Vol. 1 | Issue 2 Emerging Voices
Advaitam Speaks Literary
August - 2017
Being is Seeing
An international journal of poetry, poetics and visual arts
2 An International Journal of Poetry, Poetics and Visual Arts
Advaitam Speaks Literary
Founder/Publisher/Editor-in-Chief: Debasish Parashar
New Delhi-World advaitamspeaks@gmail.com Advaitam Speaks Literary
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Advaitam Speaks Literary
Founder, Publisher & Editor-in-Chief: Debasish Parashar E-mail: debasishparashar87@gmail.com advaitamspeaks@gmail.com
Published by Debasish Parashar New Delhi, India.
https://advaitamspeaksliterary.wordpress.com/ Copyright Š2017 The Authors
The contributors named in this book have asserted their moral rights under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act to be identified as the editors and authors of this work.
All rights reserved.
No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, scanning, recording or otherwise) without the prior written permission of both the above-named copyright owners and the publisher.
Typography, Magazine & Cover Design by Debasish Parashar
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TABLE OF CONTENTS Poetry
Page
Diana Qi McWilliams……………………………………………………………………………….6 Dennis Andrew S. Aguinaldo..……………………………………………………………………..9 Benard Mujuni…………………………………………………………………………………….12 Payal Phukan………………………………………………………………………………………14 Ankit Mishra……………………………………………………………………………………….17 Freida Kilmari……………………………………………………………………………………..20 Bipul Banerjee………………………………………………………………………………….....22 Angel Edwards……………………………………………………………………………………27 Dr. Brajesh Kumar Gupta ‘Mewadev’…………………………………………………………….29 Anthony Watkins………………………………………………………………………………….33 Satarupa Mishra…………………………………………………………………………………...36 Dirk Sandarupa……………………………………………………………………………………39 Kabyashree Neog…………………………………………………………………………………41 Durgesh Verma……………………………………………………………………………………44 Sithuraj Ponraj…………………………………………………………………………………….46 Ruth Elwood……………………………………………………………………………………...48 Subroto Sinha……………………………………………………………………………………..51 Sutanuka Ghosh…………………………………………………………………………………..56 Sourav Biswas…………………………………………………………………………………….60 Ava Goodman…………………………………………………………………………………….62
Visual Arts Ankit Mishra………………………………………………………………………………………64 Samyabrata Mukherjee……………………………………………………………………………65
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We have faith in poetry and visual arts. Advaitam Speaks Literary journal is a baby born out of that simple faith. We have just started our journey and we don’t know many things. We are learning everyday and we shall keep on learning till the end. We don’t strictly adhere to any political ideology, but we believe in listening to everyone. That does not mean that we are indifferent to the socio-political, cultural, sociological and economic changes happening around us. We appreciate everything creative and constructive. We don’t appreciate hatemongering, although we do appreciate constructive criticism using the powerful tools of poetry and visual arts. We believe that as poets and artists we dream, and we love. Above all, we see and we do.
We are thankful to our contributors who have almost blindly believed in a new journal like us. We are thankful to our readers and well-wishers from different parts of the world.
We hope that our enthusiastic contributors and readers accept this Special Inaugural Issue for Emerging Voices of Advaitam Speaks Literary journal with love. Thank you.
Debasish Parashar, Editor-in-Chief, ASL journal.
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Diana Qi McWilliams
Bio: Diana Qi McWilliams is respectfully well-known in her local community. Diana was first discovered as a talent for a teen pageant. As she progressed her career into modeling, she has then been invited to emcee in tv shows, fashion shows, concerts, and seminars. As a musician, she has also performed violin in symphony orchestras. As the first cover girl of the first Miss Singtao pageant with three stellar title wins, Diana has carried her talents overseas and competed in Beijing, Hong Kong, and Malaysia. In the 2004 Miss Chinese Cosmos pageant, Diana was voted as Miss Friendship and was selected as top 8 out of nearly 10,000 contestants. Although Diana has retired from modeling, she continues to coach, choreograph, and mentor clients in the Bay Area communities setting a strong and positive image. She is also the ambassador of Prince of Peace orphanage in China and the founder of DeeSign Your Destiny Life Coaching™. Her mission is to help clients overcome today's adversities through build confident images, happy relationships, healthy habits, and winning lifestyles. Most importantly, Diana guides clients to seek success by applying goals around building one's authentic-self.
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Counting Sapphires
on a crystalline night like this I think of you often wondering if the dulcet of your touch will soon reunite with mine if you're thinking of me, too, then I wish to count the sapphires in the sky till the time we can, again, coalesce let my love for you radiate glistening through the cascades where an incandescent light shines and blue stars shimmer bright amorphous is the heart of those who wait deep, patient and sad, sometimes lonely, too like an evanescent paper boat floating aimlessly across the galaxy I wish to count the sapphires in the sky till the time we can put our sadness aside let the dreams of us transcend in an ethereal crystal dome of hope never a day of lassitude nor a way to become destitute let me count the sapphires in the sky on a crystalline night like this Advaitam Speaks Literary
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The Travel Bug
One day I would like to put down the map, coddiwomple in a random place and get wonderfully lost. Would you join me in my wanderlust?
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Dennis Andrew S. Aguinaldo
Bio: Dennis Andrew S. Aguinaldo teaches a course called Reading Film, TV, and the Internet for the Department of Humanities of the University of the Philippines Los BaĂąos. Other poems have appeared in Transit, hal., and The Cabinet, more recently in Better Than Starbucks, Otoliths and Bukambibig. He blogs at tekstongbopis.blogspot.com.
Note on the form: I read hurt filters as found poetry in a visual medium. While the composition of the image often takes precedence over sound, both are ultimately tasked to serve the procedural constraints imposed on the text. I had wished these constraints to develop for me (and hopefully for the reader/viewer/user) an alloy of distance and engagement with pervasive social media, with the templates deployed to nest in our relationships and designed to draw us in the moment we take them for granted. Advaitam Speaks Literary
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Benard Mujuni
Bio: Benard Mujuni is a lawyer and human rights campaigner. He spearheaded the process to establish the Equal Opportunities Commission in Uganda. He has written over 200 unpublished poems. His poetry dwells in the marriage of the old and contemporary art through stories undocumented from the past.
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Love Sealed in Pain The whiplash flash tearing her body awash blood gushing culture, vulture venture misadventures stature human nature The Hamar culture Ethiopia not Utopia hunters work hidden from the world
The stitching pain piecing strains protection by drain or bleeding chains women tortured to guarantee security by men The test so mean inhumane mundane Must blood flood the whole bushy forest to fill the empty floor? Is it not enough? Women bleed every month? Advaitam Speaks Literary
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Payal Phukan
Bio: Born and brought up in Guwahati, Payal Phukan is an engineer from NIT Silchar who escapes from the world of data and numbers by playing with words. She is an emerging poet and her works have appeared in Scarlet Leaf Review, Spillwords Press, Advaitam Speaks Literary and elsewhere. She perceives poetry as a way to connect with the thoughts and emotions which shy away from her otherwise. Besides poetry, she loves painting, playing chess and connecting with people.
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A Love Poem
I shall stoop by the weight of my spring blossom and tenderly kiss your cold surface as you lay still recovering from the ruthless winter your bed, partially covered with frost precipitated by the warmth of my being you call love
like a failed prism, I shall trap your light and refuse to let it go.
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you can watch me under the sun, examine my anatomy, chiseled with the perfect cuts and bends to hold you forever close
and when my mortal part would return to the place from where it once sprouts and our love would recite a morbid poetry do not give up on me for the ashes you buried me with will bear a new seed and when another lover sings to you, that would be me hiding in the opacity of his flesh and bones
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Ankit Mishra
Bio: Ankit Mishra is a technocrat, a poet, and a writer. Ankit's book ‘Out of {b} Order’ has been published in US, Europe and India. Ankit is a contributing Author for Digital Magazines - India Mag, Poets Unlimited, Thoughts and Ideas, etc. Ankit has been featured in more than 8 Hindi and English Anthologies. He believes in power of dreams and writes passionately about dreams, love, life and human nature. He believes that there is never a wrong time to do a right thing. A real one-liner about Ankit could be – “An introvert writer with extrovert thoughts.”
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A Patch of My Own Reality somewhere in the deserted land of my mind a fruitful patch of fragmented memories exists secluded from the misery of outside world exists a patch of my own reality!
clamoring for attention ignored and consciously forgotten buried deep under the will of a human exists a patch of my own reality!
fragmented memories of my past or the sweet intoxication of my stray thoughts in the world of overcrowded emotions exists a patch of my own reality!
with every moon rising, my nights are falling apart a cocktail of Insomnia mixed with dreams anxiously plucking away memories from a patch of my own reality!
waiting to explode like a volcanic eruption my mind hanging on a stilt a utopia with a patch of my own reality! Advaitam Speaks Literary
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Black and White Sunset
we have seen thousands of sunsets together some filled with hue of orange and others with mĂŠlange of pink and purple yet the most beautiful one was black and white; it was like writing the most beautiful twilight saga of our lives with your hand in my hand and your lips on mine! for the first time the magic of love was felt not above the skin but the deep inside, the kiss took away all the colors from that sunset and consummated all my desires! for me the sunset was over; opening the door to one of the most memorable nights!
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Freida Kilmari
Bio: Freida Kilmari is an emerging poet from southern England, whose passion is writing and creating literature. Previously published with The World Poetry Movement in 2012, she is eager to release a poetry collection. She is also a fantasy writer, currently working on a children's book series that focuses on emotional understanding and female empowerment. Having completed her degree, she now owns her own editing business, Penmanship Editing, which focuses on helping other poets and fiction authors publish their own works of literature. She enjoys being able to focus her life on doing what she loves: writing and helping others.
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Tranquility
A lake as beautiful as the sun, shining its serenity into the souls of passersby. A place loved by everyone, but no-one more than this one fisherman, whose life is almost done. He sits there, his wrinkles disappearing in the peace. The quietness reminds him of a time before cities, before the business of people increased. His last few years breathing in the air, not paying attention to the timepiece, perhaps, forgetting he is there. His line has been cast into the vast waters below, nothing can change that baits course, other than a change in flow. But he's happy where he is, sitting in the sun, watching the lake, full of happiness continuing to glow.
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Bipul Banerjee
Bio: The author is a sales and marketing leader by profession with an MBA and pursuing PhD in marketing. He writes poetry for the passion of expression inspired by the emotions he comes across in day to day life. He has 3 research publications to his name in the field of CRM and 15 international and national publications in paperbacks and e-books. He is popularly known as ‘Dusk’ in literary circles.
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Colours
gliding, sliding, swaying, you have been giving me the slip
the jet black of your unfurled curls teasing me to catch up flight
as the pearls of trickling sweat line you from neck to chest dancing to the tunes of heavy breaths
with a spring in toes I make it finally and you are in an embrace of Love
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dwell on your lips so red
fiery orange in our veins run in rage of bluish flames chocolate passions leave yellow trails pore by pore as the brilliant soul opens to me in a marvellous blue
a spectrum of emotions enthral in expressions hues and sighs exhale in sparks of pure white ecstasy fused we climb the peaks gradually exploding in fusion flowing in lava of molten gold
the mutual solitudes have burnt to ashes grey the zenith reached in kudos play....
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The Joy of Small Things
unending race of illusive fame images of untiring lusts from dawn to ‘dusk’ we keep running the race rats uncanny
skidding off the tempts of track and field I stop by the sparkle of morning dew the smiling flowers greening leaves hustling breeze browning barks the gushing waves wetting sands slanting rocks
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flying kites swaying paper boats innocent smiles of unconditional child love dances of wagging tails woofs of joyous dog barks clinking bells of musical bulls smooth lustres of the rising sun sparkling glows of starred skies all fill my heart with joy
drop by drop oceans formed firmly purposely
I withdraw pursuits of mirages submitting myself to joys of small things
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Angel Edwards
Bio: Angel Edwards is a singer songwriter guitarist poet writer from Vancouver BC. She is the owner of a small music publishing company "The Angel Edwards Music'. She is a long time member of SOCAN and BMI. http://www.reverbnation.com/angeledwards
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Beneath a Medieval Tree
Snugly beneath an ancient towering tree red and white checked cloth covers a wooden table dark grove with sunshine giving silken sheets of light a dark haired man and a pale lady are dining large yellow plates containing half an apple seedless wordless double solitude
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Dr. Brajesh Kumar Gupta ‘Mewadev’
Bio: Dr. Brajesh Kumar Gupta ‘Mewadev’ holds Ph. D. from Sai Nath University, Ranchi (Jharkhand), India. He is an award-winning poet, writer and social activist. Brajesh was born in Nainital and resides in Banda, U.P. He is a member of about 160 poetry groups and a member of World Union of Poets. He has taught at many educational academies. He loves writing poetry, novel and short stories in his free time and dreams to be a man of letters. His academic contributions towards the creative synthesis of social thought have received wide attention and acknowledgement by many reputed scholars. He is also member of ELT@I (India), IATEFL (UK) and several academic forums, editorial boards and organizations. His first book of poetry ‘The Rain’ has been published by Onlinegatha Publication of Lucknow. His poems are about religion, emotions, nature, life, real experiences, patriotism, etc and are full of motivation. His poems and short stories have been published in various journals, anthologies and websites in several countries. His publications include research papers in international/ national journals/seminars/conferences, scholarly articles, poetry and short stories anthologies, reputed magazines and reference books/book chapters. He has published more than 25 research papers in peer Reviewed International/National Journals and conferences.
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Frame The Goal, Raise Your Spirits
Give your thinking a different appearance You knocked thrice on your door, but you did not open If you fail, the world does not come to an end Ok, you are getting angry, but you can wait The first complexity you might notice is of the punning kind Failures before that moment is totally fine, With as much dignity as possible "that's right," When things turn easier said than done, Now it catches the gleam of the morning’s first beam, And you experience spiritual dimensions of your life The things you think, and the things you believe, Let the flames engulf you like wildfire, The breeze at dawn has secrets to tell you.
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Ashes of My Body
I want to do something for my country and my civilians to share the joy life brings to all hearts to be strong to fight the demons in my country Life is like a fire, the memories I keep in my mind are of a man as a man, regardless of birth I act like I am doing much better, but all I can do early is rise My heart is pulsing rapidly This is my angle of attack No I won't shy in, because your sacred ashes still remain seeing my heart melting for you on the roaring fire You taught me that the saying "pick your battles" meant not answering My hero, the one who sets my heart in desire When I die fighting with demons of country I don't really want much of a funeral Cremate me, please and sprinkle my ashes on the way of border for soldiers The wind from the trees is something I truly need so I can give them kisses when the wind brushes soldiers' cheeks.
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My Friends, My Inspiration
All beautiful and splendid things, As you set out on life’s road Make waking and living so divine But I know you can make it to the other side if only you try heart prints of compassion of understanding and love Life is so precious Come, love these beautiful inspirations! Yes indeed, say the very optimistic things Though proudly the victors come Success begins with a fellow's will; Soon become victorious and you will cross the rivers of problems! But don't forget to remember though you are choked, still try to sing Search out your own shortcomings and correct them You love the friends who just stand by I must praise with all my breath I am inspired by my friends.
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Anthony Watkins
Bio: Anthony Watkins is a poet, writer, construction worker, salesman, climber into the attics of total strangers, father and husband. He considers himself all around one of the luckiest men on the planet. He is a three-time winner of the Goodreads Poem of the Month. His works have appeared in various places. He is the founder, publisher and editor-in-chief of Better than Starbucks, not your ordinary poetry magazine. For the last three years, he has been a Community Teaching Assistant at ModPo, or Modern and Contemporary American Poetry, a free Massive Open Online Class from the University of Pennsylvania and Professor Al Filreis, through Coursera. He also hosts the monthly ModPo South reading in Palm Beach County, Florida.
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Polished Bone
Fat old man dirty white polo shirt Tenth Avenue North, Lake Worth, Waiting for the bus and cleaning two chicken bones to a fine polish. We never saw his bus. Me and the twelve-year old headed home, for homework and a chair, as the sun set on a fat man in a dirty shirt.
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The Motor Court
Beside the highway lily covered pool neon-sign above in the shape of a diving woman
an arch of pipe rusty red sign gravel horseshoe crunching under tire
cedar panel closet wheezy window unit stirring stale air
faded carpets a coke bottle opener screwed to the wall.
“Eight dollars, fill out the card.�
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Satarupa Mishra
Bio: Satarupa says, “I’ve heard people saying “those who speak less write best.” Don’t know about “best”, but I have been an example of a person who finds it easier to express her heart and her brain on a piece of paper than orating in front of a group.” Being a graduate in English Literature from Cotton College in her city of birth, Guwahati, reading became a hobby for Satarupa. Later on, she joined as a Sub-Editor in a fashion and lifestyle magazine in Guwahati, named “Good Times”. After serving the organization for three and a half years, she resigned from there as an Assistant Editor. Right now, Satarupa is working on freelance projects/articles/journals, as well as brainstorming (and heartstorming) for a book of poems, haikus, micro tales, and short prose, which she is striving to compile and publish soon.
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Faith’s Orphan
A nightly tempest it was It had fallen from a tree rolling and floating it reached the Holy Desert Land in glee.
“Who are thou?” they asked “I am a fallen leaf fallen in love with colours… if you allow me to stay I promise I shall bring you joy.” “Thou can stay… but show us your love for Green,” they said “I do, but I love other colours too.” Baffled, it rolled down and reached the Holy River.
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By the riverside holy people stayed “What is your name?” one asked “My name? I don’t have one,” it said “If you allow me to drink from the river I promise I shall bring you joy.” “Thou can drink… but show us your love for Saffron,” he said “I do, but I love other colours too.” Tired and thirsty to the Holy City it flew.
“Hello child… “Where are you from?” The Holy Man asked “Name or address I carry none,” it said “If you allow me to pray I promise I shall bring you joy.” “Of course, thou can pray… but show me your love for White,” the Holy Man said I do, but I love other colours too.” Perplexed by the human ego it flew away.
“I have no name My loyalty is such all colours win Should I envisage a life of faith’s orphan deafened by loneliness’ din?”
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Dirk Sandarupa
Bio: Dirk Sandarupa is from Indonesia. He began to write in a young age. Since childhood, he likes to draw, make short stories and express his feelings through diary-writing. As he grew up, it started to grow like a hobby. From hobby, it became a passion. He writes things when he feels strongly about something. He writes things when he sees it and when he can imagine about it. These ideas keep playing in his head until he write it down on paper. Dirk believes that once we find our passion, we also find happiness, as long as we are willing to educate our passion and channelize those to a better way. One must let passion grow inside oneself, because it provides another capability to help others and inspire them. Dirk believes that a great passion comes with a great work.
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Me and My Fashion
They say two is better than one. Well, it takes two to create two hearts. It takes two to love two hearts. It takes two to understand two hearts. It takes two to compromise two hearts. It takes two to apologise two hearts. I want a love just like me and my fashion. We create one heart. I want a love just like me and my fashion. We love each other. I want a love just like me and my fashion. We understand each other. I want a love just like me and my fashion. We never compromise. I want a love just like me and my fashion. We never fight. They say two is better than one. Well, me and my fashion are already a perfect couple.
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Kabyashree Neog
Bio: Kabyashree Neog has recently completed her Mphil in Comparative Indian Literature from Modern Indian Languages and Literary Studies Department, Delhi University. Her area of interest has been folklore and folklife which is why she joined this department as a student and now as a research scholar. She stays in Delhi and presently working on her passion for poetry and other forms of creative writing.
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O Mother!
O Mother! Where have you gone? Come back, revive us all Your daughters need your shield; Shield of Protection, shield of power, Shield for safeguard, and shield of strength.
The Nights are horrendous, making all petrified; The Days are cadaverous, making society hazardous. O Mother! Descend! Descend to the world Banish the culprits; Safeguard your daughters from the malevolence of the Asurs!!
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O Mother! You fought one before; Now there are many. Your daughters need your strength; to fight against the Asurs. They are raping all, killing all; All your daughters are indefensible succumbing to the attacks of the Asurs!!
None shows objection, when your daughters face molestation, The World, thus is moving towards destruction; Humanity is under question!! O Mother! Re-incarnate again, like a Saviour Save your daughters from the Mahisasurs!!
Come back as Durga! Come back as Kali! Come back and save us all. We need your power, We need the strength of yours, Safeguard your daughters, and build us a better world.
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Durgesh Verma
Bio: DurgeshVerma is a Social Worker in Uttar Pradesh, India. Currently he is working for the State Government Program- National Health Mission as a Divisional Program Assistant- Quality Assurance. He has a track record of fund raising and publicity and is a skilled communicator. He is working as a President with the NGO'SPARSH... TOUCHING LIVES SOCIETY' in Varanasi with an aim to educate primary school children. He participated in the National workshop on the 'Role of Higher Education, in the Development of Social Innovation and Entrepreneurship in India' in 2016 organised by Institute of Management Studies, Banaras Hindu University,Varanasi. He has also participated in the 'Development Dialogue 2016' in Banaras Hindu University. His works have appeared in ‘Feelings International: A Book of International Artists Vol.2’ (U.S.A), ‘Voices of Humanity Volume 2’ (Canada), The Australia Times Poetry- Volume 4 No.23, an Anthology book ‘A Sublime Collection of ACROSTICS on Yayati Madan G Gandhi’(By Poets Fraternity from Across the World), Daath Voyage:An International Journal of Interdisciplinary Studies In English, Diff Truths, Tuck Magazine (Canada) and Asian Signature: A Journal of Poetry and poetics.
A University post graduate, Durgesh graduated with a degree in Commerce from Mahatma Gandhi Kashi Vidyapeeth University, Varanasi. He speaks Hindi and English and in his spare time enjoys listening to all genres of music, swimming and writing poems in Hindi, Urdu & English.
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Eyes or Surprise
"Close your eyes You'll have a big surprisesurprise to introspect your own self surprise to search cosmic heaven and hell eyes are medium to look at divinity's creation. all joys, pains, loss and gains are of eyes causation."
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Sithuraj Ponraj
Bio: Sithuraj Ponraj writes in English and Tamil. His first collection of Tamil short fiction ‘Maariligal’ won the 2016 Singapore Literature Prize for Tamil fiction and his first collection of Tamil poetry won the 2016 Singapore Literature Prize Merit Award for Tamil poetry. He has published a Tamil novel ‘Bernouilli's Ghosts’ and two pieces of young adult fiction since then. A winner of the Cha magazine prize for English poetry, Sithuraj Ponraj will have two works ‘Derrida and The Advertisement Length Death’ and a second collection of short fiction published in October 2017.
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The Days Were Snarling Dogs
The years are snarling dogs between us: you built them all with paper. They are now as hard as stars. Or else they could be toothpicks all lined up. Who looks for them except when they have something left to pick? And so did we refuse to pick, whether paper dogs or stars. The toothpicks now keep us awake. It is easy to fall asleep with eyes wide open if you arranged them in a such-and-such way. The old man died after having not spoken to anyone for two years. His favourite words were I-will-never-speak-to-you-again. He had stuck two fingers out before he died, both a warning and a curse. And so the paper dogs started howling the day he died and the toothpicks were the curse.
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Ruth Elwood
Bio: Ruth Elwood is a nineteen year old from Galway, Ireland .She is a first year student of creative writing in the National University of Ireland Galway. She has read several times at public readings and her works have been featured in the popular blog Poethead and the Rose online magazine. Her works have appeared in NY literary magazine .Recently, her work was featured on the literary blog ‘Cold Coffee Stand’. Her non-fiction works have appeared on the blog ‘We Create Lit’ and soon will appear in ‘A New Ulster’.
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Crack
crack I’m doing this for you you have the flu egg as runny as your nose
crack I’m doing this for you midnight, bake sale tomorrow tray of fairy cakes
crack I’m doing this for you spectator at sports day silver spoon destroyed
crack I’m waiting for you to come the food here is awful please my dear pet, your sick mother needs an omelette
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Angeles
sixty rings go out none on her finger she’s placed neatly on a bench by the water in the darkness only company cigarette and half swan not beastly, ugly duckling or elegant graceful creature halfway between beauty and not like herself
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Subroto Sinha
Bio: The author is a retired scientist who used to work in a research institute. He has a passionate hobby of writing and during his schooldays he had been contributing to the school magazine and later became a freelancer contributing occasionally to magazines and newspapers. The topics of his writings included short stories, fiction, current political views, memoirs of unknown people and poems of the rhyming variety written in a narrative style. Occasionally, he ventured into other styles as well, but, his preferred style remains the rhyming variety.
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The Barren Tree
The setting sun kisses the distant hills Spreading its last rays before it spills Into the forested abyss beyond Bringing in dusk with its magic wand
I stood for years a mute witness to this show My bare branches shake as the winds blow Once covered with leaves, lush and green In moonlight they wore a glistening sheen
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My trunk held the branches The leaves did the dances The birds perched and sang Loneliness was rarely a pang
I enjoyed the cool morning air Elicited feelings of love and care Nights I reveled in a blanket of mist With nocturnal creatures in the midst
As the seasons passed away I became older day by day My lushness became pale I could neither lament nor wail
The leaves peeled off one by one To come to my rescue there was none All the birds flew off to another home Leaving me alone, a forest gnome
I now present a ghostly look A picture from a horror book I can’t provide shade from the hot sun To animals and birds I’m an object to shun.
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Dream – Rubáiyát form
I fell asleep one winter night Besides the fire burning bright I wandered into the land of dreams In which I saw an awful sight
I saw myself to be a man of means Living in a mansion between the streams Destined to live alone as an ugly giant Despite the luxuries envied by the queens
Children fled as they perceived me a tyrant Didn’t understand I was compassionate and pliant I sought their company to love and play Teach them virtues and not be defiant
A little girl walked up to me one day Said she isn’t frightened of me anyway Wanted to know why I give them fright Shouting at them and not hear their say!
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I thought about it in my dream that night Came to the conclusion she was right Our appearance to others matter most What’s in the mind, are out of sight
Henceforth, I became an amiable host Whoever visited me became my toast I talked and frolicked as much as I could I did not refrain from a little boast
My life changed and it became good Happiness showed again as it should I heard attentively what others had to say I now perceived where I actually stood
Children played in my garden all day Not afraid of me anymore and run away The morning sun sent the heavenly blight That ended my dream, awake I lay
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Sutanuka Ghosh
Bio: Sutanuka, a telecommunications professional, with a post graduate in Mass Communication and Public Relations based in Delhi is a passionate literary artist. She enjoys the vast expanse of English and Urdu poetry from Milton to Gibran. Her deep interest in human relationships around, majorly on the genre of unrequited love inspires her ink to flow boundless. Awaiting her maiden anthology publication in 2018, her personal blog Skipper's Quills is on social platform of the Facebook savouring the trials and tribulations across the tonality and modality of human psyche. She celebrates love in unrequited form, in her literary creations, giving voice to those who lost their expression, plethora of desire in the rigmarole of life.
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Life and Beyond I keep looking for you E‌V...E...R...Y...W...H....E....R....E Within the folds and laps Of my life and beyond I keep looking for you. Cold, dark, stony realityembraces me every time, I try to search my vision out beyond the walls of incoherence I keep praying for you to return. Your memories start weaning , Giving way to my overburdened nerves, Your words , fading away to a no-man's world. I hear voices, from far and beyond Far out of my reach, of what my arms could hold and hug tight , I am left with tears , thoughts Inclement and brazen , I know this love isn't finished yet...! Am dying to hear you whisper my name once mo re Am dying to see you standing tall and bright, holding me in your arms...once more, Am dying to share the starry night, entwined deep within you, once more .... Am dying to live this life, Looking into your eyes realising my unfulfilled dreams, One last time! I miss you ‌
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Leap of Faith
He shouted loud and clear, “Beware lady! Mark your lines! I love boundaries. You know, my space!” She smiled. He said, “Woman, don't you see walls, don't you see caves, there are pitfalls! Beware! Go away!” She smiled. He rebuked, “Are you a firefly? Don't you feel the inhuman heat and deathly cold? I have nothing to give, lesser to get! Just get the hell away girl!” She smiled. He threw her to the dungeons of his own carved out darkness, abused her, rejected her, always, every moment that she crossed, his heartbeat ! Such was his love for her! And hers? She rubbed her charcoal dark eyes one last time and committed "No lines in this world can keep me away from you! I choose to crossover all the lines, only to be with you." Yes, he loved her and she loved him!
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Bounty of Desire
From the wee hours of dawn to the tireless midnight strokes of time, every moment that I live I breathe I keep thinking of you My day shines with your thoughts I look forward to be with you Every single day, I look forward to be in love with you every every single day ! Yes ! I want to share every moment of my experience in life with you My highs, lows good bad ugly My heart aches My bits of glory I want to share all of them, only and only with you! You are my definition of life, my desire!
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Sourav Biswas
Bio: Sourav Biswas aka "Teddy" is a young poet from Kolkata, India. He is author of the book ‘A Poet's Heart: Some Voices Of A Closed Lip’ published in June 2017. This book is first in the series of Poet's Heart. Sourav is a graduate engineer but chose poetry as his "avenue of escape". He has been writing poetry for the last 6-7 years. He is a member writer of Some'N Unique Magazine, St Louis, USA. His main area of interest is human soul and heart and how it can be inspired by anything and allowing someone to write. Sourav's love for words and expression is what pushes him to write about stuffs that can touch a human heart in the simplest way possible. Find more about him in his personal blog.
Advaitam Speaks Literary
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One Word
If only spoken one word, only one Not taken to what seen in the gaps, Does the wave not hide lurking death, Or you don’t see what’s not seen? Flickering memories that you wait, To creep in the night beyond the sun, Do you still wait, left to the darkness, Or you don’t feel beyond your feet? What passes o’er and trembles is your life, Pictures ride the bridge, for you wait till end, Don’t you breathe the blessings frozen here, Or you never could, for nobody ever would? When million words flow with her beauty, If only one word can describe, only one, Would it be enough for you to realize, a life you lived in this single frame of daylight?
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Ava Goodman
Bio: Ava Goodman is new to writing, and she is breaking into the poetry scene with hopes discovering more about herself and the world in which she lives.
Identity I don't feel like I really exist my name doesn't feel like mine I've been homesick for ten years but the only home I long for is the one I have yet to find I don't feel like I'm really here but where else could I be I interact with other people but what is it that they see I am a hollow shell an abstract concept each visible part sloppily manufactured to protect the bubble in which I dwell I don't feel like I really exist my personhood is not complete I go through the motions of daily routine while the ground opens up beneath my feet
Memory I remember you in so many ways The memory of you, haunts my days I remember how your whisper, tickled my skin I remember how your humanity, felt paper thin I remember how your hands, gripped me tight I remember how your eyes, twinkled in moonlight I remember you in so many ways But I can't, for the life of me, remember your face Advaitam Speaks Literary
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The Void
the bravest thing I ever did was to face the void my life did give empty and dark I stand here stark naked waiting for the stars
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Visual Arts Artist: Ankit Mishra
Title: Love is Everywhere
Title: The Last Pharoh Advaitam Speaks Literary
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Artist : Samyabrata Mukherjee
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Advaitam Speaks Literary