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To tell you the truth
I have been writing poems a lot more than I usually do and reworking drafts of old poems. Perhaps due to my PhD work on the ghazal I tend to spend more time on structure and sound. Strict metrical scales and working with rhymes, refrains, provide me with an effective tool to have a dialogue with…
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Poem Unlimited, Augsburg
Over the weekend I attended and spoke at the Poem Unlimited Conference at Augsburg. The venue, the Augsburg University, has a beautiful campus. The trees were in Autumn hues. I was narrated the story of a duck family in the University pond. A ledge was removed from one of the campus buildings so to lessen…
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Friday Book Market at Spui
Every Friday there is a Book Market at the Spui, Amsterdam. On this day there is a peppy vibe to the place. Antique books, quirky books, second-handbooks, new books and forgotten books all find their way to stalls here. The keepers are friendly. People seem to have time. A certain stillness. Browse and be. No…
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Dilruba Pe Dil Aaya
I discovered Dilruba Ahmed’s poetry in the early part of this year and it has stayed with me. The first poem I read was: “Snake Oil, Snake Bite” and it lingered over my days, making me smile at odd-moments as I remembered its tender irony. Imagine my joy when I discovered she had written a ghazal.…
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Hortus Botanicus, Amsterdam
A day spent at the Hortus Botanicus in Amsterdam. Such peace and tranquility in the heart of a busy city is unusual. The meditative spaces and careful corners are crafted here with such sensitivity.
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Talking to strangers
A few days back my aged taxi driver Abdullah informed me of how Hafez was far from being a purist, he was a diluter of true Persian culture, writing in an Arab form. He quoted Ferdowsi and said, “now he is the man to study for pure Persian literary gems – go read Ferdowsi and…
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The dance of Gods
The blood of Mahisasura dripping from her wrists His decapitation each year, year after year I like that story of Krishna At the back of his throat, she could see, the whole universe The sun, moon, stars, asteroids and meteors – his tonsils and uvula Did he eat them all? You offer aparajita…
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Light and Water: Visual Poetry
Video: central Amsterdam under water in a poetic light display. “After having us cycle along starry night bike paths, Dutch artist and innovator Daan Roosegaarde has now turned his attention to the power of water. Just over one quarter of the Netherlands is below sea level and the sea is kept at bay by a…
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Miffy at 60
https://flic.kr/s/aHskaK1pD3 Pictures from our visit to the Miffy art installation at the Museumplein in Amsterdam.
