country that scream FREEDOM for the whole world to hear!

But was lynching those with melanin,

Only one generation ago, which is quite near.

This story is about a girl growing up in the 90’s

With this itching, gnawing, anxious feeling

That something just wasn’t quite right.

But how could she know?

So she never trusted it.

So it never went away.

It waited.

This story is about a teenage girl in the 60’s

5th of 9 in her family

The only one to make it through college.

“Just because we are poor, doesn’t mean we have to look it.” She would absently say.

That feeling again, the 90’s girl thought.

That line came from long ago,

Well before the 50’s.

This story is about that Turkish boy

With a scholarship,

Sent to the land of freedom

After both his parents had died.

Ah, but this pity party man!

That damn bottle.

Those damn drugs.

The numbing.

The self-loathing.

What a waste of this precious human life.

Enough.

Look around, we’re in this together.

This story is about life.

And the lies we tell ourselves about our differences.

The lies we spew to keep that child safe inside.

Don’t feel they say.

Don’t cry they say.

Don’t tell anyone they say.

Don’t trust them they say.

Make that money they say.

I know you understand me,

even though we come from opposite sides

Of this Mother Earth.

Different? But how?

Our togetherness is delightful.

We are children longing to play.

We are children standing at opposite ends of the playground

too shy to take that first step and say,

“What’s your name? Cool, come on, you're with me.”

These stories aren’t about you or me.

They are about those who passed.

Those who tried.

And those who finally said I trust this feeling,

I don’t know where I will go,

But feeling take me.

That knowing.

That thread that binds us all.

Can you feel it?

I know you can.

Don’t be afraid to tug on it.

Reel it in.

Sew it into your skin.

Make a quilt.

Bring it close.

Wrap it around you.

And fall deep into its love.

This story is about the smile on a

toddler’s face as his mother carries bricks.

This story is about the girl screaming, “Mama!”

As she takes another hit.

This story is about a garden blooming

Sowed with hands of love.

This story is about laughter more contagious

then COVID ever was.

This is about the music

pulsating in our hearts.

It’s about that dance floor

as we move together as one part.

This is about the languages,

spoken and those universally known.

Like the love between two strangers

when their hearts finally connect.

Aha! I see you! Without a word said.

That gleam on their faces.

I don't know the sounds from your mouths,

but I feel you.

Time and time again

Great minds say,

“Look around you!

What miracle do you need?

It’s all right in front of you!”

The growth of a seed.

The birth of a baby.

The weather.

The colours.

The water.

The peaks.

The breath.

The heartbeat.

Whenever you feel hopeless,

Alone and misunderstood.

It’s that feeling saying,

“Go deep, girl.

Trust me and let go.

Have the courage to free your mind

Despite your physical constraint.

I am here with you.

For you are me,

And don’t you ever forget about the We.”

व्यथा स्त्रीची- Swati Gore

व्यथा स्त्रीची

रस्त्यावरून चालताना एखादी मुलगी दिसली की हरवून बसता भान

पण तिच्याकडे वाईट नजरेने बघताना खाली का जात नाही मान..

महिला पुरुषांच्या बरोबरीला आल्या म्हणून करता हो सत्कार

एवढ्या संघर्षातून बरोबरीला आल्या तरी थांबत नाही हो बलात्कार..

कधी बस,मध्ये कधी रेल्वेमध्ये,तर कधी नजरेनेही करता वार

आईच्या पोटातून जन्म घेण्याआधीच करून टाकता तिला ठार..

बाहेरचे तर आहेतच घरचा बापही जातो तिच्या वाट्याला

कसलाही विचार न करता

परका करतो बाप आणि लेकीच्या नात्याला..

चार-पाच वर्षांच्या मुलींना नाही ओळखता येत हो समोरच्याचे मन

म्हणूनच हिरावून घेता का त्यांचे आनंदी बालपणाचे क्षण..

कधी कधी प्रश्न पडतो का स्त्री सुरक्षित नाही आपल्या देशात

कारण तो नराधामच असतो घरी आपल्या भावाच्या वेशात..

एवढं करून उजळ माथ्याने फिरताय कसला एवढा माज..

तुम्ही पण एका स्त्रीच्या पोटी जन्म घेतला याची तरी ठेवा लाच..

विचार केला कविता करून काय उपयोग पण म्हटलं माझं मत तरी मांडेल

कदाचित माझी कविता वाचून

एखादा बलात्कार तरी थांबेल..

Kaun hun main - Somya Gupta

कौन हूं मैं?

क्या वो जिसे एक मां ने जन्म दिया है,

जिसे यहां के बटवारों की खबर नहीं

जो इस दुनिया में "जीने" आई है

रोते हुए,

पर हसने के लिए।

या फिर हिंदू, मुस्लिम, सिख, ईसाई, वो.. आपस में हैं भाई भाई।

इनमें से कोई हूं

कौन हूं मैं?

वो जिसे मंदिर जाकर पूजा करनी चाहिए

दरगाह में मत्था टेकना शोभा नहीं देता,

कौ़म के खिलाफ जाओगे?

Male हूं, female हूं, या from LGBTQ+

कौन हूं मैं?

लोग कहते हैं, Romantic relation सिर्फ opposite gender में होते हैं,

In same gender, ये तो यहां पाप है।

लड़की हुं तो रात को अकेले बाहर कैसे निकल सकती हूं

लड़का हूं तो घर बैठ कर घर के काम

खानदान की नाक कटानी है?

संस्कारी लड़की हूं या वो,

लड़कों के साथ घूमने फिरने वाली

ओह, तो आवारा हूं मैं

कौन हूं मैं?

बेटी हूं, बहू हूं तो कुछ नियम कानून हैं

अपनी जिंदगी के अहम फैसले खुद नहीं ले सकती।

बेटा हूं, पति हूं तो घर का सारा ज़िम्मा सिर्फ मेरे कंधो पर

वरना मर्दानगी, कम नई हो जाएगी?

डॉक्टर हूं, इंजीनियर हूं, या CA

हम एक reputed society में रहते हैं

Profession भी reputed होना चाहिए।

या मैं एक मामूली कलाकार हूं

जो इन रंगो में डूबा है।

कौन हूं मैं?

खैर आपके हिसाब से मैं जो भी हूं

पर इन सब के ऊपर,

मैं बस एक इंसान हूं‌

जो यहां "ख़ुश" रहने आया है

बस।

An Age of Charlatanism- Tanya Rampal

(In memory of Allen Ginsberg)

I have seen the greatest mansions of our age

standing on half land- half air,

harbouring half knowledge, half sanity,

half ideas, half tenderness,

half patience, half strength

and fragments of dejected souls

Mansions made of half bricks, half water,

half cement, half clay,

half sludge, half gibberish,

and powdered corpses of childhood-passions

Mansions painted with half regrets

masquerading as triumphs

Mansions built by and for sellers

of faded prints of their halves

and possessors of others’ quarters

Mansions that display

all those maimed possessions

Mansions that are half galleries- half houses

always open for a show

eager to absorb validation

as viewers gawk in half awe- half contempt

I have seen-

it’s the contempt that feeds the dejected souls

Until their hunger rises again for more

and when each more feels lesser than before-

They chase half enlightenment

bottled by half Gurus

sold by half humans

at their virtual stores

They rummage through an assortment

of recycled thoughts- before they pass out;

But when they are half asleep,

they dream of a sorceress

and her distant magick that is whole,

kneel before her-

and soak her blessed feet in tears

They ask, “O Goddess! Will I ever be whole?”

She roars, “Paint the canvas anew

Weave a new cloth

In an age of charlatanism-

find Magick

and Magick will make you whole.”

Zamana- Haleema Farooqi

Kyu zamane ke sau rang hote hain ya rab

Kyu zamane ka ek rang hota nhi ya rab

Bara mushkil hai ab is behr e zulmat me jeena

Bara mushkil hai ab is daara e ujlat me marna

Yahan sau log Hain sau andaaz e adaa wale

Phir us andaaz ke sau rang aur shauq niraale

Jise samjho ki ye to hai tasweer wafa ki

Wo zara der me ban jaata hai kahani si dagha ki

Yahan chalakiyon ko hasil hai ek azeem sa rutba

Yahan maasoomiyat ki kab koi qadr samajhta

Hai munafiqat har cheez har shai pe ghaalib

Or zamana bhi to har dam inhi logo ka hai taalib

Koi khaamosh hai gar toofan e dil ki badolat

Kehte hain usse log ye dikhawe ki hai aadat

Hairan hu mai ye dekhkar, ke apne bhi yahan par

Ghair hone me wo taakheer karte nhi aksar

Kaash! Aa jaye koi aesa bhi is jahan me

Jo dhare kaan mere is andaaz e bayan me

Magar afsos ki aaya nahi koi aesa bashar

Jo karde is zamane ke in haalat ko behtar

Ae khudaya! Meri tujhse ye Tamanna hai bari

Ke mera lab ye Mera dil bass Tera hi ho har ghari.

My Damaged Soul- Saniya Takshak

My Damaged Soul

After long in the daylight of the day

Now, the time has come to sleep in the sparkling moonlight.

But I wish I never woke up the next day.

I want to sleep forever.

Never be alive again in this world of evil

But the creator of this world has not given that right

My soul is now tired of alive

It wants to sleep forever

My brain is now smarter

but my soul has lost all its purity now

But to survive, I have to be wicked as others and try to show myself as a superpowered being

My purity has not been recognized by anyone and is considered deceit

My soul has­­­­­­ damaged very badly now that I do not believe in its restoration again.

But some say time heals

Will this ointment of time work on it?

Or will it also lose its purity in this unpure world?

Though, if it loses I will remain wounded as before.

लापता - Shruti Takshak

जी रहा था मै यू यहाँ

हर कड़ी मै बेपनाह

हर उम्मीदों के सागर में

मै हूँ मेरे लिए लापता

जी रहा हूँ मै यूँ यही

ना मुझे हैं कुछ पता

हैं हताशा जो मन में

मुझको खोती है हर जगह

हूँ समुद्र के तट में

सारी नदियों से मै जुदा

है कहानी ये मेरी

जिसमे मै गुमसुम खड़ा

भला इस जहान मे

क्यों मै मेरे लिए लापता

If only i could paint the sky- Jasreet Kaur

Painting stars in the daylight

Painting clouds through the night

Painting with just red and blue

But covered in orange and yellow too

If only I could paint the sky with

Colors full of jitter and joy

The chirping birds to quiet down

The thunderstorm to take the high

Not today I want to feel the thrill

Instead get hugged by a melancholic shrill

Feel the calmness of the life

Cause time timely passes by

Maybe someone wishes the same

Maybe someone feels this way

Maybe it's time to sit down

And let the world rush around

Cause beauty isn't in the storm passing by

But dancing with the rain in delight

Breathing ecstasy with the torrent storms

Or bewailing loss of a lover so gone

Beauty isn't in the heat of day

But letting the sun guide the way

Acting crazy with rainbow’s colors

Or humming songs by the hours

A simple storm, a fancy rain

A tiny little child's play

A charging fall or blooming snow

A rainbow and a few clouds also

If only I could paint the sky

I'll paint it with colors, those so bright

Indigo violet pink in green

Feelings with the colorful beam…..

Everything alright- Kratika Sharma

Everything’s Alright

There are many people in this town,

and even then I’m planning to leave my house

Because I am tired of telling my friend’s that I’m alright yet I’m well aware that they have doubt.

Because I’m acting strange from past two weeks but I just can’t change anything but my personality.

All I need is a fake smile,

some cute lies, some good time, and a lot of strength to say Everything’s Alright.

Actually, I say

probably I am suffering from anxiety

Honestly, I’d say

Obviously I am not doing good from past few weeks

Midnight for me is 4 A.M.

Skipping meals is a new normal to me.

All of my friend’s are saying again that I am acting strange all day

and I can’t change anything but my personality

All I need is a fake smile,

some cute lies, some good time, and a lot of strength to say Everything’s Alright.

I’m not acting strange again because,

All I need was

some great time, A real smile and a lot of strength to mean and say ‘Ya everything’s alright’

और तुम कहते थे बेटी बचाओ -Shruti Dagar

बादलो से भरे शहर में वो धीरे से चलके आई

सामने खडे इंसान को देख वो हल्के से मुस्कुराई

देख बेटी की ये हालत पिता के सीने में चल गए छूरे

पूछा उसने बेटी से तुम यहां क्या कर रही हो छोडकर अपने सपने अधूरे

सुनकर पिता की बात बेटी होश में आई

आपबीती याद कर रोने लगी बताने की हिम्मत ना जुटा पाई

देख बेटी की यह हालत पिता को खुद पर आया तरस

क्यों वो बेटी को बचा ना सका यही सोच वह भगवान पर पडा बरस

क्यों मेरी बेटी इस हालत में मेरे पास आई

क्या किया था हमने कसूर जो इसे ऐसी मौत दिलाई

सुन उस पिता की बात रब वी रो पडा

जो इंसानियत पर था उसे थोडा विश्वास था वह भी खो पडा

हमने तो धरती पर फूल सी बच्ची दी थी

मां का सहारा पिता की लाडली बेटी थी

बडे थे सपने इरादे नेक थे

पर उसके सपने को तोडने के लिए राक्षस भी अनेक थे

सामने खडे भगवान से जब लडकी ने आंख मिलाई

एक ही सवाल मन में आया क्या लडकी होने की मैने इतनी बडी सज़ा चुकाई

क्या था मेरा दोष जो मैं इस तरह तडपाई

जिन लोगो ने ली है मेरी जान क्या चुका पाएंगे वो मेरे दर्द की भरपाई

सुन उस लडकी की बात भगवान हो गए मौन

सोच में पड गए कि इसके गुनहगारो को सज़ा देगा कौन

सुन बेटी की ख़बर मां अंदर से टूट गई

एक बेटी ही थी सहारा आज वो भी छूट गई

खाली था आँगन सूना था चौबारा

यही सोच कर सो गई कि बेटी के कातिलो को सज़ा देने के लिए भगवान जन्म लेंगे दोबारा।

An Arc of Rainbow- Archana Samata

An Arc of Rainbow

I saw a gust of wind winnowed around the leaves,

I gazed at the smoky cloud loomed large at heaven's sleeves,

I smelt the aroma of buttercups, near a turquoise lake amidst grassy hills.

I trembled as I heard the fidgeting bustle of a nestling, underneath the cozy wings.

She is a waddling mother goose, it dawned upon me

She cackled to save her nascent gooselings!

A splash of rain tapped on a wavy brook,

On the verge of a meadow, a yolk-like sun had a placid nook!

Might be the Rain God had slept for a while

Above the peak of an oak tree

Yonder a contingent of seven hues, painted the blue reel.

I was amazed! What an elegant row! A doodle of glistening bow!

I stood aback, 'Who is the painter'? She murmured, 'I am the Mother Universe'

Who paints in cluster 'An Arc of Rainbow'!!

Far away from the modern city- Deveani Suri

On the wheels of pure and aromatic breeze steering me to the world of serenity and divinity,

away from monotonous and exhausting hustle bustle of the city,

disappearing into the magically pious,artless and lush -green place,

away from the artful,deceptive and mechanised world where everyone is on the race,

so as to embrace blissful peace and solace,

the place where the air aromatising of soil and petals is divinely pure and refreshing,

casting a spell to permeate a new zeal and spirit inside the living being,

other than the vitality -sipping ,adulterated and poisoned air of the industrialized region,

immersing into the alluring and enchanting beauty of the crystal pure stream emerging from the source not in vision,

harbouring the heterogeneous life and sustaining the dancing flowers on its banks with vitality and brilliance,

apart from the dead and toxic streams and ponds ;the graveyard of flora and fauna in modern day that represents,

walking on the streets with ingenuous people who are trampling only the fallen leaves ;

and not the people of other color,religion,caste and creed,

the place where the strong become the roots for those stems and branches of the society that don't possess equivalent resources;

but then,I woke up into the reality to see,

bursting of my imaginative bubbles in this retrograde society....

Burnt...- Dr. Manu

A whisper heard- Look at her nose...

Another one- Complexion! what they chose...

One more- The boy is so fair,

she stands nowhere...

It was her first day in the new house...

Was listening everything silently- her spouse...

Nor she said anything- her mother-in-law...

What everyone was doing- just pointing her flaw...

She kept inside everything and the day passed...

Her pain was so deep ,so vast...

In bed, in front of him she cried...

what all they said was just right...

Husband's this response made her shocked...

Her poverty, worth and even life was being mocked...

A new morning. Let's start fresh, she thought...

Unaware... she was not more than a servant brought...

Worked for hours without break but of course with taunts...

A little love, care and respect, that's all she wants...

Within days, for dowry they threatened her to beat...

For days, gave her nothing to eat...

Beaten, tied and they locked her in a dark room...

Husband was ready to become once again, the groom...

Anyhow, she escaped and reached to mandap* so lonely...

Those demons just burned her with that pure vedi** fire only...

One more tale ended so violently...

Why we just spectate such atrocities so silently?

She can be your sister, daughter and even you tomorrow...

If remained mute, soon world will face the inundating sorrow.....

* mandap is the place for gathering during any holy ritual and marriage is considered a holy ritual. (As per Hindu religion)

** vedi means fire altar ( again holy as per Hindu religion)

#stopdowrydeaths

Beti- Niyati Jain Singh

“बेटी”

बेटी बचाओ बेटी पढ़ाओ,

बेटी को बेटा बनाओ,

पर इससे कहां कुछ हल होगा,

अन्नपूर्णा और दुर्गा बनकर भी तो,

नाम और पता उसी का बदल होगा !

फिर भी नई जगह, नए लोगों से खुशी-खुशी एडजस्ट कर जाएगी,

पूरी दुनिया को खुशी-खुशी अपना नया नाम बताएगी,

सुबह उठेगी खाना बनाएगी, सबको खिलाएगी, बच्चों को स्कूल पहुंचाएगी

और इन सब में अपना खाना तो कहां ही याद रख पाएगी,

पर फिर भी जल्दी जल्दी ऑफिस को भाग जाएगी,

क्योंकि बॉस तो वहां भी एक बैठा होगा !

बेटी को बेटा बनाओ,

पर इससे कहां कुछ हल होगा !

शाम को जब निकलेगी ऑफिस से, तो ऑफिस वहीं छोड़ आएगी,

सबसे पहले याद करेगी बच्चों को,

और आते में सब्जी और किराना साथ ले आएगी,

सिर दर्द से फट रहा होगा, पर अपनी चाय खुद ही बनाएगी,

मन करेगा रख लूं कुछ पल सर तकिए पर मैं भी,

पर अन्नपूर्णा तो घर की वही है,कहां किचन छोड़ पाएगी,

बच्चों का होमवर्क और ऑफिस का बचा वर्क भी तो,

आज ही खत्म करना होगा !

बेटी को बेटा बनाओ,

पर इससे कहां कुछ हल होगा !

इतना करके भी शिकायतें कहां कम होगी,

घर परिवार हॉबी कैरियर,

इनके तालमेल मे, आंखे तो सिर्फ उसी की नम होगी,

फिर भी उठ खड़ी होगी बेचारी हर दिन,

सोचकर की शायद कल एक नया कल होगा !

बेटी को बेटा बनाओ,

पर इससे कहां कुछ हल होगा !

अगर चाहते हे सच में हल पाना,

तो सामूहिक यह प्रयत्न करना होगा,

स्लोगन यह अधूरा रह गया है शायद,

बस इसी को तो पूरा करना होगा,

बेटी बचाओ, बेटी पढ़ाओ,

बेटी को बेटा बनाओ,

पर बेटे को भी तो थोड़ा बेटी बनाओ !

और तभी ही तो कुछ हल होगा |

तभी ही तो कुछ हल होगा ||

Aditi Agarwal-अदिति अग्रवाल।

वह आखरी ख्वाइश।

मां की गोद, वह घर का सुकून,

माना मुश्किल से भूल पाऊंगा मैं;

पर आन सदा मेरे देश की,

हद से ज्यादा बढ़ाऊंगा मैं।

यही सोच कई साल पहले,

घर से कफ़न बांधे निकला था मैं;

निकलते हुए मां के आंसू देखे,

फिर भी ना पिघला था मैं।

आज मेरी खाकी पर यह खून,

मेरी सांसो को गिनते जा रहा है;

सुकून की नींद में जाते हुए,

बस एक ही ख़याल आ रहा है।

काश किसी तरह आज यह सैनिक बच जाए,

काश आज ऊपर वाला कोई चमत्कार रच जाए;

ना ना! जिंदगी की मुझे कोई लालसा नहीं,

और फिर ऐसी मौत तो हर सिपाही का गहना है;

पर मैं फिर से जीना चाहता हूं,

क्योंकि मुझे फिर से अपनी धरती के लिए मरना है।

एक बार और, अपने देश के लिए बलिदान देना है,

एक बार और, राष्ट्रगान पर सीना तान लेना है;

एक बार और, मुझे अपने तिरंगे को सलाम करना है,

एक बार और, सीमा पर मुझे हर एक दुश्मन से लड़ना है।

ऐ मां, आज मर जाना क्या मेरे साथ नाइंसाफी नहीं?

तू भी जानती है,

ऐसे गौरव के लिए एक बार मरना काफ़ी नहीं।

यह गोली भी कमबख्त सीने पर ही लगी है,

अब नजर भी धुंधली सी पड़ने लगी है।

दर्द सीने पर इस गोली का,

शायद यूही ना सह पाऊंगा मैं;

पर गर्व है मुझे इस बात का,

अपने तिरंगे में लिपटा जाऊंगा मैं।

उस सूरज के साथ आज मैं भी डूब जाऊंगा,

मेरी मां बेचारी यह सोचती होगी, मैं कल उसके पास लौट आऊंगा।

ओ उसका नाजुक सा दिल,

मेरी खबर से शायद टूट जाएगा,

वह उसके आंसुओं का फव्वारा,

उसकी आंखों से छूट जाएगा।

ऐ प्यारे चांद, बस मेरा एक संदेश ले जा,

वह दूर उन पहाड़ों के पार, एक छोटा गांव है मेरा

एक पीपल के पेड़ के पास,

मेरी मां बैठी होगी लगाए आस।

सुबह होने से पहले कृपया उसे यह बता दे,

कि बिना उसे देखे मुझे जाना पड़ रहा है;

यह मेरा उसके आंचल को धोखा नहीं,

उससे मिलन को मेरा जी भी तड़प रहा है।

एक बार और उस खीर के प्याले पर बहन से मुझे लड़ना था,

एक बार और चैस की चाल पर बाबा के सामने अढ़ना था।

ऐ मां! तू रोना मत, तेरा बेटा मरा नहीं 'शहीद' हुआ है,

दुख के आंसू नहीं, गौरव की मुस्कान के साथ कहना; तूने सच में एक वीर को जन्म दिया है!

बस अब इसी आखरी ख्वाहिश के साथ,

मेरी मिट्टी में मिल जाऊंगा मैं;

कि फिर से इसी पावन धरती की कोख से,

जन्म लेने का सौभाग्य पाऊंगा मैं।

एक बार फिर से यह वतन परस्त सिपाही,

अपनी धरती मां को प्रेम से यह तोहफा देगा;

वादा है, तेरी हिफाजत के लिए मां,

तेरा यह बेटा फिर से यही जन्म लेगा….

तेरा यह बेटा फिर से यही जन्म लेगा….