Post on 06-Aug-2020
ii
The Soulmate
iii
The SoulmateThe Poetry Book of Temenos
bySiraj Sirajuddin
The Soulmate: The Poetry Book of Temenos
Copyright © 2016 by Siraj Sirajuddin
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form by any electronic or mechanical means including photocopying, recording, orinformation storage and retrieval without permission in writing from the author.
Please give us your feedback and comments by email tosiraj@visiontemenos.com
Credits:Cover and Book Design - Praveen SinghSiraj’s Photo - Alex AnbalaganBook Draft and Typing - Chris NewlinMuse - Susan GibsonTeamwork - Temenos+Agility Team
for Amaani Sirajuddin - Daughter Soulmate
Table of Contents
Preface x
Phoenix Soulmate 1
Mystery Soulmate 3
Mother Soulmate 4
First Sighting Soulmate 5
Life Purpose Soulmate 6
Prometheus Soulmate 8
Prometheus Soulmate (Requiem Aeternum) 10
Atlas Soulmate 12
Veil Soulmate 18
Veil Soulmate (awaits me) 20
Veil Soulmate (avoidance) 22
Veil Soulmate (until) 23
Veil Soulmate (woven) 24
Veil Soulmate (slide) 25
Veil Soulmate (aquarian) 26
Veil Soulmate (long) 27
Veil Soulmate (trouble) 28
Pioneer Soulmate 29
Inclined Soulmate 30
Nine Eleven Soulmate 32
Faceless Soulmate 34
Epic Soulmate 36
Gambler Soulmate 37
Last Soulmate 38
Thursday Soulmate 40
Intimidated Soulmate 42
Seven Soulmate 44
Voice Soulmate (your voice) 46
Voice Soulmate (my voice) 47
Sahara Soulmate 48
Watermark Soulmate (influence maps) 50
Fabulous Soulmate 52
Held Soulmate 54
Lonely Soulmate 63
New Leaf Soulmate 64
Sabotage Soulmate 66
Comet Soulmate 67
Stone Soulmate 68
Departed Soulmate 70
Momentary Soulmate 72
May Soulmate 74
Havoc Soulmate 77
Entwined Soulmate 78
Good Night Soulmate 80
Precipice Soulmate 82
Silhouette Soulmate 84
Hedonistic Soulmate 86
Fall Soulmate 87
Socrates Soulmate 88
Compass Soulmate 89
Sanctuary Soulmate 90
Chance Soulmate 91
Bowl Soulmate 92
Isaac Soulmate 94
Unemployed Soulmate 98
Tyrant Soulmate 101
Genesis Soulmate 102
War Child Soulmate 104
Believe Soulmate 106
Silent Soulmate 109
Rejoice Soulmate 110
Enemy Soulmate 111
Beirut Soulmate 112
Nomad Soulmate 114
Amaani Soulmate 117
x
PrefaceHere is a small gateway into my world. This is an opportunity for me to share with you my dreams and my poems, my visions and my songs. Many times I have found myself, walking ahead of myself. By the time I call out to me... I have already become the person ahead of me, and the other person ahead of him, and so on. I have seen dreams where I am the central character in time, history, myth or fable. I am ATLAS, I am ICARUS, I am ADAM, I am Nature...
Every poem here is about me and my various moods and images and forms and incarnations. It is easy to assume that a poem may be about someone else - an inspiration or a poet’s muse! Every word, image, character, animal, beast, bird in these poems is me and about me. And yet, to the reader… it’s all about you. Everything is you and everyone is you. I wish to touch you and become you. The more I breathe, the more I realize that I am from a greater soul and that all of us are a soul from the greater soul. I have tried to express this bonding and commonality in all my poems - we are soulmates.
From me / us to the Greater Soul – that has been my transition. I remain spiri-tual in every aspect of my life and have found a great peace in being balanced. Nature has become a friend and a mirror. Acceptance and Balance – are the lessons I have learnt from my life-song. Accept-ing that I am a speck of dust in the entire universe and yet my role in this uni-verse is to write these poems and share my dreams. Being balanced about what happens around me and what happened before me and what will happen after me is my new way of life. Acceptance has given me the ability to write about war and destruction with the same grace as I would write about peace and childbirth.
I have written about Love, Motherhood, Fatherhood, Nature & Self. I find these four aspects of humanity offer the simplest path to becoming one with the Great Soul. Maybe the Great Soul is about Love, Motherhood, Fatherhood, Nature & Self. Maybe all these words mean the same in God’s Own Language.
xi
I have no doubt that my dreams have been dreamt before and that mywords have been spoken before by the countless souls who came before me. To them and others, I say... these words are yours and so am I. Indeed I am only a reflection of you in this world. I have imagined millions of beings singing my songs to their lovers. I have imag-ined a million souls singing my homage to their mothers. I have dreamt of my poems becoming vows at weddings and hymns at places of worship. Teachers teaching children, mother’s reading bedtime lullabies dreaming of my poems, Nature herself reciting my poems. The other side of my poems is the fascination for the language and the word. Ev-ery poem is a sweet game of grammar and text, meanings and illusions… An art-ist at work, his words are his tools and his poems are his paintings. I really don’t know how a poem writes itself out, or paints itself out. All I know is, I understand when to start and when to stop. I know when a poem – painting is complete. Sometimes I think my poems are all about my love of the language. And yet words fail me! Every moment in my life is a poem. I chose to write some and let some go. Words cannot capture every meaning and depth of feeling. Every poem is a story told and a story untold. For every word I have used, there is one I have not uttered. How do I communicate this unsaid poem to you? How do I tell you the words of my song that are being born in your soul as you read mine? When you turn this page, you will start the journey of reading my poems. I will miss seeing the emotions and reactions on your face. My first set of readers / soulmates were always kind enough to share these with me. If you care, write down your first reactions and emotions to these poems and send them to me. Enjoy my friend…I will meet you in the blank spaces between these words!!
Humbly, Siraj Sirajuddin
1
Phoenix SoulmateHave I waitedfor this heatAll my life
OrHas hell been expecting me.
I knew my beautyhad to be burnt,
I had to be scarred.
Now, here:
Is this joyat pain
I’m feelingOr
Is it painat joy?
Am I being purgedOr
Am I burning?
Are my wingsmelting into the earth
OrIs my budflowering?
Has the fire heatedmy plume red
OrIs it that my heart
has found all its passions?
7
Prometheus SoulmateAll,
effort was futile, when
the hunger was just insatiable,my love
And,
life, that cruelfriend of yours and Zeus’
laughed at meloudly,
my love.
Until,every soul here
receives their divine Fire,
I waited patiently,my love
And,Pandora, your
gift of beautiful evilwas not at all kind to us,
my love.
Every,chance arrow
I risked,pierced back into my gut,
Every day,my love
9
Prometheus Soulmate (Requiem Aeternum)All of them
Belong to you.
All of these:
Funeral pyresCamp fires Fire placesForest fires Open pits
Closed ovensPotter kilns
Burning embersAnd indeed,
The Divine fireThat burns inside
All of us,
All of these belong to you Your Majesty,Prometheus.
But, It is
The fire within youThat we needed
Yet, You gave the flame
Outside youas our gift.
11
Atlas Soulmate
At last
The globe Rests on
My shouldersAnd
The sun Shines on My back
The moon Reflects on
My soulAnd
The stars Shine onMy eyes
Preface:
ZEUS, the King of Gods, thought he was punishing me, when he sentenced me to carry the earth on my shoulders all my life.
My crime – leading a revolt of the Titans against the Gods
Little did he know me
At last!
I am ATLAS AGAIN.
12
The seaSwims onMy tears
AndThe sandsShift on
My palms
The oceansRipple on
My fingertipsAnd
The windTrembles onMy breath
The rainsDrop on
My reflectionAnd
The lightningStrikes on
My shadow
The iceMelts onMy lips
AndThe glaciers
Cut onMy teeth
13
The mountainsIce on
My peaksAnd
The snowMelts on
My valleys
The trees Rise on
My springAnd
The leaves Fall onMy feet
The flowersBloom on My stem
And The hummingbirds
Hover onMy nectar
The eagles Soar on
My horizonAnd
The doves Rest on
My laurels
14
The heavens Gaze on
My abundanceAnd
The hellBurns onMy greed
The nationsBattle on
My bordersAnd
The wall Crumbles on
My Berlin
The emperors Rule on
My behalfAnd
The soldiers Gore on
My blood
The priests Pray on
My altarsAnd
The loversEmbrace on
My aisles
15
The festivalsCelebrate onMy carnivals
AndThe funeralsMourn on
My Hearses
The menToil on
My fieldsAnd
The women Sing on
My strings
The fathersBless on
My foreheadsAnd
The teachersChalk on
My blackboards
The mothersHeave on
My breastsAnd
The childrenSlide on
My rainbows
17
Veil SoulmateOne more moment
andI will be truly timeless
like you,Oh thin veil
of mine.
One more heartbeatand
I will be a deeper realitylike you,
Oh slender veilof mine.
One more pulseand
I will be silently meditativelike you,
Oh invisible veilof mine.
One more flickerand
I will be burnt incenselike you,
Oh flaming veilof mine.
19
Veil Soulmate (awaits me)Behind your
thin veil
What Burning DesireAwaits me
AndWhat Special Torture
Awaits me.
Behind your silent veil
What Old Story
Awaits me
AndWhat Sweet Tale
Awaits me.
Behind your velvet veil
What Pure Grace
Awaits me
AndWhat Fine Beauty
Awaits me.
Behind your eden veil
30
Nine Eleven SoulmateWould that I could
Touch the skyand
Wish that I could envelope the earth
Every soul
LostWould still be
Here amidst us.
Would that I couldhold the sun
andWish that I could
stop the wind
Every dayNow
Would still be The day before.
Would that I couldLengthen the nights
AndWish that I could
Hold the midnight
Every soulLost
Would still be Sleeping amongst us.
32
Faceless SoulmateShe is a special lady
butShe thinks she is crazy
It does not matter though
When she meets meShe will melt away
Craziness will melt away
Specialness will melt Beauty will also melt
She will stand alone
And separate
So that my kissesCan cover her
AndMy embrace
Can clothe herHer face will meltHer eyes will melt
Even her lips will melt
A faceless soulIs my mate
And When I carry herAnd fly
The sky will be her face
The stars will be her eyesAnd
The sun will burn into her lips
37
Thursday SoulmateThursdays are
Made forSweet torture:
Love escapes us,Lust does not let go,
Fantasies swim up and down,Lucifer comes calling,
And Friday, that sweet woman,
Waits patiently In the wings.
Thursdays areMade for
Sacred reverie:
Memories of our GodnessBathe us in light.
We are consumed by the stillness,Listening, waiting.
Humility comes calling,And
Friday, that sacred renewal,Is refreshed and readyFor a new beginning.
40
Seven SoulmateSeven,
Only sevenwords
For your tired soul, My friend.
And
Seven, Only seven
words For your dried tears,
My friend.
Seven,Only seven
WordsTo make you alive,
My friend
And
Guess,what
The seventh word Is?
45
Watermark Soulmate (influence maps)Deep,
inside my soulis a
certain intricate watermark
A guide left behind
by the touch ofYour
generosity
A truth that remains
unopened With the passage
of time
Until, soothed
by the warmth of Your
attention, I am able to
articulate my:
InfluencesSymbols
IconsImagesDreams
ArchetypesPersonasMasksFaces
47
Fabulous SoulmateHello!
Hiiiiiiiiiiiii!!!
It’s me:Fabulous.
Really, it’s me Fabulous.
How are you?How is your life?
How is your heart?
Are you waiting For my arrival too?
Are you equally Anxious too?
And ...Me?
Ha!
I am out there.
I am waiting for my arrival too!
I am taking shape Inside this
cozy womb.
49
Held SoulmateShe,
held a crystal ball to his Light
and
She,could see her past,
present and her future
She, held his
morning face to the Sun
and
She,could see her sons,
generations and her history
51
53
56
58
New Leaf SoulmateCool winds trust
your nameNew leaves know
Your name
You and your beingare well knownin these realms
Life and all it’s friends,know your soft
footsteps
Mountains,Rivers,Forests,
Maidens, Animals,Horses,Jaguars,Birds,Trees,
Branches,Leaves,
Soil,and
Grass.
Indeed,everyone and all their friends
know your softfootsteps
63
Departed SoulmateLearn to hold
the hand of the manwho takes his child to the grave.
Bless the fawnthat remembers
her mother’s milk.
Pray for cureor at least mercy
for the onewho is on the edge of disease.
Begin your daywith a million names,
one for every soulwho has lived and died
You will never dieand
I will never die.
Lifeand its gifts
will continuefor you and me.
Our shapesand our colors
will change.
Nearand dear oneswill become
more colorfuland less visible.
66
May SoulmateMay the cloudsbe your blanket
tonight
&
May the skiesbe your bed
tonight.
May the chantingsof prayers
be your lullaby
&
May the sweet gamesof angels
be your dreams.
May your soulteach you to sense
the divine inspirationyou bring to us
&
May your soullearn to relax
the hidden agendas in your shadow’s soul.
67
May your soulbe grateful forboth the dayand the night
&
May your soulbe grateful forboth the joy
and the tears.
May your Hunger for intelligence
be fedby my companionship
&
May yourThirst for knowledge
be quenchedin the oasis ofmy friendship.
May your dreamsbe a part of
the greater dreamthat the earth dreams
for all of us.
71
Good Night SoulmateMellow moonshine
Bending towards my skin,Good night.
Sleepy sunReturning to your mother ocean,
Good night.
Long shadowsMerging into the dark unknown,
Good night.
Sweet tortureOf the seventh heaven,
Good night.
Ten fantasies All at the same time,
Good night.
Conscious mindPretending to be in control,
Good night.
Droopy eyelidsLosing to the pull of gravity,
Good night.
Complete freedomAll unto ourselves,
Good night.
73
Precipice SoulmateOnce again,
My loveWe are on the edge
of:
Greatness,Humility,
Joy,Ambition,Creativity,
Compassion,Learning,
Peace,And
Truth.
We are Falling
in the arms of the universe Soaring
on the tides of wind
Creating. Created
We are Leaning
into one anotherWe areLiving
for the sake ofLoving.
75
Silhouette SoulmateOh,
My God:
There is noBeingAnd
There is noPerson.
There is no Enemy
AndThere is no
Lover.
There is noMaskAnd
There is no Mirror.
There is noMemory
AndThere is no
Image.
There is noSoundAnd
There is noVibration.
83
Bowl SoulmateOh,
Look at All
These silly elephants
In my bowl.
They swim Carelessly
In my bowl.
They floatEffortlessly
In my bowl.
And
Then,There is this
one.The stubborn
one.Yes,
The one On my Back.
Who refuses to Swim
CarelesslyIn myBowl.
85
Isaac SoulmateHello,Isaac,You,
Are back.
Yes, We agree:
Your,Binding wasTruly unfair
AndYour,
Proposed sacrifice Was murder.
Now:
Your,Soul returns
In furyAndYour,
Heart is notAt peace.
So,You return
With venom and
Vengeance.
86
But hey, Wait a minute.
Stay!
Sincerely, Dear Soulmate,Can you get out
Of the box?
What,Can we offer you
As Supplication
And Charm?
Who,Are you
Truly angry With:
God?Abraham?Archangel?Yourself ?
Or The humble us?
Take a pause,Have a cup of tea.
Let’s discuss:Hurricane To
Hurricane.
88
Unemployed SoulmateEvery day
I wake up toFind my self
Inside aFood stamp.
Role models,Influence mappers,
Trust artists,Cupcake decorators,
Sooth sayers,Fish mongers,
Chicken sexers, Straw men,
Thunder deliverers,Anvil makers,
Mountain mappers,
And
Several other Strange professionals Present themselves Before me today.
I hurry up and get dressed
for an interview with an
invisible savior.
89
I quickly learn That
my elevator pitchresonates
onlywith the birds.
The rows and columns
on this formdo not have
space for my past or my future.
I want to check an Occupation listed
and find that my box ismissing.
The names theycalled out for hire
do not fitme.
The names they did not call out
alsodo not fit
me.
93
War Child SoulmateI can’t accept these devastating battles
anymore:
The children of my motherReach out to me
Outstretched armsHungry palms
Deep eyesMissing Thighs
Solid SoulTattered Body
Singing LipsCrying eyes
The children of my fatherReach out to me
Burnt skinUntouched pride
Scarred BodyUnscathed Beauty
Hungry stomachsSatisfied appetite
Tattered RagsProtected Honor
95
Believe SoulmateI was the only onewho believed you,I was the only one
who believed in you:
You said youwere an angelYou said you
were from the heaven.
You said youhad lived like a bird
You said youhad risen from the dead.
You said youknew the new song of life
You said youlearnt a new way to breathe.
You spoke ofyour love for silences
You spoke ofyour fear of words.
You said youhad a secret love
You said youhad found a
new heartbeat.
96
You spoke ofyour pain in love
You spoke ofyour lovely pain
You said youhad broken chains
You said youhad bonded with Love.
You said youhad lived like a wanderer
You said youhad traveled to distant lands.
You said youhad climbed the mountains
You said youheld their peaks in your palm.
You said youran with the wind
You said youbefriended the air.
You said youknew the language of children
You said youspoke to the babies in your womb.
You said youhad sipped the morning dew
You said youhad tasted the nectar of the sunset.
102
Nomad SoulmateMothers
Become miragesOn the desert
of my memory
FathersFade into light
On the darkness of my memory.
Religion,Prayers,Angels,Devils,Friends,Lovers,Dreams,Hopes,Places,Homes,
Nothing stays trueOr
ConstantFor the
Nomad Soulmate.
103
OfThe words I said
andThe deeds I did,Nothing remains.
Motherland alsoRemains
a vague memory.
I forget the placeOf birth
And get ready to be born again.
I call out to a new land
Andlet bygones be bygones.
I wake up to a new conflict
Andlet sleeping
dogs lie