Bringing to you all one of the best poems, by an eminent Indian Marathi poet Vishnu Vaman Shirwadkar, popularly known by his pen name, Kusumagraj.
‘Kanaa’ meaning spine/backbone is such a beautiful poem, which I happened to read in school as schoolwork. But stayed with me since then.
‘Kanaa’ captures the fighting spirit of a man bravely facing life’s challenges. This poem is originally written in Marathi, one of the Indian languages.
Enjoy the English translation here…
“Do you remember me Sir?”
He visited me in the rain and said,
His clothes were all too muddy,
And his hair was all wet.
He sat for a moment and then smiled,
And then he spoke all the same,
“In my house, she lived and left,
When as guest Mother Ganges (River Ganges) came.”
“Like a married daughter back home,
She danced around in the house,
Never to return empty-handed,
She just spared only my spouse.
“The walls fell and the stove drenched,
She took all that was to bear,
And for the blessings of goodbye,
She left in the eye only the tear.
“With my wife by my side,
Sir I am now fighting it all,
Am clearing up the sludge,
And building the broken wall.’
When for the pocket went my hand,
Suddenly he stood up with a laugh,
“I am not here for money, Sir”, he said,
“Just felt alone from where I stand.”
“The life is shattered to pieces, Sir,
But my spine still holds its might,
Place your hand on my back,
And just say, ‘Fight.’”
Translation Reference: https://sponts.wordpress.com/2011/02/01/kana-by-kavi-kusumagraj/
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