.....and so it is

“Lady the waters are choppy
Do not step in”
The lifeguard cautions

He does not know
Across a thousand miles
The stormy seas
Have beckoned me

To teach me
Their lesson of salt
And grit

To tell me
Not to take the turning of
Tides
Personally

To show that
The rough waves meet
The same fate
As the smooth ones

Both are but passing spray
Dashed upon the shore of
Life
In froth and foam

Both joy and sorrow
Are ephemeral

Mere ruffles on the
great ocean
of Being

My sorrow I surrender
To the sea
As I walk away

Memories of joy too
I have cast upon the breeze

I know now
The great vastness
In its depths
Is churning up
New experiences
Specially for me.

- By The Shores - A poem by Manjul Bajaj


….and so it is with life
Cast upon this earth
An ocean composed of many drops
Of waves of laughter and joy
Followed by the ebb of tide
Where sorrow resides

….and so it is with life
That sorrow and joy are partners
One following the other
Oft times

…and so it is with life
That the only permanent is
Impermanence itself
They come and go.
What is, isn’t
What isn’t, is
Or is yet to be
But surely will.

Sitting by the shore
Trying to catch each wave
Between the fingers
Alas! It ne’er will be

…and so it is with life
Giving birth to the new
At the same time
Shedding what is old
Yet, the point of beginning
And the end
Are same.

Illusions.
All is in the passing
This life; this death too
One moment birthing the next
All are illusions.

Moments.
One strung to the other like beads
In a mala
One after another
A continuous process
No beginning, no end
Just a wheel, a chakra

Moving….moving….
Forever moving….
Fleeting
Forever moving….

.... and so it is with life
Forever moving

- …and so it is - By Julia Dutta, a poem inspired by By The Shores



Poet Manjul Bajaj writes in English, Urdu, Hindi. She has edited and co-edited respectively, two volumes of poetry, which include, among many other poets, verses by Julia Dutta as well. The two volumes, In Many Voices (Price: Rs 125) and Here And Now (Price: Rs 495) can be bought through DelhiPoetree Email: delhipoetree@gmail.com Mobile 91-09313120050

To view By The Shores on YouTube and listen to the sound of the ocean :
http://in.youtube.com/watch?v=I6b4PsYsFGo