The poems “When‘I’ Expands” by Manisha Lohia and ‘The Pause that Expands” by Suma Cheluvaraju offer a reflective dialogue on the nature of personal growth and self-discovery.
Lohia’s poem is a declaration of ultimate unity, where the self shatters its physical boundaries to become one with the universe, an ecstatic realization that is immediate and complete.
Cheluvaraju’s work, in contrast, details the challenging, introspective journey to that expansive state, finding a potent tool in the pause—a moment of stillness and reflection that allows the inner voice to quiet doubt and prepare the self for radical acceptance of life. Together, they illustrate the exhilarating destination of spiritual oneness and the vital, reflective steps required to get there.
When ‘I’ Expands
~ Manisha Lohia
When the “I” expands
my boundaries blur
edges fade
I see the world with newfound eyes
A reflection of the soul’s deep sighs
the whispers of the heart
the echoes of the mind
In this vastness
I am lost and found
a droplet in the ocean
yet unbound
free to roam
Explore the depths
of my own unknown,
discover hidden truths
and ancient wisdom!
The walls that once confined me
crumble down
as I embrace the beauty all around
The trees the birds the wind the sea
All whisper secrets
of a reality
That is both familiar and strange
In this expansion
I am remade
A canvas of possibilities
A story yet untold
The brushstrokes of experience
The colours of my soul
A masterpiece unfolding
As I feel myself complete!
I am no longer small
No longer confined
I am the universe
and the universe is mine
I am the stars
The moon
The sun
I am the earth
The trees
The birds
I am everything
And everything is me!!
The Pause That Expands
~ Suma Cheluvaraju
I heard the word expand
To make something bigger than my thoughts
I started using the word ‘expand’
Indicating something is beyond my thoughts
People who tried to control me
Started saying, you cannot expand
People who trusted me
Gave me liberty to spread my wings
People I looked up to
Had imaginations wild and bold
And…I paused…for the first ever time
Do I have a choice to expand?
The inner me whispered
Feeling shrunk: oh, you cannot expand
Someone said, you must be strong enough
But I am not strong at all
Someone said, you need a chance
But my doubtful mind said, you need to be lucky
Someone said, you need people who love you
But my heart said, you are just on your own
Shrunken in these thoughts, tears rolling down
A feeble voice from within said, hey, pause…
You did not come this far to give up
But it was to win over life
You did not meet people just to learn the lessons
But it was also to accompany in that chapter and play your part
It did mean fitting into other judgements
But only reveal them to me
Was it easy for you to just BE?
But it was never truly difficult either
This was the other moment I had paused…
In the process, I just looked back
I saw my reflection—blurred, unfamiliar,
A chrysalis shedding its shell of certainty
That was when a thought kindled:
Can you pause to feel the thought
Can you reflect, the feeling of that thought
Can you become aware that action is pushed by feeling?
Can you push the feeling that can just slide away thought?
Can you slide away thought, to avoid the unavoidable?
There was a pause…
And from that night onwards
Irrespective of love, care, judgments, joy, pain, misery
Whatever life has offered, I simply said, I am ready
To be aware
to be mindlessly mindful
To pause
To be the version that only wants to expand
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