Remembering the great poet !

Dated:November 2008

I do tend to believe that knowledge and pearls of wisdom imparted at an young age do tend to stick till grave. I especially enjoyed the verses of kabir. Eloquent delivery with stringent use of words. Like a mellifluous jewel inside an obscure puzzle. I used to admire how something that was so hard to understand all made meaning beautifully. My naive mind that it was, adored my Hindi teacher who unlocked the puzzle and let it all out. He was the one who could bring out the literary drive amongst the veritable bedlam called class as presented by 6th graders.

A couple of those inspiring verses.

"Dukh Mein Simran Sab Kare, Sukh Mein Kare Na Koye
Jo Sukh Mein Simran Kare, Tau Dukh Kahe Ko Hoye"

(In anguish everyone prays to Him, in joy does none
To One who prays in happiness, how can sorrow come)

"Bada Hua To Kya Hua, Jaise Ped Khajoor
Panthi Ko Chaya Nahin, Phal Laage Atidoor"

(In vain is the eminence, just like a date tree
No shade for travelers and fruits are hard to reach)

These embody a variety of suble poetic elements that render a rather profound exhilaration to the reader. Though not explicit in the above 2 verses, symbolism is as venerable an element of poetry as irony is for a story. This may raise many eyebrows but I find nourishment in excavating meaning out of a challenge, a maze of words. Unlike beauty, here the less obvious it is, the more impact it has.. once discovered. . . :)