Sacred Rain

By GHULAM-SARWAR YOUSOF

Sacred Rain is the fourth collection of poems published by Ghulam-Sarwar Yousof. It contains some of his recent work.
Like his previous collections, the poems in Sacred Rain deal with a selected number of themes. Essentially, they are about the self and the relationships of the self with the multi-dimensional world and, more particularly, with higher realities.
In this sense then, Ghulam-Sarwar Yousof, through a Malaysian writing in the English language, transcends narrow everyday concerns and, although presenting in them his own reflections about the self, attains a certain universality. His poems have broader appeal beyond narrow boundaries of relationship, nationality, race, or even the concerns of the physical world. The poems are intellectual as well as mystical.
This uniqueness comes through the manner in which the poet exploits the potential of words and images, in keeping with his style as seen in his previous collections. His images come from a wide range of cultural traditions, as seen from the poems entitled Hamlet and Tiresias Waiting, seminal characters in Western literature seen from a new perspective. His familiarity with Eastern traditions comes through the example of Mirza Ghalibs Lament, the title character being the most important of Indo-Muslim poets.
This work is an important addition to Ghulam-Sarwar Yousofs previous published work in the form of poetry, drama and short fiction.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Partridge Publishing Singapore
• Release date: Nov 17, 2015
• ISBN: 9781482854527

GHULAM-SARWAR YOUSOF

Written by an expert on Malay traditional performing arts, One Hundred and One Things Malay will appeal to a wide range of readers, both experts and novices alike. Written in a casual, almost friendly style, and embellished with photograph as well as sketches, it will be particularly useful to those who have little or no previous understanding of Malay culture and its values.

Book preview

Reflection at Dawn

Rain … all my senses

apprehend the fiery

excitement of ageless trees

restive with the weight of green

sunrises on quivering leaves

the glistening flow

of silken water.

Though whispering

in voices seemingly

alien, i know for a certainty

they are conscious

as in the very core of my being

i too am deeply

sentient of unending

connections, unspeakable

fellowships.

Hangzhou Image

Sipping green tea, misty

at a shady Hangzhou cove

on the moon bridge

across a still reticent

stream of the lake a slender

figure glides by, silent

umbrella sheltering, her

reversed double, striking

yellow in a watery mirror.

Is it the flimsy

shade of a mysterious

maiden, i wonder, blushing

angel, or golden deity?

Rising Sun

The rising sun

brings hope of another day

from behind mountains

across horizons

beyond time itself

but the unrelenting darkness

remains in recesses

of the heart

beyond the sun’s reach,

unending hunger

for another light

invisible, overwhelming

infinitely softer

than the floating sun, lighter

than light itself.

Destiny

From night’s bed of soft blackness

a triumphant sun emerges

red on waves of living fire

though the assurance of what may be

remains uncertain this is clearly

not just another day

but one ripe with untold potentiality

the intimidating colours, fascinating,

are not customary shades of dawn

matching the feathery

breath of early whispering breezes

or voices of lilting birds

in every relentless second of the sun’s

journeying from fire to fire there is

an ominous balance between brilliancy

and destruction

that may yet change destiny.

Exhilaration

as i walked in the garden

perfumed with the scent

of