In defence of Duryodhana

a translation of one of the many poems that celebrate this shade of the Kaurava prince. for a beautiful tamil original (in english script), go here. the others bear with me:

~~
the disease of suspicion-
is never in my being.
for I am a king who can respect
the friendship that flowers
between a man and a woman.

my friend must have arrived,
looking for me,
my wife must be attending,
with a smiling face.

what could the two be talking,
all this while.
what could they be doing,
all this time.

no such worries,
trouble my heart,
with a pace as steady
as my mind,
I walk back home
to find them both.

entering my palace,
a scene I see,
strange as one,
ever can be.

in my friend's grasp,
is my wife.
a broken chain
is spilling its pearls.

how well the wise spoke:
"all that you see,
is but a lie.
and all that you hear,
is mere falsehood."

but how do I tell them,
of what I have gleaned?

by speaking too much,
I would be a boast.
and by speaking none,
confusion would reign.

All I need are two words,
to put them at ease.

the pearls don't still,
for the king's crown,
the pearls call upon,
laughing on the floor.

to pick them up is quite easy,
it doesn't call for much sense.
to string them is a little harder,
calling for untiring attention.

without merely collecting,
I can string them as well.

tell me, my beautiful wife,
tell me, my dearest friend,
"should I pick them up,
or string them as well?"

~~
"edukkavo, kokkavo?"

a special wish from Mad:

I wish you lots of birthday bliss,
I wish you many things at once.

And here are some examples:
an amaltas tree in full bloom,
sprigs of dainty bougainvilleas,
a swing under a sturdy neem,
chubby sparrows on a windowsill.

Peacocks with a hundred eyes,
juicy mangoes and pomegranates.

These things I wish for you,
And several more unnamed,
Dreams be dreams no more!

edukkavo? korkkavo?

Bhanumathi is deep in a game of chess with Karna, when Duryodhana walks into her chambers.

As he approaches, Bhanumathi begins to stand up, a little abashed to be found thus by her husband.

An unaware Karna, on the other hand, commands of her: "Where are you going, finish the game first." And he tugs at her hip chain, mekhala, for good measure.

Bhanumathi edges away from Karna's grasp, and the chain breaks to tumble pearls all around the chamber.

As both she and Karna look down sheepishly, unable to meet Duryodhana's eyes, the Kaurava scion only asks:

"edukkavo, Korkkavo [should I just collect the beads, or string them as well]."

Tell me, does it not make him better than Rama?

The knowledge of the gods

"Tell me Ammama, why were you named Fragrance?" I ask. We are discussing stars and names, and I am curious because others born under her star are named with letters G and H.

She reluctantly spells: "My father hoped I would die young, and named me after his sister who died within a month." Looking at my face, she quickly rises in defence: "he was heartbroken. I, after all, killed my mother at birth."

"Names have a strange influence of their own," she says and leaves the rest unspoken - that her grandmother raised her for many years, that her father snatched her away from her loving care for the sake of his pride, that he paid her scant attention, that he got her married to a drunkard - that the name strangles her every now and then, and that she has had to fight it all her life.

Names are a burden, I know it too well. There are expectations and dreams that I have longed to shrug away.

And then there is my aunt, robbed of her destiny, when named to match her brother. But, true to her given name, she handles every crisis that life throws her way with Grace.

Lil' one, what do I wish for you... a name that sits as light as butterfly kisses, or one that will shape your years. Neither may work, but this I hope does. A wish that everytime you hear it, it be spoken only with love.

Someday at lunctime...

My mother grew up in a large, sprawling house with six siblings. Which means that I have 12 cousins whom my mother can call out to cite good behaviour.

The extended family congregates for my grandfather's annual shraadham. And after the prayers and smoke, it is time for a meal of light banter and teasing updates. It is also a time I feel very proud of all of them.

But when the men quickly disappear after food to find an AC, and the women settle down to serve themselves... I become disillusioned.

Is this my family of professors, scientists, geek techies and financial wizards? Can not even one think of serving food for the women who made them.

Maybe it is the mistake of all these women. As the firsts who had to prove that they could have paying jobs, they raced through everything.... chores, careers and children's homework.

Maybe, they just didn't have time to stop and ask, cajole and coax, or demand any help.

But then my youngest cousin brother, of his own, races between mother and aunt and demanding cousin sister to serve hot vadais.

And I know that someday at lunctime, we will make one large semi-circle - all of us cooking and eating and teasing together. Someday at lunctime...

struck a chord

Jane Austen on Anne:
“She had been forced into prudence in her youth, she learned romance as she grew older — the natural sequel of an unnatural beginning”.

The Good Women of China

I simply cannot fall asleep. For here I am, drunk on excitement: mehendis, dances, giggles and girl-talk.

So I pick up the Good Women of China and read a few pages until tears start dropping by.

In a strange way, I am proud that N chose me to lend her book to. But to sign on its back cover next to women who have fought for great things is a responsibility too...

So I will myself to quickly fall asleep. For there is so much to do, to make the world a better place.

And your problems just shrink in space.

tell me Rama:

"Ravana took my body away but my soul was yours. Tell me Rama, is Sita the body or the mind?"

It is not easy to give a friend away...

It is not easy to know that you are no longer her best confidant,
It is not easy for there won't be those nights of non-stop talking,
It is not easy to see her go, all the way around the world,

But when you know that he is worth it, you are so happy as I feel now.
And you begin to love him too... :D

the days are packed

Most times when a friend falls in love or gets hitched, you get the feeling that the guy isn't really good enough for your friend.

Does he know how she never speaks about herself?
Does he know how she will weep for the beggar boy at the signal?
Does he realise just how lucky he is??

But rarely, very rarely, you get the feeling that he knows all this. And two such weddings are coming up... There are blouses to be stitched, mehendis to be organised. Scrap-books to be made and pictures to be clicked.

For its my best friends weddings, two in a row. :-) :-)