The Sagacious Woody

-
Image
Behold! The old beardy hunches over his pot – He licks up, in broad daylight, his damp woods stewed hot! He shakes his head, keeps muttering hymns like a mage – From his ways, you would think he’s no less than a sage! Blabbers all day long – you’d wonder from where they stem – “The sky’s full of cobwebs, so woods have holes in them.” He raises his bald head and beads of sweat run down, “Nobody can fathom its gravity –” he’d frown, “These foolish dunderheads, to such matters purblind, Don’t seem to take in – always wrangling in their mind. Which wood has more essence – blind to facts such simple – Why on eleventh lunar days, woods get dimple.” Scribbled around all o’er, in fact, is his account Of cracked woods and notched woods – he loses not a count! Which hole tastes delicious, and which hole’s insipid, Which crack gives off fragrance, and which one smells horrid. Clunk! Clank! Clackety-rattle! He knocks wood with wood, And says, “I know which wood in what way gets subdued. Paying a...
3 comments

Freaky Farrago!

-

When duck was porcupine (grammar I disobey),
It then turned Duckupine, I know not in what way!

 "Behold! Thou tortoise," exclaims the stork with all glee,
"With us as the Stortoise, really unique are we!"

 The parrot-faced lizard felt rather uneasy—
Leaving bugs to eat just chili made him queasy.

 God knows what treacherous plot the goat had in mind,
It chased the scorpion, got their head'n'torso combined!

 Wandering in fields, giraffe, weary, felt as crass,
Now with wings of Dragonfly, it could fly o'er grass.

In panic was the cow – "What a gruesome blunder! 
Why a wild rooster is on my back, I wonder."

 The Elewhale felt terrible and rather grim—
While Ele yearns for jungle the whale craves to swim!

 Hornet mourns, "I've no horns," now merges with a deer,
Now pleased, the horned hornet has no more gripe or fear.

(Bengali original: Khichuri)
Translation by: Arkajyoti Banerjee
[Note: The Bengali original, the final couplet has the animal 'shingho'(lion) and the word shing(horn) is contained in it. However, in English, a direct translation of 'lion without horns' would not be so humorous, as the word 'horn' is not contained in the word 'lion'. So, in order to preserve the humour, I have used the animal 'hornet' instead of lion, as it contains the word 'horn'.]

খিচুড়ি 

হাঁস ছিল, সজারুও, (ব্যাকরণ মানি না),
হয়ে গেল 'হাঁসজারু' কেমনে তা জানি না৷

 বক কহে কচ্ছপে—"বাহবা কি ফুর্তি!
অতি খাসা আমাদের 'বকচ্ছপ মূর্তি'৷"

 টিয়ামুখো গিরগিটি মনে ভারি শঙ্কা—
পোকা ছেড়ে শেষে কিগো খাবে কাঁচা লঙ্কা?

 ছাগলের পেটে ছিল না জানি কি ফন্দি,
চাপিল বিছার ঘাড়ে, ধড়ে মুড়ো সন্ধি!

 জিরাফের সাধ নাই মাঠে–ঘাটে ঘুরিতে,
ফড়িঙের ঢং ধরি সেও চায় উড়িতে৷

 গরু বলে, "আমারেও ধরিল কি ও রোগে?
মোর পিছে লাগে কেন হতভাগা মোরগে?"

 'হাতিমি'র দশা দেখ–তিমি ভাবে জলে যাই
হাতি বলে, "এই বেলা জঙ্গলে চল ভাই৷"

 সিংহের শিং নাই এই বড় কষ্ট—
হরিণের সাথে মিলে শিং হল পষ্ট৷
By Sukumar Ray

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Fear Not!

-
Image
Fear Not The Original sketch by Sukumar Ray Fear not, fear not – rest assured, I will beat you not – Really, if we wrestle, I can defeat you not. My heart is too soft; fury is what my bones lack, To chew you up and eat alive, I have no knack! You fear so much seeing horns on my head jutting out, Don’t you know my head pains, these aren’t for butting out? Come, come to my burrow, stay four days, I invite, With love I’ll bring you up, and keep you day and night. Seeing club on my hand, you say you don’t want to stay? This club won’t hit you hard, for too light does it weigh. Still not assured? Tell, should I grab you by your feet? I’ll sit over your head and then you’ll try to fleet. I’m there, my wife is there, and I have nine sons too – Fear once more so stupidly, and we’ll all bite you. (Bengali original:  Bhoy Peona ) Translated by Arkajyoti Banerjee ----------------------------------------------------- ভয় পেয়োনা (Bhoy Peona) ভয় ...
Read more

The Tickling Old Man

-
Image
Across the seven seas, go wherever you like you can,  But beware! Never ever approach the tickling old man. A terrible old man – dare not step into his hut – He’ll tickle you on and on till rips apart your gut. No one knows where he stays, in which land so eerie, Once he finds you alone, he’ll read you out a story. So strange his tales are, God knows from which days of yore, They have not the least fun, but they’d make one feel sore. Those tales have no head or tail – total gibberish! Still it is must to laugh – that too against your wish. If it is just a story, one can still bear and endure, But he tickles you with a long feather, and that’s for sure. Keeps on blabbering, “Ho! Ho! Ho! William’s aunt Always sold pumpkins, yams, duck eggs and linseed plant. The eggs were long, the pumpkins but crooked and bent, On the yams were sketched designs in colourful paint. The aunt, in a faint voice, hummed and sang the whole day, Meow-meow, coo-c...
Read more

Pumpkin-Plumpkin

-
Image
Have a look at this freaky peculiar creature, You've never learnt or been taught by any teacher - Don't think I am joking, really, I am serious... If you don't obey my words, he'll just get furious! Pumpkin-Plumpkin (If) Pumpkin-Plumpkin dances – Never approach the stables by any chances, Don’t look left or right and don’t take backward glances; Hang with all four legs from Ruckus-radish branches! (If) Pumpkin-Plumpkin cries – Beware! Never sit on rooftops under the skies; Lie prone in tree-houses, blankets shoulder to thighs, Sing ‘Radhe Krishna Radhe’ in deafening sighs! (If) Pumpkin-Plumpkin laughs – Stand on one leg by kitchen, with no stick or staffs; Speak Persian in whispers, muffled by breath in halves; Fasting all three meals, lie on grass like astray calves! (If) Pumpkin-Plumpkin runs – Make sure you all clamber up the windows at once; Hookah water mixed with rouge, smear lips’n’cheeks in tons; And dare ...
Read more