Saturday, May 23, 2020

BREAK DOWN








       


                                    


    1)   All of a sudden, silence profound
           Not even a hum or beeping sound
           No lifts, no whir of kitchen gadgets I heard
           No shout of excitement, not even a word.

  2)      No T.V. no mobile, no megaphone loud
           Dumb stillness spread around like a shroud;
           No mad craze as all systems crashed
           All work force-stopped, none madly rushed.

3)        Hands busied themselves in household chores
           Cooking, washing and sweeping the floor
           Kids used their brains to count and write;
           No mechanical help with solutions straight.

4)        Men passed their time in strolling through green
           Watching the colorful sunset scene;
           The roar of speeding vehicles disturbed no more
           No more deafening music from all sides pours.

5)       No smoky pollution all around
          No vehicles – all have to walk on ground;
          No costly restaurants there to dine
         Only home-cooked victuals tasting fine.

6)     Nature seemed free from man’s greedy grip
        Rivers flowed with fresh waters to sip;
        Nature’s boundaries none can skip
        Our false pretensions we have to strip.

7)     Men stayed at home cool, unruffled minds
        Close intimacy in their families find;
        Young kids no more tied down to books and mobiles
        Go out to play in lawns with spirits agile. 

8)    If all systems fail, what will remain?
       What use these devices and instruments vain?
       Nature’s gifts don’t underestimate
       On nature depends our survival and fate.

9)    Our so-called safe systems smashed in a flash
       And all our gadgets seemed to be trash;
       All our knowledge advanced has failed futile
       We have to change our views and living style.

10)  No more speeding flights, no electric lights
       No luxury cars and caravans in sight;
       Each limited to his home and country farm
       Should work to earn, no rushing traffic jam.

11)   All is not gone; be not submerged in gloom
        Still we have to live- no danger or doom;
        Had not our ancestors lived in conditions worse?
        They found joy in hard work and not in easy purse. 


12)   With changing times adjust thy pace
         Creativity blossoms in many ways;
         Realize your potential and use your mind
         Harmonize with Nature generous and kind.

13)    Like devouring dinosaurs with monstrous size
         You destroyed Nature for gains unwise;
         Leading to this catastrophic surprise
         Polluting Nature under technological guise.

14)    Our ancestors combined beauty with use
          A sense of devotion in everything did fuse;
          No mindless destruction or misuse
          Nature’s gifts they enriched, never did they lose.

15)     This swift astounding change may possibly bring
          A new era with a fresh new beginning;
          A new vision with a new attitude
          A new Atlantis with wisdom imbued.

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

           23rd May, 2020                            Somaseshu Gutala

Note:  Once in our locality there was a sudden break down of power supply. Dead  silence I felt in our building which used to have a variety of sounds emanating from various gadgets besides the sounds of bikes and cars. I visualized an imaginary situation of the city if all systems fail including internet and automobiles. What will be the reaction of an ordinary person in such a situation?   Of course man has to rely on his own abilities and mutual co-ordination. The sudden cessation of activities will surely make man observe his surroundings and persons to get an intimate understanding. Cut off from electronic devices he has to rely on books and other written material. He will come to intimate terms with Nature and derive pleasure to behold her charms and her valuable lessons.The precious value of manual labor and involvement will be understood. He has to give up his dependence on machines and hone his own skills to face life's challenges. He has to activate his creative skills and talents. This "catastrophic surprise" may happen due to man's destructive instincts and his overambitious, exploitative attitude towards Nature. Man has to adjust to his new circumstances for his ultimate survival and recognize the truth that his survival is closely linked with survival of other living creatures and protection of Nature.

Ref :  Atlantis -- An imaginary place mentioned in Plato's dialogues "Timaeus" and "Critias" where once a highly advanced civilization existed. But the inhabitants of that place became greedy and morally corrupt. The  gods became  angry and destroyed the kingdom for the people had lost their way and turned to immoral pursuits. This island kingdom sank into the ocean around 9600 B.C.

        New Atlantis -- A Utopian novel published by Sir Francis Bacon in 1627 after bacon's death in 1626. This book describes a Utopian world  where people lived ideal,peaceful, enlightened lives.

                 ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++



 
                



Sunday, May 10, 2020

Trekkers





 




       
                                             

  1)   A long line of trekkers in scorching heat
        Not for pastime, their sweating faces reveal
        Deprived of jobs, life’s ends they could not meet;
        Their sorrows and troubles none  did feel;
        Their battered lives thrown like orange peels
        By their so-called masters with selfish deals.

2)     All ways blocked, no vehicles to return
        Hounded by ruthless rules, no way to turn;
        With starving families their bosoms burn;
        They took to streets as no one showed concern;
        They trudged on roads like frightened beasts
        Carrying loads with none to care at least.

3)     Cut off from homes and from their kith and kin 
         They struggled for minimum wages to earn
         In city’s slums they dwell with dust and din;
         Not for royal luxuries they did yearn;
        This pandemic threw their lives out of gear
        No help and support for them from anywhere.

4)    Trekking hundreds of miles with loads on heads
       A long line of migrant  workers from different states;
       Resting on wayside farms and in broken sheds
       Just like beggars left alone cursing their fate;
       Is this the due reward for their incessant strain?
       For their hard industry what did they gain?

5)    The city drained their strength in selfish ways
        Rejecting them in times of troublesome days;
        Drove them out from their slums, nowhere to stay
        Depriving their due benefits and pay;
        None cared to see their deplorable state
        The city locked down shutting their gates.

6)    The city prospered feeding on their blood
       The city squeezed their fruits of toil to gain;
       The city let them suffer and struggle in a flood
       Of miseries, disease and starving pain;
       Left them like refugees in alien deserts lost
       Made them return to home with tragic thoughts.

7)   Some died of starvation on their way
      Some fell down sick exhausted and weak
      Some could not bear the heat of blazing day
      Mired in poverty their future seemed too bleak;
      Some were whisked away back to shelters dim
      Cooped up to spend their days in situation grim.

8)   Returning to their homes, their cherished dream
      To live or die there, their final goal;
      None cared to hear their woes, their agonized screams
      None recognized their toil, their vital role;
     Their families pestered with ailments and pain
     Their strenuous stay brought them nothing to gain.

9)  Their travelling ordeal moved many hearts
      Their tears and cries, a shameful curse
      On those who treat people with heartless thoughts
      On those who cared only for their power and purse;
      What these poor people need only quick relief
      And liberal help to lessen their grief.

10) In these times of sudden adversity
       Let us extend our help to suffering men
       Our support in testing times of necessity;
       Inhuman to leave them in lurch and shun;
       Save these trekkers from their stress and strain
       Let powers act, not speak mere platitudes in vain.

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

  10th May, 2020                                    Somaseshu Gutala


 
    
      
         




Thursday, April 30, 2020

WHO CAN SURPASS THEE, LORD!










                     
1)  Thou created this universe vast
      With so many planets and twinkling stars
      A magic web beyond our estimate far
      A maze of systems with rhythmic orbits fraught  
      Ever expanding mysterious state
      Thy mighty skills who can surpass, my Master great!

2)  Creator of wonderful innumerable things!
     Undeciphered by our frail mortal eye
     With sense-bound knowledge in vain we try to spy;
      From largest beings to microscopic things
      How life doth move in so many sentient ways
      Even in inert objects seen Thy miraculous sway.

3)   In every tiny atom Thy glory shines
       Nature’s laws reflect Thy wonderful skills
       In colorful flowers, birds, seas and hills
       Thy artistic powers sublime and divine
       In every species as astounding variety
       Coupled with beauty and multiplicity.

4)   Master poet, painter and architect great!
      Who can describe Thy innumerable powers?
       Beyond our count as stars and spring-tide showers;
       Beyond our fancy Thy exalted state
       Both fair and ferocious forms co-exist
       Thy creation, a magnificent unending list.


5)   Lord of Music, Dance and celestial Sounds
      The whole creation from Thee rose;
      Thy heavenly melodies whoever knows?
      Thy force makes spheres revolve within their bounds;
      Like sounds that fit in well with rhythmic strain
      Music, a blessed gift to feel Thy forms divine.

6)    Under Thy control rules almighty Time
       Making planets obey Thy ordained laws;
       In fixed paths revolve without any pause;
       A plan divine with universal vision sublime
       Time’s origin and underlying laws who can trace
       Our lives depend on Thy providence and grace.

7)    Noblest scientist with unparalleled brain
       Thy deepest mysteries we can’t unravel and pry
       How many billions of years mankind may try;
       Our greatest inventions, mere tiny grains;
       Thy splendid acts in this universe vast
       Each being, a world with secrets beyond our thought.

8)    Greatest physician who cures all our woes
        Thy sacred names enough to cure our mortal pains
        Our mental tensions and struggles restrain;
        A bundle of miracles Thy creation shows;
        Death’s healing touch delivers us at last
        To reach Thy feet, our protector Thou art.        

 9)  Thy bounteous grace and blessings transcends our view
       Thou feedest countless beings seen and unseen;
       Filling this earth with fresh vegetation green;
       Slaking this earth with cool showers and dew;
       What gratitude in words can we convey?
       Ere Thy motherly affection except to pray.

10)   Sustainer of all worlds! Thy blessings inspire
         Noble saints to find Thee in loving sacrifice;
        The common lot filled with greed and avarice
         Exploit Thy gifts with insatiable desire;
         Nature’s silent admonitions they never heed
         Rebelling against Thy rules with ignoble deeds.

11)   For which all have to suffer bearing the blame     
        Our mad pursuits, killings, cravings and craze
        Have thrown this world into confusing maze;
        Of mortal agony and spiritual shame;
        One look of Thine enough to smash this sphere;
        A small virus, enough to induce terrorizing fear.

12)   So many prophets beholding the space
         Divinely inspired poured out their hearts
        With grateful tears in hymns with devotion fraught;
         Ev’n scientists struck by wondrous laws and ways
         Felt themselves humbled by Thy transcendent spell
         Thy all-pervading source vibrates in every cell.

13)   Kings and tyrants swollen with power and pride
         Ruling this earth deemed themselves as gods
         Exposed to plots and wretched wars perished in sod
         Their ancient tongues and their cultures too died;
         Their monumental tombs are no more seen;
         Our worldly possessions vanish like dew on the green.

14)   We owe all to Thee, Mercy incarnate!
         Our ignorance makes us forget Thy rewards
         In greedy struggle Thy warnings we discard
         For our wilful blunders we blame our fate
         Thou art our final goal and primeval cause;     
         Thy noblest state and glory who can surpass?

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

         30th April,2020                             Somaseshu Gutala 

  

   Note : In many ancient religious texts, God's greatness and glory are admired with mystic wonder in poetic lines showing their deep devotion and immense gratitude. In William Blake's lines: " To see world in a grain of sand and a heaven in a wild flower/ Hold eternity in the palm of your hand/ And eternity in an hour." In the "Book of psalms" in the Old Testament God's glory and splendid beauty of creation are described in psalms from 146 to 150. All these five psalms begin with the line "Praise the Lord!"  In Rigveda many hymns were composed glorifying the forces of Nature like Indra (Powerful Lord of all gods), Surya (Sun God) Agni( Fire God) and Varuna( Protector and upholder of Cosmic and Moral law). Their divine inspiration made them see the divinities and describe their powers in beautiful mystic language thousands of years ago. Contemplating on God's supreme abilities and His divine plan behind creation and His merciful gifts to all, make us realize His glory at least to some extent and also make us understand our real status in this vast universe. 


               

                                                                                          
              


Tuesday, April 14, 2020

TEMPTATIONS



 
 
                          
     
 


                                     
                      

So many sages often warn Thee, Oh fool!
Yield not to senses and become their tool
They drag you down like glittering pools
They burden you with woes and make thee a mule;
Like devil’s floating fire they tempt your eye
An unending series of struggles till you die;
Distant pools of nectar in deserts dry;
They make you run and cheat you to cry;
A tempting carnivorous coiled net they spread
And catch you unawares and suck you dead;
Like gigantic waves they lift you high
And dash you down to drown and die;
In dreamy world too, none they spare
Pouncing like hounds your bosom to tear;
Buffeted by winds and rain rocks may break
But not these growing desires, you fool, awake!
They bloat your mind with egoistic pride
Feigning like friends, they promise and misguide;
In their Circean smiles do not fall
They make you a brute, a life-long thrall
And once you are in, no passage out
Into dying dungeon you move, no doubt;
They tickle your mind with rosy lips
They make you do unpardonable slips
And mock at your failures till the end
Of your life with no chance to mend;
They spur your passions, greed and lust
And make you pine and pine till you turn to dust;
A fool presumes himself a mighty man
And wastes in idle pleasures his life span;

                              ( I I )

A false fantasy-heaven they tend to create
Nothing remains at last; to feel despair too late;
Like gods they seem with devilish intent
They drive you mad for vain goals hell-bent; 
They make you forget your value in fact
And drive you crazy to foolishly act;
No distinction of age and creed they find
They worm their way even into a dying mind;
They leave their marks like gashes deep;
Unfulfilled and cheated you have to weep;
They blind your vision with delusions false
They push you down, an irreparable loss;
In saintly garb sometimes they make their way
And break your conscience and lead you astray;
Temptations test even noble souls in vain
And try to damn them with material gain;
Yield not to them and entertain
You will be left with unforgettable pain;
Like weird witches of the blasted heath
Their foul intentions are hidden beneath;
Their provocations seem innocent and pure
They fill your mind with greedy thoughts impure;
Like beggars who ride on wishful horses’ backs
Left at last with irrecoverable shock;
In the false mirror of your ego
Magic notions of yourself they throw
Like a drunkard unconscious of his deeds
They fill your mind with darkest weeds;
What you assume as heavenly bliss
Knocks you down into deepest abyss;
Evaluate yourself and your worth ere you aspire
Like naughty goblins they falsely inspire;
With waxen wings to soar high if you dare
You plunge yourself into darkest despair;

                        ( I I I )

No use of blaming destiny and fate
No use of cursing others about your state;
You fell into the magic trap on your own
False illusions about yourself have sown;
Entangled in your foolish hopes you waste
Your precious time and then repent too late;
Time will mock at your foolish thoughts and acts
And what you did in haste cannot retract;
You ruined yourself with false illusions
You wasted your life with these tempting visions;
What use when you wake up from your drunken sleep?
You can’t undo your acts; their fruits you have to reap; 
So many people depraved, cheated and undone
These temptations one has to resist and shun;
Seek God’s grace and listen your conscience sound
Act not in haste; think cool; be within your bounds;
Be not too proud, think not that ever you are right
Be sympathetic to others and feel their plight;
Think of your worth ere you desire in proper ways
Nothing drops from above and nothing stays.

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

   14th April, 2020                               Somaseshu Gutala


 Note :

   1)   Circean smiles -- Circe, a sea-nymph in Greek mythology. She with her knowledge of herbs and potions, used to tempt sailors and transform them into animals. here it means " dangerously attractive and misleading smiles." 

    2)   Devil's floating fire -- Will-O'-the-wisp is flame like vapor formed by gases in marshy places. People used to believe it was a spirit. Foolish travellers tried to follow the light which led them astray. In Latin it is called "ignis fatuus" which means "foolish fire." Here it means any "foolish impractical goal."

   3) Distant pools of nectar -- Mirage-- an optical illusion caused by atmospheric conditions in a desert.

   4) Temptations test even noble souls -- refers to temptation of Christ by Satan in the desert.

   5) Like weird witches of the blasted heath -- reference to Shakespeare's play "Macbeth". Macbeth, a Scottish General,  meets three witches in a barren land while he was going to Forres where King Duncan's castle is located. They deceive Macbeth by prophesying that he was going to become the king of Scotland. 

  6)  Like beggars who ride on wishful horses' backs -- reference to a Scottish nursery rhyme"If wishes were horses, beggars would ride" which means that if wishing could make things happen, then most destitute people would have everything they wanted.
               _______________________________________

Friday, April 3, 2020

THE TALE OF RANGI, THE SERVANT MAID



















    Right from her childhood she spent her days
      In backyards scrubbing and rinsing utensils
      Sweeping dusty rooms and washing clothes
      Listening to reprimands and curses crude;
      Not used to childhood pleasures and pastimes
      Not used to playing with dolls and with mates
      Not used to going to school and learning skills
     A stranger she is to letters and figures
     All her years spent in midst of dirt and grime;
     Tears welled up in her eyes when she beheld 
     Kids of her age fluttering like butterflies
     In trim, neat uniform going to school
    With shouts of mirth greeting each other;
    Her world—hard toil spent in filthy surroundings
    Her tender palms roughened with household chores
    Accustomed to daily taunts and drudgery;
    In course of time she got used to her state
    Mere complaining she thought a useless task
    She accepted her lot with a hardened heart
    She tried to find pleasure in her routine
    Though others spurned her as a servant maid
    Her drunkard father with foul threats and brutal blows
    Snatched her earnings though she protested in vain;

                                  ( I I )

   None christened her name; neighbors called her "Rangi"
   Named after the pretty goddess of wealth;
   A common background in them she found
   All poor, unlettered, migrant struggling slaves
   Compelled to forego their childhood golden years
   Compelled to drudge to help their starving families;
   Compelled to bear the burden of bludgeoning debts.

                                     ( I I I )

  Two decades went by in monotonous way
  Starting early to work and returning late;
  Though time went on with no perceptible change
  Age blossomed in her form with passing years
  Her blooming youth made her agile and   strong
  Like a wild flower with natural charm;
  Her graceful gait and her sweet rustic voice
  Her dark long hair and her dark shiny skin
  Lent her a pretty, attractive glow;
  Her earnest work and her submissive nature
  Endeared her to all as a lovable, gentle maid;
  In every wedding function and festive event
  An active role she played helping others unsought;
  She never worried about her future
  Too bleak and uncertain with no ray of hope;
  For her to get a square meal every day
  Seemed a blessing and never did she think
  About her wedding and happy settled life—
  Too far for her struggling, humble state.
  She brushed aside with empty smiles and feigned to blush
  If anyone joked about her wedding affair.
  She bid adieu to her future hopes and dreams
  Too distant and unreachable like stars;
  Behind her smiles and cheerful looks
  There lurks a passive surrender and silent gloom;
  To hide her woes she laughed and chatted in a merry vein;
  She felt happy in seeing others’ happy state;
  A gloomy future waits for her—she knows
  To stay as a maid lifelong or be a drunkard’s wife
  And slog through life bearing insults and blows;
  Like a sad refrain of an old tragic song.
  If destiny wills and smiles on her innocent face
  A simple rustic with a sympathetic heart
  May come and like her tender and gentle heart
  Untarnished by guiles and double dealing tricks;
  And feel blessed to wed her with no greedy demands
  To make his hut happy with her lovely presence;
  Let us wish her all joy and future bright
  A due reward to recompense her burdensome past.

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

       3rd April, 2020                                  Somaseshu Gutala