mujhe malum hai
tum ne mujhe bachpan se pala tha

bahut raaton ko tum jage the
aur tum ne meri aankhon mein apne khwab rakhe the

kabhi jatak kathaen dastanen
aur kabhi tarikh ke qisse sunae the

mujhe harfon ko jab pahchanna aaya tha
tum ne sab sahife aur wo sari kitaben

jo tumhaara zindagi-bhar ka asasa thin
mujhe padhne ko di thin

aur wo tum the mujhe chaaron dishaon mein
safar karna sikhaya

main kabhi kashi kabhi mathura
kabhi makke madine ghumta rahta

kabhi baghdad istanbul pahuncha
aur kabhi main ne samarqand-o-bukhara mein qadam rakkha

kabhi main isfahan aur najd-o-kufe mein phira
jab muddaton ke baad wapas laut kar aaya to

gautam ja chuke the
ram ayodhya mein nahin the

tum kisi ek qabr mein soe hue the
aur mere sath

ganga ro rahi thi