Impressions
on Sarika Mukesh’s “Shabdon ke Pul” by Dr. Neelanjana Pthak
The longest distance can be bridged by
the shortest words. Sarika Mukesh’s publication Shabdon ke Pul (“Bridges of Words”) 2014 did just this. Although I
have not had the pleasure of meeting Dr. Sarika Mukesh personally, her books,
sent so thoughtfully to me dissolve the distance of the thousands of miles that
separate Tamil Nadu from Madhya Pradesh, and bring me
almost face to face with her. This is what all good literature must do-narrow the
distance between the creator and the reader, especially when the collection is titled
Shabdon ke Pul.
I was charmed by the title and began to
turn the pages musing one after the other on the more than eighty ‘moment’s
monuments’ that it consisted of. It is with joy that I read of the healing
power of poetry in the appended prefatory note wherein the author narrates the
healing impact of her verse on an ailing near one. Let us hope that despite the
cacophonous materialistic noises all around, poetry like all aesthetic pursuits
shall continue to provide embalming music to weary souls. On this one hope the
charm of good poetry can sustain itself despite assaults from so many
directions.
In
this brief write up I would like to randomly sum up my reflections on some
selected poems from the volume:
· The
collection opens with a poem on Shri Krishna with a sequel following it on the
Radha Krishna myth. Following this there are short pieces to charm a Krishna
devote including one wherein the poet narrates an imaginary conversation with
the mythical flute player raising rhetorical questions that delight.
·
There
are captivating images of dawn and dusk presented before the mind’s eye in
delightful shades with the poem on dawn ending with a Shellyian optimism
spilling over also in the next poem ‘Asha-Pratyasha’. What a solace it is to
read that the whole sky lies in our palm’s reach. An image of the sun mirroring
the day deserves mention as does the striking nature image of moon and stars
hanging on a rope in the sky.
·
‘Sandhya
Ke Waqt’ and ‘Haseen Shaam’ in a sequence are two beautiful illustration of
sunset and the human activities that accompany and follow it. With deft strokes
the hungers of love are only hinted at with a great deal more left to the
imagination.
·
In ‘Tumhari
Yaad’ memory is concretised through images of lotus, pearls and sandal. As in
most Haiku poetry, the images stem out
of directly observed occurences, events and things and are therefore very easy
to empathize with.
·
Kaleidoscopic
pictures of memories confront us yet again towards the end of the collection in
‘Shesh Hai Yaad’- Memory personified as knocking at the mind – as hanging
frames on walls bringing tears as they flash upon the inward eye.
·
These
series of poems particularly made me recall Yeats often quoted lines “Out of
the quarrel with others we make rhetoric; out of the quarrel with ourselves we
make poetry”.
·
The
titles are arresting and invite an immediate response from the poetry lover.
They carry us directly to the core concern of the verse and leave us
wonder-struck and reflecting for long after the hiaku reading is over. Short
words, short stanzas, shorter lines carrying deep meanings and eternal truths
clothed in sweeping generalisations –‘Sorrows will divide on sharing, joys will
multiply (translated) – make a deep impact on the psyche. The pangs of a
lover’s seperation are seldom so simply stated as in ‘Vidaa’ (Separation) where
the title itself inducts us into the core concern of the poem.
·
Some
grim issues and the need to direct the thinking of the readers in the direction
of some corrective measures are highlighted in poems on practical issues
related to everyday living like ‘Dudh Andolan’ , “Kaise Kaise Sach’ ‘Pahunch Gaye
Kahan hum” (on Rising Sensex and Falling Sexual Morals), Parivartan (Change is
the Eternal Truth), ‘Sansad Maun’ (Satire on Contemporary Political Scenario).
The beauty of a poem lies in knowing exactly what is to be left unsaid- saying
less and suggesting more. This is evident in poems of this collection like ‘Panchhi’,
‘Achha Vyaktitva’ and ‘Aakanksha’ to name a few. These poems illustrate Frost’s
words that poetry is saying one thing meaning another. For instance the bitter
truths of a fast paced mechanical life are hinted in ‘Jeevan ki Ramayan’. The
spark is kindled to be turned ablaze in the readers’ minds.
·
“No poet
can know what his poem is going to be like until he has written it”, opines
W.H. Auden, “The Poem”, ‘Manovigyan’ is a penetrating picture of the human
mind’s inexplicable workings. It raises pertinent questions related to everyday
occurrences-why trains attract every age, why beauty seduces, why ripe fruits
and beautiful flowers are the first to be plucked. ‘Umra and Hum’ is a new way
of looking at birthdays as taking us a year closer to our end and hence a time
to reflect on the shortness of life.
·
All
human relationships are built or broken because of words, words both said or
unsaid are indeed bridges that span the distance between two hearts and forge a
connect/bond of a lifetime. Hence the title of the collection invites an
immediate response as does the title poem
‘Shabdo ke Pul’- it carries a very
delicately balanced image of broken relationships carried on fragile bridges of
words–relationships break, bridges of words crumble in a moment (translation of
second stanza). All bridges built by words lack a concrete foundation and can
be devastated by storms of misunderstanding. The poem ends again with a
rhetorical question on the transition of all relationships, leaving us thinking
for long. Perhaps relationships fail because instead of building bridges we
build walls of separation!
·
The poet’s
succinct comment on the new culture so predominant everywhere expressed in a
satiritic view in the aptly titled ‘Nayi
Sanskrati’, rings a bell in every reader’s mind. We have all come across
over ambitious aspiring youths who wish to rise tall even if it means by beheading peers
Barhte raho
Chahe katna pare
Kisi ka gala
·
The
joyful pains of live expressed through concrete image of pearls is impressive
in ‘Aansu’ as it brings to the
mind the woes of a lover so hard to conceal even harder to reveal, similarly
voiced again in ‘Na Chala Pata’ as pain is described to be melting away like wax once blessed with the
estacsies of love. There is a chain of poems on the myth of Draupadi’s public
disrobing and her consequent plight as depicted in ‘The Mahabharta’. These
clearly indicate the author’s feminist stance. Meaning words so aptly and
directly used leave the reader pondering on the horrific disgrace of the
mythical heroine and also all women thereafter. The poetic technique
employed has a mantric quality:
Aaj
.na kal
Abla
ho sabal
Ichchha
prabal
·
Indeed, “
True ease in writing comes with practice not chance, as those move easiest that
have learnt to dance.”(Pope) ‘Naari:
Ek Chitran’ has an image which makes a mark on the mind for being
refreshingly innovative: the image of tongue and cheek to describe the state of
women in a society burdened by lustful male gazes from all directions.
·
This
unforgettable collection ends befittingly on a devotional note begging for
forgiveness ending in all humility which is always the crowning glory of any
artist. It instantly reminds one of Tagore’s muse in Geetanjali and the need to surrender ego at divine feet to accomplish
bigger ideals.
·
The
conventional three worded verse of haiku makes an immediate impact upon the
audience’s mind we grasp the essence and retain it comes with a brief moment’s
pause. This results in better empathy with the poet and the poem- there is
deeper involvement. We respond better to poems that trigger in us similar
memories of our own past and since this collection has such a rich medley of themes
from different experiences of life, there is something to hold the interest of
every section of reader. Also it most certainly leaves us in contemplation and
virtually prepares us in remote ways to confront life’s ups and downs with more
fortitude and maturity. This is the ultimate test that any work of art can be
put to. I wish Sarikaji’s ‘God’s Plenty’ in all her forthcoming endeavors and
am tempted to end with the words of T.S. Eliot, “Only those who risk going too
far can possibly find out how far they can go.”
Dr. Neelanjana PathakJabalpur (M.P.)
P.S: On
the negative side, if I may share an opinion, the asterisk and the date of
composition post every stanza acted as a deterrent in the free flow of
thoughts. This could have been received only for the last stanza to ensure a
free flow of thoughts.
