Poems
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Home - Family History - Thoughts on Peace - Islamia School - More Photos - Poems - British Muslims - Articles on Islam
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Dollis Brook.

I remember Dollis Brook glistening in the sun
And Tiger Hill where we used to run

‘Cops and Robbers’ through meadows and thickets
Watching my brothers and listening to crickets

Climbing a sympathetic tree, the bark worn smooth
Up there I could see them turn and towards me move

I clamber down and run wildly through the thistles
Splashing across water, soaked and covered in bristles

“Got you,” they cried, as we tumble to the ground,
We lie there so still as our hearts throb and pound

The world fades away leaving the sky spinning above
And the squabbling of sparrows and the cooing of a dove

Gazing up, watching dizzy clouds grazing in the sky
A blue bottle, like a drunkard, buzzes heedlessly by

Hot and lazy, we sit on the bridge, shirts hanging out
Scratched and bruised, dangling our feet, just lazing about

A willow arches over the water, sprinkling shadows on its glow
As we watch the sticklebacks twitching, in the current below

The days flowed swiftly by like the water under where we stood
Taking with them the happiness and innocence of our childhood

Now the world seems full of suffering and pain
And life weighs heavy with all the stress and strain

But I remember Dollis Brook glistening in the sun
And Tiger Hill where we used to run

Alas Poor Pharaoh!

Oh rotten face and eyes that see naught
Is it really you that held mighty court?

Many men's fate lay once in your hand
Bound and fettered, brought before you to stand

Yours was the power that none could surmount
Did you consider you'd be brought to account?

I see your mask of silver and gold
Beside it your face shriveled and old

Here are your treasures for all to view
Alas when you died they didn't go too!

The paintings on your tomb depict your next life
Surrounded by servants, no trouble or strife

Now tell me in truth how fares it with you?
Do you wish to return and live life anew?

But the door has closed and there's no hideaway
All is recorded whatever you say

So let us reflect upon poor Pharaoh's soul
And do not rejoice as he lies in his hole

Too late we see our time slipping away
Then like Pharaoh in our graves we must lay

So remember dear friend in this short life of ours
Soon we must account for the days! Nay! The hours!

Past and Future

Let us bid farewell to the past with its good and bad
And welcome in the future both its happy and sad

Will it be "follow my leader" like the years before?
Going around in circles as our feet get sore

"Join the party of freedom" or "The Sheikh with a big belly"
"The party of God" or "Nizamu-Deen of New Delhi"

"Hide in a glorious past" some Muslims will cry
All was black and white and no-one asked why

I wish that were true and that problems were clear
And that man didn't bleed or shed a bitter tear

So what's new in this sweaty greenhouse of ours
How are the eggs, the meat and the flowers?

Inject them with chemicals so they look fat
"Poison the world..." or something like that

Well it's OK it's these Kafirs you see
They're to blame, not you or me

Are we just dead leaves piled up on the side
Unable to influence the overwhelming tide

Do the decades bring nothing but the aging of bones?
And drag many to the fate of the fire and stones

All we do is point fingers and cry 'It's a sin"
Rather than find the love that's within

Perhaps one day we will stretch out our hand
And hold tightly together in a united stand

Thunder

I heard thunder outside my window
It made me shiver with fright
I remembered my sins
I remembered what I had left undone
I remembered the one who stalks man
Waiting for a moment decreed
I prayed that I be given a little more time

I heard thunder outside my window
Then the sky was silent and still
The moment passed
I sighed a heedless sigh
Forgetting my sins
Leaving undone all that needs doing
Until thunder strikes again

A Little Boy

Sad and lonely stood a little boy
Stooping over his shattered toy

Crying that began as innocent play
Frightened of what his Parents will say

One day he will suppress his fears
Learn to smile and hide his tears

But inside his heart he still cries
For the pain he feels never dies

A Starlings Song

A starling sings a morning song
Away from life's anarchic throng

I stop and listen to what it has to say
But the starling quickly flies away

Her song is not for the likes of me
From the son of Adam, she will always flee

Tomorrow

If tomorrow comes
I'll do my best
To make the garden grow

I'll work very hard
On the flower bed
And all the seeds I'll sow

Tomorrow is here
But I'll rest awhile
And on this bed I'll lay

What's the rush?
There's plenty of time
Before the end of day

But Oh dear!
What is this?
As I lay in sleepy trance

Today has gone
And night has come
Now I've missed my chance

Upon A Precipice

I lay upon a precipice looking down
Below me wild animals galloped
Blue waters surged
Shoals of shining fish leapt out of crashing waves
Terrible! Frightening!
An awesome presence made the lions cower in the plains
The earth was clean and full of green shoots
A fresh silence radiated from the sun
Undefiled by Man nor Jinn
How had I got here?
Though it hardly mattered
As I lay on the dry bare rock looking down
Looking down from afar
I recognised every blade of grass
My tears dried upon the stones
As my memory came flooding back
Somewhere close was the home I had deserted
So long ago

The Heart of Faith


The heart of Faith is Prayer
And the heart of Prayer is Gratitude

And the heart of Gratitude is Contentment
And the heart of Contentment is  Peace

And Peace is the cure for the soul of man

Did Adam Ever Cry?

Did Adam ever cry? And did Eve hold him tight?
Whispering in his ear, "It'll be all right."

A child is born and clings to his mother's arm.
But she can't keep him safe from the pain and the harm.

Destiny leads him along paths decreed.
Holding him accountable for every word and deed.

Choices and decisions that have been chosen and decided.
Vainly he prays to be guided with those who have been guided.

All that is his, are the tears for his state.
As he marches irresistibly until he's written his fate.

Then buried in the earth to await Judgement Day.
While above him a mother watches her child laugh and play.

Did Adam ever cry? And did Eve hold him tight?
Whispering in his ear, "It'll be all right."

Troubled Soul

When anxieties trouble my soul and the night is heavy with sorrow
I look up to the heavens where the angels hover amongst the stars,

I feel a gentle embrace so sweet and soft
Calming my mind and healing my soul
Filling me full of peace and love

"Oh you whose throne enfolds the heavens and earth"
"Envelop me in your mercy and bring me back to your presence"

"To walk again in tranquil gardens"
"Wherein is neither suffering nor sickness"
"Nor pain nor misery"

The sky looks so perfect and beautiful
The stars shimmer while the Moon silently looks down

The air is fresh and clear,
Reviving my spirit and giving me hope

Can I believe that the dawn will bring the answer to my prayers?
And the world will be a different place?

Words

That which is said cannot be unsaid
Just as innocence cannot be recovered

Then forever shall we grieve?
Unless by divine forgiveness are we to be released

For words uttered with these tongues
That have led man to the flames of Hell

Though our hands never erred
By the Mercy of God, how Compassionate is He

Still do we suffer the consequences, and in that is Mercy!
Restraining us from ever greater trespass

Destiny

What makes men destroy the good they find?
Is it something we created inside our own mind?

But how is it that the created can create?
Only God has such power over men's fate!

And so it is that we must account for each and every crime
That destiny decreed since the beginning of time?

Oh Heart!

Oh heart! All this sadness you still bear
For a love that doesn't care
For a love that used to be
But my heart refuses to see

Stop now and let me go
Forget the past and start anew
Put an end to your sorrow
And let happiness through

A love that is just a memory
Of one who meant so much to me
But my heart hears no plea
And will not let it be

Love

Is the measure of love, the sum of ones Passion?
Or loyalty and fidelity though it be out of fashion

Love is nothing, if not allegiance and devotion
Only this is befitting the best of creation

Too Dense

I sit and wonder why we are all here?
"What's it all for can you tell me my dear?"

"Yes I can tell you, but it won't make sense
Because the trouble with you is that you're far too dense!

Change

Things don't really change
They just get tired
Worn and tedious
Ragged and neglected
Hoping to be rediscovered

Once I climbed a tree
There, hidden by the twisting, leafy branches
A nest full of open, shrieking, yellow beaks
Ugly black, bulging eyes
I nearly fell from that fragile height

The world was full of limitless adventure
And I was the first explorer
Treading upon virgin soil
I discovered secret lands
And solved the mysteries of life

Once I sat with dear friends
Excitedly we searched for answers
And, naively, found them all too easily
Impetuous youth, would that it could return?
But one cannot unlearn what one has learnt

Now the debates bore me
And life is a greater mystery than it ever was
And nothing is clear, bar the fact
That the answer will never be found here
And son of Adam never changes

Pluto

I dreamt the other night
I was a child again
I was looking for you
I whistled
But this time you didn't come

I searched for you in the park
The sun was shining
Just like it always did
Calling your name
Slapping my thighs
Expecting to see your bright joyful figure
Bounding out of the trees
Tail wagging, eyes sparkling
Jumping, twisting, bursting
But this time you didn't come

I returned to the places we used to go
But everyone had gone
Even the trees pretended they did not know me
As though they were hiding something from me
The sun shone too brightly
I couldn't open my eyes
I thought that was you
Hurdling across the green grass

But this time you didn't come