The Heart is Where We Belong.
– Author Haroon Rashid

We always feel that life is there,
Somewhere, where we want to search for.
But why do we forget that life is within,
The Peace is within, the charm, the spark,
The light and the dark, everything is within.

What do we search outside for?
What is beyond our horizons? Nothing.
There’s nothingness in the air,
There is no flair in the hair.
Everything is in the heart,
And heart is where we belong.
And the heart is with you.
Yes, with you.

And with you, this spark, this light,
This charm, this life, everything comes out.
So live your best life,
Give your heart where it belongs,
And live the life, love the life, and feel alive.
—Written by Author Haroon Rashid

Author Haroon Rashid – Biography

Haroon Rashid is an internationally celebrated author, poet, and scholar renowned for his profound literary works and contributions to global peace and education. He gained worldwide recognition for his poetry book We Fell Asleep in One World and Woke Up in Another, which deeply resonated with readers across cultures and was later translated by Nobel Prize Laureate 2024 Eva Petropoulou Lianou. His book Author Haroon Rashid Quotes further solidified his reputation as a writer who masterfully blends wisdom, spirituality, and human emotions into his work.

Haroon’s literary achievements have earned him numerous accolades, including the United Nations Karmaveer Chakra Award and the Global Peace Award from the Mother Teresa International Foundation. His influence extends beyond literature, as he has been honored with an Honorary Degree in Humanity from La Haye, France, and the Golden Eagle Award for Literary Excellence. He has proudly represented India at various international literary and peace events, including the Paper Fiber Fest and the International Congress of Education in Mexico.

Beyond writing, Haroon Rashid is an advocate for sustainable development, serving as an ambassador for SDG4 (Quality Education) and SDG13 (Climate Action). His works emphasize themes of peace, cultural harmony, and personal transformation through enriching humanity. As the National Vice Chairman of Youth India at the Mother Teresa International Foundation, he actively promotes youth engagement in education and humanitarian efforts.

Haroon Rashid’s influence has reached global platforms, with invitations to speak at prestigious events in Mexico and Greece, and features in O, The Oprah Magazine and The Oprah Winfrey Show. Through his writing and activism, he continues to inspire millions, leaving an indelible mark on literature and global consciousness.

Visible, For Ellyn (Maybe?)

As I wait for our nearly ten hour conversation to upload

This poem is always already published in heaven

with respects to Patti Smith

“Oh wow”-Ellyn Maybe

“There’s something in the collective paw of the world”-also Ellyn (“Whiff of Wonder”)

So where do I begin

of all the

Encomiums pinned to the

goddess fold this is among

The flowers

the surface of the turf of the waves of the silver mine

The dramatic unfolding of the rose within the heart of matter melting into infinity

The remarkable steep climb down/up a very short/long limbed cliff

That makes the counterintuitive look like:

The breath of God

Or maybe the ear God scratches on its fins

Or maybe the…

Gosh

Golly

So yeah

so yeah

so yeah

(Giggles)

Wow, what a trip, right?

I agree

That was wild!!!

A really intense, pleasurable, purely innocent

walk on the moon’s moon

walk on the star’s spume

Walk along the

Hands of the

Golden clock walk in the

Shade of the garden of the

Fauns

and frankly, fuck

Adam and Eve

Nothing against them, but boy is that mythology

Begging for a reboot ‘

‘

Let’s let lapsarian swim some

Laps at the bottom of Rimbaud’s alchemy of the Word

L’alchemie du verbe

Let’s allow the glow to

Gather at our

Toes let’s

Freeze frame this desolate timeline for once and

All

Let’s make quantum theory look like Santa Claus

Flowing in and out of the chimney of God’s

Hair

Let’s make quantum computing look like if

Iceland

was really

Sweden was really

A

Forest of star-spangled

Elephant meerkats

Let’s turn over

First principles

Let’s unearth

the

Satellites we stole apparently Emily Dickinson

Let’s deface the astral mime-field of

Walt Whitman let’s and

Let’s and

Lettuce

See

What is at the end of

The final fork

Oh beauty of a dream of life, terrible and

wonderful and

throned in blood

Oh verite cinema complex where

dragons hit the

Snuff pipe of radiation

Oh Weimar complex where the

Dusseldorf vampire is doing bumps with

The Sno-cone nose of

Adolf Hister

Let’s turn over a new lava lump

and glow

glow

glow

Like

Fabulous

Opera…

Love is a multiple Folio William Shakespeare’s sonnets

paddled out through the

Desert of the waters of the

Future

Love is a pincushion made of

Elves in a

Sidereal blast you

jogged me at the

Elbow saying

In the end it will

be

Okay in the

End it was our communal landing strip where

Bob Dylan and

Dylan Thomas and

William Blake and

All the other

Rock and roll niggers were

Examining the

World’s largest

Tuning farce inside the

Grimdark nostrils of

the grumbling stones.

Photo credit: Alex S. Johnson, taken from a ten-hour zoom conversation Sunday March 23rd, 2025 or it was a minute.

DR LALIT MOHAN SHARMA ON DR JERNAIL SINGH ANAND ‘S EPIC POEM ‘FROM SIEGE TO SALVATION’

SEIZING THE ESSENCE

Dr. Lalit Mohan Sharma

Having harnessed a creative instinct to compare and contrast, Dr Jernail Singh Anand finds himself in the presence of a thesis, confronts the anti-thesis and arrives at a synthesis between the East and the West,  the ancient and the contemporary, the spiritual and the mundane, actualising in his poetry the conflicting claims of the sacred and the profane,  moral ethical and the narrow personal egotistical, the precious and the spurious. In the preface to the poetic drama, Dr Anand observes that ‘the siege of troy led to the exhibition of great personal  valour and national honorifics, while the Mahabharata shows us the way to immortality through righteous action’. In Invocation, the author juxtaposes the two events :

How the West revels in individual

And the East in a collective destiny for mankind. 

The thirteen Canto poem unravels through interaction between Chorus and Professor as they debate and deliberate in an argumentative manner on the ethical and human consequences of this juxtaposition. Other characters from the epic poems also mark with their appearance the progression in ‘Siege to Salvation’. Even as ‘an impersonal fate directs ‘unquestioning minds’ in terms of religious mythology, Anand has the Professor articulate how poor masses suffer ‘ not only mediaeval obscurity/ But also the identity stricken massacres of modern times’. Ancient time of  the epics or the contemporary scenario, the fate of common man is at the mercy of ‘ vain power’, for it is ‘not only siege of Troy/ But also the siege of human  will’. Professor wonders if ‘ Iliad has no moral framework’. Is it only to ‘settle personal jealousies, not epical issues’. Does Mahabharata concern itself not with victory only, but victory of ‘ good over evil’?  Only beauty of Helen is extolled, but doesn’t it ‘deny her individuality and personal will’ ?  Isn’t such freedom  ‘imparted to Cleopatra/ And other great women of epics/ Like Draupadi and Sita of Ramayana’?

During this juxtaposition between the great epics, Dr Anand raises a sequence of questions and erases a plethora of doubts about the celebrated happenings; 1184 BC events being the reflection of the heroic age Homer recounted in his epic poems, and the Mahabharata, the great Vyas, contemporary to the epic events serialised in his work!  How these great poems impacted Western literature and that of the  East is universally acknowledged. Dr Anand has taken over the audacious approach to access works of Homer and Vyas in a simultaneous gesture of looking at them  as a single imaginative canvas. Consequences are the lavish details Anand presents in this epic drama, leaving the reader with a freedom to arrive at his own conclusions  and reflections.

    Dr Lalit Mohan Sharma

Poet, Translator and Reviewer,

                      Dharmshala, HP.

Old Matmusa

Years later, Matmusa also

He got old like everyone else.

Gather your children for a while,

He also took the donkey.

Telling life one by one,

He remembered his youth.

A hero is a tandoor,

He remembered fondly.

There is beauty in your speech,

Ceramic pot, mill.

Harassment to the police,

There is no doubt about it.

You are a ready-made mold,

Matmusa said that.

You are a true and wise seeker,

Matmusa said that.

Regarding the organization,

It was difficult when I was a teenager.

In the roar of the lion,

He said I have a hand.

So that’s all

Set the event.

Sozlan is much more than that,

It made sense.

The sound of children

They look at each other.

Matmusavayo is waiting and exclaiming,

He combs his hair.

The main character is the end,

The conclusion is gone.

Sozi hit towards youth,

It’s good to remember the past.

My children, my tulips,

Don’t be curious, never.

Because now people

The broken heart is narrow!

Nilufar Anvarova, a student of the 8th grade of the creative school named after Erkin Vahidov, Margylan city

Our Jadid Grandpares!

Called for enlightenment,

Shone like the sun. 

He thought of the people, 

Our Jadid Grandpares! 

How to get to Olay, 

All are the popular hand. 

The words are close to the nearest, 

Our Jadid Grandpares!

Fitratu, Avloni

Cholponu, Kadyrids

Aqilu wise bii

Our Jadid Grandpares!

They are an ointment, 

It is as if the heart is treated. 

Stored in our hearts, 

Our Jadid Grandpares!

Fergana region

Margilan

Erkin Vahidov Shite of Creativity 

8th D class

Farzona Hoshimova

At dusk 

I undress my curtains 

The sun smiles at my bed

As I kisses the rays of hope 

The morning calls out my name 

Awakening with golf dimples 

Positive thoughts – river in my heart 

Flowing like a peaceful flood 

That is a mirror that reflects/shines future 

I spread myself 

spray my wings and fly 

As a smile hugs me

Every single day I rise after the short death

Please share your thoughts about the future of literature.

Literature, as a human expression, is in constant evolution. As we move toward a digital and globalized future, literature continues to expand its boundaries, adopting new formats like ebooks, interactive narratives, and virtual platforms. However, I believe its essence remains intact: to tell stories, express emotions, and share human experiences.

I think the future of literature will also be shaped by cultural diversity, the inclusion of previously marginalized voices, and accessible knowledge. While some fear that new technologies may overshadow the depth and rigor of traditional literature, I believe these tools can be used to bring literary works to a broader audience.

As both a poet and a translator, I feel that translation has a great impact on cultural exchange, and poetry around the world somehow preserves beauty and humanity in this chaotic and fast-paced world.

When did you start writing? 

I started writing poetry at the age of 15. I would jot down random images, describing what I saw and how I felt about it. At the time, these were merely disconnected images, but later, I began to give them more coherence. That was my process of creative discovery.

The Good and the Bad. Who is winning nowadays?

 Good and evil are complex and relative concepts that have coexisted since the beginning of humanity. The perception of who is winning depends on how and from where one observes. While acts of evil or injustice tend to be noticeable and visible, there are also countless acts of kindness, solidarity, and resilience that often go unnoticed.

Nowadays, we face global challenges such as wars, conflicts, and social inequalities, which might seem to give evil an upper hand. However, we are also witnessing inspiring movements that promote high values. I believe that instead of asking who is winning, it’s better to focus our energy on choosing to be agents of change within our own spheres of influence, no matter how small they might appear.

How many books have you written, and where can we find your books?

So far, I have written and published three poetry books:

El cuerpo de la duda (Editorial Publicarte, Caracas, Venezuela, 2013)

Transfigurar es un país que amas (Editorial Dos Islas, Miami, United States, 2020)

La larga noche de las jaurías (Editorial Nautilus, Spain, 2023)

I am currently working on a new book. Some of my books are available on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/-/es/Transfigurar-pa%C3%ADs-que-amas-Editorial/dp/B08L8ZHHYH

 The book. E-book or Hardcover book. What will be the future?

I believe the future of books should not be seen as a competition between electronic and hardcover formats; I think both can coexist. E-books offer advantageous accessibility, while hardcover books provide a tactile and emotional experience that many readers (myself included) deeply appreciate. In my particular case, I value hardcover books immensely. They occupy a special place in my home and in my life; I treasure them as art objects, as part of a great historical and cultural heritage, and, of course, for the unique sensory experience they provide.

 A wish for 2025.

My wish for 2025 is for humanity to move toward a more just, equitable, and peaceful future. I hope we find more reasons to unite than to divide and that every person has the opportunity to achieve their dreams in peace and harmony. On a personal level, I also hope for a year of growth, creativity, and gratitude.

A phrase from your book:

“The hand in the shadow possesses almost everything,

but it will always thirst

 for what it cannot take from you.

 Your resistance, your love,

your unique fire,

unextinguishable.”

Mariela Cordero. Valencia, Venezuela. She is a lawyer, poet, writer, and translator, and has received several literary distinctions. She has published the poetry collections: El cuerpo de la duda (Editorial Publicarte, Caracas, Venezuela, 2013), Transfigurar es un país que amas (Editorial Dos Islas, Miami, United States, 2020), and La larga noche de las jaurías (Editorial Nautilus, Spain, 2023).

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