guliver ki chauthi yatra

Here & Now

Where is Keats, where is Byron, where is Shelly
Where is Shakespeare, the great?
Where will I be in such a vast galaxy?
Ah, let me think, but wait—

‘A living poet should not be praised’
The ancient critics said
‘He can only be raised or erased
When he is gone and dead’

Though some great poets are presently ignored
Some pigmies raised to the skies
It’s true on history’s hidden chess-board
None knows who lives or dies

Still, I want my real worth to be known
My earnings, here and now
What will it matter, when I am gone
Who’ ll give it, where and how!

November 2010