Marathi Dalit Poetry in English Translation
Thursday, March 4, 2021
Friday, July 11, 2014
New Lesson from Old Book: Arun Kale
Kamal, start the Maha-arati
Rijia, start the Maha-namaj
Gautam, go to the Mukhia’s house
and feed the cows
David, fly pigeons,
Karim, mark the temples
Chhagan, mark the mosques
mark each other’s religion
mark each other’s caste
and hate each other
hurl stones on each other
bring stones, hurl them on.
Rijia, start the Maha-namaj
Gautam, go to the Mukhia’s house
and feed the cows
David, fly pigeons,
Karim, mark the temples
Chhagan, mark the mosques
mark each other’s religion
mark each other’s caste
and hate each other
hurl stones on each other
bring stones, hurl them on.
Translated by Swapna Banerjee-Guha
Before the Vedas : Baburao Bagul
You lived before the birth of the Vedas
even before the birth of the Almighty
looking at the frightening material world
pained and anxious
you raised your hands and prayed
those prayers went to make the Vedic verse,
it is you who celebrated the birth of all gods, and
named them happily
oh the mighty humans, you named the sun
and the sun got its identity,
you named the moon
and the moon got its fame
only you gave a name to this world
and it was accepted with honour
oh the creative, the genius humans,
you are the cause
because of you so beautiful, so lively is the world.
even before the birth of the Almighty
looking at the frightening material world
pained and anxious
you raised your hands and prayed
those prayers went to make the Vedic verse,
it is you who celebrated the birth of all gods, and
named them happily
oh the mighty humans, you named the sun
and the sun got its identity,
you named the moon
and the moon got its fame
only you gave a name to this world
and it was accepted with honour
oh the creative, the genius humans,
you are the cause
because of you so beautiful, so lively is the world.
Translated by Swapna Banerjee-Guha
Stage Waharu: Sonawane
We didn’t go up to the stage
no one asked us, actually
only by pointing fingers
they showed us our place
and we sat there;
‘great’, they exclaimed.
And they went up on the stage
started narrating us our own sorrows
but, ‘our sorrows remained ours
never became theirs…’
in confusion we whispered.
They tried to listen and sighed
And then plucking our ears hard
blasted
‘say sorry, otherwise….’.
no one asked us, actually
only by pointing fingers
they showed us our place
and we sat there;
‘great’, they exclaimed.
And they went up on the stage
started narrating us our own sorrows
but, ‘our sorrows remained ours
never became theirs…’
in confusion we whispered.
They tried to listen and sighed
And then plucking our ears hard
blasted
‘say sorry, otherwise….’.
Translated by Swapna Banerjee-Guha
Bodhi Tree: Mina Gajbhiye
Here is a settlement.
Houses
with red-tiled roofs,
planned
roads,
gardens
and lawns.
It
is a laboratory to mold people…
Minds
are being forged
in what sort of furnace?
Smiles
on faces and poison in hearts,
no
harmony between thought and action.
The
same old customary drill is on.
Those
calculating faces,
somewhat
sophisticated,
are
going to change their masks and come out
singing
the arati of my welcome.
I
am satisfied that
I
have sown the seeds
But
here they have already started the preparations
for the resistance…
I
am doubtful:
Will
at least one seed sprout?
Bodhi
tree…………..
translated
by Shubhangi Apte and Slyvie
Martinezwith some changes by Eleanor Zelliot.
Mother: Jyoti Lanjewar
I have never seen you
Wearing
one of those gold-bordered saris
With
a gold necklace
With
gold bangles
With
fancy sandals
Mother!
I have seen you
Burning
the soles of your feet in the harsh summer sun
Hanging
your little ones in a cradle on an acacia tree
Carrying
barrels of tar
Working
on a road construction crew…………
I
have seen you
With
a basket of earth on your head
Rags
bound on your feet
Giving
a sweaty kiss to the naked child
Who
came tottering over to you
Working
for your daily wage, working, working………
I
have seen you
Turning
back the tide of tears
Trying
to ignore your stomach's growl
Suffering
parched throat and lips
Building
a dam on a lake………
I
have seen you
For
a dream of four mud walls
Stepping
carefully, pregnant
On
the scaffolding of a sky scraper
Carrying
a hod of wet cement on your head………..
I
have seen you
In
evening, untying the end of your sari
For
the coins to buy salt and oil,
Putting
a five paise coin
On
a little hand
Saying
'go eat candy'
Taking
the little bundle from the cradle to your breast
Saying
"Study, become an Ambedkar"
And
let the baskets fall from my hands…………
I
have seen you
Sitting
in front of the stove
Burning
your very bones
To
make coarse bread and a little something
To
feed everybody, but half-fed yourself
So
there'd would a bit in the morning………..
I
have seen you
Washing
clothes and cleaning pots
In
different households
Rejecting
the scraps of food offered to you
With
pride
Covering
yourself with a sari
That
had been mended so many times
Saying
"Don't you have a mother or a sister?"
To
anyone who looked at you with lust in his eyes……….
I
have seen you
On
a crowded street with a market basket on your head
Trying
always to keep your head covered with the end of your sari
Chasing
anyone who nudged you deliberately
With
your sandal in your hand…………
I
have seen you working until sunset
Piercing
the darkness to turn toward home,
Then
forcing from the door
That
man who staggered in from the hooch hut……..
I
have seen you
At
the front of the Long March
The
end of your sari tucked tightly at the waist
Shouting
"Change the name"
Taking
the blow of the police stick on your upraised hands
Going
to jail with head held high………
I
have seen you
Saying
when your only son
Fell
martyr to police bullets
"You
died for Bhim, your death means something"
saying
boldly to the police
"If
I had two or three sons, I would be fortunate.
They
would fight on."
I
have seen you on your deathbed
Giving
that money you earned
Rag-picking
to the diksha bhumi
Saying
with your dying breadth
"Live
in unity……. fight for Baba………. don't forget him……….
And
with your very last breadth
"Jai
Bhim."
I
have seen you……..
I
have never seen you
Even
wanting a new broad-bordered sari
Mother,
I have seen you………..
translated
by Sylvie Martinez, Rujita Pathre, S. K. Thorat, Vimal Thorat, and Eleanor Zelliot.
Sounds: Jyoti Lanjewar
What sounds are these?
Do
fish in water weep
or
waves sob?
We
lost the way
but
kept on, hoping
the
way would end
but
it's we who will end…
Look
at the trees on the shore
lip
to lip, whispering
about
us, but the birds
have
closed their eyes
with
the sun.
The
sky garbed
in
dark,
searching
stars
heart
swayed
by
swaying waves
now
aflame.
Let's
plunge in
and
drown then.
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