Happy New Year! My main aim is to include most promising artwork, poems, literary criticism, haiku and short stories by international artists. TMR is open to new authors, painters and photographers. For publication in Taj Mahal Review, it is our ardent aim and desire to seek the poetry by Noble laureates, or by newly emerging (even previously unpublished poets). James Joyce rightly says, “Every age must look for its sanction to its poetry and philosophy, for in these the human mind, as it looks backward or forward, attains to an eternal state”. We have published sixteen volumes till now, about 7000 pages, and over 3,000 poets, short story writers, haiku poets, literary essays, reviews, paintings and photographs. I have tried my best to select the most impressive poetry, short story and artwork revealing diversity in excellence.

I’m obliged to Kornelijus Platelis and Ban’ya Natsuishi for inviting me and Karunesh Kumar Agarwal to attend the Druskininkai 20th Poetic Fall Festival and the 5th World Haiku Association Conference 2009 on 30th September to 5th October in Vilnius and Druskininkai, Lithuania. We participated in the Conference, and the memories will linger for a long time. Both Ban’ya and Kornelijus Platelis deserve admiration for this most remarkable haiku festival. 121 participants from 23 countries made the Festival so engaging and so lively. The poets read their haiku in original language, English and Lithuanian translations. The theme of the Festival was: Short Poetic Forms: Haiku. The 2009 Nobel Prize in Literature was awarded to Herta Müller. She was cited as someone, “who, with the concentration of poetry and the frankness of prose, depicts the landscape of the dispossessed”; she received a prize amount of US$1.4 million. Hearty congratulations to her.

If you value TMR great service for the cause of Poetry, Art, Peace and Brotherhood, please subscribe now! My sincere thanks to the creative artists included in Dec 2009 TMR. Beyond any doubt, this publication would never have been possible without their cooperation, kind support and subscriptions.

SANTOSH KUMAR
Editor