The Caged Bird Cries...
i do not know why a caged bird sings?
or shall it sing when caged?
or shall it cry instead?
i know cages, and i have met some birds,
i have seen birds on cages
and i have heard them sing on trees
i have listened them when caged
it is not a song, but a cry,
it is not a dance, but a struggle,
it is not a poem, but the saddest prose.
poem by Ric S. Bastasa
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Related quotes
I know why the caged bird sings
i know why the caged bird sings
it is the only thing it can do
to cheer up the day
the way i write this poem
the only thing i enjoy
to rev up the day
if the day is the cage
that releases this heart
to pen this poem
i would rather be with you
a poem a day to cheer up world
bars do not cages make
they do say and yes
the freest in the street
may be flying into cages
but like a bird, i would sing my songs
to the world each day to help
the caged find a way out of their blues
poem by John Tiong Chunghoo
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings
The free bird leaps
on the back of the wind
and floats downstream
till the current ends
and dips his wings
in the orange sun rays
and dares to claim the sky.
But a bird that stalks
down his narrow cage
can seldom see through
his bars of rage
his wings are clipped and
his feet are tied
so he opens his throat to sing.
The caged bird sings
with fearful trill
of the things unknown
but longed for still
and is tune is heard
on the distant hillfor the caged bird
sings of freedom
The free bird thinks of another breeze
an the trade winds soft through the sighing trees
and the fat worms waiting on a dawn-bright lawn
and he names the sky his own.
But a caged bird stands on the grave of dreams
his shadow shouts on a nightmare scream
his wings are clipped and his feet are tied
so he opens his throat to sing
The caged bird sings
with a fearful trill
of things unknown
but longed for still
and his tune is heard
on the distant hill
for the caged bird
sings of freedom.
poem by Maya Angelou
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Caged Bird
The free bird leaps
on the back of the wind
and floats downstream
till the current ends
and dips his wings
in the orange sun rays
and dares to claim the sky.
But a bird that stalks
down his narrow cage
can seldom see through
his bars of rage
his wings are clipped and
his feet are tied
so he opens his throat to sing.
The caged bird sings
with fearful trill
of the things unknown
but longed for still
and his tune is heard
on the distant hill
for the caged bird
sings of freedom
The free bird thinks of another breeze
and the trade winds soft through the sighing trees
and the fat worms waiting on a dawn-bright lawn
and he names the sky his own.
But a caged bird stands on the grave of dreams
his shadow shouts on a nightmare scream
his wings are clipped and his feet are tied
so he opens his throat to sing
The caged bird sings
with a fearful trill
of things unknown
but longed for still
and his tune is heard
on the distant hill
for the caged bird
sings of freedom.
poem by Maya Angelou (1994)
Submitted by Dan Costinaş
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Sympathy
I know what the caged bird feels, alas!
When the sun is bright on the upland slopes;
When the wind stirs soft through the springing grass,
And the river flows like a stream of glass;
When the first bird sings and the first bud opes,
And the faint perfume from its chalice steals--
I know what the caged bird feels!
I know why the caged bird beats his wing
Till its blood is red on the cruel bars;
For he must fly back to his perch and cling
When he fain would be on the bough a-swing;
And a pain still throbs in the old, old scars
And they pulse again with a keener sting--
I know why he beats his wing!
I know why the caged bird sings, ah me,
When his wing is bruised and his bosom sore,--
When he beats his bars and he would be free;
It is not a carol of joy or glee,
But a prayer that he sends from his heart's deep core,
But a plea, that upward to Heaven he flings--
I know why the caged bird sings!
poem by Paul Laurence Dunbar
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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A Beautiful Bird That Cannot Escape From The Cage
there is a beautiful bird caged in my house
its flumes are red
its beak of course is black
its claws neat and clean
and cannot scratch
its eyes blank
its feathers dull
(perhaps she is bored to death
but she is still that beautiful bird caged in the heart
of my house)
when she sings
usually in the night before everyone sleeps
everyone hears
what sadness lies in the heart of its
throat
i know that it wants to escape from the cage in the heart of the house
but someone more cruel
wants it caged
forever
there is a beautiful red bird caged in my heart
i want it set free
she understands it well
she wants to be free
i know it too well
but things will just be what it is
there is nothing we can do
she is the beautiful red feathered bird caged
and shall never be free
like the stairs, like the walls, like the beams like the stars
shall this red bird be.
poem by Ric S. Bastasa
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Caged Bird
Right now I feel like a bird
Caged without a key
Everyone comes to stare at me
With so much joy and rivalry
They din't know how I feel inside
Through my smile I cry
They don't know what they're doin' to me
Keeping me from flyin'
That's why I say that
I know why the caged bird sings
Only joy comes from song
She's so rare and beautiful to others
Why not just set her free
So she can
Fly
song performed by by Alicia Keys from Songs In A Minor
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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The Soul Cages
The boy child is locked in the fishermans yard
Theres a bloodless moon where the ocean died
A shoal of nightstars hang fire in the nets
And the chaos of cages where the crayfish lie
Where is the fisherman, where is the goat?
Where is the keeper in his carrion coat?
Eclipse on the moon when the dark bird flies
Where is the child with his fathers eyes?
There are the soul cages these are the soul cages
Hes the king of the ninth world
The twisted son of the fog bells toll
In each and every lobster cage
A tortured human soul
These are the souls of broken factories
The subject slaves of the broken crown
The dead accounting of old guilty promises
These are the souls of the broken town
These are the soul cages these are the soul cages
These are the soul cages these are the soul cages
i have a wager the brave child spoke
The fisherman laughed, though disturbed at the joke
you will drink what I drink but you must equal me
And if the drink leaves me standing,
A soul shall go free
i have here a cask of most magical wine
A vintage that blessed every ship in the line
Its wrung from the blood of the sailors who died
Young white bodies adrift in the tide
and whats in it for me my pretty young thing?
Why should I whistle, when the caged bird sings?
If you lose a wager with the king of the sea
Youll spend the rest of forever in the cage with me
These are the soul cages these are the soul cages
These are the soul cages these are the soul cages
A body lies open in the fishermans yard
Like the side of a ship where the iceberg rips
One less soul in the soul cages
One last curse on the fishermans lips
These are the soul cages these are the soul cages
These are the soul cages these are the soul cages
Swim to the light swim to the light
He dreamed of the ship on the sea
It would carry his father and he
To a place they could never be found
To a place far away from this town
A newcastle ship without coals
They would sail to the island of souls
song performed by by Sting
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Jodi Jante Chao Tumi
(If you want to know)
He plays this Hemanta
Song and asks me
If I want to know
How much pain he has
I should go and ask
A caged bird,
To gauge the depth of his tears,
I should go and ask
The submerged lotus.
Little does he know
That I don’t want to know
Anything at all.
There was a time
When I wished to know it all.
But then he told me
Friendship is all about forwards.
No queries, no replies.
That’s what all his friends do.
Why don’t I too?
Now, even if he wishes
That I ask him,
Or I would like to know him…
The depth of his pain and tears,
I now know that
I don’t want to know anything.
Yes, Hemanta sings well.
The words are nice…
The song is nostalgic.
But it fails to melt me.
There was a time,
Every word and every song
I heard with him,
It touched me somewhere
Deep down there,
Just because he played it for me.
Now, even if he tries
Or I try,
Those feelings have just gone away
Our friendship has ebbed away
And given way
To some sort of
Animosity that
Has caged us like that bird
Has submerged us like that lotus
And we cannot fly away,
Nor can we breathe easy
In these murky waters…
Of our stale relationship.
song, lyrics by Aparna Chatterjee
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Whenever I see birds caged in a home!
Whenever I see birds caged in a home-
With small colourful birds behind the bars
Screaming pathetically and crying for freedom
Fluttering their wings in a feverish pitch
Not caring for the seeds or the cup of water inside
And wounding their wings and beaks
As they dash against the unyielding bars
With full of fright, anger and despair in eyes
Wasting what little energy they have in futile attempts
Cursing their fate amidst the heartless owners
Who boast to all visitors of their love of birds
Proudly stating as their presentation to their children-.
I fume and call upon God to curse their dear children
For a life behind sturdy prison bars at once
To let them learn the hardest way a caged life!
I declare now that anyone who enjoys caged birds
Assures a prison sentence for his descendants
And acquire a disease that would torment him at every step
And he would never have a peaceful life or death!
Oh..how cruel it is to see in markets tens of rare breeds
Stacked in small cages in blistering heat and with improper feed! Alas! what this blue cross does?
Have they closed their eyes and ears to this cruelty?
Just for the assumed pleasure of your kids
Do not break the wings and throats of tiny songsters!
O foolish folks! don't you hear their curses on your family!
O idiots! you are not filling your chambers with their warbling
But with their cries of anguish from the pits of abdomens!
If God fails to curse you take my curse, O folks who love caged souls! ; You shall suffer from incurable diseases
And ever walk in the shadow of death!
And you pass this curse on to your descendants too!
Take seriously this clarion call on behalf of winged folks
And release them to the free winds and blue skies!
Gain your joy in their songs from their hideouts of green trees!
-
S.CHANDRA KALAADHAR
poem by Sundaram Chandrakalaadhar
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A Dreaming Bird in Caged
A Dreaming Bird in Caged
By: Adam M. Snow
My eyes be blind to thee,
My heart cold like a December morn.
Could condescension be,
A merit of a scorn?
My ethereal pain scourge my heart,
Thoughts of you lost in pass
You beckon my soul from the start,
I might obey, but not surpass.
If I may live not a bird in caged,
Who sings to please but dreams to be free.
My every moments aged,
And I still blind to see,
I'm not myself,
Just a bird on your shelf.
poem by Adam M. Snow
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Poem about Poetry - Poetry's wings clipped
the bird they cage
to study its songs
becomes the cage
that melts down a
heart of freedom
the day they caged
the bird was the day
its songs went awry
poetry is the bird
that carries our freedom
song up to the sky
soaring with the clouds
shimmers in the sea
rustling with the leaves
shrilling with the crickets
hooting with the owls
birds need no teacher
to teach it sing its poem
spiders need no teacher
to teach it spin its web
the first poem
sprang from the fountain
of the human's heart
it flows a crystal clear stream
that shines with their
love, hope and dreams
the day they
started confining
poetry to the
classroom,
dissecting
it like a surgeon
was the day poetry's wings
were clipped
poem by John Tiong Chunghoo
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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The Cage
you broke the bread
we drank the wine
your lip was bleedin' but it was fine
come on inside babe
across the line
i love you more than i
but then this bird just flew away
she was never meant to stay
oh to keep her caged would just delay the spring
you broke your word
now that's a lie
we had a deal that you would try
come on inside girl
i think it's time
high time we drew the line
but then this bird just flew away
while i looked the other way
oh to keep her caged would just delay the spring
you broke my soul dear
you stole the plot
you left an empty shot
there's nothing left here
cos you took the lot
an empty cage is all i've got
cos when your bird has flown away
she was never meant to stay
oh to keep her caged would just delay the spring
to keep her caged would just delay the spring
song performed by by Travis from The Invisible Band
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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The Flightless Bird
Slavery was the nature, caged within,
Seeing the sun rays penetrate it wonders,
Upon which strategy shall I escape this cage,
Upon which wisdom shall I,
See the sun and not the rays,
The bird with fluffy feathers did ponder,
Unto its master it cried,
Brought food but it seeked freedom,
To cage the bird was love he claimed,
To be caged, such love was hate it pondered,
Caged without hope, the flightless bird
Such freedom was vain for the bird,
That prison cell used to be a shelter,
To be loved, in a different way,
Engulfing itself in its loose wings,
Dreaming things it never saw,
Seeing life it never experienced,
Searching peace which it never had,
To rest in that moment of anguish,
The master said to cage is to love,
The bird cried to cage is to slave
My thoughts were painted all over,
Looking there, she might just cove over,
Feeling the passion when she came closer,
Will she ever set me free, in this cage I suffer
Unto to me is like a flightless bird,
Caged in vacuum I feel so bad,
To love me you ought to think instead,
To leave me you ought to think you had
The more the sky is seen,
The more the ray come unto my sight,
The more you hold the cage,
The more I desire a rescue,
Unto that day shall I wait,
To fly and see the sky and the sun
poem by Gaylord Munemo
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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To Maya Angelou
I am a man, whose fire you lit
Honesty, true life be told
The classic ‘Phenomenal Woman’
To “I Know why the caged bird sing”
A fire was lit, my pen sings!
poem by Charles Jagongo Ogola
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The Birds Chattering Inside Your Mouth...
the birds in your mouth
chatter, one bird has blue feathers
and it makes the sweetest song,
the white bird keeps mum over
all these caged noise,
perhaps it understands the language
of the soul,
there is a brick red sparrow
looking out the window
it is speaking in tongues
as i listen attentively and watch all these
within the fences of your face
i feel, but i have to be honest
there is nothing that i understand,
i do not wish to
i have had enough, of those blue, red,
and white birds.
but they must all agree that it is not the song
not their songs, but their
common cage, for not one of them
has uttered the nicest word in the
history of captives,
freedom.
poem by Ric S. Bastasa
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Bird’s Song
Swim through oceans of air
Birds keep time up there
And spend their days winging
Through forests of clouds, singing
Hymns of nature’s style
Fluttering away all the while
Dancing with angels in the sky
Dancing, dancing as they fly
Through fields of blue
Just to sing their song for you.
Mountains of clouds all about
Saviors in times of drought
Gather up the tears you cry
Into your reservoir in the sky
And listen to the birds sing
Listen for the song in everything
From the forests to the sea
From the bird to the bee
Listen and the song is there
Nature sings everywhere.
The sun rejoices each new day
But it rises in the usual way
To wake up the world with beams of light
And to conquer the darkness of night
But still the birds sing their song
A tribute to the day that’s long
And travel through fields of blue
Just to sing their song for you
And then when all has gone away
They’ll sing for you some other day.
poem by Jamie Collins
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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The compelled mother loves her child as the caged bird sings. The song does not justify the cage nor the love the enforcement.
quote by Germaine Greer
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Who Is that Sing in me!
All the time listen to that great singer,
The great song, great lyrics sung with great melody,
Someone sings in me and everyone,
' I am you and you are me,
Come and see, we are one! '
But how in this turbulent flow of life,
Is it true, everyone listen this?
Some say caged bird sings,
Some say it is song of soul,
Some say it has a song and it sings,
some try to listen it, some say, when I have my own song how can I listen it?
Fantastic song it is, it the song of the divine,
Song of a dreamer, song of the captain of life,
some listen to it and forget what they are,
Some listen to it and follow the singer,
Some only try to find,
who is the singer,
Only a few can see the singer,
Look at the singer, listen the song,
Where one will be when absorbed by that divine song,
The song that enchanted me
The song that enchant everyone,
It is the God that sings,
' Ah, come to me,
Oh my child, wakeup from dream,
In this dream you are playing,
You are thinking, that you play at things,
wakeup and see, it is I am that playing!
Your sorrows are mine,
My sorrows are yours,
your body is not that cage,
It is my own temple, where I am playing my
own game! '
'Where you want to go,
You are not caged anytime
You only restricted yourself
Building a cage, you yourself sat inside
Then closed the door of cage
And that is the foolishness separated us'
'Oh dear child open the door at least that of window
of heart!
You went on sail, setting your own map,
But lured by various destinations,
One better than another, lost the plan and map,
Wonder and wander
here and there for
millions of years,
But had you listened my eternal song,
That has all maps and information,
You would have been with me as per the schedule
Only your own fall to attraction,
You lost your bag and baggage,
Whenever you lost that, you acquired new one,
But none of the bag had no map,
This time you are with the right one,
Right map, Radio, T.V., intranet and internet,
Just turn to me tuning to my station
Switching to my protocol and IP address,
Click at the linK
You feel, all fall and pain,
you find medicine outside
your ego,
Just cleanse It with tears of love,
Just apply cream of faith, go to work with head phones on in your ears,
Go to work which bring peace! '
'Where you are always free,
Don't kill my spirit, only come and sing with me,
My eternal song, come with me,
Oh my child, I am you and you are me,
Let us be one and sing, we are one in love,
We are always were not different,
We make our voice strong and loud so that,
Captains of missing ships can listen us,
Be my relay station helping my song to reach all! '
This is that song,
that eternal song,
sung by Almighty
in every heart!
The heart is chorus,
Is that source
Where He built
His temple and not a
cage to keep singing bird
in captivity or exile!
I am that his son now realised
I am that foolish
ungrateful son
put that infinite
eternal well wisher,
Melodious singer
My own father
Behind the bars!
poem by Ramdas Bhandarkar
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I know why the caged bird sings.
quote by Maya Angelou
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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O human fate
Wind blew, birds flew,
Left the nest vacant
In search of a safe place
To lay the eggs: nascent
In a deep dense forest,
Peacefully lay and rest,
Wait till new arrivals fest
Sylvan to greet innocent
Air, birds, water and cloud
They can move freely
Without visa and passport
We are caged in, we can't
Who has made the Nations
And why are we caged?
Who raised the unseen wall,
With guns that stops even saint?
Is peace a social, political,
Religious, monstrous cant?
Or we are all to follow and accept
The follies of our madness: A faint
"O human fate! Thou meanest of animals"
poem by Aftab Alam Khursheed
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