Ahmad Alam
Poetry
Ahmad’s poetry tries to cover a large spectrum of the conscious and the subconscious. From nature to nurture, his poems touch upon the ultimate beauty that nature brings to human trials and triumph. Following are some of the poems from the two published books.
Wandering Thoughts
The Promised Land
The Promised Land doesn't come every day
It comes occasionally when people aren't watching
When no attention is warranted
In their sleep it comes
And in the dark alleys of freedom
Where people are alive
Rather than living
Living rather than dying
Born in the eyes
Of the wannabes
Holding on to others' truth
Not theirs
The Promised Land doesn't come every day
To the downtrodden it comes every day
The land as far as Santa Maria's dream
Of setting off for the 'New' World
Following the mixed-up senses
Of wanting more than half a loaf
Where hunger doesn't give in
Neither does their sense of pride
Money has its way of going about
The most intimate one on one inner voice
We buy the money and ourselves
And always remain broke with it unspent
One day passes by
One day passes by
With so many years lost
The past, present, future die
At a heartbreaking cost
One day passes by
With many a home broken
With deep agony they cry
Yet we remain unshaken
One day passes by
With headlines and stories
Civilization needs to satisfy
Itself with others' worries
One day passes by
Just like another day
We don't even try
To listen to what others say
The oppressed ones
The oppressed ones
Forced down on their knees
In their own place
Their master holding the keys
Their food also held
And so is their sanity
Day in and day out
Getting accustomed to humanity
The oppressed ones
Getting axed due to belief
That is no having 'their' belief
There's just no relief
The 'invisible' hand demolishing
Every sign of religion's life
Be it in the dark or at light
In this made up strife
The oppressed ones
Their source uprooted
From their strong history
And their lives looted
No going back nor ahead
Hanging in their thinning hope
They call the Giver
For his saving rope
The oppressed ones
Going deeper into quicksand
Of their endless terror
Orchestrated by the big hand
That plays its own game
With its own rules
Claiming it's the one who's lame
Then handling 'terrorist' tools
Somewhere
Somewhere in the living planet
Lies this dying nation
We do know its state
We do know the solution
Somewhere in the fading love
Vanishes what we treasure most
Stop the blaming on the dove
We are the guest and the host
Somewhere in one's belief
Live the strong, unbending ties
The consequence is one's relief
Of duty to defend their cries
Somewhere amidst the killings
Perhaps a child's plea will be heard
And it might even touch our feelings
Even if our 'burdens' aren't spared
Anguish
The broken glass slashes through the pain
And tears it open
It finds in it more pain
And then more layers of pain
Then splashes out the hollow black box
With no clue to the senses' crash
It continues its bloody intrusion
And discovers a tragic dream
Of badly beaten-up childhood
Driven by the satanic chauffeur
Lastly it cuts open the boredom bug
That lies crushed with pain's heaviness
Hear me, hear me says the bent mind
To the black tunnel of uneasy visions
Reality checks in the hotel of complaints
And stabs the visions with the knife of falsity
And shows off its uncanny familiarity
With Hazy fantasies and its lazy allies
The pain dies at an old age
But so do the premature moments
Are you really the Superpower?
Are you really the Superpower
You claim to be
Are you really the tallest tower
Standing up for humanity
Do you carry with you peace
Within and without you
And could you ever case
To only listen to few
How do you juggle priorities
Is is with guns, F-16s and missiles
Are those your only realities
Where nothing heals, only kills
Are you thinking of a home in space
When you don't have 'em enough down here
Or is it just winning the lost race
Being bold at the expense of others' fear
The unspoken
The unspoken, yet heard
Miles and miles away
In human senses captured
There is no say
The unspoken, but seen
Pictures telling thousand deaths
We remain forever in between
Winning only cowardice's wreaths
The unspoken, yet felt
Embellished in selfishness
We, in the guise of hope, melt
In the pot of evil's darkness
The unspoken, the dying
Waiting for a holocaust
We do hear the crying
Next moment they're lost
The Beauty of the Lonely, Bare
The clouds they paint the sky with gray
The trees don't have a lot to say
And the leaves hang on with pride
The know thye'll die but never hide
The colors which bring to their end
For which there's nothing to defend
As I fight to walk my way
Through the windy, rainy day
I look for someone just to share
The beauty of the lonely, bare
And I see people walking by
In haste, but I just wander why
Their sprits are linked to the sun
For when it's gone their day is done
But if they knew what little time
They have to make their poems rhyme
They'd write their poems but wth ease
And face the gray skies in a breeze
The Beauty of the Crimson Skies
The sun gives light but for a while
The moon has short nights too
But you and your eternal smile
Forever will shine through
Through the years that fade with time
And through the boundless space
Your soul and spirit - so sublime
Will win the vital race
The beauty of the crimson skies
May bring in one's eyes tears
But a stare in your eyes
Makes a glimpse a thousand years
To know you is to live fully
With you always in mind
Your inspieations touch me truly
My life it helps me find
Poetry of the Now
Nothing To Know
I’m breathing every breath
while I resist nothing
Just acknowledging this wealth
of the Now, of being
I flow through the ins and outs
of consciousness and thought
without judgment, without doubts
without a whisper, without a shout
I make my way like I’m letting go
of yesterday and of tomorrow
Not knowing anything when I start
Just letting the moment play its part
I’ll know only when I’ll arrive
to my destination and not strive
to force my will in any action
In smoothness there is traction
I feel my hands, I feel my feet
as I reside in surrendered state
When the stillness and present meet
they open up serenity’s gate
There’s nothing to prove or deny
and nothing to build or break
No need to know where or why
even when there’s a heartache
My Consciousness Keeps Growing
The more I stop trying
the more I get things done
The past stops crying
The future turns more fun
I’m in the Now
and don’t look back
And this is how
time I don’t keep track
I am more than I do
following my heartbeats in peace
Every moment is brand new
as I break it down piece by piece
My journey is started by
my surrendered state of being
Don’t need to know why
One hour a beggar, next king
Thousand miles I go just like that
without hurrying, without a worry
When my turn comes to bat
I stay steady, I stay merry
Knowing that I don’t know
will lead to more knowing
I may go fast or go slow
My consciousness keeps growing
The Wind Is Blowing Gently
The wind is blowing quietly
as the bird sits on the branch
The sun is peeking slightly
hitting the corner of the bench
And here I am observing
every thought that crosses the mind
In doing so I'm allowing
the consciousness to unwind
The law of impermanence holds for all
Everything we give importance
one day they'll start to fall
That which is present remains
Even though the world is moving
in every possible way
The stillness keeps proving
they have the final say
Not in a hurry to go anywhere
as I follow each and every cue
Without much effort yet with care
I blend with many a hue
Silence goes with me everywhere I go
Feels like I'm in a dream-like state
That which is fast appears slow
I aways carry with me my fate
The Timeless
What does the past bring but a memory
and the future only a thought projected
The present is where there's life's story
So be there in the Now and do protect it
from harmful thoughts that keep passing by
and wreak havoc on Being without a care
It's the Now that doesn't even make you try
to reach your destination - yet you're there
Live in the timeless and you won't fear
even losing the most precious belonging
That which you hold to your heart dear
will always be there like eternal spring
Thought
Let a thought come and sit
on the corner of your mind
Don't chase but observe it
With it always be kind
Yet never allow it to dictate
how to live your entire life
As it's the conscious state
that determines joy, strife
Don't take it too seriously
when it tells you to comply
or follow its lead strictly
and to life say goodbye
Instead don't listen to it
as it has so much to say
Your actions then easily fit
with every step, every way
Just be
Drive into the serenity the self offers you
and feel every part of your being come true
It's only when you enter its welcoming door
You'll know what consciousness has in store
You'll enter the magic kingdom of peace
where stillness speaks - past, future cease
Your doings will be the best they can be
Once you embrace your being completely
Feel your breathing taking you places
you never get to go when your thought races
The effortless
The effortless easily gets things done
as it doesn't ever face much headwind
Its ride is as smooth as a morning run
with a cool breeze always blowing behind
No effort is given to dwell in the past
nor any given to come up with a future
The present is all that is needed to last
our entire life in peace without measure
Your breathing determines the pace
of every move that is being made
The deeper it is the more you'd trace
of the details that are left unsaid
The effortless is weaving around stillness
taking in every moment's creation
It watches everything without distress
and faces pain from every direction
You might as well be peaceful
Everyone faces the winds of despair
Everyone struggles very often to prepare
You may live in the tallest tower
or may wield from time to time power
yet you're not immune to the unexpected
facing ongoing failure, being misdirected
You might as well be peaceful now
while your day keeps changing somehow
Whatever happens, just know it's designed
Sit back and relax - don't pay it any mind
Be conscious of everything around you
Your breathing will guide you through
many a road too dark, some even bright
to a place of nothingness - pure delight
You might as well be peaceful now
Let your inner body senses show you how
you stop all your conditioned thoughts
connecting all of your consciousness dots
Like in a movie
Watch your thoughts whatever they are
like in a movie where you are the star
just relaxing letting in pure presence
without judgments, without comparisons
Just watch - don't go chasing them
Always stay within the stillness frame
You may win some day or you may lose
It's just a movie, don't accept it or refuse
Keep watching it, cause the more you do
the less the old conditions push through
Then there is clarity all of a sudden
The timeless is born - struggles forgotten
Watch the chatter the mind gets into
without any urges to follow through
as it changes directions time to time
and yet keeps turning on a dime
Nothing to represent
I feel the emptiness - void of emotion
and also void of uncertainty, distraction
where there is no need to succeed
or even any urges to plant a seed
or continuity beyond the present
as peace looks for nothing to represent
Now I'm unshaken by circumstances
that may arise in my performances
with my breathing while embracing
the formless and forms I keep facing
I feel the assurance of nothingness
The more has no advantage over less
It's Here Only Where You Completely Belong
You may be longing for the days long gone
Or keep waiting for the spring bird's song
Don't forget Now is what get things done
And it's here only where you completely belong
Nothing actually happened in the past
As when it did, happened in the Now
And nothing happens too slow or fast
Even the future is open to when, where, how
It's never too late to jump in the Now
That is where you'll find no resistance
Just blend in with a conscious bow
And allow it to happen in every instance
As I keep walking through the thick forest
As I keep walking through the thick forest
I see trees more than hundred years old
welcoming me with their shade so I can rest
my spirit - as silently their stories are told
They told me they've been through scorching fire
and told me they faced wicked storms
Reminded me to chase my dream, desire
even when facing uncalled-for norms
II also see the bright blue sky peek through
contrasting well with the intoxicating green
Communicating a deep sense of being true
to one's heart and soul - all seen or unseen
The forest path keeps twisting and turning
as it leads me to more awe and splendor
All uncertainties that inside me were burning
have disappeared into my total surrender
No more fighting myself
Questions may arise that I'm not being sufficient
in taking care of everything that life demands
and also in dealing with things that're deficient
that I face without knowing where my heart stands
But I have decided now enough is enough
No more lost in time, no more fighting thoughts
Instead I'll face head on smooth edges or rough
and not fight what is in connecting all dots
No more fighting myself - I'm embracing it all
Nor running away to the future or the past
No resisting anything that leads to one's fall
That will only lead to peace that will last
I'll not allow unmindful, shallow breathing
as I go about my work throughout the day
Every step I take will keep on flashing
along the wall of consciousness "it's okay"
My mind keeps writing stories
As usual my mind keeps writing stories
of events that're highly unlikely to materialize
Yet I somehow start to believe
everything it says is absolutely true
Really? How long will I be trapped
in this trend that keeps surfacing
year in, year out - and will go on
until the day I die
Yet I've remained a devoted slave to it
obeying it even when it demands everything
- getting lost in it for ages and hence
giving up on conscious living
That is living in the Now
Yes I give up even the only moment there is
All for the noise created by the mind?
Apparently so, as it just keeps writing stories
I'm finally floating around what is
I haven't reached my destination yet
Neither have I received any assurance
that everything will be okay
Even then I go back to the self-taught lesson
"Resist nothing - set yourself free"
All of a sudden every thought seems lighter
Every hurdle seems easier
Every goal seems reachable
Coming Closer
A beginning
A beginning has begun with opened doors
A brand new game with brand new scores
Yesterday has met its good friend past
And decided to stay with it and make their bond last
It's now or never when it comes to the present
For once it's gone you can only repent
For the things you could have started and done
Only if you slowed down even on the run
A beginning has begun with life changing turns
Choose any path and it may lead to burns
But not choosing one, you'll wither away
In indecisions and then disarray
A beginning has begun to renew our pledge
To follow through even if on the edge
Change
So what if I let go of what I have
And lose everything
My sense of security
Intertwined with my need
To keep things undisturbed
And my fear of getting up
And not hugging the comfort
That always refuses
To deal with the out of the ordinary
Things don't get better or worse
It's our heartbeat
That speeds up or slows down
Through our inability and reluctance
To accept pages and chapters of life
The way they are
Instead we stand in our own way
It's always others’ way
And never mine
That "ought to enter"
The cleansing process of change
There are no roads that I can't take
There are no roads that I can't take
And no mistake that I can't make
As long as I extend but within my reach
I won't avert lessons trials teach
There are no dreams that I can't tame
And yet no excuse way too lame
I am within and without love
And am at peace like the clouds above
There are no roads that I can't take
For my and for others' sake
I may wake up with the sun in my eye
Or lie down under the wide open sky
But it's I who chooses when to sleep
And when to wake up with nothing to keep
There are no roads that I can't take
As my resolve to evolve doesn't shake
Go on I must
Go on I must on the road of life toward the finish line
And not look back at yesterday, and face all rain or shine
When people ask me where I'm now on this journey's path
I tell them I'm in my present, out of time's great wrath
Go on I must through bumpy roads and through smooth sailing
And hold my head high at all times in succeeding, failing
Others may join me or they won't in this running train
But I must hold on to my rein even in trying pain
Go on I must with others in mind, not for me but them
And work in team and yet I'll play my own part in this game
I still can walk
I might be crippled but I still can walk
Even if I were dumb, I'd almost talk
Love might numb me but I opt to grow
Only the big picture I learn to follow
I might be blind but I still urge to see
There is meaning in everything around me
And with my struggles comes my relief
Painstakingly long or comfortably brief
I might be crippled but I still look ahead
To a bright and better future instead
Of seeing today in its worst ever light
I won't ever go down, not without a fight
Through my broken lens I see a new day
And gift myself a smile along the way
Even with shortfalls in every route
I'll find water where there's a drought
When there is no way, there is one
When there is no way, there is one
Where there darkness looms, out comes the sun
When despair outpaces you, just take it slow
From restless living take a bow
If there is hopelessness, reflect inside
And count your blessings and take pride
In His creation, second to none
His inspirations never outshone
Where there is no way, there is one
Even if it's not written in stone
Just try to see, its' already there
It's your life, you must prepare
The eternal will outlast all
Comedy and tragedy, big ones and small
So never let your awakening down
Or with it your purpose will soon drown
When there is no way, there is one
As the journey of time commits a dawn
Better days
Your life has begun, oh little one
There'll be days with sun undone
But better days are never far
Just play your childhood like who you are
Yes, better days will reach you
Even sooner than it's due
The stars will shine brighter
And your dreams will be lighter
And fairy tales will be no more
Reality will have magic in store
This life is more than the daily cries
For her who stumbles and yet tries
To dig for love and a mindful cause
And knows that only death can pause
All these endeavors that touch you
And every obstacle one trudges through
Your life has begun, oh little one
You'll see your trying days outrun
I've come closer
Even though the day seems long
I reckon I've come closer
I've been beaten at every game
Yet I'm not the loser
It's Allah that holds a place for me
That which is mine alone
When I try, stagger save hope
I'm left here on my own
I see I've come closer
To the day I'll let it be
I accept I've come closer
Present even in triviality
Through being listened to
And being turned away
My outlook will examine both
An auspicious and a dismal day
I'm tired and yet refreshed
I'm tired and yet refreshed
Knowing the inevitable is coming
Whether I make the most of the departed
Or choose to hold on to lamenting
It's all up to me
I choose to be ecstatic
Even with the birth of futility
Life always remains static
It's we who are changing
And are constantly in need of attention
That has conditional written in its lining
Yet keeps on gaining traction
I'm tired and yet refreshed
Being the one not defiant
To life's own course of getting started
And ending processes with no argument
Poem written on the passing of Dadee
The house that longed for your arrival
Sits as if it's still waiting
For you to come and cast your warmth
In every room, in every being
The bedroom that you rested in
Is restless to embrace
Your peaceful presence and your charm
And your endless grace
The game shows that roared 'cross the room
Are silent, no more dice to roll
No cheerful winner, nor big smiles
No paused heartbeat and no drum roll
The sun shines bright for you to dry
The clothes that hung across the lawn
The back door remains wide open
For your swift, yet calm return
The warm supper smell still holds strong
In the kitchen that you reigned
Your eager appreciation
Still remains, in my heart, chained
Though you're gone, the house still holds
All your bright delightful days
That'll stay forever more
You'll remain there always
What hast thou sown
What hast thou sown, oh ignorance
But seeds of hate and terror
And destruction of all good
With no faces on the mirror
Hatred in the name of God
And hatred for one's race
The time has come for us to see
What triggers this disgrace
The time has come for Jihad
Against all evil acts
From killing of the innocents
To judging with no facts
What hast thou sown, oh ignorance
But seeds of blinding love
The human factor is best felt
When push changes to shove
'Tis not a religion that
Turns gold back to stone
'Tis not knowing what it says
And acting on our own