Thursday, February 23, 2017

Entrevue amoureuse !

Un écrit extraordinaire en langue Bengali par le lauréat du prix Nobel, Rabindra Nath TagoreRendez-vous en deux occasions mais pour les deux raisons différentes !  Alors la danseuse séduisante est charmée par le corps ravissant du moine ; à l’ironie de destin, la situation est complètement inversée lorsque le moine rencontre la danseuse malade et lui offre à soigner. Le moine a vraiment atteint le Nirvana avec son dévouement total pour les infortunés.   
The Tryst – A translation of Tagore’s poem, 
‘Abhisar’ by Manas Kumar Basu


A monk named Upagupta
fell asleep by the roadside
in the walled City of Mathura –
City lights went out by the  winds,
While citizens preferred to stay inside,   
Night sky is fully enveloped by dark monsoon clouds. 


All on a sudden jingle sound of
someone’s anklet was heard near!
The monk was awaken abruptly,
Dreamy thoughts were gone suddenly,
His merciful eyes were lightened by
A bright lamp  

City dancer Basabdatta effusively
seductive on way to her paramour.
Richly clad with the ornaments, 
reverberated with melodious sound -
She stopped to apologize to the 
monk as her feet fell on him.


She looked at the fair-complexioned
 young monk with a lamp at her hand –
He was a gentle ever-smiling young,
With his merciful but beamy eyes,
Whose clean face assures
An all-pervading forgiveness.


With ashamed eyes, she uttered 
with melodious voice,
“Forgive me please young monk,
Please come along with my home,
You should not lie on this rough place  
as it hurt your physique”.  

The monk replied with a saddened voice,
“Oh belle, it is not the time to go with you,
 better you go there where you plan
to visit with your rich decoration,
When the right time will come
I’ll go to your home on my own.”


All on a sudden storm with lightening 
struck the entire field.
The lady shivered as fear grips
As the thunder roared ominously,
As if to decry at the dark irony 
of the uncertainties in human life. 

                       ------------

Monsoon is not yet over,
comes one Chaitra evening.
Here the wind is eagerly excited,
Buds are blooming in every tree,
And fragrant flowers are showing
Their spirits everywhere.


Intoxicating sound of flutes is heard afar
as the wind slowly passes by.
City is empty, citizens are gathered 
in the forest to observe spring festival –
While full moon exposes its beauty 
as it silently observes the emptied city.


The monk was walking alone on a 
deserted street on a moonlight night.
Cuckoo from the upper trees were 
singing time and again, 
is that his night of tryst has finally 
arrived after such a long time?  


The monk crossed the city,
And went outside the city wall.
Stopped near a moat finally –
As he saw a woman lying on    
the roadside under a mango shade
Who was that lady lying near his feet! 

 Stricken with deadly smallpox
That has disfigured her completely-
Her whole figure became charcoal black 
Citizens threw her outside the moat  
To save themselves from her 
deadly infectious disease.

The monk sat down and placed her 
head resting her upon his lap -    
And poured water in her dried mouth, 
Wiped her head with his prayer,
Embalmed her body with the 
petals of flowers like confetti. 

Buds were falling as cuckoos were singing; 
the night was bathing with moonlit.  
Who are you, my Lord?’ cried the woman, 
the monk replied, Once you invited me 
to your home, here comes now 
Basabdutta, to you I have come!’
      

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