Tuesday, August 31, 2021

Outside and in



(2010)  Tomare dekhi ni nikate pai ni

I saw You not, Yourself nearby I did not find;
I have gone on musing only in the mind.
A dormant hope, all my love,
To arouse, sadhana I've done.

I find Your tenderness inside of fresh butter
And in a flower's resin, full of Your sweetness.
The prevalence of You floats on the vast blue heavens;
And taking note of that, become rapt have I.

You're above the known and unknown; in that lofty region,
Kissing sky, You have stayed on atomic stratum.
Inside the depths of mind, having shook the seven worlds,[1]
For everyone You have remained close by.

Sarkarverse article
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Monday, August 30, 2021

From mine to Thine



(2009)  Priya tumi je amar

Oh Beloved, You are mine;
Why that's so, I don't know, I can't understand;
But for understanding I've no keen desire.

The mind You have given with limited periphery;
Inside that, who can comprehend Thee?
But by futile effort, through squandering of time,
Mind wants to catch what cannot be confined.

Alas, by gauging the luminous ocean's depths,
Does anybody's psyche ever find happiness?
I will mingle with the light, I will become Thine;
And by intimacy We will be alike.

Sarkarverse article
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Sunday, August 29, 2021

Embodiment of bliss



(2008)  Tomar tare janam bhare

On account of You, lifetimes are filled;
I have gone on singing so many songs.
Of so many colors I have threaded
Many a garland of love.

So many mornings, so many twilights,
And so many moonlit-only autumn nights...
With the sacred art of but fancy
I've kept painting memories aplenty.

What I do, it is all for sake of You;
What I think, it is from musing on You.
In a honeyed night, on Your stream
I sail continually.

Sarkarverse article
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Saturday, August 28, 2021

No mistake



(2007)  Tumi bhul pathe cale esecho

Having set out on a faulty path, You've appeared.
What to do, I know it not...
A house of God, I respect not...
But, taking pity, You have yielded to me.

To give succulence to an arid wilderness,
To make flowers bloom on a tree that's sapless...
To sway upon a throat devoid of ornament...
Like a string of pearls You have beamed.

You alone belong to me, only that was I knowing;
No one else is my own but for Thee...
All that's mine is by Your mercy...
So You've erred intentionally;
You have blundered wittingly.

Sarkarverse article
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Friday, August 27, 2021

You left in time of crisis



(2006)  Kena ele aji cale jabe jadi

Why did You come today if You will just go away
At this baleful time, at this baleful time?
Mayhap You had come, having journeyed by mistake;
Now that the goof is clear, You've a mind to retire.

By the door a waterpot[1] had not been kept;
And in the house a golden lamp[2] had not been lit.
Asleep had I been, shedding tears in torrents;
At Your lack of loving kindness...

Among all virtues, empathy's the one You're lacking;
You stay knowing everything, but do not fathom grief.
Speaking from experience, this is Your history:
You arrive to grant embrace, but only when eyes cry.

Sarkarverse article
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Thursday, August 26, 2021

A modest request



(2005)  Asbo bale gele cale

Saying "I will come", You did leave;
But keeping word, You kept forgetting.
Could it be I've no austerity,
So You granted not a speck of mercy?

You are enlightened, the Gem Unembodied;
But in form's basket, tender and charming.
You realize that puny I am lacking sensibility;
So You left to keep in check also my deficiency.

Do I still have any longing?
What You've given has filled psyche.
But fine would it be if in my vicinity,
Having arrived, onto lap You lifted me.

Sarkarverse article
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Wednesday, August 25, 2021

A deep mystery



(2004)  Tomay amay ei paricay, kon juge keu jane na

Between You and me, this same acquaintance,
From which age it is, one is not cognizant.
Not merely a few days old, I know that;
But You don't say when it started.

In some ancient past You had fashioned the earth;
But why poured You nectar into fruits and flowers?
And why then did You infuse a drive for survival?
One of us understands; one of us does not.

Just one in a crowd, he never gets missed;
But You see everybody as having no second.
Except for You none has got any patron;
Yet even knowing it, one cannot fathom.

Sarkarverse article
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Tuesday, August 24, 2021

A peerless benefactor



(2003)  Bhalabesecho vilaye diyecho

You have loved, let be disbursed
Yourself throughout the universe.[1]
Who yearn for You and even those who don't wish,
Not asking that, You keep doing Your own work.

Inside gloomy hearts, light You confer lavishly;
Like break of day You devastate the compact ebony.
With Your sweet smile and magic flute,
You bring high tide to strata of atoms and molecules.

A nebula of distant place, a series of thoughts only,
Hidden in Thee are all things written in my destiny.
Upon the coast of life's stream, afar but drawing near,
Ever rising, You go on taking me to ambrosia's sea.

Sarkarverse article
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Monday, August 23, 2021

Rapturous consequences



(2002)  Ami svapne dekhechi kal

In a dream, I have seen that yesterday
You had come to my residence.
Today I've kept the house arrayed
For a return visit.

By a bright luster had it got filled...
At mind's inside, gloom was hid...
The kindness that had got exuded
Within darkness thick!

To proclaim Your welcome I am ready;
Without cease I do the work of You only.
Day and night drip with the thought of Thee,
Tears of joy in torrents.

Sarkarverse article
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Sunday, August 22, 2021

Are we now self-reliant?



(2001)  Aj prabhate alor sathe

With the light today at morning,
Of the new age You gave tidings.
Darkness, You said, has gone by;
In humanity You wakened life.

Beneath only demonic tyranny
Had shriveled the humanity.
But now with demons cast aside,
Mankind is knowing of self-sacrifice.

Hey Steersman of the chariot effulgent,
In hand You brought the waters of expectation.
Having come, sweetly smiling You then sang...
And having gained what You'd wanted, went away.

Sarkarverse article
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Wednesday, August 18, 2021

Don't let me be lazy



(2000)  Tandra jadi name

Should a drowsiness descend,
Upon summons of just sluggishness,
Then Yourself those who don't accept,
Hey Master, with a song awaken them.

I have come in just Your service;
I have worn ten thousand outfits
That Your grace may reign supreme,
Never-ending in my thinking.

When Yourself I have neglected,
Then, below, I've suffocated.
Rises only Your compassion;
I go smiling unto bath of liberation.

Sarkarverse article
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Tuesday, August 17, 2021

Hell no, I won't go



(1999)  Bhalo hato jadi na cinitam

Good would it have been if we had not got acquainted;
Yourself I would not have loved.
In the depths of psyche, in this world of mine,
I would not have let You enter.

I have cherished You, oh the Most Beloved;
And You're mine, I'm fathoming with a staunch conviction.
Today I wonder: From that creed shall I withdraw;
Will I give to what is good an evil designation?

You're the one and only moon upon my firmament;
In name only countless stars exist.
Let the stars go far and my moon persist;
There, I let it be spoken: my innermost secret.

Sarkarverse article
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Monday, August 16, 2021

Big and small



(1998)  Parii bale phul tomar lagiya

Says the Fairy: "For your sake, oh blossom,
I have brought those who are lonesome.
I have loved, close I have come;
I have held you within thought.

"A tiny flower's majesty is boundless;
The glory of wee pollen-spore, enormous.
He Who has conferred this same glory and greatness,
In the mind ever do I muse on Him."

"To the tiny psyche the Supreme surrenders;
A tiny nebula the universe embellishes.
So mind is made to sprawl at the feet of Him,
Who preserves in memory the diminutive."

Sarkarverse article
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Sunday, August 15, 2021

Had You come in person



(1997)  Svapane dekhechi tumi esechile

In a dream I have seen: You had entered
In my flower garden in concealment.
Sleep You burst not even, and no word You uttered;
Who knows what it is You'd witnessed!

How many blooms were dressed in the garden?
How many weeds were under the painted pavilion?
How much of the fruit was densely succulent?
Awake and diligent, would I have shown it?

Asleep and insensate, silently in private,
I keep on crying in my bolted residence.
But if once inviting me for purpose to uplift,
Your physical visit, would it have been desolate?

Sarkarverse article
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Saturday, August 14, 2021

To orbit or to be one, that's the question



(1996)  Phalgune phulavane chande bhara gane

In a Phalgun[1] flower garden, with a song full of rhythm,
Who are You that appeared at my lonely retreat?
A hundred were the private thoughts, every one hidden;
But to You will I speak, confidentially.

Hey the Heart-Stealer, hear my language bashful,
Cast off and getting lost, rhythm and hymn befuddled.
You've arrived in floral garden; in mind's grove please appear–
With all of my psyche, I go on singing.

You are life's vitality, and You possess a noble heart;
After filling up existence, You are honing every song.
Having spun round and round Thee like belled anklets on Your feet,
That to relinquish, mind does fancy.

Sarkarverse article
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Friday, August 13, 2021

Intense yearning



(1995)  Kenai ba ele dola diye gele

Why did You come at all? A jolt given, You did go.
You departed without warning, abandoning me.
Have You no sympathy, don't You understand my woe?
A fairy tale composed, went You where?

Oh Most Beloved, You are the dearest of all;
Why did You not stay at my heart's core?
The Innermost Inner One,
Even if He be remote, does He leave?

Yourself I will not forget, You I won't forsake;
From memory's slate, not a thing will I erase.
Even if You do not like, even if You go and hide,
Held in mind's jewel-box Thee will I keep.

Sarkarverse article
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Thursday, August 12, 2021

I will go on loving You



(1994)  Paoyari ashay ceye jaoyay

In hope of attaining, as opposed to forsaking,
I know, hey Darling, that happiness is there.
Not coming near, not holding dear,
Has remained per the will of only Thee.

Flowers bloom aplenty, yet of them who keeps track;
Daily getting doused is many a bright lamp.
The count I do not keep, nor does anybody keep–
This reality we perceive in Your proximity.

In like manner, blossoming I too am snubbed,
A strange flower, sprawled upon the dust.
Yet I go on pouring all the fragrance of my psyche
In the midst of my fallen pollen only.

Sarkarverse article
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Wednesday, August 11, 2021

As to Your cosmic game



(1993)  Tomay khunje khunje janam kete geche

A lifetime has passed in searching, searching for Thee;
As such, what is the reason You did not come near?
Flowers plucked with care, garlands strung with love–
They have gone and withered neath the scorching heat.

People say You are a sea of kindness;
If so, why is my pitcher not filled?
Perplexity, soaked in own experience,
Has bred in me vacuity.

Hey Ceaseless Gamester, I have just this supplication:
You go on making sport, there is no harm in it;
But the pain of any other, any soul's ballad,
Feigning to not fathom it, is that befitting?

Sarkarverse article
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Tuesday, August 10, 2021

All my trials, Lord



(1992)  Shiuli takhano jhare ni

Still then, unfallen was the night-jasmine;
Some night was remaining.
As yet the break of day cast not its furtive glance;
Arrived the sound of Whose feet?

At the door I heard a knock;
Today, the night has mattered, that I got.
At night was the promise of Your advent;
The auspicious date was set.

Even though event be known, ready I was not;
Even if home was dressed up, the psyche was not.
Risen from my bed, the door I opened not
Lest the sound did regress;
But having left hope of return, it went.

Sarkarverse article
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Monday, August 9, 2021

Someday, someplace



(1991)  Akashe sagare jethay misheche

Between sky and ocean, where they've intermingled,
On far side of far horizon,
Oh my Master, Your meeting,
Will it happen only inside that vicinity?

The heavens have descended, touching on the sea,
With beauty and affection, with just loving zeal.
And I also want a place in that same company,
Sweet and charming inside of love's necklace.

I know this to be not a fancy futile,
To fulfill my desire.
Through inclination's cosmic play, at its dancing hall,
In the cosmos You make caper inside of belled anklets.

Sarkarverse article
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Sunday, August 8, 2021

Inadequate



(1990)  Akashe vatase kusuma suvase

On sky and in air, with fragrance of flowers,
Laughing floats Your mercy.
Pangs of separation I fathom daily,
But Your smiling eyes I don't see.

You have been inside life, pregnant with purpose;
You have gone on filling with an unseen splendor.
You are in the missing tune's sweetness;
Cascades of effulgence You have been exuding.

I can't understand You, not the least bit;
The intellect that You gave, I cannot detect with it.
And even my sensations I cannot deposit
In a lifetime's bucket; why that is... do tell me.

Sarkarverse article
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Saturday, August 7, 2021

Must the show really go on



(1989)  Tumi kandiye kena sukha pao

Oh You, why derive happiness from crying?
A smile-filled, pleasure-dripping
Face don't You want to see?

Betwixt You and me this same acquaintance,
Surely it is not just of two or four ages.
From the inception of its birthless origin,
My ship You float toward the Infinite.

Oh You I do recognize, hey Avatar of Kindness,
You are incarnate in a play that is changeless.
Laughing and crying, that is Your drama;
Deliberately, You go on composing it.

Sarkarverse article
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Friday, August 6, 2021

Off the beaten track



(1988)  Path bhule mor ghare ele

Path ignored, to my house You came;
How much I've cried out, how much I've wailed,
But You did not arrive; myself You'd forgotten.

My waves, far away they carry on the wind;
Echoing they've risen to the blue firmament.
Yet by those waves of sound, Your
Sleep did not rupture; deaf had You been.

Heard or unheard, it is per Your volition;
And too remaining deaf is a role sportive.
Coming by detour is never a blunder;
You came untimely, the time afforded.

Sarkarverse article
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Thursday, August 5, 2021

Why play with me; come closer please



(1987)  Andhar nishar avasane

"At dark night's conclusion,
A flower has bloomed in mind's garden.
Back and forth swings that tender flower;
Unobserved, it have I guarded."

For Your sake a flower has blossomed,
To provide You with enjoyment;
My small 'I', well you know it,
Is surging with Your vibration.

You are mine, hey Deity;
You know my whole inner story:
Psychic pain strung on tears
At jingle of Your dance only.

Sarkarverse article
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Wednesday, August 4, 2021

Just Your whim



(1986)  Maner kone kon gahane

At some place hard to reach, a cranny of the mind,
Who knows when You'd arrived?
You know it, but people do not realize.
Science having understood, philosophy scrutinized,
The reply nowhere did I find.

In the flame is a capacity for burning;
In the oyster shell, a nacre filling.
The supreme devotion of human psyche,
Who had conferred on the lonesome?

To the world why had You brought me?
By joy and grief myself You had ringed.
Why had You left and got concealed?
The answer for these is in Your whim.

Sarkarverse article
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Tuesday, August 3, 2021

His songs are the music of life



(1985)  Tomar tare jiivan bhare, gan geye gechi priyatama

Because of You life is replete;
I have gone on singing, my Dearest,
Oh You, new and amazing, unprecedented.
For all existent, with rhythm and melody
Yours is the mode of music that had intoxicated.

In cadence frolics the life-stream;
My song's tune rings out to that beat.
In that same beat Your love dwells gracefully,
A sweet fragrance glazed with heady power.

Amid the undulating current of the sea,
Form-free adorns the ones bereft of beauty.
Swayed by a symphony, they dance and they reel,
The created beings, Your greatness.

Sarkarverse article
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Monday, August 2, 2021

My Beloved Mystery



(1984)  Bale thako bhalabasi

You keep saying, "I give love";
But evidence gets not found in practice.
Why are thorns there in a grove of flowers,
And where go the petals that fall?

Splendor of the moon's bright beams,
A dark and broad cloud-bank conceals.
The visual illusion of a forest-doe,
Why does a hunter hotly pursue it?[1]

At core of life's unfolding evolution,
Why does the shadow of death cavort?
Eye-consoling, mind-delighting,
A rainbow, where does it vanish?

Sarkarverse article
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Sunday, August 1, 2021

Having heard His call



(1983)  Pare elo bela halo kheladhula

At last it befell: the games are past;
So head on back to your own quarters.
Like the soaring geese, your days elapse;
With wings outspread, to which nest do you return?

Coming and going are inside of borders fixed;
Desiring and obtaining are time-delimited.
Afterwards, forsaking all, comes sailing of the ship...
Calling you is the shoreless ocean.

You can't say: "No, I won't quit;
Let all else go, but I will remain seated."
The Bhaerava[1] calls with a thunderous edict;
Yes, His is a stirring invitation.

Sarkarverse article
Audio recording