Sword of Hazrat Imam Hussain

Yazid denied his tribe even a single mashk of water
Then, Hazrat Imam Hussain clutched his sword, quiver of arrows and bow
Fought single-handedly -- hundreds of cowards
Valiantly and relentlessly -- bloodied but unbowed.

His jihad was against oppression and unjustness
His holy war was for truth and righteousness
His fight was for the Ummah
His thunderous sword cut them into irrecognizable shreds.

Thirsty and wounded -- fatally and gravely
Lion-hearted grandson of the Prophet
Still, he did not relinquish his sword
Hundreds of vengeful arrows riddled his mighty chest.

He didn't flinch or waver
His horse galloped ragingly faster and faster
Annihilating enemy camps
Cavalrymen and foot soldiers.

We could never forget his martyrdom
His ultimate sacrifice
This eternal fight of noble and good with evil and dark
We have not sheathed our swords yet, like you.

Black Cats

Our battle cry is like thunderclap
Our hands are razor-sharp daggers
We wear black coveralls and Balaclavas
We are called Black Cats.

We are fierce and battle hardened soldiers
We are formidable warriors
We made you flee
We made you plea for safe passage.

You shook with terror
Our swords are swift, unhesitating and unforgiving
Faces are rugged
Bodies made of steel.

Our toddlers amuse themselves with tiger cubs and krait's snakelets
We trot on landmines like we jog on a lazy, Sunday morning
We tame white tigers when we are bored -- it is our favorite pastime
We don't even have to kill you -- mock execution is enough.

One God, One Prophet

Our God is one
Our Prophet is one
Then why do we have so many sects
Why do we fight amongst ourselves.

Why this sectarian violence
Why can't we talk about assimilationism
It is time for jihad with our own ego and conscience
It is time for holy war with our egoistic notions and schools of thought.

Let us stand shoulder to shoulder in prayer
Sheathe our knives, daggers and swords
Swap our turbans and caps
Gift rosaries and prayer rugs.

Let us say Labbaik Allahumma Labbaik aloud
And, kneel and prostrate to one God
Hearts full of piety, love, peace and patience -- no place for hatred or vengeance
Embrace and forgive one another -- that is the real, true -- attribute and trait of a Muslim.

Bapu: You took a bullet for us

You took a bullet for us
Gave us freedom.

You walked alone
Millions followed.

A revolution began
Sent shock waves to the British throne.

Spoke only the truth
Practiced nonviolence.

Father of the nation
A divine soul.

We stand in ovation
Speechless and tearful.

Your spirit is not dead
It can never die.

It is in us
In every ounce of our blood.

We are billion-plus strong now
A formidable, mighty power.

We still follow your precepts
Our children mourn your death.

My words are too humble
But I still want to pay my last respects.

My two E-books have been published -- so far...

My two E-books have been published -- so far: 1. Queen ant, and 2. Honeypot.
Please download 'em from the following links:

http://pothi.com/pothi/book/ebook-maqsood-qureshi-queen-ant

http://pothi.com/pothi/book/ebook-maqsood-qureshi-honeypot

Naura, my grandniece (Draft)

I've a grandniece
Her name is Naura
She's bright
Like a sparkler in a moonless night.

She's moon-eyed
Looks at everything with inquisitiveness and wonder
She'd grow up to be a wonder girl
It's fun to see her toddle.

She babbles something
I don't understand her baby talk
Only her grandma or mom can tell what she wants
Sometimes she's shy -- sometimes headstrong.

All of us love her tantrums
I tell her tales of white tigers
She listens intently but obviously doesn't understand a thing
But I'm sure she's going to be a brave girl.

A girl beyond beauty pageants -- A girl who raises the dead

She never contested in a beauty pageant
Otherwise, she'd have been an uncontestable winner.

Sometimes I think she's probably from Venus
She's so fairy-like and unearthly.

Has possibly lost her magic wand
But still casts magic spells with her big, bright, starry eyes.

Petite and fair -- perfect, short hair
She redefines the oomph factor.

Glorious eyes -- childish rage
Girlishness in her voice and innocence on her face.

Helps me fight my schizophrenia
Chases off my demons and hushes me to sleep.

She's the uncrowned queen
Sometimes gets meany like a bandit queen.

Should be the poster girl for matrimonial sites
Looks like a bombshell in jeans, kurtas and big, dark goggles.

She loves me -- she loves me not
That's an unsolved puzzle.

This irreciprocity is endless frolic
I chase this elusive demigoddess forever.

She's so discreet and subtle
Speaks in shy, hushed riddles.

Her voice is so angelical
Could raise me even when I'm dead -- like Lazarus.

Her laughter echoes mercilessly in my head even when I'm asleep
I toss and turn in my bed all night.

Wish she were my wife
We'd have chatted endlessly and walked barefoot in the moonlight night.

Life with her is so dreamlike
Like respite of drizzle on a scorching hot summer day.

Comes from a family of rajahs and begums
Never lets me feel like a commoner.

She's brainy like anything 
Makes superbright whizzes, astrophysicists and nuclear scientists feel like braindead zombies.

Wish we'd time travel to a fantasyland
And, stay there till the cows come home.

A Messiah amongst us

There're one billion plus Indians
I'm just an insignificant individual amongst 'em
Amongst us there're people of great stature and brilliance
That makes me cower in shame and self-consciousness.

Wish I were like 'em
People of great intellect and school of thought
Self-effacing men and women with no prejudice and pride
Scrupulous and incorruptible integrity.

Robust and resilient -- my fellow countrymen
Steadfast, unfaltering adherence and belief in democracy and secularism
A few good men and women who change the destinies of one billion plus
Towering, immaculate personalities -- great leaders who lead by example.

Men like Sri Nara Chandrababu Naidu
Ideal men with perfect ideologies
Father figure -- who intervenes and comes to your rescue when you're in distress
He's the most perfect Indian -- a Messiah, savior, a true visionary with indomitable courage to change our future.

My second E-book has just been published...

My second E-book has just been published. :-) A collection of poems. You'd download it from here:

http://pothi.com/pothi/book/ebook-maqsood-qureshi-honeypot

This is my reply: Subhuman

I'm subhuman or humanoid
I'm noble savage not a savant
Wish I'd rise to the stature of holy men in piety and resolution
But I'm beastlike and inhuman.

I'm too frail to spar now
Quite dim-witted to pentest computer networks
I did get into aviation -- but couldn't get my wings
I couldn't become a top gun or barnstormer like Richard Bach.

I'm not an intellectualist or a wizard
I lose all the time in the Derby
Neither I'm blue-blooded nor a nabob
I'm dervish-like and fakir of sorts.

I live in an eldorado of my imagination
Daydreams and fairy tales of beautiful princesses and gallant princes
My rhymes are amateurish -- my Blog is juvenile
How'd you be my follower -- I haven't read a single divan.

I didn't do anything spectacular
Lost my youth in skirt-chasing
Even witchlike spinsters shush and shun me now
Unending solitude is like undying, unbroken curse.

I'm not a philosopher
But I did believe in fables and tall tales of philosopher's stone
Those turned out fanciful -- didn't make me rich and royal
I'm poverty-stricken, penniless, beggarly and an old tramp.

I didn't do anything for my country
Calling me a patriot is a misnomer
My vocab is full of archaic words
There're of no use in prose or verse.

I did trot, canter and gallop -- But too feeble now even to saddle
Or swing a mallet for that crowd–pleasing, singature belly shot.
Your poem is plump -- But I'd always trump you
After all, I'm your guru.

Many maidens kept their hope chests ready
I didn't choose even the most prettiest lady
I searched for an elusive houri
Now people taunt me for my bachelordom.

Moneylenders ate me up like nefarious, pigging vermin
Have you read Munshi Premchand's The Gift of the Cow
Yep, I'm an ultraliberal
But that radicalism has put me in such unsaid, untold miseries.

I think I'm an idiot savant
My skillfulness is seriously debatable
I've lost shamefully -- my jihad with myself
Only thing I possibly have achieved is moral victory.

And, yep I'm an ardent believer in secularism
But that doesn't make me stand out
There're millions who believe in this school of thought
So my dearest disciple -- your theory is nought.

Nothing superhumanly about me
It seems you've read too many Yeti or Bigfoot stories
Don't superhumanize me
I don't have a cloak of invisibility.

A friend keyed-in this rhyme about me: A superhuman

A superhuman
No wonder if you're one
It does things that nobody can
Unusual abilities - I'm already your fan.

You can hack computers, spar, fly planes and play polo
And yet write rhymes and blog -- solitary prolificity
You're a philosopher and a whiz
Secular, patriotic and liberalist.

Lady-killing is as easy as staking on place
On public favorite in a horse race
Spending money isn't a hassle anyway
Credit cards and loans had a price to pay.

Great literary pieces impromptu
You're an offline vocabulary course
Like an ace of spade - a high ranking nobleman
You are an unproclaimed super human.

I found her on the Internet

The Internet is an awesome thing
I found her on it.

I paged her on ICQ
Told her I seek you.

She liked my style
We chatted for a while.

Then, I flew to Abu Dhabi
But long-distance didn't mean a thing.

We phoned each other everyday
Swore to be together someday.

She E-mailed me her pics
Looked ravishing in big, dark goggles.

I got smitten and lovelorn
Put my best foot forward.

Her birthday was in December
I took a midnight flight from the capital.

Hugged and kissed her
We're finally together.

The Internet is a good thing, mister
You get what you seek after.

Dr Agnes Lehoczky

 

http://www.shef.ac.uk/english/people/lehoczky

Adunis, the revolutionary poet

Syrian poet Adunis may be at the heart of modern Arabic poetry, yet the Arab Spring has consigned him to irrelevance.

http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/opinion/2011/07/201179124452158992.html

 

Kashmir

We've cut you down like grass
Don't you remember the past wars.

You're a ragtag bunch of cut-throats and mercenaries
Do you think you stand a chance against our NSG elites.

We've beheaded the Ravana
He dared cross the Lakshman Rekha.

Line of Control is the new Lakshman Rekha
You're the modern-day Lankeshwar.

Quit the proxy war in Kashmir
Or face the wrath of our one million plus strong -- men and women in uniform.

Ours is a land of martyrs
A land soaked with our blood.

We've robust, strong and unwavering hands
Unflinching, bloodthirsty and ready to unsheathe swords.

We're fire walkers and daredevil warriors
Bombs and bullets are playthings, sparklers and firecrackers.

We're the new Abhimanyus
We know how to break free from the Chakravyuha.

The white tigers and the king cobras are playmates of our kids
Die-hardism and courage are in our blood.

We don't know what retreat is
We fight tenaciously to the last breath.

We wear shroud on our heads proudly like a turban
Like Prahalad we walk joyously on a pyre.

We're peerless and undefeatable warriors like Arjuna
We're death-defying and dreaded soldiers.

Our war cry is so bloodcurdling and gut-wrenching
It makes even the most defiant of you ashen-faced.

And, you trample each other to death
We've heard innumerous stories of such stampedes.

Ethical Hackers' Manifesto

We're the InfoSec people
We're the first line of defense.

We're the cyber warriors
We keep our electronic frontiers safe.

We're the ethical hackers
We strike down hard and lightning fast.

We're like blitz
We're alpha geeks.

Lawbreakers swoon and shiver
We make 'em tremble with fear.

We're the best and the brightest
We're the elite.

We've razor-sharp minds
We're the nerds.

We're unwinged guardian angels
Ethical Hacking is in our blood.

We're the avant-gardists
We've got fire in our bellies.

We're the tech evangelists
We lead a life full of chivalry.

We're armed to the teeth
We've got skills and grit.

We smoke 'em out like rats
Whenever we turn up the heat.

You're on the wrong side of the law
You're morally weak.

We'll bring you to justice inevitably
You can run but you can't hide.

We'll bring you to your knees
We're indomitable geeks.

We're unstoppable comrades
We come after you wave after wave.

We protect you
So that you'd live in peace.

A seriocomical rhyme: Stranded on an island :-)

Wish we get stranded on an island
That's uninhabited or not is a mystery to be ravelled.

I role-play the intrepid Alexander Selkirk
Rediscover the fire and make a shack out of sticks and twines.

On second thoughts, a tree house sounds like a safe place
Would keep mongrels and hyenas at bay.

Fight the man-eaters and tribe of cannibals
Like a gallant knight.

Like William Tell or Ekalavya
I'll practice tirelessly and hone my archery skills.

We'd rebuild our own quiet, little civilization in the jungle rumble
Tamed, docile White Tiger cubs as your thirty-first birthday present.

There won't be any treacherous tyrant to overpower and kill
Silent, occasional skirmishes with our own ego and conscience.

Homing pigeons would be our postmen
Pet parakeets to keep up our spirits.

Food is not all veggie
There's fish and occasional drumstick or two.

Watching you eat off of banana leaves is fun
You're clumsy first but eventually get the hang of it.

This is  our parallel universe
And, we lived happily ever after.

To be continued...

Dear Enemy: A seriocomical rhyme about Fatima Bhutto! :-)

She's thirty
I'm forty.

She's Dear Enemy
I'm from the foe country.

Both of us were destined to meet in the cyberspace
I wonder if she's read Jean Webster's sequel to Daddy-Long-Legs.

Our story should turn out like Notting Hill
Will we ever tie the knot or always stay single.

My bank balance is nought
Wish I'd hit the jackpot.

God, please turn me into a zillionaire
A rags-to-riches billionaire.

Make my adversary my soul mate
Write this in my scroll of fate.

I'll woo her all my life
And, sweep her off her feet.

She's starry-eyed and celebrity scribe
I'm Vikram Seth's Suitable Boy.

I wonder if she's shilly-shallying, dilly-dallying, contemplating
Sending me a sally note -- now that's a point to moot.

A schizophrenic's monologue: Smiley generation :-)

Dead don't do any talking. Rest of us living do. Even dumb and profoundly deaf communicate. Interaction is living. Otherwise, you're in the obituary column. Language is essential. I believe there's some sort of language even in prehistoric times. This is the 21st century. We seldom smile now. We use a smiley emoticon, instead. :-) Communication is vital. That's why phone was invented. That's why E-mail was invented. Okay--STOP texting and read this first! :-)

To be continued...

Religion of peace

You kill, maim and mutilate us
And, call it jihad and holy war.

This is not our religion
Our religion is of peace.

Sword is always with us
But it's for show of force and in its sheath.

This is madness and savagery
Inhuman and barbarian streak.

You make us orphans and widows.
You make us cry, wail and weep.

We're men and women of principles
Intellect, idealism and courage.

Patient, brave and fearless warriors
Like Maharana Pratap, Shivaji and Subhas Chandra Bose.

Don't you remember what happened in Kargil
How'd you forget such shameful and humiliating defeat.

Don't provoke us anymore
We're tigers asleep.

Schizy humor . . . .

Am I hallucinating again
Or is she sending me Morse signals.

I think my schizophrenia is in full swing
I'd go see my shrink -- first thing tomorrow morning.

Incommunicado . . . .

She's out of sight and unreachable
Wish I were a jinn ethereal.

Meeting her then would have been a cinch
But I'd have given her a fright.

Smoke signals and homing pigeon

Neither she replies to my E-mails
Nor sends out smoke signals in the air.

Homing pigeon is my last resort
Will it find her summer resort?

One lakh plus followers on her Twitter
That makes me stun and stutter.

She likes Mister Vladimir Nabokov
Wish I were Russian and of that caliber.

My little sunshine: My kiddo niece Asfa! :-)

A breathtaking summer dawn
It's a new beginning for us all.

Little sunshine giving big hopes
We're going to make into the Forbes.

We're The Steadfast Tin Soldiers
Alvin Toffler, Stephen Hawking and Bill Gates of the future.

We follow the principles, precepts and ideologies of Mahatma Gandhi and Panditji.
We're the forerunners and flag-bearers of the 21st century.

A seriocomical rhyme: Brobdingnagian and Lilliputian!

I've a big crush on her
She brushed me off
She's superrich and elitist
I'm Below Poverty Line, mediocre and amongst riffraff.

She's amongst the intelligentsia
I'm functional illiterate
She's many aides and chaperones
I'm on social welfare.

She's a political bigwig
I'm an anonymous communistic nobody
She writes prolifically and with flair
I scribble hesitatingly and am a rookie rhymer.

I'm schizoid
She's superbright
Somehow we met on the Facebook -- on a moony Winter's night
She told me point-blank -- we're poles apart.

You'd be fairly well aware of your dwarfishness
You pygmy, loony and moonstruck
I'm Brobdingnagian and you're Lilliputian
That's why I can't be your bride.

Enigma: A seriocomical rhyme about Fatima Bhutto! :-)

Fatima Bhutto is so awfully pretty
She writes lucid and perfect prose and poetry
Is from a big and elite family
But seems so humble and doesn't like things in jumble.

Her first book was Whispers of the Desert
It's all in verse
She's barely fifteen then
I haven't read it yet.

She's a well-known scribe
Her works are an exposé of warped political minds
She doggedly fights
The immoral amongst Karachites.

She probably likes long drives
Pity, I don't have a car or a bike
Wish I'd a bicycle built for two -- just like in Daisy Bell
We'd have ridden in tandem.

Maxine Swann

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maxine_Swann

The Professor, the Bikini Model and the Suitcase Full of Trouble

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/10/magazine/the-professor-the-bikini-model-and-the-suitcase-full-of-trouble.html?pagewanted=all&_r=1&

Fire walking . . . .

We don't talk to each other anymore
Is that my fault or hers?
This unresolvable predicament
It's destiny -- don't you know my dearest?

Please don't cry -- don't be sullen and sulky
Some people are nefarious, treacherous and diabolic
All I wanted is to protect
You trust me -- don't you my dearest?

Life without you is like fire walking
Our romance is like an old talkie
Come back -- come back fast on the chat -- chatty
I'm so wacky but not quacky -- don't you know my dearest?

Let's kiss and make up
What's this big fuss?
Moments are void and treasureless
Without you -- it's severe mental duress -- don't you know my dearest?

Our conscience . . . .

Our conscience is our built-in religion.

Fatima Bhutto: Demigoddess or mortal? :-)

Vikram Aur Betaal: Infinite / endless loop

Vikram Aur Betaal: I believe that Indians pioneered (the concept of) infinite / endless loop ages before the programming / coding thing started. :-)