Monday, October 31, 2016

SOMETHING ABOUT CHANKYA SUTRAS


                                                                              


A SKETCH  OF CHANKYA 


Prajasukhe sukham rajnah, Prajanam ca hite hitam
Natmapriyam hitam rajanah, Prajanam tu priyam hitam
( Chankya )

" The monarch should seek happiness in the happiness of his
citizens, his welfare is in their welfare, his good is not in what pleases
him but in what pleases the citizens ".

Assessing  Chankaya (350 BC-283 BC)  by reading simply a portion  of his   “Neeti Shastra”  or Some “ Sutras “   is   a disservice to this Genius.  Those amongst  us ,  who read him in bits and pieces may tend to believe him to be a scheming Manipulator .   One needs to read his  “ Arathshastra “ in Totality   to understand the complex nature of his Philosophy as also  the nature of the turbulent period    he lived in . Let me say a few lines.

His was the time when India was coming out  of  a dark age with old value system changing and new  values trying to get a foothold .  Factionalism and fundamentalism were emerging and influencing Society and the state . Indian society  was   divided  and so were many rulers of that time . A real confusion prevailed in all  spheres. And then came the massive  Attack  from Alexander  an Outsider . Chankya Witnessed this all and also analyzed reasons for the shocking  shake given by this attack.

Chankya was the first thinker of the ancient times who gave an idea of the STATE  to the world  and  spoke about Nationalism. He is the first thinker to speak about the basic commitment to  RAJYA ( STATE )   and not   DHARMA  ( SACRED LAWS )  by a ruler and his subjects . For him,   state comes first and  Religion next. This was a total contrast to earlier beliefs and traditionally  pursued Policy of the Kings. According to him,  State enables the citizens to follow their respective Dharma ( sacred Law )   and to enjoy private property rights. King is viewed as a protector of DHARMA  ( sacred law   ), but not the  interpreter of it. For Chankya  There is division between worldly and religious power. He made the concept of STATE clear and overriding all  beliefs for  a ruler .

Chankya was the first Philosopher  who   enumerated seven prakritis or  organs of the state whereas in western conception of state only four elements find mention.  According to Chankya, Seen   state organs are :-

(i) Swami (The Ruler)
(ii) Amatya (The Minister)
(iii) Janapada (The Population)
(iv) Durga (The Fortified Capital)
(v) Kosha (The Treasury)
(vi) Danda (The Army)
(vii) Mitra (Ally and Friend)


For sure Chankya’s work has  elements of universality. And History has made his role amply clear. He  created  a massive empire for his pet disciple  Chandragupta Maurya  . Chankya’s policy ensured no Major Invasions  for many centuries after him.

Taxila was considered to be amongst the earliest universities in the world. Chankya or Vishnu Gupta or kautaliya is reported to have taught Economics and Political Science at this university during Maurian Empire .


 Reading Enjoying a  book on  "Chanakya Sutras"   gifted to me by a friend . I have also  liked  the simple  explanations of the Sutras  by Sri B K Chaturvedi  .


I quote some Sutras  ….

(1)
KaantaViyog Suajanaapmaano
Rinasyaasheshah Kunripasya Sevaa.
Daridraa Bhaavo Vishayaa Sabhaa Cha
Vinaagnimete Pradahanti Kaayam
( sutras  39 )

(2)

Yo Dhruvaani Parityajjya Hyadhruvam Parisevate
Dhruvaani Tassya mashyanti Chaadhruvam nashtamev Hi
(  sutras 215 )

(3)
Doorasthoapi Nadoorasthayoyasya manasi Sthitaah
Yoyassya Hridaya Naasti Sameepasthoapi-Doorataah

( 317  Sutras In sanskrit )

(4)
Netray Eva Dhannye ye Andhaanaam maarg-Darshake
Rakshatah kantakaakeerhaat maargaattaan vishmaattathaa..
(Sutra 325 in Sanskrit)
(5)
Utsave Vyasane Praapte Durbhkishe shatru-sankate
Rajdwaare shamshaane cha yastish'thati as
Bandhavah..
(Original Sutra 91 in Sanskrit)


Explanation in English by Sri B K Chaturvedi ..

(1)

Separation from the Beloved ,Insult by close relation ,
A debt that remains Unpaid, serving a wicked king , Poverty
And association with Crooked persons be treated as some thing that shall incinerate the body even without fire.
( Sutra 39 )

(2)

He who forgoes the certain for the uncertain has his certain also destroyed. The uncertain even otherwise would be destroyed on its own.
( Sutra 215)

(3)
He who is inside one's heart ( Figuratively ) is not far away despite being distant. He who is not in One's Heart is very far off despite being close by.
( Sutra 317 )

(4)

Blessed are those eyes that guide the way of the blind and protect them from their straying on the thorn ridden Path..
(Sutra 325  )

(5)


Who is your real friend?
He who is together with you in festivities, Distress, Drought, in a crisis caused by your enemies, in royal courts and also at the Cremation ground...

(Sutra 91)

And something from Arthashastra ..

(1)
"It is power and power alone which, only when exercised by the king with impartiality and in proportion to guilt either over his son or his enemy, maintains both this world and the next.The just and victorious king administers justice in accordance with Dharma (established law), Sanstha (customary law), Nyaya (edicts, announced law) and Vyavahara (evidence, conduct)."
(Arthashastra)

(2)
"One can lose a war as easily as one can win. War is inherently unpredictable. War is also expensive. Avoid war.Try Upaya (four strategies)Then Sadgunya (six forms of non-war pressure).Understand the opponent and seek to outwit him. When everything fails, resort to military force."
(Arthashastra)
(3)
" The king should grant exemption from taxes to a region devastated by an enemy king or tribe,to a region beleaguered by sickness or famine. He should safeguard agriculture when it is stressed by the hardships of fines, forced labor, taxes, and animal herds when they are harassed by thieves, vicious animals, poison, crocodiles or sickness. He should keep trade routes/ roads clear when they are oppressed by anyone, including his officers, robbers or frontier commanders when they are worn out by farm animals .The king should protect produce, forests, elephants ,reservoirs and mines established in the past and also set up new ones. '
(Arthashastra)

(4)
"Without government, rises disorder as in the Matsya nyayamud bhavayati (proverb on law of fishes). In the absence of governance, the strong will swallow the weak. In the presence of governance, the weak resists the strong."
( Arthashastra)

(5)
"For cutting off the tender sprouts of fruit-trees, flower-trees or shady trees in the parks near a city, a fine of 6 panas shall be imposed; for cutting off the minor branches of the same trees, 12 panas; and for cutting off the big branches of these trees , 24 panas shall be levied. Cutting off the trunks of the same shall be punished with the first amercement; and felling the same shall be punished with the middle-most amercement."
( laws for Harm to Plant Life .. Arthashahastra )




( Autar Mota )


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FOUR LINES COMPOSED TO WISH " HAPPY DEEPAWALI" TO MY FRIENDS



                                                                                    




I have written four lines for this Deepawali …

“Sukh Shaanti Basse Aa Kar Jal Thal
Anuraag Mein Dole Har Aanchal
Aasha Ulhaas Ke Deep Jalein 
Mangalmaai Deepawali Bane”

My English Translation  is as under 




( Let Happiness and Peace Stay on land and water .
Let Every Attire Dance in Waves of ecstasy .
Let the lamps of Hope and Delight be lit all over .
Let This Deepawali Bring happiness all around )


HAPPY DEEPAWALI TO MY  BLOG  READERS 
( Autar Mota )
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Tuesday, October 25, 2016

MY DOHA, RAILWAY TRACKS AND THE AUTUMN SEASON


                                                                                        

                      


Autumn also visit Railway Tracks...

I am adding a Doha ( two line poem) written by me for this frame....

Kyaa paaya kyaa kho diyaa
Dhoop chhaanv sa kheil..
Do patri Aana jaana
Bhaage jeevan rail....



( What i gained and what i lost 
was like the  play of Sun and shade .
And all along , This train of existence 
kept running  over two   tracks of
 arrival and departure .)


                                                                                         
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MY DOHA ( TWO LINE POEM ) BARREN IS THE END


                                                                             



THE END...

I add a DOHA (Two line poem) that I wrote for this frame...

Boondon se jodaa barson
Haraa Bharaa ye Taal....
Yam ki gGainti Le gayi
Pal mein Neer nikaal..



( For many years  i kept collecting drop after drop  
To fill up this great  water pond .
Look ! How Yama ( Lord of Death ) turned up with his pickaxe
To flush out all water in a moment.)

(Autar Mota)

CHINAR SHADE by Autarmota is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 2.5 India License.
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MY DOHA..TEARS ARE THE MOST SACRED WORDS


                                                                           
..


Tears are the most sacred words...

I add a Doha (Two line poem) written by me for this frame....

Tapke Aansoo Aankh se

Munh se kahaa na jaaye...
Saanche Dard ka kyaa kariye
Jeeba par na Aaye....



( While  Tears trickle from eyes ,
Speechless turn the lips.
Strange is this sacred  pain ; 
For it never comes  over to the tongue as words.)

(Autar Mota)


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Based on a work at http:\\autarmota.blogspot.com\.

Thursday, October 20, 2016

BULENT SEYRAN OR RAHMI OF TURKISH TV SERIAL FATMAGUL..


                                                                       



BULENT SEYRAN OR RAHMI OF TURKISH TV SERIAL FATMAGUL..

I like the Turkish TV Serial FATMAGUL . Before FATMAGUL , I also watched FERIHA .Yes these Turkish TV serials have a somewhat universal appeal .These serials are equally popular in East and west. So many aspects of life and human relations get reflected through these Turkish serials.
 Almost all the actors of this serial are talented and highly professional. I don’t know why I have a special liking for BULENT SEYRAN ( Born1976 ) who plays the role of RAHMI or husband of Muqaddas ( ESRA in real life).


BULENT SEYRAN also acts as brother of Fatmagul .I am given to understand that Bulent is quite a popular actor in Turkish TV who has been in acting arena since 2002. Born in Germany , Bulent had his initial schooling in that country only.

I am impressed by his simple , straight and naïve appearance . You don’t feel his acting as he appears cool and natural. As Rahmi, he knows his limitations and accordingly seeks support and help primarily from his wife Muqqadas . His wife also exploits him at times but he loves her sincerely . A happy go type individual who has no issues whatsoever for being a henpecked Husband.
As Rahmi ,He is neither clever nor tricky .One can call him a total Naïve in the cunning world around him . He appears totally innocent person who can not understand the tricky situations created by Individuals with malafide intentions . He takes every body at face value. Possibly his heart is malice free. His role in new TV serial Sweet Revenge is equally superb.

Rahmi is a well wisher of the family .He loves his sister Fatmagul .He keeps encouraging her.
And this Rahmi appears to be carrying an infectious smile that springs not from his lips but from his heart..


( Autar Mota)




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O MIND , LET YOU PRACTICE RENUNCIATION THIS WAY.. RE MUN AISSO KAR SANYAASA …





RE MUN AISSO KAR SANYAASA … ( O MIND , LET YOU PRACTICE RENUNCIATION THIS WAY.. )

Not many people know that apart from being a saint , Warrior , Poet , Social reformer ,an enlightened being , Guru Gobind Singh Ji ( 1666-1708 ) was an exceptionally gifted Musician (instrumentalists) . He would play and play for hours on TAUS ( A string based musical instrument made to look like Taa-Voos or Peacock ) and DILRUBA (Again a  string based musical instrument ).

As Poet , Guru Gobind Singh ji has written innumerable verses . He had profound knowledge of Hindi , Brij-Bhasha , Sanskrit , Persian and Punjabi. I shall not speak about all those compilations today . But surely I shall say something about his Shabads that are also included in Dasham Granth .
Poet Sahir Ludhianavi held Guruji in highest esteem . He was much influenced by the towering thoughts emerging from his Shabads . Personally he remembered almost all these soulful and moving shabads by heart . Sahir's song “ Mun Re Tu Kaahe na Dheer Dhare “ is inspired by a shabad of Guru Gobind singh Ji . Again Sahir Ludhianavi 's song "Sansaar se Bhaage phirtay ho Bhagwan ko kya tum Paaogay" is inspired by Guru Gobind Singh ji's Concept of sanyaasa ( Renunciation) in Grihista ( Household)..
In Praise of Guru Gobind Singh ji , Punjabi Poet Shiv Batalvai writes ..

“ Me kis hanju da diwaa baal ke teri Aarti lawaan”
(out of which tear drop should I light a lamp and perform your Aarti )

In his poem “ Guru Gobind singh “ Gurudev Tagore writes ..

“So I wander alone on the Banks of jamuna ,
On these unsurmountable mountains ,
I am growing into perfection ,
In the lap of these stones ,
I am tuning my inspirational song
To the Music of the river ,
I am preparing my mind and spirit ,
For the great challenge and action .

Ah when shall I be to proclaim
Without Hesitation “ I have completed my Mission .“
Come one , Come All, Follow me .
The Guru Gives you the Call ,
From the depths of my inspired soul I say ,
Awake My whole country , Awake , Arise .”


( The Background of this Poem of Tagore Translated from Bengali By Dr Trilochan Singh is Poanta sahib area situated on the banks of River jamuna . Guru Ji stayed at Poanta sahib and wrote about 3000 poems . He fought many Battles in this area . He also gave the first call for unity and integrity of India from this place . )
I quote my six favourite shabads composed by Guru Gobind singh ji ..

(1) Mitter Pyaare Nu 
(2) Deho Shiva Var Mohe Aiho
(3) Re Mun Ih Bidh Jog Kamaao 
(4) Prabh Ju Tokeh Laaj Hamaari 
(5) Teerath Kot Kiye Ashnaan 
(6) Re Mun Aiso Kar Sanyaasa


Today , I shall take up the last shabad from the above list for detailed discussion .

RE MUN AISSO KAR SANYAASA ( O MIND , LET YOU PRACTICE RENUNCIATION THIS WAY.. )..



WHAT IS SANYAASA ?

Hindus believe that Every man is ideally expected to go through four stages in his life . These are "Brahmacharya" or the Student Stage , "Grihastha" or the Householder Stage, "Vanaprastha" or the intermediary stage of withdrawing by transferring duties and responsibilities to Children and finally "Sanyaasa" or renunciation and total devotion to creator by moving away from the family .
Sanyaasa is a self imposed Exile . A Sanyaasi neither complains nor expects anything from others . He surrenders to the will of the creator and fate . Ordinarily a sanyaasi ( Renunciant ) dons specific coloured clothes , Moves away from the Household , keeps himself Busy in penance and self negation. He devotes all his time and energy to Meditation for ultimate Moksha ( spiritual Liberation) . In olden days , a sanyaasi would move to Forests , eats fruits , drink Milk and gradually reduce his daily intake of food so that the body would lighten up and eventually fall . The Jain Monks and Buddhists also followed this type of Sanyaasa .Vedic period Sanyaasis also followed this Code of conduct.


WHAT TYPE OF SANYAASA ( RENUNCIATION ) IS IDEAL AS PER GURU GOBINDH SINGH JI ?

In the shabad under reference , Guru Gobind singh ji lays more stress on internal sanyaasa . The outer aspect consists of some codes that all renunciants follow while the internal Sanyaasa consists of attitude and mind’s restraint . 

Through Internal Sanyaasa , a sanyaasi needs to improve concentration and Renunciation of desires . The internal Sanyaasa helps a Man to Move towards Non Violence , Truthfulness , Compassion , Forgiveness ,Non Possession , Humility , Surrender, Devotion . He turns free from ego , Pride , Arrogance , Lust , Greed and Anger . Even a householder can be an Internal sanyaasi even if he lives in his House. He just needs to feel himself like an exile living in Forest . A nature’s cradle or a forest that is cut off from all material temptation of existence .

Guru Gobind Singh Ji does not recommend Wearing Orange coloured robes or applying ash on the body. Should a Sanyaasi apply anything on his Body , It is the name of the creator alone . For any onlooker , The Sanyaasi must appear as an embodiment of NAM JAPAA ( recitation of the name of the creator ).
For Guru Gobind Singh Ji , the purpose of sanyaasa is to withdraw from outer world and move to inner space for self purification so as to become a PARAM PURUSHA or PARAM PURUKH . Guru Gobind singh ji believes that a sanyasi need not keep long nails or matted hair . He believes that a sanyaasi should lead an active life but remain untouched and untainted by it.

A sanyaasa is a state of being rather than Doing. And eventually a Sanyaasi has to become true embodiment of a divine soul (Mahatma ).

Thus a true Sanyaasi is he who throws down any and every personal identity whatsoever and wherever he remains ; Be it a forest or in his Own Grihisata ( Household ) .

Now the shabad and my simple English rendering ..

Ban se sadan Sabhaai kari Samjhoh 
Mun He Maahi Udaasa 
……………………………Re Mun Aisso kar sanyaasa …
Jatt Ki Jatta Jog Ko Majjanu
Nem ke Nakhan Badaao..
Gyaan Guru Aatam Updesho
Naam Bhabhoot Lagaao..

……… Re Mun Aisso kar sanyaasa
Alap ahaar sulap Si Nindra 
Dayaa Chhemaa Tan Preet 
Seel Santokh sadaa Nir -mohibo 
Hoyiiho Tigun Ateet
……Re Mun Aisso kar sanyaasa

Kaam Krodh Hankaar Lobh Hath 
Moh Na Mun So Laavaai 
Tab Hi Aatam tat Ko Darse 
Param Purukh Kah Paavaai
…. Re Mun Aisso kar sanyaasa
( Guru Gobind singh Ji )


Treat your Home as a Forest in your exile ,
And remain there Unattached ..
……..O Mind , Let you Practice Renunciation this way …

Treat Your Continence as your matted hair , 
Treat Your Ablution ( cleanliness ) as your Yoga 
Treat your Daily Observances as your long nails ,
…. O Mind , Let you Practice Renunciation this way …

Let your Knowledge be your Guide in your learning,
Let you Smear the ash of Naam Japaa ( recitation of the name of the Creator ) on your Body .
…… O Mind , Let you Practice Renunciation this way …

Eat less , Sleep less , 
Fill Your Heart with Mercy , Forgiveness 
Practice Silence and contentment and remain 
free from Other three Varna Ashrams .
…. O Mind , Let you Practice Renunciation this way …

Away be from lust .Anger , Greed , assertion and obsession 
Alone then you may envisage supreme spirit
And move to become a supreme being.
….. O Mind , Let you Practice Renunciation this way …


I am Informed that when S. Mohinder selected Asha Bhonsle to sing this shabad for his movie ” NANAK NAAM JAHAAZ HAI” , Asha ji was initially reluctant . And When S Mohinder ( Who composed the Music for this Shabad) made the meaning of the words known to her , she is reported to have asked for a photograph of Guru Gobind Singh ji for her daily  worship .

And S Mohinder's choice  proved ideal and perfect for this Shabad  .

So Long so much ……

( Autar Mota )


PS
The Taus is a bowed instrument known for its deep, mellow sound. It has four main strings and twenty frets, which are the keys to the notes. Making the Taus requires great craftsmanship, as it is carved from a single piece of wood. This instrument was also udsed later in performance of Shabad Kirtan by Raagis .

LET US NOT FORGET BADAR SHAKIR AL SAYYAB THE TALLEST IRAQI POET


                                                    
                                                                     


BADAR SHAKIR AL SAYYAB ( 1926-1964 )


Agony, not Death ,

Words , No Voice 
Labour Pains , No Birth 
Who crucifies the poet in Baghdad ?
Who Buys his Eyes and Hands ?
Who Makes a crown of thorns for him ?
Strings of Light 
Hang Up the Cradle of Morning 
Prepare the birds and Ants 
A Meal from My wounds .
This is my Meal , O Hungary People 
These are My Tears ,O Poor People 
This is My Prayer, O Believers: 
May the Volcano Burst Out in Flames 
May the Euphrates send its streams 
So that we can enlighten the darkness 
And learn What Mercy Is .

Vinegar and Water are coming out of My Heart 

From My Burning wounds 
From all my deepness 
O My people 
Open the door for those who want to go In 
Collect your children playing in the village Garden 
This is the last Supper 
This is the Harvest of years ……………………
( Badr Shakir Al Sayyab )


Badar Shakir Al Sayyab ( 1926- 1964 ) was an Arab Poet from Iraq . He was a communist . For his beliefs , he was sacked from his Government Job and forced to live as exile far away from his land .Sayyab died at a very young age of 38.
  For the Arab world , Al-Sayyab’s poetry  was completely new in its form and content .It  knocked   over the metrics of traditional Arab poetry. He drew  inspiration from  ancient Iraqi and Greek mythologies and wrote about intricate topics and  in simple language with powerful metaphors.

Influenced by Modern English Poetry , Sayyab lead the free verse movement in Arabic poetry .He  also wrote  some of the best poems on the tragedy of Human banishment and life of an Exile.
Al-Sayyab translated and was greatly influenced by  T S Eliot, Edith Sitwell,  Ezra Pound, Neruda, Nazim Hikmet and Paul Eluard.

“Who will hear my poems

when death's silence dwells inside my home,
when night settles in my fire?
Who will lift the burden of my cross
in this long night of dread?
Who would cry out, who would answer to the hungry,
care for the destitute?
Who would lower Jesus from His cross,
who would drive the vultures from His wounds,
remove the lid of darkness from His dawn?
Who would replace His thorns with a crown of laurels?”



( Badar Shaikir Al sayyab )


Born in  a southern Iraqi village near Basra, close to where the Euphrates and Tigris meet, Al Sayyab  studied Arabic and English literature and worked as a teacher for some time  before he was   dismissed from his post for being a communist. Although he abandoned the Communist Party and published a series of articles explaining his disenchantment and detachment from the ideology , his camaraderie with the struggles of others remained fearsome that got embedded in more individual themes for  his poems . The titles and themes of many of his poems speak to that: “The Blind Prostitute,” “The Gravedigger,” “Weapons and Children,” “Christ after Crucifixion.”

Al Sayyab went to England for the first time in Autumn of 1962 and  attended Durham University for translation studies.
As an Exile , he died in extreme poverty . And Al-Sayyab did not only die in poverty, he lived in poverty all his life , the last three years of which were indeed miserable, compounded — as his poverty then was — with the incurable, degenerative neuron disease of his spinal cord that led gradually to the paralysis of his legs and the deterioration of his nervous system.

The union of Arab writers had declared 2014 as Sayyab year . So Many seminars , so many conferences and so many functions to honour his work and memory . His son Ghailan was a participant in all these functions .

Below is one of his Popular Exile Poem .. “For I Am A Stranger”…
(For I Am A Stranger)
For I am a stranger 

beloved Iraq
Far distant, and I here in my longing
For it, for her .. I cry out: Iraq
And from my cry a lament returns
An echo bursts forth
I feel I have crossed the expanse 
To a world of decay that responds not
To my cry
If I shake the branches
Only decay will drop from them
Stones
Stones-no fruit
Even the springs 
Are stones, even the fresh breeze
Stones moistened with blood
My cry a stone, my mouth a rock
My legs a wind straying in the wastes 
(Badr Shakir al-Sayyab)


The Palestinian poet Mahmoud Darwish was greatly impressed and influenced by the poetry of Badr Shakir al-Sayyab.

The poem “Rain Song” is al-Sayyab’s most famous and most memorable Creative work. The narrator of the poem has a bird’s eye view of Iraq from his exile. It happens to be most popular among  the  iconic poems of Al Sayyab  . It is a song of a person   banished and separated from the  Mother land  . This Individual is pained to see the resources of his country getting  grabbed  by a few Influential persons .The poem was written by the Poet facing Exile in Kuwait.
Through  Rain ( used as a Metaphor ), the poet also  wants to convey that  water remains  denied to those who need it the most . Reading the poem one feels as if Individual unhappiness and anguish are welling  up in the eyes to pour down as rain echoing extraterrestrial tears.  Using rain as Metaphor , Al Sayyab also conveys the paradox of  Existence and nature .



I add this celebrated poem …



Your eyes are two palm tree forests in early light,

Or two balconies from which the moonlight recedes
When they smile, your eyes, the vines put forth their leaves,
And lights dance . . . like moons in a river
Rippled by the blade of an oar at break of day;
As if stars were throbbing in the depths of them . . .
And they drown in a mist of sorrow translucent
Like the sea stroked by the hand of nightfall;
The warmth of winter is in it, the shudder of autumn,
And death and birth, darkness and light;
A sobbing flares up to tremble in my soul
And a savage elation embracing the sky,
Frenzy of a child frightened by the moon.
It is as if archways of mist drank the clouds
And drop by drop dissolved in the rain . . .
As if children snickered in the vineyard bowers,
The song of the rain
Rippled the silence of birds in the trees . . .
Drop, drop, the rain
Drip
Drop the rain

Evening yawned, from low clouds

Heavy tears are streaming still.
It is as if a child before sleep were rambling on
About his mother a year ago he went to wake her, did not find her,
Then was told, for he kept on asking,
'After tomorrow, she'll come back again . . .
That she must come back again,
Yet his playmates whisper that she is there
In the hillside, sleeping her death for ever,
Eating the earth around her, drinking the rain;
As if a forlorn fisherman gathering nets
Cursed the waters and fate
And scattered a song at moonset,
Drip, drop, the rain
Drip, drop, the rain

Do you know what sorrow the rain can inspire?

Do you know how gutters weep when it pours down?
Do you know how lost a solitary person feels in the rain?
Endless, like spilt blood, like hungry people, like love,
Like children, like the dead, endless the rain.
Your two eyes take me wandering with the rain,
Lightning's from across the Gulf sweep the shores of Iraq
With stars and shells,
As if a dawn were about to break from them, But night pulls over them a coverlet of blood. I cry out to the Gulf: 'O Gulf,
Giver of pearls, shells and death!'
And the echo replies,
As if lamenting:
'O Gulf,
Giver of shells and death .
I can almost hear Iraq husbanding the thunder,
Storing lightning in the mountains and plains,
So that if the seal were broken by men
The winds would leave in the valley not a trace of Thamud.
I can almost hear the palm trees drinking the rain,
Hear the villages moaning and emigrants
With oar and sail fighting the Gulf
Winds of storm and thunder, singing
'Rain . . . rain . . .
Drip, drop, the rain . . .

And there is hunger in Iraq,

The harvest time scatters the grain in-it,
That crows and locusts may gobble their fill,
Granaries and stones grind on and on,
Mills turn in the fields, with them men turning . . .
Drip, drop, the rain . . .
Drip
Drop
When came the night for leaving, how many tears we shed,
We made the rain a pretext, not wishing to be blamed
Drip, drop, the rain
Drip, drop, the rain
Since we had been children, the sky
Would be clouded in wintertime,
And down would pour the rain,
And every year when earth turned green the hunger struck us.
Not a year has passed without hunger in Iraq.
Rain . . .
Drip, drop, the rain . . .
Drip, drop . . .

In every drop of rain

A red or yellow color buds from the seeds of flowers.
Every tear wept by the hungry and naked people
And every spilt drop of slaves' blood
Is a smile aimed at a new dawn,
A nipple turning rosy in an infant's lips
In the young world of tomorrow, bringer of life.
Drip.....
Drop..... the rain . . .In the rain.
Iraq will blossom one day '
I cry out to the Gulf: 'O Gulf,
Giver of pearls, shells and death!'
The echo replies
As if lamenting:
'O Gulf,
Giver of shells and death.'
And across the sands from among its lavish gifts
The Gulf scatters fuming froth and shells
And the skeletons of miserable drowned emigrants
Who drank death forever
From the depths of the Gulf, from the ground of its silence,
And in Iraq a thousand serpents drink the nectar
From a flower the Euphrates has nourished with dew.
I hear the echo
Ringing in the Gulf:
'Rain . . .
Drip, drop, the rain . . .
Drip, drop.'

In every drop of rain

A red or yellow color buds from the seeds of flowers.
Every tear wept by the hungry and naked people
And every spilt drop of slaves' blood
Is a smile aimed at a new dawn,
A nipple turning rosy in an infant's lips
In the young world of tomorrow, bringer of life.
And still the rain pours down.

(Translated by: Lena jayyusi and Christopher Middleton)

( A poem By Badr Shakir al-Sayyab)

More Next Time ..

( Autar Mota )


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