The Song of a duck

 

                   

1.                                         I am a common duck

                 A creature of simple luck

                Though white, not a swan

                To fly through breezy dawn.

                I can’t walk swift like a fawn

               Across the dew-decked lawn.

 

2.                                This marshy pond, my place

             No ethereal cloudy ways

             This humble state, I sigh

             Yes, hard to please, I know not why.

             People may mock my gait and wit

             A wild goose chase, I lazily sit.

 

3.                             This dark-green moss

           These white blooms bland

           This wavy toss

           This sylvan land

           I glide with ease

          What more can please?

 

4.                          I am a common fowl

         Life is not a sugary bowl

         Life, a game both sad and gay

         I have my own role to play.

        Though people say “lucky Duck”

        I may not have much push and pluck.

 

5.                 I live as I am made

      As nature’s child I wade

      Through water under the shades

      Ducked out, don’t stay behind;

      Be content and be kind;

      I give my little mite

     This life, God-given light.

     ***********************

23rd October, 2023                    Somaseshu Gutala

           

A Note on William Carlos Williams’ Poem---“The Yachts”

 

       

   

This poem was published in volume I of the “The Collected Poems” (1909-1939). In this poem the poet made a scathing attack on the capitalist system in U.S. during the great depression (1930’s). This poem is an eleven-stanza poem that is divided into tercets or sets of three lines written in free verse without any specific rhyme scheme or metrical pattern.

In the first two stanzas the mighty destructive and uncontrollable power of the ocean is described.  Personification plays a major role in this poem. The yachts are almost shown as alive. The yachts symbolize the rich section of the society who flourished despite the economic depression. The yachts were sailing in a semi-protected area of water though the ocean outside is rough and ungoverned. 

The sea can toss the biggest hulls and sink them mercilessly like moths in the mist of its turbulent waves.  The best man or the most skilled navigator knows how difficult it is to remain safe against its beatings. The sea is moody and touches the smooth sides of the yachts as if to find any flaw in them. The sea is powerful enough to sink them pitilessly. Though the crew works smoothly, the poet does not hesitate to indicate how small they are in comparison to the ship as a whole in the ocean.

 

The third and fourth stanzas drift away from the chaotic imagery of the ocean and describe the movements of the yachts and their crew. The yachts glide “with broad, bellying sails” tossing green waters of the sea against their prows.  The crew crawl over them like ants adjusting the sails to catch the winds and go in the right direction.

 

In fourth and fifth stanzas the poet describes how the yachts are followed by the lesser vessels on which other men and women were sailing. They seem to be humble and move slowly in a random manner. They represent the struggling poor and middle-class people.

 

 The sixth and seventh stanzas describe the secure and safe position of the yachts in midst of raging waves. The yachts are feckless and free like horses set ready to start in a race as they are well-made and equipped to sail with speed. They appear youthful and carefree as “the light of a happy eye.”  

 

The eighth and ninth stanzas describe the pitiable condition of the lesser boats which are shattered by   the waves of the sea.  “It is a sea of faces about them in agony, in despair.” The whole sea became “an entanglement of watery bodies” desperately struggling to grasp at the sides of the yachts hoping for salvation. The yachts pass over unconcerned for the suffering of their fellow humans. The eighth and ninth stanzas portray the competitive spirit on the ocean. The waves outside the yachts symbolize the great depression, economic inequality and confronting challenges. The yachts are “too well made and they survive the adverse effects of the great depression. They are under the command of men and who lead them safe out of the consequences of unfair economic policies and sufferings caused by the great depression.

 

The tenth and eleventh stanzas reiterate the fate of the struggling poor people in times of economic depression in a symbolic way. They are like drowning people crying for help. The dark and disturbing imagery serves as a powerful contrast against the peaceful and seemingly beautiful sailing yachts described in the third and fourth stanzas. The ocean is filled with struggling people. They are trying to hold on to the ships that sail through them. But they are left to their fate while the yachts smoothly pass over them.

The impoverished condition of the people discarded by the economic system of capitalism. They are dead or dying without getting any help. The sea is “an entanglement of watery bodies/ lost to the world bearing what they cannot hold.”  They are “broken, beaten, desolate” and they “cry out, failing, failing.” Their piteous cries for help rise like waves, but the skillful yachts recklessly pass over them without showing any mercy. The wealthy and well-off symbolized by the yachts triumph over that of poor. The rich winners of this economic battle discard and exploit the poor and sail over them on their way to safe future. There is no sentimentality in the speaker’s description.

 

The message is that in a capitalist system especially during the American great depression during 1930’s, the wealthy always triumphed over the poor and they felt least concerned about the tragic fate of the struggling poor and underprivileged people. This message is symbolically conveyed through the image of the yachts navigating through a sea of desperate and dying bodies. The yachts are also symbols for slave ships on which the most horrifying atrocities were committed.

 

In this artistic and graceful poem, the poet suggests that the outward beauty of the capitalist system is akin to the illusion shown by F. Scott Fitzgerald’s hero in his novel “Great Gatsby.” Capitalism demands competition and indifference to suffering masses. Sinclair’s novel “The Jungle” in more realistic terms reveals the plight of jobless men and women though the Chicago’s bosses rescue a fortunate few. Similarly in this poem, the horror of class war, inequality in income, viciousness against the weak and helpless, and exploitations of the poor are revealed through symbols and artistic use of language. 

The use of enjambment with lack of punctuation and the use of first letter in lower case at the beginning of every stanza line to suggest the poet’s priority for the oppressed majority.  Though the poem is in free verse form, the poet used figures of speech like assonance in words like: encloses -blows; Knows – blows. Alliteration was used in word: Biggest and best. The desperation of the drowning men and women is reflected through the poet’s use of short and choppy sentences in the last three stanzas in contrast with the long and lyrical lines that began the poem.   “Broken/ beaten, desolate, reaching from the dead to be taken up/ they cry out, failing, failing! / their cries rising/ in waves still as the skillful yachts pass over.”

 The poet used personification and symbolism to express his views on Capitalism. The yachts represent the rich capitalists, wealth, freedom, youth and comfort zone. This poem is a typical specimen of Imagist poetry. The poet expressed his views clearly through the image of yachts personifying it and adding symbolic meaning to it. The language is simple and lucid without any abstract and vague implications. The poet used free verse without any ornamentation. He used literary devices which seem to be natural and contribute to the effect of the poem.

                                 **************************

    16th October, 2023                          Somaseshu Gutala

 

 

 

  

The Tale of Hari, the taxi-driver

       

  

    

  A Brahmin boy turning a driver at last;

  A strange affair, some people thought;

  But Hari ignored their views and tried

  To earn his bread with no sense of pride.

  Unable to pursue his studies he found

  His friend’s advice proper and sound;

  A poor priest’s son, how can he aim

 At lofty goals and professions prime?

 He worked with vigor both day and night

 To earn and help his family in plight;

In keeping with his state, he married

A girl free of dowry with no sense of greed;

His expenses quickly rose in various ways;

His restless mind in bad company sought solace;

Blessed with two daughters he made too many debts

Driving for days his family he left

His father’s sage advice he did not heed;

He could not meet his family’s needs;

 

Vexed with his ways his spouse began to fume and fret;

Addicted to booze he did not regret;

Evil habits and wayward ways upset

His feeble health and suddenly he met

With a fatal accident and was not fit

To drive due to ill-health and lost

His livelihood and in heavy debts caught;

With his wife and daughters, village he left;

He could not find means to clear off his debts;

His wife left him with daughters somewhere;

She turned a cook her children’s expenses to bear;

He found shelter to work under a priest;

A helper in conducting funeral feasts;

The Vedic hymns he learnt in his boyhood days

Helped him to do his work in many ways;

A few cooking tips from his mother he caught

Made him work as a cook in priest’s business vast;

Free food and shelter for himself he got

About his poor family he sadly thought;

His daughters as maid- servants toiled a lot

And yet they studied without losing heart;

 

He seemed to realize his grievous fault;

Lessons too late he seemed to realize.

Blunders and blows made his mind wise;

When I watched him serving food

He gazed at me with keen looks shrewd

Like the ancient mariner in the fabled tale;

Who followed the guest with countenance pale;

He spoke in a low, pensive voice slow

Of his happy past and destiny’s blow;

He visits his home now and then to behold.

His wife and daughters with conscience cold.

His wife’s spurning looks seared his guilty mind.

Still he hopes for her pardon for his rash acts blind.

The vilest sinners are forgiven by God;

Why erring mortals so vindictive and hard?

He found in me a patient listener to vent his grief.

A kind comforting word gives him relief;

Time will transform our lives and everything.

Likewise, a happy compromise in his life may bring.

                    *********************

Note: "The Rime of the ancient mariner" – Written by Samuel Taylor Coleridge in 1798 describes a sailor’s experience when his ship was caught in icy Antarctica seas. By mistake he killed an innocent bird that alighted on the deck. The other sailors thought that this sinful deed would bring them bad luck. So, they forced him to wear the dead bird on a rope round his neck so that they would not get punished for his crime. Bereft of food and water he suffers a lot and sees hallucinations of a ghost ship carrying the grisly figure of death and another figure called Life-in-death. All the sailors fell dead except him. The sailor feels guilty and repentant for his sinful act. A sense of pity and love gushed from his conscience on seeing the water- snakes glistening on the waves of the sea. He fell into a trance and a shower of rain touched his lips. When he was awake, he found himself in another ship. He was rescued by another ship’s captain. From then he wandered narrating his story to anyone to find a sense of solace and comfort.

                       ********************************

            6^th October, 2023                    Somaseshu Gutala

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My Visit to Sri Bhu Sametha Prasanna Venkateswara Swamy Temple, Thondamanadu. (A.P.)

 

 

      

                  

                              

This temple is in Thondamanadu, a small village ten kms away from Kalahasti and 28kms from Tirupati. The way to this temple is very confusing. No proper directions are seen on traffic boards. The road is full of potholes and bumps. Even when enquired, passersby did not give proper directions. The T.T.D. authorities may develop this road and give publicity as many devotees do not know that there is a temple here. When we went there, very few pilgrims are seen. When we enquired the priest, he said that many pilgrims visit this temple on Fridays and Saturdays.

This place was once the capital of Thondaman Chakravarti, brother of Akasa Raju, father-in-law of Lord Venkateswara. Thondaman built a temple on Tirumala hills at the behest of the Lord Venkateswara. Daily he used to climb the hills to worship the Lord. As he was becoming old, he was not able to go up the hill every day. He felt sad and depressed. The Lord on noticing his plight Himself appeared in Thondamanadu along with His two consorts and stayed here on the old king’s request. Unlike in other temples, here Lord Venkateswara is seen in sitting posture (sukhasina bhangima) with His consorts Sri devi and Bhu Devi, on both sides. Nowhere we can see Lord in this posture in any other temple. The Lord here is called “Veetilundarai Perumal”

According to Sthala Puraana, after the demise of Akasa Raju, Vasu Dasa, Son of Akasa Raju and Thondaman fought for the kingdom. Lord Venkateswara sided with his brother-in-law but gave his discus and conch to Thondaman. Later Lord Venkateswara brought peace between them. The kingdom was divided into two parts. Narayanapuram (Narayanavanam) was given to Vasu Dasa and Thundeera Mandalam was given to Thondaman. Thondaman built a big lotus-pond near this temple, and water from Akasa Ganga and Kapileswra waterfalls flows into this pond.

This temple has a spacious compound. This temple is facing east. The main entrance or the Raja Gopuram has three tiers. One can see Dwhajasthambam Bali peetham, and the idol of Garudalwar. There are four mandapams inside; Mahamandamapam, Mukha mandapam, Antarala mandapam and Garbha griha. Two idols of Jaya and Vijaya are seen at the entrance of Grabha Griha. In the Garbha Griha, the idol of Venkateswara is seen in sitting posture with four hands holding conch, discus Yoga Mudra and Abhaya Hastha with Sri devi and Bhu devi sitting on either side. In the Antarala mandapam, one can see the Utsava Murties of Srinivasa with His two consorts, Sri Sita Ramalakshmana swamy with Sri Anjaneya, Sri Vishwaksena and the idol of Sri Ramanujacharya. People believe that by worshipping the Lord here, married couples will have a happy and harmonious life and that unmarried youth will get married soon. 

According to historical evidence this temple was re-constructed during 9^th and 10^th centuries. The Vimana of this temple resembles the Vimana (Ananadanilayam) of the Tirumala temple. Cholas, Pallavas and Vijayanagara kings worshipped this lord. In 2008, the Tirmala Tirupati devastanam Board took over this temple and developed it. After re-construction, Kumbhabhishekam was done in 2016. The temple timings are from 6.00 a.m. to 12.30 p.m. and from 4.00 p.m. to 8.00 p.m. Every Friday Abhishekam is done to idols in the sanctum. Special poojas are performed during Dhanurmasam and on Vaikunta Ekadashi.

                                 &&&&&&&&&&&&&

     4th October, 2023                           Somaseshu Gutala