My lock-key has been lost
And closet-ed
Life has become
Uncomfortable herein I am not,
Still my macrocosm
Has suddenly shrunk.
That world where -
Bees hum, flowers smile,
Leaves rustle, fields dance,
Morn and eve worship
Sun and moon.
That world where -
Song of stubborn nightingale and
Cry of cuckoo echoes
And every heart is thirsty for love.
That world where -
Crowds dally and discuss
Dulles' war strategy,
Nehru's peace policy.
For me today,
That world,
A real world,
Is standing coffin-clad at my threshold.
Because,
My lock-key has been lost.
Whom should I call?
From the
Inside-locked closet,
Get it unlocked from outside
How can I?
My fate,
Flee away from it.
How can I?
For life
Say imprisoned
How can I?
Accept my alone-ness
Like a half-burnt cigarette,
How can I?
No, No, No,…
All this is Impossible !
But! for the outside crowds
Everything is possible.
Come dawn
Crowds will mob my door
And finding it locked,
They will break, not one
But all the locks and latches.
Then,
Long-lost lovers will meet.
But, today
My lock-key has been lost
And a dreamy night
Has made me teary,
Within the four walls
My breath, I have lost
Because,
My lock-key has been lost.

(Translated by R.P.Chaddah)