The Sagacious Woody

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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...
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Verses of the Impossible

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Verses of the Impossible


Come nit-witty, whimsies pretty,
In this city, dream dancing hums;

Come wacky mads, gibberish lads,
Bring along scads of beating drums.

Come hear the strain of songs insane
Lacking in brain, lacking in tunes.

Come here with love, flying high like dove,
Senses above — floating balloons.

Come crazy fools, forgetting rules,
Happy and cool, dancing hip-hop;

Come reckless loons, unruly goons,
Lawless baboons, haphazard glop!

Peculiar prank, comical crank
Being dopey and drank, ringing knell—

So come and see this world of glee
               Verses of the impossible.
Translation by: Arkajyoti Banerjee

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 The above poem was the translated version of the original Bengali poem 'Abol Tabol', the beginning poem, an introductory poem of the Abol Tabol collection by Sukumar Ray.
I am also providing the original Bengali poem below for those who can read Bengali, so that they can comparatively read both of them.

 আবোল তাবোল

আয়রে ভোলা খেয়াল খোলা
           স্বপনদোলা নাচিয়ে আয়,
আয়রে পাগল আবোল তাবোল
           মত্ত মাদল বাজিয়ে আয় ৷
আয় যেখানে ক্ষ্যাপার গানে
           নাইকো মানে নাইকো সুর,
আয়রে যেথায় উধাও হাওয়ায়
           মন ভেসে যায় কোন্ সুদূর ৷
আয় ক্ষ্যাপা–মন ঘুচিয়ে বাঁধন
           জাগিয়ে নাচন তাধিন্ ধিন্,
আয় বেয়াড়া সৃষ্টিছাড়া
           নিয়মহারা হিসাব–হীন ৷
আজগুবি চাল বেঠিক বেতাল
           মাতবি মাতাল রঙ্গেতে,
আয়রে তবে ভুলের ভবে
           অসম্ভবের ছন্দেতে ৷৷



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