इमानजमान भएको मान्छे गिरेको साह्रै नराम्रो
बरू ताक्छ कुलघरानको दैलो चोरी जारी लादैन

०७
कस्कोलागि मर्नुबाँच्नु कस्कोलागि जिउनु फेरि ?
कस्कोलागि जित्नुहार्नु कस्कोलागि पिउनु फेरि ?

केही छैन आफ्नो जीवन सून्य सून्य बाँचिरा’छु
केको पर्दा च्यात्नु साथी केको आस्था सिउनु फेरि ?

०८
पहिलो प्रश्न कुवाबाट किन आकाशमात्र हेर्यौ ?
दोस्रो प्रश्न आगोलार्इ किन प्रकाशमात्र हेर्यौ ?

जान्दाजान्दै हुण्डरीले हामीलार्इ उडाइसक्यो
तेस्रो प्रश्न हुण्डरीलार्इ किन वतासमात्र हेर्यौ ?

एउटा दुःख्दा चोट दुबैमा
खुसी बाँचेस् गोडी यो प्रेम

स्मरण होस सधै हजुरलार्इ
किन बाँच्नु फोडी यो प्रेम ?

सातै जुनी नि बाँच्नु सँगै
नहिड्नु साथी छोडी यो प्रेम

छापेर यस्तो लाहाको तस्विर
नबाँच्नु खोटो मोडी यो प्रेम !!

स्वादै नभाका जन बोलि चल्थे
हीयो बिनाकै अघि वाक्य बोल्थे ।
गूणै बिनाको सब चीज कस्तो
बोल्थे सबैले अघि बोल निस्तो ।।

अर्थै बिनाको सब चीज सस्तो
ठान्यौ तिमीले नकि होस यस्तो ।
नाना थरीको नमिठो हटाई
गोड्मेल् गरेरै रसिलो बनाई ।।

भाषा उभीयो नि एकै थलामा
बोलिन्छ विश्वै भर एक् गलामा ।
भानू उदायौ पछि काव्य लेख्यौ
गाँस्यौ तिमीले ति सबै मिलायौ ।।

बाजे, तिमीले शुविचार धारी
उर्लेर काव्यादि अनेक भारी ।
चाखेर माधुर्य पृती रसायौ
संसार झल्मल्ल गरी सजायौ ।।

त्यस्तै तिमीले रचेर खारी
नेपाल संसार उतीर्ण पारी
ताजा बनाई नगर उमारी
देशै फुलाई सब लोक तारी ।।

राखेर घनघोर बनोट लीपी
ल्यायौ नि रामायणझैं शुकीर्ती
ब्रमाण्ड सारा भरिपूर्ण पारी
कालो धमीलो नि उतारि घारी ।।

सौभाग्य तीर्खालु बनी दिनाले
पूज्यै छ सारा तिर आज भाषा
पूजा छ आजै युगमा तिमी छौ
भानू छ यूग्मा चिनिने शुकामै ।।

इन्द्रबज्रा छन्दमा

I thought it was an insect which I used to see inconsiderately in my yard in Bhutan. But its pair of tentacles projected from the head like the horn of an ox, were enough to draw my attention. I wished to touch it with care and rescue from the risk but impossible coz I really didn’t know what to do? It crept with its legs all scratched and bend and once more attempted to fly. Now, it was out of the water and perfectly visible to me. I saw it but fail to identify it. It is an insect, quite a different then the same type in my country. It is quite big and longer in size colored differently.

It has an oval head with a pair of beautiful eyes with elongated mouth in addition to a pair of antennas. It has a log shaped body gradually smaller towards the back. One of the two wings is emaciated out and I know it can never flight again. What a pathetic condition! If this could be the fate of the human individual or even a dog, the cashier in the accountant department of the sophisticated American hospital would get the chance to issue some thousand dollars bill. I thought to take it to home and went to a hand distance from it. I looked to the surrounding; the traffic of vehicle VS peddlers was on its full motion. A bird was singing in the tree nearby. Some squirrels were busy snow bathing on the ground besides the road. A man came enchanting ‘ Life if full of joys ….’ a song by Michael Jackson and went off. Oh! God!! He nearly stepped on it. If his flat shoe would have stepped over the fragile insect, it would turn in to small bread. The police van ran past peeping at me.

I was fully prepared to take the insect home. I know my mom would tell me a lunatic boy. ‘No matter what one says, I will take it home and care as much as I can’ – I whispered myself. I thought to capture a picture before taking it. I took a picture forming the centre focus at its head, took another focusing its shaking wing and another from other side but there was no wing in the photograph. I wished to take the picture with some object from the surrounding in the background so that I can use it as the display screen of my laptop. I was too close to take the picture as I wanted. So, I went at least forty feet to take the desired picture. I was sectioning the best composition in the photograph; meanwhile a black crow dived over the insect and flew away. Alas! The naughty crow fooled me and ate it away. The scene of the survival of the fittest finally dragged my conscience back to the road of life. I wish I could catch the crow and take the insect out warning him not to repeat again.

सधै रुन्छु सम्झिसम्झि, छाती घाइते हुन्छ
संसारभरि दिमाग झुल्दा, तिम्रो याद आउँछ

जहाँ जन्मे त्यही मरुँ, भन्छ मेरो हियो
दुनियाँले माटो भुल्दा, तिम्रो याद आउँछ

राखेको छु अतितहरु, संगालेर सिरानीमा
परायका बेंशी डुल्दा, तिम्रो याद आउँछ

देश के हो मेरालागि, नसोचेर पिढीं ढल्यो
मातृत्वको आस्था शुल्दा, तिम्रो याद आउँछ

वीर मर्छ बरु कुशासनको भजन गाउँदैन
कि मार्छु दुश्मन कि मर्छु उतै खोकेर जाँदैछु

मुक्तिको बाटो बडारी काँडा हाँसेर हिँड्नलाई
सम्मेमा वैरी उठाई बन्दुक ठोकेर जाँदैछु

निसानी लिई लक्ष्यमा हिँड्न भुल्दिन झुक्दिन
गर्जेर लडौं नहारौं युद्ध घोकेर जाँदैछु

विदाइको क्षण कोरेको गजल छपाउन नभुल्नु
थिएन रहर अहिलेलाई कलम रोकेर जाँदैछु

When the rumor came in 2006 that the USA gonna resettle around sixty thousands Bhutanese Refugees in to United States of America from the refugees camps in Eastern Nepal. It was debated for and against by Bhutanese Refugees in the Camps. Many opined that USA by itself is ‘ U Start Again’ so all who will resettle will have a new beginning of life. Other opined that those who get resettled into USA will become a bonded labor in the factory despite their ability and educations. I was wondered at that time, what frame of reference enabled the refugees to argue with such perceptions?

Refugees from Bhutan have been resettling in to almost all the states of USA. There are around 300 refugees resettled in Kansas by Catholic Charities of Northeast Kansas. Catholic Charities who resettles Bhutanese has the provision of three months care under the plan of early self sufficiency. Refugees on arrival will get good care under the coordination of Kansas Bhutanese Community and Catholic Charities for the defined period of Time. The activists of the Kansas Bhutanese Community work extra hours to help the newly arrived fellows from Nepal in all the cited areas. Once they inhabit in the new land, refugees will have new hopes as predicted while in the refugee camps. They will have food stamps with Medicaid provided, health screened, necessary help somehow will be provided, but after four months of their arrival they start to give the opinion that it is a big blunder to get resettled.

Catholic Charities works very hard to meet the necessary requirements of this folks form Bhutan. They help to apply for Social Security Card, Employment authorization and other necessary documentations so as to ensure that refugees will have no worries of locating their identities later. After that, the refugees will be compelled to go to the job to make their living. Catholic Charities work hard and refugees get jobs basically in Triumph Food in Missouri and Fed Ex in Olathe. Once they get job, they are expected to make their life by their own.

Now is a good time to make some research about the Bhutanese Refugees resettled in Kansas. Let me talk a bit about the areas which need real attention with careful concentration, otherwise resettled refugees will become burden to the Government departments, the other communities in the localities, and concerned agencies about the refugee folks.

Within a month or a two, refugees are sent to work by the agency but they are never prepared to go to the job. Why? The main reason is they are not habituated with the environment in multiple senses. They need time to understand the traffic, legal systems, community patterns, system of governance, cultural diversities, human lifestyles and other many many concerns they need to focus. Are refugees who are resettled from the camps capable to do all this things within a month?

We know that the Kansas lifestyle is quite sophisticated like in almost all states in America. Learning about the local life style takes months. Refugee folks who are uneducated need years to learn about it. Around 50 % of the refugees are illiterate in English. 25% are students currently going to school, and and remaining 25 % are a bit literate. Is there any program with the Unified government of Kansas City and Wyandotte county, State government of Kansas or Federal Government to address the basic requirements of the Bhutanese refugees in the state?

The refugees have their own religions, cultures and they have their own conservative, traditional and rural frame of references for life. Is the Kansas state government giving some acceptances to these peculiarities that the refugees have brought safe despite challenges up to USA, a heterogeneous world? The Bhutanese individuals evicted out from Bhutan have suffered too much in Bhutan; their life in the refugee camps was more vigorous than the one in Bhutan. Are they liberated now in Kansas from the grip of pains, pathos, agonies and agoraphobias? This is a big concern to be addressed for the sake of the refugee and their future? If the state considers them to be just the immigrants, this will go in vain. At present, 90% of the refugees don’t have their family physician, 50 % of them don’t know how to make their medical appointment because they don’t speak English. At this time of need the state government has not thought of keeping a Community specialist for this community. So, how can we consider that the refugees are resettled with the hope for new life?

When the refuges go to Social Rehabilitation Services (SRS), no interpreter service is provided, the scenario in the Social Security Offices is the same. The biggest problem is that the majority of Bhutanese refugees don’t know how to do the paper works for SRS and other government departments so as to get benefits. Almost 99 % percent of the refugees don’t know how to apply for the Green Card because the application process involved good ability in English and the state law. Don’t we need some community specialists to support this community? Isn’t this a right time to address this concern? Why are the concerned stakeholders ignorant about this deal?

If Obama is not restoring the one time told English Pigs by the ex-prime minister Pushpakamal Dahal Prachanda of Nepal in to American piggeries, the Bhutanese refugees should be given some encouragements to skill oriented training before they are enchained by the knot of jobs. Some privileges should be given to the refugee students who are inneed of support to go to the college and university.

Last week, the US ambassador to Nepal said in a press meet in Kathmandu, that US is preparing to facilitate job oriented skill training to around 1100 Nepalese Youths in the Terai districts of Nepal. If US can do that why is it not doing some merciful considerations to the Bhutanese resettled folks? At least six months of English classes, Driving training, Interpreter Service, and some community Specialists are very much necessary for the Bhutanese resettlers so as to be prepared for the jobs and to secure their future. Even KU Med, where around 300 Bhutanese visit regularly, has only contract interpreters, which has barred providers from addressing the health issues of the refugee resettlers. Can’t KU Med hire a couple of full time interpreters to facilitate better health services?

The symptoms of frustrations, bipolar mental disorder state, and anxiety trodden disappointments have started to be seen in the community. Aged people are restricted indoors, are they pet animals to be confined indoors? Inability to practice their culture, no access to religious practices, community sickness due to indoor confinement etc. have produced a very serious situation in the refugee community in Kansas inneed of an immediate address.

If the state doesn’t bring any effective programs to support this community, the Bhutanese folks will have their degraded life further deteriorated in the future. Day by day, increasing number of refugees have been getting resettled, does the state want them to express their distressful opinion ‘wherever we go, our fate accompanied us’.

If they declare organization with the support of just 16 states, it clearly forecasts that they are exercising their lust to politically fool the innocent Bhutanese resettlers and hoodwink the international communities, as they in majority are habituated with this sort of hatred since the inception of Bhutanese politicism in the exile.

The other major concerns are:

1. Why are they seemed nasty to form the OBCA as the national institution when it is not felt necessary by the majority of the sates in USA? This is the time we need to work in the individual state level. We don’t need OBCA right now that is why only a few mobilized states participated the so called convention. We need to keep in mind that the water doesn’t boil at 50 degree Celsius, as one time well said by Mr. DJ Khaling in the Refugee Camp is Sanischare.

2. It could be a big blunder, if they wishfully decide to form an organization forcefully and decentralize to other states. Please use your capacity to form an organization. You don’t have the right in USA to represent California unless you have voting members representing or written authorization from the state stakeholders. If only sixteen states participated, how can you declare Organization of Bhutanese Communities in America??? Is it logical to underestimate other 66 % of majority of communities in the United States and debate in the bylaws as you folks are doing in Georgia now? ?

3. Time and again, it was argued that it is just the time to launch the fielding about the intention that Mr. Bhakti Bhandari is whelming. It can be clearly shown by the participation that we need to set back to state level and start the home work on how we can better represent our respective states.

4. Time and again, it was clearly argued that the concept is really really good and worth anticipating but the timing to go OBCA is inappropriate, and wrong at this situation. So, Georgia centered OBCA headed by Mr. Bhandari, please feel the need of the situation when just participated by less than 40 % majority and go back to work like how ABA is working.

5. Mr. Basnet from ABA seems more practical because he shouldn’t organizationally flicker when someone self claiming as the leader of the world intentionally intends to dialogue for unification. How dear he would unify ABA which has been effective some years now with an organization which is yet to be declared??

6. It is revealed that only a few individuals of even Georgia have the support to this whiming of Mr. Bhandari and the party. It would be better if BNS as Shiva Chettri suggested works in this areas rather than live blogging the plight of minority. Small news about this function should be enough in quenching the right to information of the Mass Bhutanese in the world. But the effort that BNS garner in bringing any issues of public concerns in the open air is wholeheartedly anticipating.

7. This is the time we need to have our dream to have been dreamt with clarity and uniformity. If Georgia on 20th June has an organization declared with the participatory consent of less than 40 % majority, it will be clear that it is an antagonistic zeal of egoism and self supremacy. What can be suggested at this time is: let us keep this effort to be the home work and continue in the individual state level. We can form an Ad hoc committee, which will work in forming the bylaws and necessary roadmap grounding for the formation of OBCA by 2013 minimum.

8. The formative guidelines may be: All the states will have their own state level Bhutanese Community registered in the State by 2012 with the defined number of members. Then only we can think of going nationally. The national campaign should have a bigger plight like organizing Bhutanese to put a common effort so as to rebuild Bhutan politically, economically and developmentally. Another may be establishing unified identity of all the Bhutanese for the national concerns to be canalized in to mainstream Bhutanization as multicultural, multiethnic, multilingual and diverse kingdom. The third may be reconciliation of the Bhutanese in USA in to the main stream happiness of Bhutanese citizens inside Bhutan. Then we need to focus on the issues we are bringing at this time. As far as the individual states policies and laws are concerned, we can address the concerns we have highlighted on the background of the formation of so called OBCA, just in the state level.

9. It is never bad to form an organization but we enjoy forming just the logo rather than executing the principles we set in the dawn of inception. Let us continue our cat-casketing philosophy we have carried in the culture from refugee camps in to USA.

10. If we have the habit of getting ourselves contented, then we need to promote what we have already in the existence. The better would be Mr. Bhakti Bhandari joins ABA and starts bringing changes and modification from therein rather than forming an organization dividing Bhutanese folks. I would like to appeal the the Bhutanese folks that “Let us be the trusted and represented member of an organization rather than becoming the president of self.”

ए जण्ड राजा !
मेरो चेतनामा व्यालीन टाँस्न सक्छौ ?
स्थिति अनुरूप शल्यक्रिया गर्न सक्छौ ?
कि तोपले धुजा धुजा विष्फोट गर्न सक्छौ ?
ए ! होइन,
समयले हाम्रो पक्षमा चक्र चलाएको छ
अब आँखाबाट आँसु झर्ने छैन
गफाष्टको भाकामा हामी अब निस्ताउने छैनौं

बारम्बार
तिमीले मनोरञ्जनात्मक शैलीमा
मेरा रोदन—क्रन्दन बलात्कार गरेका छौ
ए जण्ड राजा !
हेर तिमीले के—के गरिसकेका छौ
समय अब गजुर पतनको प्रतिक्षामा छ
अध्यारोतन्त्रले
धिक्कारको पात्र तिमी कहिलेसम्म रहनसक्छौ ?
प्रगतिशील झंकारहरु फैलाउँदै
विश्व आफैमा गतिशील छ
यदि तिमी गर्जियौ र आतंक मच्चायौ भने
अब सावधान !
तिमी भूटानको संग्रालयमा बन्दी बनाइने छौ

This is the translation of the Poem ‘Oh! Tiger King’ by Jeetan Muskan

आफ्नोमात्र भलो सोच्छन् हाम्रा राजनेताहरु
कलामबाटै कलाम बनाउने कलाम बन्नु पर्छ

४.
मैले बिचै ताकेर मुडो भनें
उनले नगिचै ताकेर घुँडो भने

हामी ठिटौलीको होडबाजीमा थियौं
उनको नातीसँगैको मलाई बुडो भने

३.
के लेखें अहिलेसम्म लेख्न चही लेखिरहें
के देखें अहिलेसम्म देख्न चही देखिरहें

खेद्नु भनेकै भाग्नु हो खेदिरहें भागिरहें
के खेदें अहिलेसम्म खेद्न चही खेदिरहें