The Sathya Sai Garland of Poems - Prema Ramakrishnan

1. Baba

You gave me eyes, so I could gaze,

At your kind and benign face.

You gave me lips, so I could recite,

All the poems you make me write.

You gave me a hand to wield a brush

To paint flowers for you in their morning flush.

You gave me feet, so I could run,

All the way to Brindavan!

You gave me a heart, but it is no longer mine,

You took it away and made it your shrine

I have followed you from birth to birth,

On my every sojourn on this sacred earth.

The journey is not over, it’s an unending night

For I am the shadow and you are the Light!

2.  In Every Heart You Dwell.

In every heart you dwell,

A witness to all,

Hastening to offer succour,

At every one’s beck and call!

Our connection began

With the beginning of Time

Shall continue forever

With verse and rhyme!

If I fall silent

It will happen one day

Then I know I will

Call it a day!

3. Always, in my mind.

Always, in my mind, Baba,

Always, in my dreams,

Gathered together in my book,

Like an ocean of streams!

Give me fresh insights, Baba,

So my soul can soar and sing

Finding myself, everywhere,

In the heart of everything!

4. God, the Guru.

Where is darkness,

When Baba is our guide?

He is the shining lamp

Always by our side,

 He directs and leads us,

 Every step of the way

Along the road to Destiny,

Day after day!

5. I am the Stream.

I am the stream,

Ever in motion, 

Rushing to meet,

My master, the ocean.

I am the tree, 

My hands I raise,

To offer my flowers,

With my morning praise.

I am the wind,

That forever blows,

Bringing fragrances for you,

Of musk and rose.

Yes, I am the river,

Also, the sea,

My waves beating

Forever for Him

Till Eternity!

6. Everything Belongs to Sai

There is nothing,

On earth or sky,

That has not 

Belonged to Sai,

Everything,

In every clime,

Everything, from

The beginning of Time!

Baba, every saint has,

The knowledge of this,

This is the truth,

Nobody can miss.

So everything we see,

Belongs to Sathya Sai

Everything there is-

From earth to sky!

7. Baba, I wait.

Baba, I wait,

Every nightfall,

Hoping you 

Might call.

But, you let me trail

 Knowing full well,

I will never fail

To follow!

Days and nights pass,

Baba, without,

A nod,

As I wait,

In silence,

For my God.

8. The Dew on the Rose.

I shall cleanse my heart,

With my tears,

Dissolve all my doubts

And fears,

Then washed clean,

Like sacred incense, 

I shall linger,

In your presence.

Gather me to your heart,

Let me be close,

Nourished forever.

-The dew on the rose.

Time may stop for me,

The night- long-drawn.

Yes, I do not wish 

For another dawn!

9. The Cascade and the Pond.

When I write,

Word are contained,

Like in a pond,

Small, contrived,

In my image.

But when you

Choose to dictate,

Words break out,

Like a cascade,

Pour and pound

With precision.

Of such splendour!

Nobody can envision,

We can only,

Bow in reverence

At the divine,

Outpouring!

10. Your Design.

Long ago, 

When I was ten,

You made me a poet,

To study matters,

Of women and men.

You made me witness,

To this thing,

Called life,

This game of survival,

And endless strife.

You drew my attention,

Made me aware,

Of your glory and splendour

On land and air.

In nooks and crannies,

You made me look,

To gather material,

For a poem or book.

Now, I lay them all,

At your sacred door,

Baba, guide me so,

I need write no more!

The purpose of this birth,

You must now complete,

By taking me,

To your lotus feet!

11. Your Gift.

For some you give holy ash,

For some you materialise things,

Pendants, jewels and the like,

Necklaces and diamond rings!

For me it is poems, Baba,

Sacred and pure like the rain,

Drenching me in your love,

Again and again!

I bask in your glory, Baba,

Glimpse your divinity,

This way, lead me gently, Baba

Towards Eternity!

12. Your Padam.

Will you let me rest my cheek?

On your padam, Baba?

That’s all I seek,

That’s all I seek!

As I rest here, Baba

Content- awhile,

In the sunshine 

Of your smile,

All my heart’s yearnings

Are gone

I am a new

Flower, reborn,

Pristine, pure and 

One with the dawn!

13. Your Devotees.

In close proximity, you keep,

Some devotees you deeply need,

Drawn to your fold

They serve you with word or deed.

I am one of those, from afar

You have guided for years,

With poems strewn like flowers,

That I have gathered in silence and tears.

I know this is my path,

To be far away-

Ever thinking of you,

I have learnt to pray.

And, so, some day

When you choose to call

I shall come and wait,

In Prashanthi Hall.

Bring all my poems

 To your sacred door,

Arrange them like flowers,

Around the feet I adore!

Call me, Baba, call me soon

It seems an eternity this wait,

Knocking with melting heart,

At your Sacred Gate!

14. The Lily.

Baba, if you are the lily,

I am the pool,

In these murky waters,

You rise, pure and cool.

You cleanse me, Baba

With your very presence,

As you fill the air

With divine fragrance!

When my heart is rid,

Of its dross, and free,

I, shall become like you

A pure white lily!

We stand transformed

Not as one! Now,

I am just a sunbeam-

You, the radiant sun!

15. Go, My soul.

Go, my soul,

You have waited so long,

In this long night of darkness,

Without your song.

Go, now to Brindavan

Krishna has taken birth

Sing and dance to Sai

He is Krishna come to earth!

Sing and dance the ‘ras’ again,

Like in the distant past,

Sing and dance for Him-again!

You have come into 

Your own, at last!

16. Poetry.

You create the body,

I extend an arm,

The image is yours.

To give it form.

At the end of it all,

I get a thrill

Though my contribution.

To its construction is nil!

Baba, what is this?

This ‘lila’, this mystery

You bring forth,

In the form of poetry?

Words threaded together,

Into garlands, grand,

Whispering and guiding

My ordinary hand?

Baba, you are the cause,

The doer, the deed,

Awesome in stature,

The Greatest, indeed.

How can we fathom 

With our vision or verse,

That you are the Creator 

Of the universe?

17. Garland of Words.

There was a time,

 When I sat, with words,

Buzzing in my head,

Like winged birds

Aching to fly

Tearing into the clouds

To reach the sky!

Now I know,

Words don’t need wings,

They have the power,

To do wondrous things,

They are content

To be found,

With feet planted,

On sure ground!

This is exciting,

Their new birth,

As flowers belong 

To beautiful earth,

My words now belong

To my Sathya Sai,

So what need to find

Their space in sky?

Forever hearkening 

To his call and beck,

Like a garland

Someday, they’ll adorn

 His dainty neck!

18. Waiting for you.

How long must I wait?

Before you choose to call?

I’ve been waiting every hour,

Betwixt day and nightfall.

I don’t harbour any illusion,

Everything I have done

This handiwork called my life

Is your own creation!

That is all!

Sometimes I work myself

Into such a state,

Wondering if you will call

And why so, late?

Or is it that

I have to be steady

Have to go further

Before I am ready?

But I want to know

Why this stalling

I wonder to myself

Am I not worth calling?

The thought comes

I find it- daunting

The question that rises

 Is haunting.

May be you are trying 

To perfect me in slow degree,

Recasting and designing me

Like a piece of filigree,

Lifting me up

So I will measure

Come up before you

Like a treasure!

It’s all in you, Sai

The privilege and power

To draw me to, 

Your presence forever!

19. Thy Many -Splendoured Feet.

Oh! To touch your padam!

I have dreamed for years!

Having washed them, everyday

With eyefuls of tears.

To glimpse them for a moment,

Through the sheen of silk!

Bathed in many a temple

With sandalwood and milk.

All eyes are alight, Baba,

As you walk in thro’ the door

Your flame coloured robe

Gently, sweeping the floor.

Many a heart beats, Baba,

In joy and delight

Even Gods in Heaven

Yearn for this sight!

Draw us to you, Baba

Creator of many a feat!

You can with just a glance

Gather us to your Feet!

20. Chaitanya Jyothi

Like a billion suns,

So auspicious and bright,

Breaking upon the mind

After the soul’s dark night!

All ignorance and Maya, too

Must needs take flight-

Every vestige of darkness dispelled

In the face of it’s might!

The soul rises, like a flame

A lamp of dazzling splendour

Can human tongue describe?

Its glory or power?

Awakened to its potential

It shall take flight

The Chaitanya jyothi

Melt into your Light!

21. Pilgrim of the Night.

Krishna, take me to Brindavan

Is the fervent cry of my  heart,

I drench myself in dreams of it

Work it into my poetry and art.

The long nights of anguish, I endure

For, some day, I may be there,

Feasting my eyes upon you, Krishna

And breathing the woodland air!

I shall hear your flute, Krishna,

Come floating like the breeze,

Linger among the leafy branches

Like fragrance among the trees.

My heart can only stop and wonder,

Like a brook halt midstream,

Am I under an illusion, Krishna?

Is this a hopeless dream?

I continue to wait, Krishna,

When you will bring in the light,

Until then, it is darkness, Krishna,

I’m a pilgrim of the night!

22. To the Gopis

The moon gazes into the water,

As if under a golden spell

Flowers fill the place with fragrance,

Scents I know so well.

Jasmines, lotuses and water lilies,

Such a profusion of them here,

Who can bear such beauty?

Makes me wipe a tear.

Pathways open among the shrubbery,

Milky white, they wind along

Above the birds are wide awake

The air is full of song.

The Yamuna rises and falls

Her blue waters dance in abandon,

The whole world is convulsed in joy

As only the Lord can summon.

I weave in and out of alleys

Waiting for him to come

The cowherd boy plays hide and seek

To have a spot of fun!

Oh! Gopis, don’t you ever despair?

When He abandons you like this?

Or is everything forgotten,

When He wraps you in a state of Bliss?)