Over the past few weeks, I’ve been quietly following Buddhist monks on their Walk of Peace through photos and short reflections shared online. Amid so much happening in the world, their steady footsteps, calm presence, and mindful attention have felt like a quiet light: a small yet powerful reminder of hope, kindness, and reflection. Inspired by these moments, I wanted to share a Tibetan-inspired poetic form called nyamgur for this week’s Poetic Sunday. Traditionally, these “songs of experience” expressed deeply personal spiritual realizations on the Buddhist path, but their heart is universal: they honor moments of joy, insight, or growth drawn from lived experience.
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Poetic Sundays: Nyamgur: When Experience Becomes Poetry
Like I mentioned earlier, today I bring you the nyamgur. Nyamgur are short, reflective poems that grow out of positive personal experiences: from those moments of insight, calm, or connection shaped by observation.
While rooted in Tibetan Buddhist expression, the nyamgur’s reflective heart speaks across cultures and traditions.
So What is the Nyamgur (or Nyams Gur)?
A nyamgur (or nyams mgur) is a short, first-person poem that shares a positive personal experience. In Tibetan literature, it belongs to a family of “songs of experience” that speak from inner spiritual realization, yet its reflective, grounded tone works beautifully for everyday moments of awareness.
These poems favor simple, concrete images over explanation, allowing understanding to arise gently in the reader. Nyamgur has also been linked to the Indian doha, a compact couplet form known for distilling insight into brief, self-contained verses
How to Write a Nyamgur?
- Notice a moment.
Choose an experience that brought you a sense of joy, peace, hope, clarity, or quiet connection, no matter how small. - Stay close to imagery.
Ground the poem in what you saw, heard, or felt—footsteps on a road, light on a wall, a seed on your palm, or a passing shadow. - Let insight emerge.
Instead of explaining the lesson, let the image and tone suggest it so the reader discovers the feeling alongside you. - Keep it brief and gentle.
Aim for 3–8 lines, with simple, unadorned language and no required rhyme or meter; end with a lingering image or soft reflection.
Templates to Use: Suggestions Only
I noticed _______,
and felt _______
without needing to understand it.
References, Further Reading, and h/t: Poetry in Tibet (Mandala Collection)
My Inspired-By Nyamgur Attempts
Hope, Walking Quietly
I kept looking
for good news.
It arrived
walking quietly
past my screen.
Their feet met the road
the same way each day.
Hope, I learned,
does not hurry
to be noticed.
~ Vidya Tiru @ LadyInReadWrites
Recently
On My Blog And the Homefront
Here are the posts since my last Scribblings.
- Looking Back to Read Forward: My 2026 Bookish Goals
- Sunday Scribblings #243: Drawing, Meet Words! Make Wondrous Sketchnote Poetry
At home, it has been just the regular routines which have kept me busy, busy, busy.
Upcoming
Hope to get at least one post in here but it has been kind of crazy overall.
This Week’s Celebrations
Literary Celebrations (close-to-it also!)
- Literary birthdays this week include: Shannon Hale and Susan Griffin on the 26th of Jan; Lewis Carroll on Jan 27th; Susan Choi on the 28th; Anton Chekhov on the 29th of Jan; Lloyd Alexander on Jan 30th; Laura Lippman and Norman Mailer on Jan 31st; Langston Hughes and Meg Cabot on Feb 1st;
- Library Shelfie Day is observed annually on the Fourth Wednesday in January – so on the 28th this year.
Foodie Celebrations
- January 26th is National Green Juice Day and National Peanut Brittle Day
- Followed by National Chocolate Cake Day on the 27th!!
- Next up, it is National Blueberry Pancake Day on January 28th
- And then, it is National Corn Chip Day on the 29th
- the 30th of January is National Croissant Day
- Then we have National Hot Chocolate Day on Jan 31st
- And some more treats for the ones with a sweet tooth with National Baked Alaska Day and National Dark Chocolate Day on February 1st
Other Celebrations
- Jan 26th is National Spouses Day, and India celebrates its Republic Day on the 26th of January
- The 27th is International Holocaust Remembrance Day
- January 28th observes Christa McAuliffe Day, Pop Art Day, and Lego Day
- The 29th is National Puzzle Day
- Then we have National Draw a Dinosaur Day on the 30th of January
- January 31st is National Backward Day and National Inspire Your Heart With Art Day
- While Feb 1st celebrates National Freedom Day (Freedom From Slavery).
Related Reads and More
- One can never have too many Legos, I think! So this LEGO Classic Large Creative Brick Box is great, and right now is on sale.
- If you are up for drawing dinosaurs, then there are so many books for you. For easy step-by-step drawings, you can use Learn To Draw Dinosaurs! or How to Draw 101 Dinosaurs (among others). If you want to challenge yourself, there is How to Draw Incredible Dinosaurs from the Smithsonian.
- This Basic Art series of 140 books (!) is so tempting, and Pop Art is one among them.
- If you have a dino and a puzzle fan, then check out this post
- As for puzzles, I love them. I do my daily dose of math, word, and logic puzzles online. But it has been a while since I worked on jigsaw puzzles. I do enjoy them though. And this 3D Puzzle Vase looks so pretty! As does this 3D Wooden Flower Cart Puzzle
Wrapping up my Sunday Scribblings
So dear reader, you have reached the end of this Sunday Scribblings! As always, I welcome your thoughts, comments, and suggestions about this post. And do let me know if you plan to celebrate any of these mentioned celebrations this coming week/month?
Linking this to the Sunday Post over at the Caffeinated Reviewer and the Sunday Salon. And of course to the Ultimate Blog Challenge as well!
