i sometimes think the thunder is the sky raging
                                             for some unrequited passion
                                                      the­ li
                                                              ­      gh
                                                        ­  tn
                                                            ­          in
                                                    ­        g
is its showing
the gashes in its heart
                                                           ­                                                                 ­     bright shining silvery blood
                                                           ­                                               splattered across for all and sundry to see
but for no one to understand and feel
an ache unrecognized must be
so much heavier a cross to bear
                                                            ­                                                        with no one to nurse or heal or care
                                                            ­                                                              the­ sky must be lonely up there
all it can do is roar and thunder
acting out its anger
                                                   the moon and the stars just stare on
                                                    unblinking­ sentries keeping watch
                                                           ­        from too far

and when I think like that I feel my worries slip away
no longer afraid of the thunder and lightning
its just a poor hurt boy
crying his heart away

- Vijayalakshmi Harish
   15.09.2012

Copyright © Vijayalakshmi Harish

locked in prison
endless reams of mystification
why this chastisement
why do i feel no guilt or shame?
just a cell full of questions
why am i here?
i speak to a ghost-playful as ever
but that cannot be-never!
why am i not saved? where is my lover?
devoid of emotion, just feet that want to run
         breaking through the walls and bars
running through  a football  field
unable to stop dashing----------------------------------------------------------­--------------------------------------------
--------------------­-----------------------------------------------------------------­-----------------------------------------------------------------­-----------------------------------------------------------------­-------------....

-Vijayalakshmi Harish
13.10.2012

Copyright © Vijayalakshmi Harish

Love                              is                  not        ­        so                 complicated
Is                                  your             heart          singing              sonnets?
Not                 ­            heart           rending        but                     happy
So                              singing            but     ­        also                    dancing
Complicated         sonnets?       happy        dancing            celebrating!

Hate               ­         is                actually         very                simple-
Is                              a    ­              heart           songless           dying
Actually              heart           worth          feeling,             pitiful
Very                    songless       feeling,          sad                  living
Simple-            ­   dying           pitiful           living          depressing!

Copyright © Vijayalakshmi Harish

the night is my truest love
come to life. The lullabies
soothe like the shallow stream
rounds the sharp pebbles
therapeutically. Your mouth
now the extension of the curve
that begins on my own and
then becomes aflame.
i am not yet dead and cold –
but I am steeled
the darkness is the furnace
that has forged me.  the floor
a peaceful mother of pearl.
the silence a lover
that appeases my nerves.

- Vijayalakshmi Harish
   03.01.2013
   Copyright © Vijayalakshmi Harish

the sideways glance of an evening sun
streams through the curtains .
the crepuscular light  spreads
through my home.  
the gloaming announces -
the harshness of the noon is past.
soon Diana shall reign supreme
bringing with her the restlessness
that graces my dreams
every time awakening to the same
half-formed scream that barely
struggles out of my throat
choking joy on its way out.
once more the same dew will
glisten in my eyes
as the lullaby of relief
cantillates me to repose

tomorrow i resurrect

- Vijayalakshmi Harish
   14.01.2013
   Copyright © Vijayalakshmi Harish

the concept of loss
is a heavy one
it weighs on the mind
and troubles the spirit

the concept of love
is a happy one
it creates new worlds
in which we co-habit

the concept of love with loss
is a crazy one
it takes my sanity
even if it lasts only for a minute
- Vijayalakshmi Harsh
   13/8/2012
Copyright © Vijayalakshmi Harish

online avatars
inkhearts  - joined by a love of rhyme
multi coloured pearls on guitar strings

melodies unraveling
whispered confidences sung aloud
revealing the gifts inside
                                                       glad I am to be the receiver

-Vijayalakshmi Harish
  19.11.2012

Copyright © Vijayalakshmi Harish

if some day, i did forget
my name
my place
and everything that I did
would I still remember
how to write?
is it like cycling- a skill once learnt
that is never forgotten
or is it a gift
once lost, never to be found?
would I recognize these words I’ve penned
with passion and pain mingled-
would I feel the joyful comfort I’ve felt
in their expression?

- Vijayalakshmi Harish
25.12.2012
Copyright © Vijayalakshmi Harish

Who are you?                                                             ­                                                                Who are you?
i think i know you                                                              ­                                             i think i’ve met you
That i’ve seen you before                                                           ­                         and known you inside out
and been with you                                                              ­               touched your dreams, felt your scars
spent some meaningful times                                                          sh­own you mine too, under the stars
shared some laughs and shared some sorrows              we’ve discussed commonalities and discords

                                                       ­                            i know you
                                                             ­                    you know me
                                                              ­                and yet it seems
                                                           ­                  we’ve never met
                                                             ­            and odd as it may seem
                                                            ­              i don’t recognize you

                                                            ­               it makes me want to
                                                              ­                pick your brain
                                                           ­                     pych you out
                                                             ­          sift through your secrets
                                                         ­          need to figure you out to know
                                                            ­           where we’ve met before

                                                         ­         i want to dissect your heart
                                                           ­           and find my place in it
                                                              ­  i know i’ve been there before

-Vijayalakshmi Harish
  01.10.2012

Copyright © Vijayalakshmi Harish

the mist parts slowly
revealing something so new
discovered afresh
a new wine in old bottles
needs to develop slowly
fragrance and flavour

- Vijayalakshmi Harish
29.09.2012

Copyright © Vijayalakshmi Harish

Even
my
pain
leaves
behind
a
reminder
of
you –
a
heart
shaped
burn
scar

- Vijayalakshmi Harish
   07.01.2013
  Copyright © Vijayalakshmi Harish

dehydrated yearnings
for peace
something always stirs
like a cobra
hissing its burning blue venom

outwards towards the sails
through multiple voyages
of my mind

it docks in unknown ports
and knows not where to go
eternally searching
not aware to what to find

t i r e d l y racing
forward to some anonymous goal
losing juice but refueling
from some mysterious fount
within myself.

- Vijayalakshmi Harish
1.09.2012

Copyright © Vijayalakshmi Harish

our
language
silently
reflected
                                                      ­                   (without)
                                                       ­                ?answers?
framed
by
shy
eyelashes
                               ­                                                       …asking…
//permission…
to
desire

- Vijayalakshmi Harish
  20.12.2012

Copyright © Vijayalakshmi Harish

I am a spoof
of myself
the everythingness
stuffed in the nothingness
---till it chokes on its
own cracked breath
I’m the alpha female
the maker and the breaker
I
hang
emotionless
in
time.

-Vijayalakshmi Harish
11/09/06
Copyright © Vijayalakshmi Harish

senses awash with green
and green smells, fresh, invigorating
a serene balm on the vision
drinking it all in
nearly wizardly growth
every little peeping ****
shares equal space with every looming tree
basking in the sun or dancing in the rain
each act done so devotedly
to Nature’s business
of making and undoing
                                                         if only we could be as one with life as them

- Vijayalakshmi Harish
   08.10.2012

Copyright © Vijayalakshmi Harish

my words are reality sharp cuts they’ll peirce you and hurt you
                                   beware and back off lest i lose control
                                                   and  hurl them at you

-Vijayalakshmi Harish
  17.09.12

Copyright © Vijayalakshmi Harish

Would you stop for a minute
and lie down by my side,
look up at the stars with me
beneath this blue night sky?

Would you tell me your story
your secrets and your fears
and trust me to keep them safely
as we peel away the layers?

Would you take me as I am
hurts and tears and all?
and seal each scar with a kiss
help me stand up when I fall?

Would you hold my hand and walk with me?
I’ll stay forever by your side
dance together to some private melody
forgetting the passage of time?

Would you believe me when I say
that I’ll catch you when you stumble?
I’ll never let you fall
won’t let our world crumble?

Would you let me
lean on you when I’m tired?
and protect me from harm
so not even death can tear us apart?

- Vijayalakshmi Harish
14.12.2012

Copyright © Vijayalakshmi Harish

the assault of the words
paralyzes me
holds my mind captive

i need to express
pour out my heart
and get others to play

creating worlds and
destroying them
the words allow me
to play god
- Vijayalakshmi Harish
  08/08/2012
Copyright © Vijayalakshmi Harish

trio
of
smiles,
perfect
decorations
for
the
season’s
festivities -
brightly
lighting
virtual
streets

- Vijayalakshmi Harish
   26.12.2012
Copyright © Vijayalakshmi Harish

Pieces of me floating in cyberspace
each like a part of my flesh
alive and awake
i’ve forgotten the password again
and i’m locked out from me.

Need to hack into my own
Something stays lost
Just isn’t anymore
only a shred of what used to be

some memory resurfaces
bittersweet-it itches
and gets relegated
to whatever corner from whence it emerged

too surreal too fresh too crazy
to be remembered
couldn’t be moi?
could it?

-Vijayalakshmi Harish
29.08.2012

Copyright © Vijayalakshmi Harish

unfeeling
eyes
weary
breath
your
lips
gently
caressing
mine
- all
          the
            p­ain
                         m       e           l              t            s
away

- Vijayalakshmi Harish
   9.12.2012

Copyright © Vijayalakshmi Harish

The apparition stands out
in the background of a tyranny
the final remnants
in an empty existence.
Something cracks
and words tumble out
battling themselves.
A creeping dream withers
crumbles and dies.


The dragonflies flitter
they’re happy.
My mind flutters-
it lives.

-Vijayalakshmi Harish
23/11/06.
Copyright © Vijayalakshmi Harish

इन आँखों मे नींद आ तो जाती है                                                        Sleep does come to these eyes
लेकिन रुक नही पाती                                                             ­            but it never stops a while
ना जाने क्यों यह आँखें                                                            ­           I know not why these eyes            
बन गयी हैं तुम्हारी परछाई                                                            ­    have become your shadow.
इस तनहाई से बनती थी मेरी                                                            T­his loneliness used to be my friend
तो आज उसे देख                                                              ­                 then on meeting it today
मैं क्यों मुस्का ना पाई?                                                             ­         Why couldn’t I smile back at it?
क्यों भटकती हूँ मैं इन राहों मैं-                                                          Why­ do I keep roaming these streets?
क्यों मैं तुम्हारी यादें भुला ना पाई?                                                    Why can’t I forget your memories?
- विजयालक्ष्मी हरीश                                                             ­            - Vijayalakshmi Harish
  २१.१२.२०१२                                              ­                                         21.12.2012

Copyright © Vijayalakshmi Harish

Marriage
like I’ve already told you
is largely a function of
trial and error

it is an exciting adventure
and you’ll enjoy learning
about each other’s likes and dislikes
quirks and habits
eccentricities and uniqueness

celebrate your individualities
as much you celebrate your togetherness
both are equally important

what works in one marriage
may not work in another
each marriage, like every individual,
has its own unique personality
discover yours

but there are a few things
that are constant and necessary
Mutual Trust
Mutual Respect and
Mutual Love

Love him of course
for everything that is good in him
but more importantly
love him for his flaws
be there for him when he falters

because the world can love him for the former
but only you, my dear, can love him for the latter.

- Vijayalakshmi Harish
        04.01.2013
        Copyright © Vijayalakshmi Harish

When I felt like nobody cared, YOU were there,
Soothing the wounds in my heart…

When I felt life was not worth it, YOU came around,
And proved the opposite…

When no one knew my worth, YOU showed me,
How much I meant to you…

When I had issues, YOU supported me,
Showing me how much I need you…

Now, when I look back, I have no regrets,
Because to know YOU is to know LOVE…

Harish Natarajan
12.01.2013
Copyright © Harish Natarajan

yesterday’s tormentor
is todays peace-keeper
strange are the ways of this world
stranger still are my own perceptions
now here, now there
they prance about

- Vijayalakshmi Harish
   08.01.2013
   Copyright © Vijayalakshmi Harish

They are quite invisible
The citizens of Missingville
They are here one second and gone the other

On the one hand they make you smile
On the other shed a tear
You may never see them
But always they are present
And when they disappear altogether
More acute their absence

You may not get a chance
To say good bye
If you saw them somewhere
you mayn’t be able to recognize
but for the little while you feel them
you share some intimacies together

And wherever they go off to
I wish their life gets better and better!

-Vijayalakshmi Harish
  19.09.2012

Copyright © Vijayalakshmi Harish

I was always so lonely
when I was with you
You spoke of the weather
and other mundane realities
yet I hung on to every word
held helplessly captive by your voice

And even now I’m solitary
long after you've evaporated
I have frequent and interesting
conversations with others
but it all seems empty
I’d rather hear you speak of the weather

- Vijayalakshmi Ramachandran
   03/09/2006
   Copyright © Vijayalakshmi Harish

where else would i go my friend
in my happiness and sorrow
I climb over that fence
and upon your threshold share
my thoughts – little and big
my feelings – like sea waves
who else listens like you do
to my rants and raves and whines
Who else understands
that all I want is to vent
who else realizes that what I’m looking for
is not a ready to use solution
that I’ll figure it out on my own
all I need is someone to listen
while I’m doing just that
so thank you for being
the window to my conscience
and know this too
that whenever you need
i’m just on the other side of the fence
come over when you wish
and I’ll listen to your tales
we’ll laugh and cry together
till there’s nothing left to say.

- Vijayalakshmi Harish
   04.01.2013
   Copyright © Vijayalakshmi Harish

amidst the chaos
he gazes with stony eyes
stillness in movement

- Vijayalakshmi Harish
   15.01.2013
   Copyright © Vijayalakshmi Harish

I don’t know what I breathed in
Don’t know what’s making me sneeze
No medicine seems to work
Dear Lord, what a fix I’m in!
I’ve tried washing my face
And blowing my nose
But nothing seems to help
If I let myself I’ll
Curl up in a corner and die
But instead I’ll try
And drown myself in poetry!

-Vijayalakshmi Harish
21.09.2012

Copyright © Vijayalakshmi Harish

i looked for you in the forests
i searched for you in the sea

the sage then told me to look within
i did, and lo! i found You beside me!

- Vijayalakshmi Harish
    07.01.2013
    Copyright © Vijayalakshmi Harish

Wisps of a
fragile memory
swirl around me
fragrant, like petrichore.

Struggling out
like a tree out of a seed
breaking free from the clutches of time.

Not all at once
but in bits and pieces

Broken embers of
a once raging fire
searching for something
to set alight again.

Like life stirring
At the break of dawn
Shaking off the comforting night.

Like the shifting of the tide-
So gentle,
Hardly noticed.

Like a lost child
remembering a path
once forgotten.

-Vijayalakshmi Harish
16/11/2010
Copyright © Vijayalakshmi Harish

little drops of goodbyes
lingering at the doorstep of my consciousness
unwilling still, vacillating
in denial they wait
with some empty expectation
that they will be invited back in

but sand once fallen through this hourglass
is never the same sand again
something of it is lost
something of it is gone
and its taken some of me along

- Vijayalakshmi Harish
   28.12.2012
  Copyright © Vijayalakshmi Harish

behind
my
words
and
smiles,
lies
buried
the
treasure
of
dreams
that
you
seek

- Vijayalakshmi Harish
24.12.2012
Copyright © Vijayalakshmi Harish

event that speaks to hearts smile
climbing over miles of sky
falling to graceful rhythms of care
singing spires of temples high

eventful days that turn and burn
passionate fire the desire of life
stinging pains that don't go
life's sweet nectar that soothes it all

events that endorse tears of joy
fears of loss that evaporate
crying hearts that unite
forever more the light shall shine

the event that inspires
drives the high
creation is a magic potion
brewed in the cauldron of eventless time

- Vijayalakshmi Harish
  20.08.2012

Copyright © Vijayalakshmi Harish

comfort clothes like a cloak
huddling behind its warmth
i lose myself in its gaze
it binds though and lets me fail
it is too comfortable a place
to let me experiment
and take a chance on
everything i know
it allows me to remain ensconced and
unaware
to careful and without risk
no danger to my ego
its too mild a fire
it puts me to sleep
its like hot chocolate
the indulgence
is too heavy a price
to pay for
freedom
for knowledge
and for life.
- Vijayalakshmi Harish
  21.08.2012

Copyright © Vijayalakshmi Harish

Not much was said
a minimum of words spoken
but within the sparseness of the verbalizations
lay powerful emotions –
after all they were
poets both
whose hearts thrummed
to the same metre!

- Vijayalakshmi Harish
   29.12.2012
  Copyright © Vijayalakshmi Harish

i’ve got to
              come
un                        stuck
from these words
lost i am -  vegetated
all patterns are identically embroidered
same sentiments in a static loop
the images all insipid
i’ve got to do
something drastic

- Vijayalakshmi Harish
   10.01.2013
   Copyright © Vijayalakshmi Harish

blue shards of time
inching and pinching through
some (hidden) remembrance
this stickilyooziness that runs in my veins
one lazy  drop
               by
             drop
collecting in a pensieve
shattering through the myths-
(that is where the shards came from)
The dreams are concrete
touchably real
the images swirl
their spinality affirmed
in the red ache that sears
recall on skewers
- Vijayalakshmi Harish
30.08.2012

Copyright © Vijayalakshmi Harish

Globules of emotion
scatter
                                                                ­                     scatter
                                                         ­                                                                 ­                             scatter
                                                         ­                slipping thorough space
silvery mercurial drops
                                                           ­                    Perspectives shift
                                                           ­                   Characters change
                                                          ­                   I shed the persona.

                                                       ­                Devoid of the face-paint.
                                                     ­                             The Stage
                                                           ­                      comes alive
                                                           ­                shouts, cheers, claps
                                                           ­                                                                 ­                  and a deadly silence
that
                                                    ­                     tears through the masks
                                                           ­                                      the lights
                                                          ­                                       the actors
                                                          ­                                          and
                   ­                                                                 ­            the audience
It’s a high-
it climbs,
it falls
it takes me
against the flow
                                                            ­                                                                 ­             it’s the play of eternity

-Vijayalakshmi Harish
07/12/2006
Copyright © Vijayalakshmi Harish

hypocrite memories and perjuring core
deceive me repeatedly

every single recollection i have
is swathed in our smiles

a remembrance of the depths in your eyes
that left me always mesmerized

that window stands as a memorial
to impatient vigils

and your every word-kinder than those of others
rings forevermore in my ears

somewhere the paths diverged
no more we walked as one

yet try as i may i cannot remember
when or how that was done

and maybe that is for the best

- Vijayalakshmi Harish
   28.12.2012
Copyright © Vijayalakshmi Harish

Reality drops onto my lap-
an unwanted gift from
Newspapers, Movies, Books.
But I love my dreams,
and my myths.

I prefer
to leave puzzles
Unsolved.
Some questions
are best left
Unanswered.

Not because they hurt.
They preserve my sanity
when they remain-
Unseen
Unheard
Unsaid.

- Vijayalakshmi Harish
Copyright © Vijayalakshmi Harish

the one who is gone
is finally at peace
beyond retribution and vengeance
it is we the living
who must carry that burden

baying for blood is not enough
building a memorial is not enough
emptier still are sorrowful words
this, now, is the time to get tough
time to show we’re made of sterner stuff

to what depth has my nation fallen
this indeed is our season of shame
but let us not dwell on what is lost
let us look at what we can raise up
let us make this change work

for you and me and for those to come
build a new nation from ground up
start now! before it is further delayed!
no more injustice must we tolerate
no more can we let ourselves stagnate

we fight in her memory
that is true
but it is a fight for all of us
from every nook and corner raise your voice
herald the revolution that must come!

-Vijayalakshmi Harish
29.12.2012
Copyright © Vijayalakshmi Harish