SUNIL KAUSHAL

The Pain Of Palestine

We the children of this land,
hounded, homeless, barricaded,
plead for a patch of untainted skies,
no embers raining from shells and mortars,
plead for a few feet of bloodless soil to grow grain,
that exorcises our veins of the genetic pain
that breeds hatred, terror, vengeance, since ages
all that indoctrinates the animal in us
akin to those who animalised us in cages.
We plead, please baptise us

with purity, love, and restrain

to purge Palestine of its pain!
Copyright@Dr. Sunil Kaushal

What Is Sacred?

Does a mosque called Al-Aqsa,
sacred both to Muslims and Jews
remain venerable any longer
drenched in blood
both spewing greater violence
competing claims over the site.
Jews call it the Temple Mount,
Muslims call it al-Haram-al-Sharif
(Arabic: ‘The Noble Sanctuary’),
neither noble, nor a sanctuary today
the sanctity lost in nomenclatures,
of which faith is real.
power changing hands
buy fear-filled faith shuddering
knowing not who is right or wrong
I pray to end the suffering
of all those in pain since ever so long.
Sacred is where sacrilege exists not
in innocent hearts of all children
Palestinian or Israelites
for that is where He abides
not in stony monuments
built by stony hearts.
Copyright Dr.Sunil Kaushal

Our Bloody Screens

Eyes glued to the TV or phones
millions watch gory images, live killings
splattering screens bloody, since months.
They grimaced in revulsion, horror,
clucked tongues, shook their heads
inwardly thankful they were neither
Palestinians nor Israelites.
The common man can do just that
should the world not stop in its track
to stem the rot seeping into human roots?
The privileged, sitting in safe chambers
blow the dog whistle, and a war is ordered,
young sons, husbands, fathers, brothers,
even some daughters, sisters, and mothers
are herded off to killing mines, kill or get killed.
Innocent civilians, babes at the breast, pregnant mothers
tottering elders, slaughtered, butchered, in His name.
Why this deafening silence? Compliance or cowardice?
Why has the world turned blind, dumb and deaf?
Soon there’ll be no space to bury the dead.
Who will then mourn whom,
cry over a grave, yours or mine?
for I see the world burning
I see the world turning
into so many Palestines.
Copyright@Dr, Sunil Kaushal

SUNIL KAUSHAL: Awarded author Dr. Sunil Kaushal, studied in schools all over India, her father having been an army officer. Her nomadic life visiting and living in new towns every 2 years has been very interestingly chronicled in her debut book of memoirs, Gypsy Wanderings& Random Reflections, which was awarded the Nissim Award by the prestigious International poetry group, The Significant League, in the non-fiction category for ‘exquisite prose’. She attended college at one of the most prestigious colleges, Isabella Thoburn College, Lucknow, India. Later she went on to doing her medical studies at Govt. Medical College, Amritsar, India, followed by 40 years of practice in Obstetrics-Gynaecology at Jalandhar, Punjab. Although she has been writing sporadically since her childhood, her writings were carefully tucked away from the public eye. At age 70 she learnt to use a computer and started writing full time, sharing her poetry and prose online. She is pleasantly surprised to discover the poet and writer within her being recognized, every time she wins a contest or award. This trilingual writer writes in English, Hindi and her mother tongue Punjabi, which she has never studied but is self-taught. Published in a number of National and International anthologies and magazines, some of her poems have been translated into French, German and Greek. Her writing is mostly woman-centric, romantic, sensuous, poems about marginalized people. She also writes philosophical, spiritual, besides humorous poetry.