Does my concept of nationhood and citizenship
Conflict with my Hinduism, Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Buddhism
Or for that matter
My atheism, agnosticism

Does it overlap seamlessly without blurring the boundaries
Or does it accentuate the borders
Making them distinct, unbreachable
Irreconcilable, impassable

Which comes first
Which second
Or does one coalesce into the other
Creating a medley all its own

Did religion create man
Or did man create religion
Is being a human more important
Than the tenets of a nation

Or should I just listen to my heart
And let all else follow suit
For the religion of humanity
To nurture my concept of identity

For finally, I who I am
Defines my relationship with my country
And outlines the boundaries of my religion
Granting me my individuality in a sea of diversity

Subir Chakraborty / 25th April 2019

Life must happen as it will
Taking you through unknown rapids
Throwing in a surprise when least prepared
Sucking you out of your old habits

Earnings of a lifetime may evaporate
Well laid plans may go to waste
Thunder may strike without warning
Forcing you to re-plan in haste

The only way to navigate life
Is not to try and seek total control
Success and failure, the conjoint twins
Helping you to evolve manifold

Let the vagaries of life
Broaden your narrow confines
For you to explore and to savour
And leave your footprints on time

Let the uncertainties of life
Unfold joys and sorrows anew
Enjoy the journey sans expectations
As precious life happens to you

Subir Chakraborty / 6th Oct 2019

I would gladly sacrifice all my certitude
At the hazy altar of bewilderment
To replace assuredness, stillness
With turbulence and amazement

For what is it not to know
What beckons you across the border
What is it that pulls the romantics
What is it that creates this fervour

Ask the ones who have scaled the peaks
Or dived to the bottom of the ocean
Ask the ones who have toiled and failed
To try once more, again and yet again

Ask the mighty Ganges and she will tell you
Which part is full of merriment and fun
High up in the hills with crevasses and rapids
Or in the plains with indolence and stagnation

Ask your own genes and they will tell you
How chance happenings have resulted in evolution
How without the mystery of the unknown
We may have remained less than human

Subir Chakraborty / 21st July 2019

This earth a spinnin’
With her two poles intact
Not too long after dawn
Dusk has begun its craft

This earth a changin’
Happening all too fast
This moment you sit
And the very next ‘sat’

This earth a talkin’
Can you hear her plea
Choking in poisonous air
Begging to be left free

This earth a kickin’
Like a child in her prime
Genes, splitting, combining
Evolving all the time

This earth a travellin’
With wanderlust in her eyes
Stars, galaxies her siblings
In this journey through the skies

This earth a hummin’
With the everlasting tune of love
Ushering the beautiful seasons
With music from her trove

Subir Chakraborty / 2nd June 2019

I do not seek the skies
For my spirit soars high above
I do not seek heaven
For I have found my heaven on earth

I do not seek the depths
For I enjoy the tranquility of the shore
I do not seek a god
For I treasure the silence at my core

I do not seek good luck
For I know not what that means
I do not seek happiness
For I know not any other theme

I do not swim with the flow
For I want to be that flow, even in pain
I do not seek change
For I want to be that change, time and again

I do not seek love
For love enshrouds my being
I do not seek freedom
For freedom enshrines my dreams

Subir Chakraborty / 18th Sept 2019

You must die before death
To experience true living
Torn from all its prejudices
Shorn of all its undoings

To walk barefoot on fresh earth
To stare at the mountain peaks
To be completely one with nature
To sway with the gentle breeze

To live each precious moment
As if it was the truly the last
To let your mind resonate
With the silence of your heart

Where each moment gone by
Is a time which has died
Cannot return if you wished
Cannot ever be revived

From the fiery embers of death
Rises phoenix-like, a new hope
A fresh moment, a new era
For you to savour and to cope

Subir Chakraborty / 10th Sept 2019

ये दोस्ती भी क्या चीज़ है
जो दोस्त एक दूसरे से मिलते हैं सालों के बाद
पर लगता है यूँ
कि ये कुछ ही दिनों की बात

एक हॉस्टल में रहना
साथ ही खाना, साथ पीना
खेलना, कूदना, दिल बहलाना
सपनें भी साथ ही देखना

परीक्षाओं का बोझ जब आता सर पर
तब सोचते कि गंतव्य बहुत दूर
इम्तिहानों के पहाड़ पार करते थे
कर दोस्ती के हाथ मज़बूत

दारू की बोतलें कम थीं
और लोग थे ज़्यादा
फिर भी ख़ाली नहीं होता था
किसी का प्याला

सब इधर उधर बिछड़ गए
काम धंधे की खोज में
कई दोस्त सिधार गए
चले गए परलोक में

अब हम फिर मिल रहें हैं
फिर से पूछताछ कर रहें हैं
याद कर रहें हैं उन दिनों को
भूले, बिछड़े सब यारों को

जब हसीयों की कलकलाहट
टकराती थी दीवारों से
जब कहते थे बहुत कुछ
और समझते कम थे

ये दोस्ती भी क्या चीज़ है
जो भुलाए नहीं भूलती
ये दोस्ती भी क्या चीज़ है
जो मिटाए नहीं मिटती

सुबीर चक्रवर्ती / १ नवम्बर २०१८

With the call of daybreak, they take a bow
The honeyed Tan huas** of my mind
Laced with silvery filigree
Interspersed with embroidered magic

The Queen of the Night bids goodbye
With the kiss of the crimson rays
Which caress her soothingly, lovingly
Before she parts with her whispering gait

What she leaves behind
Are those sweet remembrances
Of moments, traversing the dreamy highway
Indolently, regally, to a feathery destination

Creating those wondrous traces in my mind, and
Generating a well of hope during the day
Inducing me to wait patiently for the dusky lady
To usher the Queen in all her majesty

** Tan hua is a Chinese name for a plant which flowers only at night. The flowers have a short life span and wither away by dawn.

Subir Chakraborty / 9th July 2019

इस ज़िन्दगी के सफ़र में
तू भी मुसाफ़िर, मैं भी मुसाफ़िर
चल रहें हैं, भटकते, कतराते
ख़ुशियों की खोज में
महफ़िलों की तलाश में

कानों में गूँज रही हैं
पैसों की झंकार
दौड़ रहें हैं सब उसके पीछे
पता नहीं खोजते खोजते
कब लापता हो गये हम

लापता अपनों से, ख़ुद से
लेकिन फिर भी
ज़िंदगी जी रहें हैं
साँसें चल रही हैं
दिल धड़क रहा है

आँखें आज भी खोज रही हैं
उन ख़ुशियों को, उन महफ़िलों को
जो मिलकर भी न मिला
पाकर भी न पाया
मरिचिका बनकर सब रह गया

दौड़ते दौड़ते थक गये हैं हम
अब रूकने की चाहत है मन में
लेकिन रुक नहीं सकते
कुछ पैसों का लालच अब भी बाकी है
और कुछ आदत की मजबूरी है

सुबीर चक्रवर्ती / २९ अक्टूबर २०१८

Tension surrounds me, infiltrates my mind
Spending sleepless nights
Trying to be something or someone
An illusion of grandeur, excellence, happiness

Playing the catch up game
Indulging in the ‘if only’ sport
Should be, should have been
Why not me, why only him

The heat is intense
Calories turning to beads of sweat
Going around endlessly in a maze
In screeching, exploding misery

Yet relief is so close at hand
Relaxation only a stone’s throw away
The burden can disappear instantly
Giving me freedom from this torment

To see myself for who I truly am
To take a break and just be me
To savour the joys all around
And to just let it be

Subir Chakraborty / 19th July 2019