Rawaani

Ek nadi, ek sawaal, aur shayad hum sab

Hi Dearest Readers, Welcome back to my page, the place where random conversations are treated like scientific experiments and innocent questions suddenly decide to become life philosophies.

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***Your Free ticket to explore today’s deep ocean thought.***

Today’s topic leans towards a question that I don’t think has a universally correct answer. What’s better? Holding on to who we are and enjoying the life we’ve built, or chasing dreams that may transform us so much that we no longer recognize the version of ourselves we started with?

The thought arrived during a conversation with one of my closest friends. Our discussions have a habit of wandering into unexpected territories. One moment we’re laughing over something completely ridiculous, and the next we’re discussing life as if we’ve accidentally enrolled ourselves in a philosophy class.

Yesterday was one of those days.

Somewhere in the middle of our wonderfully unserious conversation, my brain decided to throw a question into the mix.

“If you were a river, would you choose to merge with the sea or remain a river and enjoy your own identity?”

Without taking even a moment to think, she replied,

“The sea.”

Naturally, I wasn’t done.

“Even if that means losing yourself?”

“Yes.”

And just like that, a simple question turned into a much bigger conversation. As we continued talking, thoughts started flowing, arguments appeared from nowhere, counterarguments followed, and somewhere between all of that, this poem emerged.

Rawaani

Aaj dost se baat karte waqt ek khayal aaya, agar main nadi hoti, toh kya hota mera faisla? Samandar se milkar khud ko bhula leti, ya apni hi haddon mein simat kar behti rehti?

Mere kinaaron ne mujhe umr bhar sambhala, samandar se milne ki kashish ne bhi khoob pukara… Kya apni chhoti si duniya mein muskurati rahun, ya samandar ke aaghosh mein anek kahaaniyan bunne beh jaun?

Ek sawaal aur bhi dil mein ubharta hai baar baar, kya khwaabon ki khatir khud ko khara kar dena munasib hoga is baar?

Dimaag hans kar bola, “Zara hisaab kijiye, mohtarma… Kitni nadiyon ka wajood bach paaya hai aakhir?

Pyaason ke khaatir meethi rehna bhi kahan bacha paaya unhe? Pooja bhi unhe, loota bhi unhe, Zarurat padne par istemaal, phir bekaar bhi kiya unhe.

Suna hai sabko apni marzi se jeene ka haq hai pura, toh phir mere liye sirf apne liye behna kyun hua bura?

Ek darr bhi hai… samandar se milkar bhi, kho dena hoga wajood mujhe.. Naam, pehchaan, parichay sab chod dena hoga piche..

Par… Kya pata mera muqaddar hi samandar se milna ho, kya pata meri pehchaan ka matlab hi apni pehchaan se aage nikalna ho.

Kaun jaane mera naam zaroori bhi hai ya nahi, meri rawaani hi meri pehchaan hai kahin.

Ho sakta hai ghar se door jaakar, apni deh se bichhad kar, boond se saagar tak ka safar hi mera muqaddar bane.

Ab yeh uljhan sirf ek nadi ki kahaani hai… Ya kahin yeh aapki toh nahi? Zara gaur kijiye, janaab, jaaniye apne andar ka sailaab.

The Flow Beyond the River

What fascinated me was how long that one question stayed with us.

For the next ten minutes, we kept circling around the same thought. Was the river losing itself by becoming part of the sea? Or was it simply becoming something larger than itself? Was preserving identity more important, or was growth worth the uncertainty that came with it?

Somewhere in that discussion, we arrived at a thought neither of us had considered at the beginning.

Maybe the river’s identity was never in its name.

Maybe it was always in its water.

A river changes shape throughout its journey. It passes through different landscapes, takes unexpected turns, slows down, rushes forward, and eventually may find itself meeting the sea. Yet despite all those changes, the water continues to flow.

Perhaps we are not very different.

Our roles change. Our dreams change. Our surroundings change. Even our understanding of ourselves evolves with time. The person we were a few years ago is rarely the same person we are today.

Yet something within us keeps flowing through every version we become.

Maybe that is why some dreams are worth pursuing, even when they ask us to leave pieces of our old selves behind.

And perhaps growth is not the loss of identity.

Perhaps growth is simply identity learning how to flow.

Before You Flow Away…

Now I’m curious.

If you were that river standing before the sea, what would you choose?

Would you stay within familiar banks and preserve your identity?

Or would you keep flowing, trusting that becoming part of something larger doesn’t necessarily mean disappearing?

Perhaps this isn’t just a river’s story. Perhaps each of us is quietly deciding where our own current wants to go.

Writers, bring your chaos, your charm, and your half-baked drafts — ***Beyond Lines*** is ready for the beautiful mess. Let’s publish it!

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