Stargazing the Night Sky

A restful feeling rose in me
When from my garden I did see-
The heavens with their hundred stars,
Like lights from far and distant cars.

They twinkled smilingly at me,
The moon laughing behind a tree.
The mighty king of the night sky,
The moon blessed the sleepers from high.

A silent wind began to blow:
I felt peace in my body flow.
Rose in my heart strange sensations,
As I watched the constellations.

The bliss of solitude I felt,
I found my troubles quickly melt,
As numerous stars met my gaze,
Blinking at me in different ways.

Then suddenly my li'l heart leapt-
For while others in their beds slept,
Up above there in the night sky
I had seen a meteor pass by!


                                                     --R. Ranjan

Ode to Sleep

Praise be sung for you, O Majestic Sleep;
Superfluous gratitude for you I keep.
In my life you are the only one who heals
The only one, who with my trouble, deals.

I sing your praises for loving you are
You come to us from the heavenly star.
When night drops its starry veil over day-
To our minds and bodies you find you way.

Tip-toe, tip-toe you quietly come to us
The body accepts you without any fuss;
Into your comforting lullaby we sink
The body relaxes without 'nother blink.

The tensions of the day, to strangle us, fear
When they see your heavenly form appear;
Troubles which earlier were under the nose
On your arrival, are not even close!

And then our inner spiritual self
Finds the ever-wanted peace with your help.
The body relaxes and so does the mind,
O Sleep! you are so very kind!

No Past, no Present, no Future when you come,
All these bodily aspects simply go numb.
We only experience the goodness of God,
Which Man from eternity has sought.

Pain and suffering all are forgotten
To all these your divine song does threaten.
Rich or poor, black or white, you give to all
Your healing balm when they call.

The World of Dreams you own and also rule-
You show us dreams which are often so cool;
A child's fairyland to us you bring,
A nursery rhyme to us you sing!

And as I near the end of this song
       The tone of my little lines I shall change:
For I shall bring forth a thought so strong,
       That you will surely find it strange!

All over the world it is known:
        That men become wiser when they're grown.
The zenith of wisdom then is reached,
        When old age by the body preached.
Then the value of sleep men find
        And realize that Sleep was kind. 
Then, forsaking their health and wealth
        THEY SLEEP THE SLEEP OF DEATH.

                                                     --R. Ranjan

The Nuclear Explosion

Night it was, I went to bed,

The soft pillow greeted my head.

And as I slept, I sunk in deep

Into the comforting pool of sleep.

I really don't know what happened then:

Midnight hour the clock had struck when;

Confused I am but also tempt'd

To believe that I had dreamt.

A horrible night it was

And now I shall narrate the cause-

As I was asleep, in my head

I heard the sound I would ever dread.

It was one blast but seemed like hundred,

I wondered how many would've been dead.

I was mistaken to think it was all;

Soon I realized- it was but a warning call!

Several explosions followed,

I was as dumbstruck as a toad.

The most massive one I did not hear

For into shreds my eardrums it did tear!

Out of the window I gazed in horror,

I bet in everyone's heart there was terror.

A mushroom-shaped cloud arose;

In my veins the blood froze.

To close my eyes I didn't dare

As I saw everything incinerate into thin air!

The massive Earth trembled violently

While I kept watching silently.

The victorious smoke mockingly did touch

The heavenly sky birds loved so much.

The smoke from the ground cleared,

Revealing to me what I feared.

Was it a time machine, taking

Us back to centuries before our making?

There was no life: only barren crust-

Years of development, brought down to dust.

I stood by my window rooted to the spot,

While Time in full speed shot;

And as I glanced through years

I could not hold back my tears.

For I saw, as an effect of the bombs-

Maimed children in mothers' wombs.

I saw pain, cries and suffering leak

As blood from the scar on Time's cheek.

The tears burning my cheeks were hot 

But it was only one thing I thought:

"Was it the Devil's curse?

"Was it Hiroshima, or something worse?"

--R. Ranjan            

The Dark Dream

Rang the alarm and I rose-

        A strange feeling in me arose;

        For in my room brightness was none,

        Though beyond the window was the sun!

I stared,through the window into the park:

        The sun was lit but all was dark.

        The mighty sun wasn't golden yellow

        But as white as an albino!

I looked around for some clues

        But darkness engulfed the various hues.

        The outlines of the world were blurred,

        Suggesting something terrible had occurred!    

The walls in my room dissolved

        Leaving the queer mystery unsolved.

        A darker darkness like a panther

        Consumed it as if it was a monster!

All around me a living soul was none,

        All the world seems dead but one.

        The ground beneath broke and sway'd,

        The rest o' the world drifted away!

I looked at the Earth which once seemed near-

        Into the ever-consuming darkness disappear.

        Unable to comprehend what I saw

        My jaw was dropped in awe!

Suddenly I heard my alarm again

        For a moment I thought I was insane.

        Realizing the truth I awoke

        The sun's consoling rays I did soak.

When I narrate this dream to someone

        They say it had meaning none.

        But to me the mystery remains-

        As if a strange meaning it contains!

--R. Ranjan                          

The slaying of the dragon

The armoured Prince was about to depart,
To gouge the fiery Dragon apart-

That had unabatingly slain the countrymen

And devoured them in his hideous den.

His name was Rishabh; he was very brave

For he was heading for the grave.

In his hand was the mighty sword of Lear

And he had not displayed any sign of fear.

He was seeking blessings from his elders:

Spoke his father (the king of Nortalders) -

"Courage, my boy! Courage! May God bless you."

And his arms around his son's neck he threw.

Others spoke too, blessing him, but with tears,

Never had they seen such courage, in their years.

With this the Prince set out on his horse, Ming,

Who ran faster than lightning!

They advanced with great speed,towards the den

In which their cursed enemy was hidden

The Prince alighted and in he went

While the horse returned to his master's tent.

"Come out, you filthy old savage!", he cried,

"How long in this den of yours will you hide?"

He received back a terrifying roar

And his heart was shaken from the core.

He tightened his grip on his mighty sword

And to the furious Dragon he lured;

The Dragon tried to grab him with his paw'

The Prince, dexterously, cut his claw.

The Dragon jumped and bellowed with rage

Like a lion left out from a cage.

He tried to crush the Prince under his foot

But the Prince, in his eyes, threw soot.

The Dragon took back, about four steps full,

And charged at the Prince like a mad bull.

The Prince drew aside and swung his weapon

Like an injured bird, down came the Dragon.

But the Dragon had not yet been killed

The Prince knew it for he was very skilled.

He cautiously walked towards the heart

But the Dragon woke up with a start!

The struggle continued for a long time

If described it may become a hymn.

I shall try to be as brief as I can

And tell you about the Dragon and the Man.

The Dragon's injury was an Achille's heel

And in the small chances which he could steal,

He would swing his sword on the Dragon

Who would bellow like a blasting cannon.

The Prince was as tired as the Dragon

So once and for all he swung his weapon

And chopped off the horrible dragon's head
Which men's flesh and blood had, for so long, fed.

The fight was over; the Dragon dead.

The Prince carried with him the creature's head.

In his kingdom,he was welcomed heartily-

His father said "You have done it smartly!'

Little more remains to be told to you

But you must believe it's all true.

Rishabh (remember his name) was crowned

And ever after, he kept his kingdom well and sound.

                                                            -- R. Ranjan

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