The Ocean
O
mighty ocean
I
wondered about you
When
as a young lass
I
held sea shells on my hands
How
pretty they looked
A
gift from you
I
played some more
Hoping
to see you
And
one fine day
I
almost gasped
When
in a flash
I
saw you without warning
The
never ceasing rhythm
Of
perpetual waves
Kissing
the beach
Leaving
a bevy of snails
I
threw aside my slippers
And
ran amok on the wet sands
You
continued
To
sing your song
How
many worlds do you hide?
In
your gigantic bosom?
How
many creatures
Call
you home?
From
the largest whales
To
the terrifying sharks
The
laughing dolphins
To
the tiniest plankton
I
have often wondered
How
old are you
As
long as mankind
Or
even more?
I
have watched the sun set
On
your brilliant horizon
Your
waters turning
An
autumn gold
You
continue to thrive
Timeless
joy of nature
And
I continue to dance
At
your golden feet
Ganga, And A Cry
I
am Ganga
Not
merely a stream
Creak
Brook
Or
rivulet
But
a mighty river
Revered by millions
Praised
by the Vedas
I
am home to aquatic life
Living
in my habitat
People
come to me
For
refuge
Upliftment
Cure
of disease
Salvation
And
to quench their thirst
Worshipped
in Rishikesh
Haridwar
Kashi
and
Allahabad
I
provide succor to millions
Living
by my banks
But
man's senseless, meaningless
And
selfish wants
Has
earned me the tag
Of
a most polluted river
Shame
on you!
From
a sacred and life giving river
Worshipped
since civilization
You
have reduced me
To
a cauldron of pollution and death
The
cleaning drive
Failed
miserably
Doomed
by man's greed
And
selfishness
Today
I am being accused
Of
being carcinogenic
But
who made me so?
You,
I the greedy man!
You
have dumped my soul
With
lethal chemicals
Heavy
metals
To
run your factories
A
mindless brutish move
Behold!
You
have made me
An
agent of disease
Behold!
Wake
up now
And
stop this plundering
Let
me not be
A
harbinger of death
Stop
this maniacal, pollution
Of
my sacred waters
Let
the new plans
Rinse
me to my former glory
Let
me once again be the harbinger of life
Let
me be as sacred
As
the Vedas sang of my glory
Free
me from pollution
O
senseless man!
Copyright
Aabha Rosy Vatsa
Dawn
Hail
Dawn!
You
arrive surreptitiously
Sweeping
aside
The
dark studded night
Emerging
with a million promises
Of
unforgettable possibilities
Cloaked
in myriad hues
Pink,
blushing rise, the orange and crimson
Peeping
tantalizingly
From
the maze of feathery clouds
Silently
announcing
The
advent of a brand new day
The
Koel coos happily
Delighting
in the pre monsoon April showers
Or
does she go into raptures
At
the ripening of Alphonso mangoes
In
the orchard?
The
sparrows, and Mynahs and the tiny Sun birds
Follow
suit
Singing
their morning sing
As
melodious as a morning raga
The
lilting sound
Of
a night long jagran
Fills
the air with Devotional songs of Shakti
Mingling
with the strains of Gurbani
And
the poetic call to Allah
Vibrating
from the mosque
As
the morning service from the Church
Praising
the Lord
A
waft of fragrance
Breezes
into my home
From
the morning rituals of my neighbor
Even
as the temple bells
Peal
to invoke the Almighty
Dawn,
you are the celebration
Of
a new day
As
the silver half moon
Glides
gently into oblivion
And
the Sun ascends the horizon
Dawn,
and you arrive
With
a gift of a million possibilities
For
yesterday is history
And
tomorrow is a mystery
Today
I am endowed with the power
Of
a new beginning
To
one again harness my dreams
And
make them happen
Each
morning
You
give me a blank canvas
To
fill in the rainbow tints
Of
my dreams and aspirations
Be
with me each day
And
shepherd me
To
pursue life
As
the most precious gift from the Almighty.
Aabha Rosy Vatsa
Aabha Rosy Vatsa from is a Poet,
Author, writer, and blogger and an Ex
teacher. She has been awarded the World Icon of Peace' award, Shri Atal Bihari
Vajpayee Women Empowerment award,
Queens, Inspiring gems of India award, and Icons and Crusaders awards and
Margdarshan award.
She has published fourteen books and has
contributed poems in over a dozen anthologies. A die hard optimist, and she
believes in the power of the written word. Deeply Spiritual, she believes in
Karma.