Editor's Choice
Theme: Advice

Crossroads

In the journey of life
     bewildered and fraught
     with unforeseen circumstances
we often wonder which path to select
when confronted by conflicting crossroads? 
 
How to face the bully squarely
and circumvent
the quagmire of -
     familial pressures
     emotional blackmail
     deceptive contexts
     societal prejudices
     competitive debauchery
     circumstantial hurdles
     stressful strains
     crowded milieu
     bureaucratic lines
     political nepotism
     tempting shortcuts
 et al?
 
Whenever these questions
pester me
      – and this happens often –
I take refuge
in the gleaming eyes
and serenity
of my grandmother
framed in the photograph
that adorns my work desk
 
Invariably
her poise alludes
sagaciously:

The choices made
are the nascent kernels
in the soil of Karmic today
that will sprout tomorrow
for better or worse
 
So awaken and arise
make no compromise
Cognize and discriminate
before it becomes too late
Listen to your inner voice
and make the right choice
 
For, your chosen path
will be the preamble
to your final destination

 
Read also: Amma | Amma's Gospel
                   Word | Greetings  

28-Oct-2012

More By  :  Rajender Krishan

Views: 1678     Comments: 17

Comments on this Poem

Comment I needed that.
I devoted my occupational journey to my grandfather. He was such a hard worker. You've reminded me to turn back to his strength and support in a very difficult time in my life....

Anonymousfor Prajapati
03-Jul-2013 00:31 AM

Comment I loved the reference to your grandmother and the expression of her eyes. Truly, our parents or our grandparents are our guiding lights in times of crisis.

Arundhati Sarkar
01-Nov-2012 08:26 AM

Comment Thanks to all for your valuable comments.

Raj
30-Oct-2012 10:44 AM

Comment Forgive me for my persistence, but I posed a rhetorical question in my last post, 'is this the definition of poetry?'

Poetry is a special utterance, to be distinguished from the mundane dressed up as a special utterance. This implies poetry transcends the mundane, for which the words provide the base, but are most effective when left behind as echoes of the transcendent realised. Thus poetry is a special utterance because it realises the transcendent. The transcendent is defined by beauty, love, virtues of all kinds; but vanity and vain-gloriousness, or pomposity, can also be manifested, always as negative effects, the opposite of transcendence.

rdashby
30-Oct-2012 08:42 AM

Comment So true! Yet, one often side tracks reality!

jennifermariebayer
30-Oct-2012 03:45 AM

Comment What strikes one about this poem, for so it must be designated, is the use of language, the English language, as a tool of analysis. Let me rewrite the previous sentence in the same poetic form:

What strikes one
about this poem, for
so it must be designated, is
the use of language, the
English language, as a
tool of analysis.

Yes, granted, meaning is communicated with greater clarity; but is this the definition of poetry? If so, one can convert any paragraph of prose into a poem.

Yes, granted,
meaning is communicated
with greater
clarity; but is this
the definition
of poetry? If so,
one can convert
any paragraph of prose
into a poem.

rdashby
29-Oct-2012 21:51 PM

Comment Listen to your inner voice
and make the right choice

For, your chosen path
will be the preamble
to your final destination"


my favourite lines for very, very long time & I still every morning
remind chander...the real chander sitting within me
24/7, about these precious lines.

By the end of day....I can feel the satisfaction living through the day.

chander tuteja
29-Oct-2012 13:11 PM

Comment This is what India needs today desperately - connection to its past (its grandmother) - its proud heritage.

Once I was asked (in USA) to describe the character of Ramchandra (Ramayana's hero) very briefly. This what came out intuitively:

1. Awaken the ability from within to discriminate between wrong and right.

2. Have the courage to adhere with the right.

3. Have the strength to carry out the right.

4. Have the forbearance to live with the consequences without any regrets.

We are sorely missing the "twin" in your poem and the "grandmother" in your picture frame from our hearts and our desks.

Thank you for the reminder.

drgopalsingh
29-Oct-2012 12:59 PM

Comment "...Your chosen path
will be the preamble
to your final destination."

Very well said,sir.Regards.

Sony Dalia
29-Oct-2012 11:03 AM

Comment 29 October 2012
TO: Mr. Rajender Krishan
At the fag end of my life, while I'm soon to step into the octogenarian club, I naturally look back at my career since I lost my father at the age of 14 left with no inspirational personality (as your grandmother) except my helpless widow mother who were at a loss what to do with her minor children.
Maybe, by and large I followed your principle -
So awaken and arise
make no compromise
Cognize and discriminate
before it becomes too late
Listen to your inner voice
and make the right choice

which steered me clear of the occasional tempests I encountered and I hardly have any regret and happily look forward to my journey to the other world which is round the corner.
Rajat Das Gupta

Rajat Das Gupta
29-Oct-2012 09:55 AM

Comment Excellent verses and relevant to all!

Dr Madhu Guptan
29-Oct-2012 08:47 AM

Comment Indian and western attitudes find mature expression in this rich and lyrical interaction inner/outer, where personal history and national heritage combine to show the path to an already very successful NRI poet-cum-interlocutor for our generation.

sunil sharma
29-Oct-2012 01:38 AM

Comment this poem focuses on the cosmic consciousness .....

Dr.Ratan Bhattacharjee
29-Oct-2012 00:02 AM

Comment 'To be or not to be'; 'this? or that?'; 'here? or there?' are eternal dilemmas confronting all ordinary human beings.

To learn to "make no compromise;
to 'Cognize and discriminate';
to ' Listen to ones inner voice;
and to 'make the right choice' forms parts of the art of life we have to master.

Thanks for reminding every one!


Raja Mutthirulandi
28-Oct-2012 23:36 PM

Comment You are really enjoying your creations-I can feel it.
Please keep it up. This one is a wonderful piece.

V.K. Joshi
28-Oct-2012 23:19 PM

Comment Very true! The most sensible thing to do!

Pavalamani Pragasam
28-Oct-2012 23:03 PM

Comment You are a profelic poet cum composer, sitting in your New England Home in Eastern USA. I ahve lived in Penn State and it had charm of its own in suburban Philadelphia. Now at 80 years i am trying to help Institutions interact with one another as well as industries for the good of technology that academia can develop! Attached as Technology Consultant on contract basis at TERII near Kurukshetra, myb home town in Haryana. I am intersted in interface between spirituslity and sciences and see the significance of the concept of mind and soul in contrast with the body we have. Cosmic consciousness plays a vital role that most people remain ignorant about. Your response will be welcome! Greetings, NN

Narendra Nath
28-Oct-2012 21:44 PM


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