मर कर भी जीते हैं कैसे — कोई हमसे पूछे,
दिल छोड़ कर भी जीते हैं कैसे — कोई हमसे पूछे।

टुकड़ों को हमने जोड़ के बनाया घर इस तरह,
टूटते हुए घर में रहते हैं कैसे — कोई हमसे पूछे।

जब ख़ुद से ही बातें करने में सुकूँ मिले,
बिन आवाज़ के जीते हैं कैसे — कोई हमसे पूछे।

हर कदम पर सोच कर जो रखना पड़े कदम,
तलवार पे चलते हैं कैसे — कोई हमसे पूछे।

दुनिया को जीत कर भी आ जाए अगर,
पर ख़ुद से रोज़ हारते हैं कैसे — कोई हमसे पूछे।

उनको सलामत रखने की चाहत में हम,
अपनी ही सलामती खोते हैं कैसे — कोई हमसे पूछे।

उनसे निभा के वफ़ा-ए-इश्क़ यूँ,
ख़ुद से ही बेवफ़ा होते हैं कैसे — कोई हमसे पूछे।

- अभिनव शर्मा "दीप" 

आज तुमसे तुम, कुछ भुलाए जाएंगे,

तुमसे, आज, तुम, फिर घटाए जाएंगे।

फ़क़त लम्हों में किया जो तुमने इश्क़,

आज हर वो लम्हे जलाये जाएंगे।

धड़कनों से वाबस्ता जो अरमान थे कभी,

रवाँ थे रगों में-अब सुखाए जाएंगे।

बड़ी दूर तलक ले जाना था ये रिश्ता तुमको,

उस डोर के हर तार, अब छुड़ाए जाएंगे।

नाज़ था जो तुम्हें अपनी धड़कनों पर,

वो धड़कनें, अब सर में गूँजाए जाएंगे।

रस्म-ए-उल्फ़त जो तुमने अदा की थी कभी,

उसकी क़ीमत अब, अदावत में चुकाए जाएंगे।

क्या शिकवा करें हम ज़माने से अब,

हम कौन सा इस ज़माने को याद आएंगे।

बड़े नाज़ से जो पाला था, तुमने खुद को,

आज, तुम, तुमसे ही दफ़नाए जाएंगे।

"अभी" नाम था जो कभी, अब मिटाए जाएंगे,

आज, तुमसे, तुम, फिर घटाए जाएंगे।

-अभिनव शर्मा "दीप"

फ़क़त = only

वाबस्ता = connected

रवां = flowing

गूँजाए = reverberate 

रस्म-ए-उल्फ़त = customs of love

अदावत = enmity

यह कविता एक व्यक्ति के जीवन को एक बहते हुए दरिया के रूप में प्रस्तुत करती है, जिसमें उसके अनुभवों, संघर्षों और यात्राओं का समावेश है। दरिया का प्रवाह उन पहाड़ों, जंगलों और खेतों से होकर गुजरता है, जिन्होंने उसके अस्तित्व और व्यक्तित्व को आकार दिया है। तूफान उन बाहरी ताकतों या लोगों का प्रतीक है, जो उस व्यक्ति के स्वाभाविक प्रवाह को बदलना चाहते हैं।

दरिया के रुख को बदलने का मतलब केवल उसके प्रवाह को ही नहीं, बल्कि उन सभी तत्वों को भी बदलना है, जिन्होंने उसे वह बनाया है जो वह है।

बहते दरिया का रुख बदलना चाहते हो, 

तुम तूफान हो? क्या सब कुछ बदलना चाहते हो?

पहाड़ों को छील कर, जंगलों की झील तर, 

पहाड़ों, जंगलों का अस्तित्व बदलना चाहते हो? 

बहते दरिया का व्यक्तित्व बदलना चाहते हो?

खेतों को सींच कर, नहरों को भींच कर, 

खेतों, नहरों का, अतीत बदलना चाहते हो

इस दरिया का प्रतीत बदलना चाहते हो?

गाँवों का बल देख, शहरों का छल देख, 

गाँव, शहरों का, स्वभाव बदलना चाहते हो? 

इस दरिया का प्रवाह बदलना चाहते हो? 

समुंद में समा कर, सागर को अपना कर, 

सागर, समुंदर की रीत बदलना चाहते हो? 

तुम इस दरिया की प्रीत बदलना चाहते हो? 

तुम तूफान हो? क्या सब कुछ बदलना चाहते हो?

बहते दरिया का रुख बदलना चाहते हो? 

-अभिनव शर्मा "दीप" 

प्यार क्या है?

प्यार क्या है? 

एक एहसास, या कुछ ख़ास?

या दिल को बेहलाने वाला,

बस एक आभास?

प्यार क्या है? 

प्यार क्या है? 

कोइ लिबास, या बद-हवास? 

या किसी को पाने की, 

बस एक प्यास?

प्यार क्या है?

प्यार क्या है?

हर स्वास, या अंध-विश्वास?  

या जिये जाने की, 

बस एक आस? 

प्यार क्या है?

-अभिनव शर्मा "दीप" 

My Father ...my source of life

                        30 July 1960 - 05 June 2024

I write this tribute in honor of my father,  Mr. Amar Deep Sharma. We had known him in the recent years as a humble, kind, jovial and loving personality. Someone who associated closely with kids and animals and shared the love among all he met. With this tribute I intend to bring to light his upbringing, career and achievements through his life.

Born on 30^th July 1960 to Shri. Pritam Das Sharma and Smt. Dwarki Devi as 4^th child in a very humble background. Despite being uneducated, his mother, Smt. Dwarki Devi ensure proper education to all her children. Having seen difficult days in early childhood, my father realized the importance of education and had immense focus on his studies. Specially the importance of Maths and English, in which he excelled throughout his student career, to the extent that he scored 100/100 in Maths during his matriculation exams. He graduated with Masters in Commerce and joined TISCO as an apprentice but soon switched to AG Office as Clk in Patna. On noticing the malpractices in AG Office, he wasn’t satisfied with the work environment and was looking for better opportunities until LIC happened and in 1982 he joined LIC as HGA.

In Feb 1987, he married his beautiful talented wife, Smt. Romila Sharma and soon moved to Sindri, got blessed with 2 sons and within a few years cracked the officer cadre exam and got posted to Katrasgarh as AAO in 1996. In order to provide continued education to his growing children he chose not to shift his family and spent the three years in Katrasgarh on his own, while visiting Sindri only during weekends. It was also during this phase of his life, where he found his guru in Babaji and took Namdaan in 1996 thereby commencing his spiritual journey towards atonement. My mother and him, together took Babaji's blessings as they started walking this path and guiding each other through. 

Professionally in 1999 he got his promotion to Asst. Branch Manager and got posted to Ranchi. His career thereafter took off to greater heights, assuming appointments of ABM in various branches in Ranchi and Jamshedpur.

In year 2002 he picked up promotion to Branch Manager and moved to Visakhapatnam. After 7 years in Vizag in different branches he got transferred to Hyderabad in year 2009, and took over the responsibility of Sr. Branch Manager, City Branch II Basheerbagh. Hyderabad also witnessed him picking his promotion as Asst. Divisional Manager before he moved to Kurnool in year 2017 to head the Kurnool Division as Divisional Manager.

He retired in year 2020 after 37 years of decorated career in LIC. Through his distinguished career, he made many friends, was mentor to scores of youngsters who remember him fondly for his guidance and shaping their career. His friendship with his colleagues and superiors have lasted 20 years and more. He was blessed with this uncanny ability to make everyone feel special and valued, whether it was through his work or his simple everyday acts of kindness that touched many lives.

As a husband he was the most loving, caring and supportive. During his 37 years of marriage he created unforgettable memories. In my mother he found undaunted and fearless partner and together they provided a family and an environment of growth, trust and happiness. Graduating from a time where he wouldn’t let her sit behind him in scooter near his society out of shyness, to traveling the world together, hand in hand, they came a long distance. Being an avid traveler, he travelled the lengths and breadths of the country in his car with her. He also ensured that this culture passed on to his children.

It was only in Feb, that they celebrated their 37^th anniversary and he was showering my mother with flowers as she blushed. The void that he leaves behind will cause immeasurable pain, however the memories that they created together will last her a lifetime and more, since each of those moments of the 37 years have been worth re-living.

As a father towards his kids, he was loving and forgiving. He was a constant guiding light, in whose brightness we shined. His unwavering support ensured that we grew as individuals and as professionals. The sacrifices he made gave us a comfortable life, a growing environment and a cherished childhood. He inculcated the right values and wisdom in us, that he has made us capable of standing on our own and carry forward his name like a shining light, just like the lohri he used to sing to us as kids, “मेरा नाम करेगा रोशन, जग में मेरा राज दुलारा”.

It is said the loss of a father is the greatest loss of all, and losing him is going to hurt even more, since we also lost a guide, a mentor, a friend, a confidante with whom we could share anything under the sky. The holding of his hand during our difficult times, the comforting hug, the calming words are going to be missed immensely. The void that he leaves will forever hurt, but his memories with us and his name through us will live on.

As a brother he was a best friend and confidante. Gave seamless support to his siblings, always there as an advisor, a shoulder to lean on, or simply someone to share a joke with. His infectious laughter and boundless energy could light up any room. Although his passing is heartbreaking, but we find comfort in knowing that his love, warmth and countless memories shall live on.

As a friend he was the most fun to be with and through his one liner he could immediately change the mood. His incredible kindness, and infectious sense of humor could brighten your day no matter how tough things seemed. His remarkable ability to bring joy to everyone around him, and his presence was a constant source of comfort and happiness.

Though my father, Mr. Amar Deep Sharma may no longer be with us in body, his spirit, love and the memories we shared will remain in our hearts forever. He leaves behind a legacy, and we will try and live upto it to the best of our ability. We try to find strength from his memories we hold and draw satisfaction from the way of life he taught us. The pain of his loss will never reduce, but with time we will just get used to living with it. The path of life and spirituality that he showed us, will guide us through to the rest of our journey in this life and beyond. We are positive that Papa's soul has joined the almighty and he no longer participates in this cycle of karma. We hang on to his memories, and draw strength from them to live each day remembering his smile, his words, his hug...

Thanks.

 

उफ़ तुम्हारा शर्मा

 उफ़ तुम्हारा शर्माना, 

नज़रे हटा कर पलकें झपकाना, 

हथेलियों से चेहरा छुपाना, 

सर झुका कर छुप जाना, 

उफ़ तुम्हारा शर्माना |

बातें कहते-कहते रुक जाना,

और फिर बातें ही भूल जाना,

कहीं, पूछ लू अगर,

तो बस, सिर्फ, मुस्कराना, 

उफ़ तुम्हारा शर्माना |

कभी ज़ुल्फ़ो से चेहरा छुपाना, 

कभी नज़रे हटा कर मुस्कराना,

कभी यूं पलट कर चले जाना, 

कि जाते जाते-

मेरी दुनिया भी ले जाना,

उफ़ तुम्हारा शर्माना |

कभी मुस्करा कर यूं देखना,

और नज़रो से बताना,

कि कैसे हर लम्हे मे समा कर,

बनता है लम्हों का फ़साना,

उफ़ तुम्हारा शर्माना |

- अभिनव शर्मा "दीप"

मार डालो मुझे, छील दो ये जिस्म, 

कि बेमतलब है जीना मेरा, 

जब तेरा साथ ना रहा, 

तो क्या रहा होना या ना होना मेरा |

हम कब तक संभाले ये ग़म-ए-दहर, 

ये आंसुओं मे डूबी ज़िंदगी,

कि तेरे बिना तो अब, 

बस एक तमाशा सा है रोना मेरा |

अब हम से ना पूछो, 

कुछ पाने की खुशी, कुछ खोने का ग़म, 

कि तुझे खो कर तो अब, 

एक सा है कुछ पाना या खोना मेरा |

भुला दी जब यादें सब, 

तो भुला देना ये ज़माना मेरा, 

कि जब यादें ना रही,

तो क्या रहा याद आना, या ना आना मेरा |

कुछ ज़हर घोल दो मेरी हवा मे, 

कि हर सांस मे थोड़ा सा मर जाऊं, 

कि जब जी कर कोई फर्क़ ना पड़ा, 

तो क्या फर्क़ लाएगा मर जाना मेरा |

-अभिनव शर्मा "दीप" 

तसव्वुर में बैठे थे हम उनके, 

वो कब उठ कर चल दिये, पता ही ना चला |

इबादत में मांग रहे थे हम उनको,

वो कब झरोखों से बह गए, पता ही ना चला |

इस हकीक़त से हम जूझ रहे थे,

वो कब ख़्वाबों से चले गए, पता ही ना चला |

और इस आग में हम जल रहे थे, 

वो कब चिंगारी सा बुझ गए, पता ही ना चला |

-अभिनव शर्मा "दीप" 

आए जो आज वो फ़िर ख़्वाबों में मिलने, 

तो हमने ख़्वाबों में खुद को मयस्सर कर लिया |

बात उम्र भर साथ रहने की थी,

इक रात को अपना, हमने उम्र भर कर लिया |

हमने सजदों में भी इतना मांगा उन्हें, 

कि मस्जिद को ही अपना घर कर लिया |

शहर में तो उनके आए थे हम बसने, 

पर उनके दर को ही, अपना शहर कर लिया |

आना तो उनका लाज़मी नहीं था मगर, 

इन्तेज़ार उनका हमने सारी उमर कर लिया |

ले कर आए थे हम कयी शिकायतें, 

पर हुनर ने उनके हमें बे-सिपर कर दिया |

अनजानों सा इश्क़ ता-उम्र किया, 

पर उनके नाम को आज मुश्तहर कर दिया |

खो जायेंगे हम भी कभी, शायर की तरह, 

पर नाम के उनको, आब-ए-ख़िज़र कर दिया |

- अभिनव शर्मा "दीप"  

मयस्सर = available

बे-सिपर = unarmed

मुश्तहर = announce

आब-ए-ख़िज़र = lake of immortality

आशियां

अरे आप कहां रुक गए, 

चलते रहिए, 

आने वाले समय में

अपने आशियां बनाइए |

हमें अभी अपनी दरारें 

कुछ और भरनी है,

बिखरे हुए कल की 

कुछ यादें इकट्ठा करनी हैं |

आखिर यादें ही तो हैं 

जो साथ आयेंगी, 

कल हम जिए भी थे, 

यह ही तो बताएंगी |

कहाँ सोच मे पड़ गए, 

सब ठीक ही तो है,

कल करी जो गलतियाँ, 

सब सीख ही तो है |

इनसे सीख कर ही तो, 

आगे चलते जाएंगे,

आगे शायद एक आशियाँ 

और बनाएंगे |

टूट भी गए अगर 

तो क्या ग़म है, 

जिएंगे फिर से, 

क्यूंकि हमसे ही तो हम हैं |

कहाँ अफसोस जताने लग गए, 

अभी बहुत दूर जाना बाकी है, 

मुश्क़िल ही सही, 

यह सफर अभी निभाना बाकी है, 

कि कब मुश्किलें देख 

हम रुक गए थे, 

कब कभी हम, 

लड़ने से पहले झुक गए थे |

पर आप मत रुकिए, 

हम पहुंच जाएंगे,

रास्ता भटक भी गए अगर, 

पर मंज़िल ज़रूर पाएंगे, 

एक शायद आशियां, 

और बनाएंगे |

- अभिनव शर्मा "दीप" 

यह देखो द्वंद छिड़ा है

यह देखो द्वंद छिड़ा है,

कहीं आग सा तपा है,

कभी बाढ़ में बहा है,

कहीं ज्वालामुखी की-

ज्वाला सा,

पनपता ही रहा है,

यह देखो द्वंद छिड़ा है |

कहीं गगन को-

आधार बना,

महलों सा बसा है,

कभी गिर कर यूं टूटा, कि,

खण्डहर भी नहीं रहा है,

तो कभी महलों और 

खण्डहरों के बीच में फंसा है,

यह देखो द्वंद छिड़ा है |

कभी दृश्य देख कर दंग है,

कहीं कर्म कर, कर तंग है,

कभी दर्शक और कर्ता के, 

बीच में पड़ा है,

यह देखो द्वंद छिड़ा है |

कहीं सूर्य की चमक से, 

ज़्यादा भी चमका है,

कभी अंधियारे में,

अंधेरों सा,

भटकता भी रहा है,

तो कभी रात और दिन के,

बीच में खड़ा है, 

यह देखो द्वंद छिड़ा है |

कहीं जीता है,

कहीं हारा है,

पर आज-

हार और जीत का,

फर्क़ भूल चुका है,

यह कैसा द्वंद छिड़ा है |

- अभिनव शर्मा "दीप" 

Thoughts !

There are some disclaimers I would like to make before you go on to read this further:

1. This isn't an essay with any moral in the end.

2. This isn’t an article with a story to relate to.

3. These are just my thoughts with no start and no end, you are free to join them at any page you wish to and relate the thoughts from there.

4. I have never got around reading it the second time and editing it, so you can just try to ignore the grammar and the spelling mistakes for now. It will be worked upon once I am done writing everything down, just not focussing on that aspect as of it for now.

5. This isn’t a self-help book that will help you become a better human over the course of time. I don’t think it’s going to do any of that. All it might do, at max is, give you a new perspective of things, but again, it’s just not a self-help book. So invest your money and time accordingly.

6. Lastly, it definitely is not a book, of how I got/getting over my break up/divorce, it’s just not that, but it’s about the perspective that I saw in life out of the experiences that I had. They say, you really need experiences, to teach you things, but honestly you need the experiences, to learn a new perspective. Hence, this is all that it’s going to do for you. 

So considering that you have read it till here, and wish to read further, here it is, the thoughts, the way they are, the way they come. We somehow manage to miss these thoughts, I mean honestly aren’t these just born with us, the thoughts are literally the only thing we are born with but over time, we somehow managed to mess it all up, and completely miss out on this aspect of life. So I will hope to draw your attention to this part of life, with the writings below.

Well then the book is yours, happy reading.

 

COMFORT

So, where do I start, it’s as difficult for me as it is for you to think which page to open, where do I start from? Should I start from the beginning? Or give you context of things? Do I explain myself so you understand better? Or do I take you back in time, way back in time, where it all began?  

I think I will begin from the beginning, the very beginning, the beginning of mankind. 

So why were humans born? I mean, I am not asking the biology of it, or the purpose of it, or the theory of evolution (I am sure, you are all well aware of it). I am just asking why were they born? Like the entire incident, why did it happen? I think it was purely nature playing its part. The way all organisms were born, the way nature played it’s part in bringing together those things required, for life to happen. So similarly humans were born, with no real purpose of life, it was just what was supposed to happen, and so it happened. But somewhere along the way, we lost our way. I guess it started right at the beginning too, when just a  food eating animal (more intelligent in nature) decided to find more comfort in things, in way things are done. First they sharpened their weapons, instead of caves, learnt to build their houses, then the houses started getting better, the comfort started feeling nice and the human got greedy and then he got greedier and more until the point that we have reached now, where we desire every comfortable thing for ourselves and make them rather more comfortable. All of these need to stop at some point. We can’t keep running this race forever. All that we really need is a nice comfortable house, with rooms sufficient enough for all of us, enough income to earn your bread and butter and alcohol, and a little more for a holiday on and off. I guess that would be all, as far as it goes to establish some grounds about comfort.

But then comfort wasn’t all too, was it? We reached a point in time where we were absolutely comfortable too, but were we satisfied? Were we content? We had earned enough to get the comfort of another world too (had there existed one). Yet, we weren’t content. We kept trying to get better, to reach somewhere, to earn some more. Soon enough, it became a competition, a race? A game? Trying to make a bigger score, trying to reach a higher number? Even the richest human, keeps working beyond acceptable timings, trying to stay where he is. The second richest, working even harder, trying to beat the First. An athlete working day in day out, year after year, ever since he can remember, for few moments of glory. Which the world is going to forget within months, days. What are all these aspirations for? What do we achieve in the end? Satisfaction. I guess, we would achieve that way earlier in life too, only if we changed our requirements from life. If you are good at something, do it by all means. But, not at the cost of suffering of others, at cost of missing out on other aspects of life. It’s life, you have to live it. Don’t miss out on living it. It’s all you have. What life was it, if it wasn’t lived.

 

RELATIONS

Now that we are comfortable, lets talk about the meat of the talk, so I was earlier talking about purpose, so technically there was no purpose. But we found a purpose, and the purpose was get comfortable. So since we have taken that out of the equation what remains is RELATIONS.

Well then, how did relations happen? They happened because we made them. Why made them? Well, my best guess would be, the ones born together, lived together right until they died, because who would make the effort of going finding out the other person and then living with them, it was just rather convenient to live with the ones you are rather better born with, and hence you did, and you named them BROTHERS , and SISTERS, but soon you added guilt to it, because you had named it brothers and sisters, and hence felt the need to go seek another partner with whom you can reproduce (because of course that’s the course of nature right). Well then, soon you named it WIFE. And then you started having these little rituals, for the entire incident, then the incident got better, because comfort had gotten better, remember? Then, soon after, you involved the government into it, and it became legal and non-legal. And amidst all this, the entire purpose of it was lost i.e. to reproduce.

So then we screwed up this, pretty badly too, and then started seeking the purpose of life, which is not there. There is no purpose, if there was one, we would have known it by now, but clearly we didn’t. I would like your thoughts about it, about the whole concept of relationships, and marriage and wife, and parents and the whole lot of it. Do you think, we were designed to be this way? I guess not, I guess we were just organisms created to reproduce and experience life. But again, as I said, somewhere down the line, we lost track of it, at nd got too attached to relations. Do other animals of the animal kingdom think of it this way? Do they stick around their biological parents for life? Do to pups from the same litter stay together until one of them dies? I guess not, once they are old enough to hunt, they all move out on their own.

Ok let me put it this way, think of life as a journey, everyone are passengers, travelling to some destination. A co-passenger by virtue of coming across us, ends up building a certain relationship with us, when time comes, that passenger alights the train. Does his leaving the train, disappoint us? Do we cry over losing a passenger we had so strongly bonded with? We merely feel content of having traveled with someone that part of our journey, and we carry on, looking forward to new passengers, new relationships. That’s what life and all it’s relationships are, and that’s how we should all take it. 

The world today has become heavily dependent on relationships, and we see our lives revolving around them, but honestly it should be the other way around. Our life and the way we live, is the centre piece of it, and everything else is just a satellite that may or may not revolve forever. The centre piece of it should not get affected by absence or presence of these bodies. Well now, it’s your life and what you make of it. Either you can make it the Sun, or make it Callisto, revolving around Jupiter, which in turn is revolving around the Sun. The choice is yours.  

 

CAREER

Well then now that we have relations taken care of, let’s talk of purpose, which is again, no purpose, but again, we have managed to forget about ourselves, and completely ignored what your own self needed. Well, it needed to live. You forgot to live.

Let me try bringing you back to basics. So, where do the basics begin. Again they begin right at the beginning, but again we are both too tired to fetch it from all the way back, so let’s just rather just pick it up from here, as it is. Well, we were born, we went to school, we learnt our way through the education system and tried making a career out of things, and worked our way hard through the career, for what? I mean literally what it is that we needed to achieve? Have we got there yet? Are we going to get there anytime soon? Are we just going to do this as long as we are too old to continue doing it? Or, are we just going to die, disintegrate, vanish while we aren’t even done doing it yet? Where did it all start? Again, because of comfort and our desire to seek it in ways we didn’t understand. We ended up here, running the rat race, let’s consider for a moment if it is an actual race that we are running, but eventually it does need to stop, doesn’t it? What good is a race if it doesn't end and we don't have any winners and losers. Some participants might not even be interested to win, and are just running for the experience of it, but overall if it’s a race, then it needs to end sometime. Now with that logic, it would be justified to say, it’s not a race, because had it been one, we would have known it all along. But our needs and desire to keep getting better at what we are doing, how we are living, what we are eating, has made this all into a race. Do you now see the logic in it? And how things ended up being the way they are? 

Well then, if it’s not a race then what it is? It has got to be something. The only thing that I can think of is this, if we go back to the starting of it all; the humans found an easier way to live, by distributing different roles to different people, this was basically just distribution of work. Over time, generations after generations, people kept getting better at what they were doing and that became their area of expertise, and something they ended up calling profession. Initially the payout of having a profession was exchange, of commodities. Later on came the currency and everything changed. Slowly the profession started taking the shape that it exists in today’s form: competitive, fast-paced, ambitious. 

Over time, all of these things; getting educated, having a career and growing in it, became an algorithm of the world. But does this one algorithm fits correctly for all? Well clearly it doesn’t, because if it did, Gautam Buddha, Mahavir, Ashoka, and many others and so many even today wouldn’t give up their career, their lucrative life style and step into the unknown, seeking something they know nothing about. That is primarily because one size doesn’t fit all. One algorithm isn’t what suits everyone. Everyone in the world has to follow his/her own destiny. The world is constantly talking to us, telling us what we need to do, only if we listen. So the question arises, Is it not necessary to have a career? The answer to this depends on you and your requirements from life. The world today has reached such an order, where everyone living, is expected to have a career, lest his survival becomes difficult. 

So what do you need to survive? 

Money. 

How do you get the money? 

Career. 

Is it mandatory to have a career? 

No. 

How do you make money then? 

Do something that you would enjoy over a period of time, and at the same time not lose sight of other things of life. 

A career/profession is something we can’t do without, so if we can’t avoid it, let’s enjoy it. Give 6-8 hrs of your every day, to something, called a profession. But don’t let your profession drive your life. Your life and your choices in life should drive your profession and your professional aspirations. If becoming the best in your profession is where your happiness lies, so be it. Give it all it takes in order to reach the place where you want to be, but be aware of the other aspects of life that you would lose out on. So that you at least know the cost you are paying for it. 

Too much has been spoken on this now. But since this isn’t going to be a self-help book, or a book with morals and lessons, I don’t want to say any further. But give it a thought. Take a moment, think about the choices you made in your life. Could you have done them differently and still been happier, simpler? Think before you move on to the next chapter.

Stay tuned...more to come.

उड़ान

 आज मैं निकली थी अपना बस्ता ले कर, 

अपने अरमानों को अपने बस्ते में भर कर,

चांद और तारों की चाहत नहीं मुझे, 

बस, एक खुला आसमान चाहती हूँ |

मुश्किलों का भार, कंधों को और मज़बूत करेंगे,

सामने आती रुकावटें, मेरी छलांग का सबूत बनेंगे,

अब नहीं डरती मैं, मुश्किलों से या रुकावटों से, 

इनकी नींव पर ही तो, मेरे कयी आशियान बनेंगे |

बाबा कहते हैं, लड़किया पढ़ कर क्या करेंगी, 

घर की लक्ष्मी बन, घर ही तो बसाएंगी, 

पर बाबा को समझाना भी तो मुश्किल है, 

की पढ़ कर ल़डकियाँ घर ही नहीं, पर देश भी बसाएंगी |

घर से स्कूल की दूरी कुछ ज्य़ादा लंबी लगती थी,

रस्ते दिखते नहीं थे, और पैरों बेड़ियाँ लगी थी, 

पर चलने लगे जब, रस्ते आसान होते गए,

बेड़ियाँ टूट गई, और पैर पंख बन गए |

स्वाभिमानी हूं, कुछ कर के दिखाऊंगी,

मैं उड़ सकती हूं, मैं उड़ के दिखाऊंगी,

कागज़ कलम तो दो, में शोर भी मचाउंगी,

मैं भी इंदिरा हूं, देश भी चलाऊंगी।।

बस रस्ते ना रोको मेरे, मंज़िल पर ख़ुद पहुंच जाऊंगी,

मत रोको मुझे बोलने से, मै विश्व को राग सुनाऊंगी,

मत बोझिल करो मेरी बाहें, मै देश को बनाऊंगी,

मत बांधो मेरे पैरों को, मैं कल्पना बन अंतरिक्ष लांघ जाऊंगी ।

-डॉ मनु राज शर्मा एवं अभिनव शर्मा "दीप" 

कभी इश्क़ में बहक गए, 

तो ज़रा बता देना,

कहीं उसकी नज़रों में क़ैद हुए,

तो ज़मानत दिला देना |

कभी रस्ता भटक गए, 

तो राह दिखा देना,

कहीं मंजिल ही भूल गए,

तो अंजाम तक पहुंचा देना |

कभी ख़ुद से रूठ गए, 

तो ज़रा मना देना,

कहीं ज़्यादा खुश हुए,

तो हक़ीक़त दिखा देना |

कभी ज़ख्म दिख गए, 

तो उनको छिपा देना,

कहीं कुरेदने लगूँ अगर,

तो नमक लगा देना |

कभी आग से जलने लगें,

तो बुझा देना,

कहीं राख बन गए,

तो ज़माने में फैला देना |

- अभिनव शर्मा "दीप" 

Attraversiamo

Attraversiamo - let's cross over, from this moment to next, from this thought to another, from this life to the other.

What does it really mean? Do we really understand the depth of it? Is it a leap of faith you take during a decision your heart and mind are not at sync? Or is it the moment you decide to let go of a regret that you have for the decision you took that changed the course of your life. Or is it not any of this, and instead just means crossing over your own fears, inhibitions, insecurities. What is attraversiamo?

But the real question is, is it worth crossing over? Is it ok to let go and yet hold on to it? How could it be possible for anyone to do both? Are different parts of brains responsible for it? Are those two parts not connected with each other, that they are unaware that the other part of the brain is doing the exact opposite.

Which part of the brain or heart is asking the other to cross over? Is it the part which has let go and is asking the one which is holding on to, to cross over and let go too? Or is it the part which is holding on to, asking the part which has let go, to hold on to.

It's all chaos, but one day or another, one will cross over it, you cannot go on living with this conflict of letting go and holding on to, living inside you. You will one day over come this predicament. But how long will it take?

Yet, is attraversiamo the best possible solution? Well one can only find out, once one has crossed over.

Are you ready for it yet?

Are you going to cross over?

Life at times is as mysterious as the purpose of it. Some decisions alter the course of life in manners you never imagined, and there is very little you can do about it thereafter.

What remains is the debris of the dreams you had, the ruins of the memories- lying scattered. So can you really cross over it?

Do you have the courage that it takes to take the steps, as each step over those ruins shoots across a pain that has the ability to last a lifetime.

Can you endure it all? Can you really cross over?

- A writer buried under the burden of his deeds.

अब जंग होनी चाहिए

अब जंग होनी चाहिए

कितनी मौतों का बोझ
हम और उठाएंगे,
कितनी माँओं की सिसकियों का
कारण बनते जाएंगे |
अब तो उन कातिलों की ज़िंदगी भी,
थोड़ी बेरंग होनी चाहिए,
अब जंग होनी चाहिए |

दुनिया में हम खुद का,
मज़ाक बनाते जाते हैं,
कोई भी छेड़ कर चल देता है,
हम बस निंदा कर पाते हैं |
दुनिया में अपनी भी पहचान,
कुछ दबंग होनी चाहिए,
अब जंग होनी चाहिए |

अब तो दुश्मनों को,
मुँह-तोड़ जवाब देना होगा,
अपने सपूतों का बदला,
कभी ना कभी तो लेना होगा |
अब तो उनकी भी रातों की नींद,
भंग होनी चाहिए,
अब जंग होनी चाहिए |

मायूसी है छाई,
हताश हो रहे हैं सब,
कि परशुराम का फारसा,
अब उठेगा कब?
आने वाले कल की भी तो,
कुछ उमंग होनी चाहिए,
अब जंग होनी चाहिए |

- अभिनव शर्मा "दीप"

क्या ख़्वाब देखते हो?

क्या देखते हो खुद को
ख़्वाब में दौड़ता हुआ,
या देखते हो भूकंप में
खुद को रेंगता हुआ?
या कभी
हवा से तेज़ उड़ने लगते हो,
या आसमाँ से
कभी गिरने लगते हो?
क्या डर कर उठ जाते हो?
या आगे देखने के लिए
और सो जाते हो?
क्या ख़्वाब देखते हो?

चले गए जो लोग,
क्या उनसे मिल लेते हो?
कुछ सवाल उनसे पूछ,
कुछ जवाब उनको देते हो?
क्या उनसे मिल कर,
ख़्वाब हक़ीक़त लगने लगता है,
या आंखे खोल कर कभी
हक़ीक़त भी ख़्वाब सा दिखता है?
क्या कभी ख़्वाब और हक़ीक़त का
फर्क़ भूल जाते हो?
क्या ख़्वाब में जीने के लिए
और सो जाते हो?
क्या ख़्वाब देखते हो?

कभी डरावने सपने से जाग कर
खुश हो जाते हो,
कि ख़्वाब ही तो था,
या खूबसूरत सपनों के टूटने पर,
अफसोस मनाते हो,
कि ख़्वाब क्यूं था?
कभी इतने गहरे ख़्वाब देखते हो,
कि याद ही ना आए,
या इतने मौलिक,
कि रात दिन तड़पायें |
क्या ख़्वाबों में कभी,
जीने लग जाते हो?
या ख़्वाबों में जीने के लिए,
सोना चाहते हो?
क्या ख़्वाब देखते हो?

क्या अधूरे ख़्वाब को, वापस सो कर,
पूरा कर लेते हो?
या पूरे ख़्वाबों से जाग कर,
ख़ुद को अधूरा महसूस करते हो?
क्या ख़्वाब देखने से डर जाते हो?
या उनके पूरे होने से हिचकिचाते हो?
क्या कुछ ख़्वाबों को समझ भी पाते हो?
या उनकी समझ में और उलझ जाते हो?
क्या ख़्वाब देखने की
हिम्मत कर पाते हो?
क्या ख़्वाब देखते हो?

- अभिनव शर्मा "दीप"

शून्यता

हैं आसमाँ मे बादल क्यूँ,
क्या बारिश आएगी?
या बूंदों की तरस मे,
ज़िंदगी बीत जाएगी |
क्या इन् खेतों में,
फिर हरियाली छाएगी?
या सूखते हुए मिट्टी के साथ,
जड़ भी सूख जाएगी |

कभी बारिश का पानी,
यहां भी बरसा था,
प्यार की बाढ़ में,
ये गांव भी डूबा था |
पर आज सूखे इस भू पर,
क्या खुशहाली छाएगी?
या प्यार के एहसास से,
यह रूखी रह जाएगी |

कभी पेड़ों की हरियाली मे,
चिड़ियों का बसेरा था,
कभी हर रात के बाद,
नया एक सवेरा था |
पर क्या वैसी रोशनी,
फिर से आएगी ?
या अंधेरे से घिरे दिनों मे,
ज़िंदगी बीत जाएगी |

बंजर पड़ी है ज़मीन,
अब कहाँ फूल खिलेंगे,
पत्थर भरी इस राह पर,
बस अब कांटे ही मिलेंगे |
पत्थर हो जाएगी रूह,
अब क्या यह महसूस कर पाएगी?
कांटों का चुभना भी,
शायद, बता नहीं पाएगी |

-अभिनव शर्मा "दीप"

आज चांद आसमाँ से लापता हो गया

आज चांद, आसमाँ से लापता हो गया,
लगा जैसे आसमाँ भी अकेला हो गया |
खोए रहते थे सितारे, पहले भी गगन मे,
पर आज उनका खोना भी बेवजह हो गया,
क्योंकि आज चांद आसमाँ से लापता हो गया |

काले से आसमाँ मे छा जाते थे,
फैल कर कभी, चांद को भी छुपा जाते थे,
पर बादलों का बहना भी अनदेखा हो गया,
जब आज चांद आसमाँ से लापता हो गया |

रात के अंधेरे भी कुछ अजीब से लगने लगे,
जैसे अकेले मे, कुछ राज़ यह कहने लगे,
पर इनका कहना भी अनसुना सा हो गया,
जब आज चांद आसमाँ से लापता हो गया |

सागर की उछाले भी कम हो गई,
ऐसे जैसे लहरें ही खत्म हो गई,
हवाओं का बहना भी बंद सा हो गया,
जब आज चांद आसमाँ से लापता हो गया |

आ जाए शायद फिर कल चांदनी बरसाने,
अधूरी रह गई जो बातें, दोबारा सुनाने,
पर आज उसके ना होने को ज़माना हो गया,
उसके बिना जीना भी एक अफ़साना हो गया,
क्यूंकि आज चांद, आसमाँ से लापता हो गया |

-अभिनव शर्मा "दीप"

सवाल

हैं सवाल बस, बिना जवाब के,
कब आते हैं, कब जाते हैं,
दिन-रात कभी, बस सताते हैं,
कभी सोते से जगाते हैं,
कभी नींद उड़ा ले जाते हैं |
हैं सवाल बस, बिना जवाब के |

ज़ंजीरो से जकड़े हैं,
ज़िंदा लाशों से गड़े हैं,
कभी बारिश की बूंदों सा,
बरस पड़ते हैं,
कभी तूफानी हवा सा,
बिगड़ने लगते हैं |
हैं सवाल बस, बिना जवाब के |

कैसे बंद कमरों में,
आ जाते हैं,
कभी खुले आसमान सा,
पीछे पड़ जाते हैं,
कभी चांदनी का सहारा ले,
या अमावस का अँधियारा ले,
बिना पूछे, बिना बताए,
बस, सवार हो जाते हैं |
हैं सवाल बस, बिना जवाब के |

सन्नाटों सा चीखने लगते हैं,
शोर से सुनसान हो जाते हैं,
कभी कुछ बताते हैं,
कभी बिना पूछे ही,
चले जाते हैं,
कभी फिर वापस आ कर,
ठहर ही जाते हैं |
हैं सवाल बस, बिना जवाब के |

कभी हर लफ़्ज़ मे,
सुनायी देते हैं,
कभी हर झलक मे,
दिखाई देते हैं,
आ जाते हैं, खेल जाने के लिए,
या शायद, तड़पाने के लिए,
या बस इतना जताने के लिए, कि,
हैं सवाल बस, बिना जवाब के |

शायद ये ज़हन की आग हैं,
या रूह पर दाग है,
जो बुझाते ना बुझ पाते हैं,
ना मिटते, ना मिटाते  हैं,
शायद ये मेरा चेहरा हैं,
बिना नक़ाब के,
हैं सवाल बस, बिना जवाब के |

-अभिनव शर्मा "दीप"