• Parabaas
    Parabaas : পরবাস : বাংলা ভাষা, সাহিত্য ও সংস্কৃতি
  • পরবাস | Shakti Chattopadhyay | Poem
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  • Come cyclone : Shakti Chattopadhyay
    translated from Bengali to English by Nandini Gupta

    Come cyclone
    (হোক ঝড়-বৃষ্টি)



    Four debdaru trees with their drooping leaves,
                               Some rambling portulaca;
    The juin that clutching air climbs upstairs, as does the madhabi;
    Below, a pebbled path cuts through the garden—
    On the left in a row, beli, lily, rangan,
    White jawbaa flower in profusion.
    With all these in my small garden I sit on the grass—
                               like a customary statue.
    With a dish of Koi with choi on my mind
                               I’ve planted the betel look-alike,
    Brought home the choicest bulbs from the nursery.
    I am afraid. That a squall will jab at them one day.
    And yet we need a storm, we need rain, to stay alive,
    Come a cyclone, I shall hold tight in my safe embrace—
    My trees, my family.

    debdaru—Indian Fir tree
    jnui—Jasmine creeper
    madhabi—Rangoon creeper
    beli—Arabian jasmine plant
    rangan—Ixora flower
    jawbaa—China rose
    Koi—Anabas fish
    choi—Piper chaba vine used in food

    The original poem 'Hok jhaR-brishTi' (হোক ঝড়-বৃষ্টি) was published in periodical 'Desh' (দেশ) in 1992.
    Parabaas, June, 2020

    Illustrated by Sanchari Mukherjee.
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