Redamkanlah cita kefiraunan itu
Insafkanlah
Bahwa kau juga hanya insan biasa
Harus bangun pagi dan tidur
Harus akur pada segala keperluan haiwani
Harus akur pada aturan hidup dan mati
Insafkanlah jua
Bahwa semua citra dan paparan kuasa
Akan gagal jua akhirnya
Segala kantor dan pegawainya
Segala kereta mewah dan supirnya
Segala permaidani merah dan bunga manggarnya
Segala lautan manusia dan gemuruhnya
Harus padam dan lenyap
Bakal hilang dan tersenyap
Padamkanlah nafsu kefiraunan itu
Cukuplah bertahunan menunggang kuasa
Izrail menunggu dengan sabitnya.
#658 On Magnificence
"To be in the world,
But not to seek magnificence in the world,"
He reminded us;
But how many of us
Will walk out of this lecture hall
And disperse into our daily, mundane lives
Still unthinkingly striving
And hustling
For our own meagre idea of magnificence?
#657 Tentang Jiwa Yang Diulit Debar
Kesepian menongkah arus
Gusar jiwa diulit debar
Walau gentar, melangkah terus:
Lumrah hidup menuntut sabar.
#655 On Another New Year (2025)
Another new year
Another grey hair
Another day gone
Another night glares
This merciless march
This endless parade
This pitiless race
A cruel charade
Another heart breaks
Another tear falls
Another soul burns
Another day calls.
#654 On A Different Way To Live
What if I told you
There is a different way to live:
No LinkedIn posts
No late night emails
No podcast hustles
No online surveils
Just wake up in the morning and
Smell the roses, watch the sky
Walk the beach, and feel the sand
Sift beneath your feet and sigh
In gratitude for this one life
Go on: you now hold the knife.
#640 Tentang Jalan Erang
Ini lumrah hidup di dunia
Jalan erang penuh berbengkang
Harus yakin pada Yang Esa
Pasti cerah arah gemilang.
#635 Tentang Kesunyian Tiada Berpantun
Engkap engkip kehidupan yang
Enggan surut padam; terpijak
Jiwa hampa, terhempas malang
Mana janji hidup terlenang
Mana syurga jiwa berembun
Tiada nampak walaupun bayang
Hanya ada: hati terbalun
Sunyi sepi tiada berpantun.
#627 On Yōkais Streaming Through Kōenji
Yōkai procession
Streaming through Kōenji streets:
Delightful monsters.
#624 On Being Your Jiminy Cricket
Am I your Jiminy Cricket
The voice of your frail, dimmed conscience?
The one you turn to
When you need the strength
To be the person
You’ve always known you ought to be?
Or am I just another member of
Your sprawling audience?
An unwitting witness to your witless schemes
The unremitting pursuit of
Your faded dreams?
#623 On Walking Away From The Maimed
Just watch me walking away
Riding off into my own private sunset
Alone, but unhurt
I sought my own refuge
From your games
And here I am
Intact and ungrateful
- or so you would say
I refuse to be one of the maimed
And those who have remained
They will bear their own scars, in time
Goodbye.
I have no more tears left to cry.