Love Poems

When I utter your name
a universe of endless relations
come into being
and in a
360 degree infinite space
you emerge
as colour splash
on a canvas
of vast deep darkness
You overflow
all logic
law
emotion

I want to grasp you in full
so my canvas
my eye
my vision
does not forget,
and start dancing
on the strings of tradition again

I search a new medium
but who knows
if you will ever be expressed
My canvas does catch you
in a frame
my desire creates
but it is not you
only a singular image
of a multi-faceted creation
that you are Swarnjit Savi

A painter draws an image of his girlfriend, capturing her intricate features into a frame of desire. At the end it remains only a multi-faceted creation of his girlfriend. The poet skilfully captures the emotional state of the painter/lover who tries desperately to extricate all the prominent features of the girlfriend and to recreate them on the canvas. The poem is noted for its depiction of the state of mind of a lover in short but evocative lines. -Indeewara Thilakarathne

Let 'em Free...

O'Lion king..,O'Lion King..
The brave king of all other kings,
Heir of the kingdom of wild forest,
So sad to see you locked inside iron bars...

O'Lion King..,O'Lion King...
They observe the color of your round eyes,
But they don't see the loneliness those suffer..
They snap the beauty of your brownish coat,
But they don't capture the weirdness it hidden..
They fill up the large belly of yours,
But they don't feed the hunger inside you..
They clap for the vigorous entertainment you do,
But they don't sense the trembling anger you dance with..
They listen to the glorious roar of yours,
But they don't hear the 'Freedom' you groan....

O'Lion king..,O'Lion King...
Let us pray for you and all, trapped and tortured behind the greedy bars,
''May the mankind living on this earth realize soon that not only them,
But all belong to the mother nature are born with equal rights''... Kumari Alokabandara

The poem is a plea for animal rights although it is about a caged lion. At a zoo, a caged lion is watched and the onlookers think very little of the lion's right to free habitat. Though beautifully kept in cages at zoos, those lions are taken away from their natural habitat, depriving them of their freedom. The poet pleads that all the animals in cages be freed. The poem is noted for its sincerity. -Indeewara

May Day 2010

That era is past isn't it,
And those days are gone:
Rallying on May Day, consuming the booze
Shouting slogans at the Mayflower,
Allowing the devil loose.

That era is past and as the
Frail rallies trickle along
Blocked honking roads.
Among vocal rallyists, when noone's looking,
A less vocal follower is facebooking.

This is that era then - the one before the blast.
Everything looks too silent and surreal
To be true. An era where age-tested, familiar tactics
Look forlorn at you. An age where the known methods to man
Sink before your feet into sinking sand.

That age where no words are spilled,
Where skeptical eyes watch from behind
Half-revealing metal masks. Bewildering
Businesses happen. None asks.
That age that ideally would come to pass Vihanga Perera

The poem describes the changing facets of May Days. The era in which vociferous May Day processions with dummies of politicians and rabble rousing rallies addressed by demagogues is over. Such traditional rallies are becoming less and lesser. Less vociferous creatures have relegated their campaigns to safe zones such as face book. The poet questions what then this era is? Is it an era before the big bang? or is it that age 'where no words are spilled'. Is it an era 'where skeptical eyes watch you from behind'? -Indeewara

Dedication

No umbrella can ever
provide any shade
from rain or shine
unless it gets burnt
by the sun, or
gets soaked by the rain.

No plant can ever
produce any food
for any consumer
if it does not grow
under the scorching sun.

No candle can ever
give out any light
if it does not burn
its own wick with
waxy tears shedding.

No overcoat can ever
provide any warmth
to a chilly body
unless it gets numb
by the frozen snow. Ivan Kiriella

Through the metaphors of an umbrella, plant, candle and overcoat, poet drives home the fact that every serviceable being and thing has to make a sacrifice in different manners. For instance, an umbrella provides shade by exposing it to elements of weather. Candle has to burn its wax to give away light. What seems to be the core message of the poem is that the life is full of such sacrifices although it is subtly implied by the poem. The poem is noted for its brevity in expression. Sacrifice instead of dedication would have been a more apt title for the poem. -Indeewara

Love present and past

Love present and past
Breaking the heart
And destroying the soul apart
Memories lingering time to time
Even when love has faded
In to tears of depart Bertholamuze Nisansala Dharmasena

The memories of the love and of loved ones are powerful and linger for ever. The poem is about the memories of the love present and past. These memories haunt from time to time breaking the heart of the lover. The poet has craftily captured the emotional state of a lover who haunts with memories of even departed love. -Indeewara