BOOK REVIEW
ENGLISH
METVERSE
MUSE (By-annual journal): Edited by (Mrs) Dr. H. Tulsi Publishers: 21-46/1,
Kakani Nagar, N.A.D.Post Visakhapatnam -530 009Price: Rs.50; $ 7; 5 Pounds (Sterling) Pp.112
A band of lovers of metred poetry
started a bi-annual journal devoted to metred verse entitled Metverse Muse from
Visakhapatnam with (Mrs) Dr. H. Tulsi as Editor cum Publisher. The insignia printed on the cover page of
the 4th Issue (July ’97) projects in unequivocal terms the aims and objects of
the Publishers. It reads thus-
The time has come at last for re-installation of metred verse as king and for his coronation just a few pages between him and the throne Once again his lost crown he soon will own. Let us on this long looked-forward-to occasion Promise him allegiance of boundless duration.
The contributors include such
stalwarts like Dr. Niranjan Misra, P.K. Majumdar, Hyder Nayab, Dr. (Mrs.)
Louella Lobo Prabhu, S. Chandrasekaran, N.N. Murthy, Dr. Eric Poersch (Canada)
Peter Geoffrey Paul Thompson (England).
Sufficient space is also allocated to articles and essays, Prosody and
Views and Reviews. Photographs of the
contributors add colour. The Publishers and the Editor deserve all praise for
this excellent format and rich content.
-Dr. K.R.K. Mohan
VISTAS
OF INTEGRAL VISION-
By Dr. P. Subba Rayudu, Seva Sadan C/o Srinivasan Enterprises, 1-14-234,
Balamrai, New Vikas Nagar, Secunderabad – 500 003. Pp.107; Rs. 35
In recent times a new discipline of science known as ‘Para Psychology’ emerged and is fast developing. This branch tries to explain occult phenomena on rational lines. Dr. P. Subba Rayudu who is also a double master evinced keen interest in the inner realms of self and higher dimensions of the mind. He made an in depth study of the mind subject and attempted to explain several such phenomena which are still questions to the scientific community. His observations and explanations are thought provoking and convincing. The book offers a rewarding study even to the common reader. Dr. P. Subba Rayudu deserves kudos for taking up a less touched subject.
-Dr. K.R.K. Mohan
KABIR: Selected couplets from the Sakhi: (In transversion); Mohan
Singh Karki; Motilal Banarasidass Publishers Pvt. Ltd., Delhi; Pp160; Rs.195 (Paperback)
Rs.295 (Cloth bound)
Dr. Mohan Singh Karki obviously has
taken great pains to select over 70 poems of the saint-poet Kabirdas and
translated them into English. He has
selected the verses carefully and rendered the transversion with confidence and
competence. He also appends Notes on
points where he considers would help the reader have a better appreciation of
the sense, as also an Index to the first lines in both the Hindi original text
and the English translation, in addition to a bibilography, which enhance the
value of the book considerably.
It will be relevant to quote the
author’s own words about his translation.
“I remember when Mathew Arnold was
requested for translating Homer’s works, Arnold lectured which is now available
in the essay ‘On Translating Homer’.
Arnold brought out the weaknesses of the earlier translations and
suggested the future translators to keep in mind his suggestions. I had not read any translation of Kabir’s
works when the work was in progress. In
the interval between the submission of the MSS and final publication, I came
across G.N. Dass’s ‘Couplets of Kabir’, Lind Hess’s, ‘The Biajk of
Kabir’ and Charlotte Vaudeville’s, ‘The Sakhis of Kabir’, the first
being published the last. G.N. Dass has
rendered into English 300 dohas, Linda Hess 234 and Charlotte Vaudeville
735. In my selection there are 408.
“I have used the set stanza
form-iamblic tetrameter four line stanza in which the second line rhymes with
the fourth, similar to W.B. Yeats stanza in ‘The Fiddler of Dooney’.
Dass classified his selections into 21 categories. Linda has no categorisation. Vaudeville into 33 headings. In my
book the classification is into 71 headings.
“In any translation choice of words is
an important thing. For example,
Rabindranath Tagore retained the word ‘Sadhu’, G N Dass uses ‘learned saint’,
Linda Hess also uses ‘saint’, so does
Vaudeville. I have used ‘the righteous’
guided by the Bible.
“A question is often raised. Can the spirit of Kabir be maintained in the translation? Translation has its limitations. ‘Rubaiyat of Omar Khayam’ is often
quoted. There is a ‘Jhirmir Jhirmir
barasiya’ in one doha.
Vaudeville renders it as
‘softly, softly rain came down’. I made
it ‘it drizzled in graceful drizzles’. Trying to keep the spirit and sense of
alliteration.”
No more comment is needed. Dr. Karki has done a good and
thorough job and he deserves all praise for his worthy effort.
-Vemaraju
Narasimha Rao
In
the Ruins of Time;
Pronab Kumar Majumder; Writers workshop.
This collection of poems by Pronab
Kumar Majumder has a natural and reflective tone to it. There are several poems in here I
particularly liked and there were others that I thought were perhaps too
sentimental.
A poem that I did enjoy was “A huge
bell”. I liked this poem
particularly for its easy rhythm, its simple words, and it’s (to me) exotic
locale:
A huge bell tolls
Atop peaks of Himalayas
Ringing echo
In the valleys and
Snow-capped stones
As though the voice of God
It is one of those poems that is enjoyable to read
the first time around simply for the sound of it, and interesting to read the
second time around, for the meaning. The final stanza of “Photograph” I
liked for its powerful image:
My fingers and eyes
Were not always
Working together;
Suddenly a page surfaced
With a photograph
With a recognising smile
When before I could stir
My memory cord
I poured all my kisses
I stored thru my life
Upon the cheeks of
The hundred years old
Young and fresh girl
Powerful images occur throughout the poetry in
this book, although sometimes the images in some of the poems are unfamiliar to
this Western reviewer, such as in “Walking legs”: “In wavering flames of
a lantern/ In hand? Could be seen a
pair of legs/ Walking across the dark of the night”.
It is the odd poem like this one where
the images are large and the sound of the poem not as free or as natural as the
others, which disappoints in a good collection of poetry.
Yet it is this voice, and what lays
behind it, that holds it all together – that sense of a single persona in
different situations projecting a distinct and developing individuality. Yet however apparent this sense of persona,
and however strong the impression that Majumder is an innovator, one also gains
the impression that the emotions of these poems springs from real happenings
and situations.
In this engagement with the world as
well as the word Majumder is on firm ground.
His direct and evocative voice is a consequence of the journey he is
making in an increasingly alien world, as in the poem “Courtyard”:
The courtyard of my childhood is no
more
My childhood has slipped behind
The memory of the courtyard for sure
A cord yet works somewhere to bind
Here the poet confronts the changes in
his life from childhood to maturity.
So Majumdar takes the reader on a
journey of his self-discovery. Yet
possibly indulges the persona in us who is fascinated by something which may be
beyond our own experiences, but to which, nevertheless, we can relate. We, too, perhaps find our own enjoyment in
his words, an escape from our everyday banalities, while professing that we are
still merely observers.
This book is a publication by P. Lal’s
Writers Workshop and is thus handcrafted: layout and lettering by P. Lal,
gold-embossed, hand-stitched, hand-printed and hand-bound. It makes a delightful addition to one’s
library of poetry books.
-Patricia Prime
Rural Development in India - Full view at a Glance;
Dr.Karnati Lingaiah Edited by: A.V.Ranganatha Ch; For Copies: Kalyani
Publishers, 3-5-1108, Narayanaguda, Hyd-29 Pp.232 Rs.60/-
The governments both State and Central
started a number of employment schemes such as IRDP, Jawahar Rojgar Yojana,
TRYSEM, MREP, Dwera. But in many cases there are many slips between the cups
and lips, mostly due to ignorance. Of course it is a different issue.
Dr. Karnati Lingaiah who earned a name
as a successful senior Lecturer in Economics and who occupied covetable
position and received laurels from the Academic circles and who had several
popular books and papers to his credit brought out his latest book entitled “Rural
Development in India-Full View at a glance” at an appropriate time. The
book contains 14 chapters which deal with anything and everything under the Sun
relating to the rural front. He dealt with at length the rural situation,
problems identification of lacunae and possible solutions. He also gave details
of various schemes that aimed at rural upliftment. On learning about them one
wonders that there are so many schemes. It is for the needy people to derive
benefit out of them. It is essential to give wide publicity about the schemes
and create an awareness especially among the rural youth. If these schemes are
used properly, there is no wonder if our villages get a face lift and
Gandhiji’s dreams come true. Dr. Lingaiah’s book is a big step in this
direction. He deserves all kudos.
-Dr. K.R.K.
Mohan
The Craft of Poe’s Tales; Publishers: Gyan Publishing
House 5, Ansari Road, Daryaganj, New Delhi – 110 001.
Great detective writers like Sir
Arthur Conandoyle (creator of Sherlock Holmes), Edgar Wallac, Agatha Christie,
Erle Stanley Gardner and the like were greatly influenced by Poe.
In the U.S. there are several Readers’
dedicated to Poe’s studies. India too has a Poe’s Society started by Prof. D. Ramakrishna
of Kakatiya University.
Poe’s writings are known for their
Gothic mysteriousness or strangeness in their cosmic abullience, strong
nationalism and scientific curiosity. The outlook of Poe was so great that
countries like France and Czechoslavakia feel proud in claiming him as their
own. In the words of leading Poe’s scholar Professor R.Burton, R.Pollin of the
City University of New York. It is the multiplicity of aims, techniques and
atmospheres that has tempted musicians from many countries to seek out Poe’s
texts for choral pieces, songs, instrumental works, tone poems, symphonies and
operas.
In fact it was his dissertation on Poe
which brought Prof. Ramakrishna his Ph D and many other awards. His studies
were so authentic and scholarly that the Emerson Society Quarterly and the
Explicator of U.S. published parts of his manuscript in their journals. His
magnum Opus “The Craft of Poe’s Tales” contains seven Chapters which
literally touch every aspect of Poe’s works from different angles. The
Bibilography running to 28 pages is solid proof for the unique effort made by
him. Perhaps no other scholar did so much on Poe either in India or abroad. All
kudos to him.
-Dr. K.R.K.
Mohan
TELUGU
SCIENCE
FICTION KATHALU (Telugu),
K.R.K. Mohan. Price: Rs. 120/- Pages: 256. Published by Sri Mukha Publications,
Plot 101, Kanchi Residency, P&T Colony, Dilsuknagar, Hyderabad-60.
The mention of the word ‘story’
generally evokes interest in the young and the old alike. We have all heard bed-time stories narrated
by our grand mothers. In the Indian
setting they have been mainly from our scriptures, epics, folk-lore and the
like. As time passed stories began to
be written on people, events and incidents.
In modern times the story has for its subject science fiction in tune
with the spirit of the times.
A science fiction story differs from the run of the normal story. The writer of a science fiction story should possess a fertile, if not, a wild imagination, coupled with a sound knowledge of science and its application. He should be able to weave situations, descriptions and dialogues, which fit into the story naturally and convincingly. He should himself possess scientific thinking and be able to delve into the minds of the creatures of his imagination. In short he should possess talents that breathe life into his characters and situations and keep his readers in a spell. The language he uses should be scientific yet colloquial, the descriptions vivid yet simple, the narration lucid yet gripping.
Mr. K.R.K. Mohan has all these talents
in abundance and has achieved success as a writer of science fiction stories in
Telugu. There are twenty three stories
in the book. Each story has its freshness
in concept and believability in its appeal.
The book being the first compilation of its kind in Telugu is sure to
hit the stands with a bang. The book richly deserves to be in libraries and in
private collections. Kudos to KRK for
the publication.
-D. Ranga Rao
DIGI
VACHINA ARUNDHATI:
(Short stories), Janaki Jani, 6-7-17, Lalbahadurnagar, Kakinada-533 003;
Rs.80
Janaki Jani is a well known Telugu
writer. This book contains 12 of his
short stories in a variety of themes, simple style and with a message. Three of these need special mention.
DIGI
VACHINA ARUNDHATI: Arundhati deserts her husband and elopes with her lover who promises her
a glamorous life, and who later ditches her.
In her forlorn later life she sees an advertisement for a cook and finds
that it is no other than her husband.
He however forgives her with a large heart and wants her to stay with
him. A well developed theme narrated in
a gripping manner.
ARDHA
RUPAYEE: This is
based on human behaviour. Satyamurty steals a half-rupee coin from a blind
beggar to buy bread for his ailing wife, as he has no other way. But he later repents for his disgusting act
and he puts back the coin in the beggar’s bowl.
RUPANTHARAM: It delineates the tribulations
of an unmarried young woman working as a tutor in a college. Her male colleagues try to attract her
attention. A rumour is spread that she is about to get married to another
lecturer in the same college. Feeling humiliated, she leaves the place to work
in another town and remains a spinster. Her colleagues also refer to her as a
woman of loose morals. A very telling story of the way of our society. On the
whole, a compelling reading.
M.
Arunachalam, Hyderabad
SRI
YOGA VAASISTHA SANGRAHAMU (Telugu) by Dr. Ratnakaram Balaraju, M.A., Ph.D., Saketha Nilayam
21, S.B.I. Colony, Anantapur (A.P.) – 515 001. Rs. 280/-
The original Yoga Vaasistham in
Sanskrit is a work of over 30000 slokas, whose authorship is attributed to
Maharshi Valmiki. It is also known as
Vasistha Ramayana or Vasistha Yoga and contains Maharshi Valmiki’s narration of
sage Vasistha’s teaching to Lord Sri Rama after the latter returned in a
dejected mood from a visit to various places in the kingdom of his father
Dasaradha.
The work expounds the various aspects
of the Indian spiritual tradition and is regarded as an important practical
guide to the attainment of self-knowledge (Atma jnana) and
liberation. Selections from the larger
work of over 30000 slokas, of portions which contain the essence of sage
Vasistha’s teaching have been made from time and time by scholars and learned
men, and one such selection of 1698 slokas by Sri Jnanananda Bharati
Swamy of Sringeri Matt has received wide popularity and renown; Dr. Ratnakaram
Balaraju has renedered the Telugu translation of the above classic work for the
benefit of Telugu readers with his own commentary. Dr. Balaraju’s work is
unique in several respects.
The essence of sage Vasistha’s
teaching in Yoga Vaasistham is that everything originates out of, exists in,
and finally merges with Brahman (the Absolute), Atmajana (self
knowledge) which leads to liberation and bliss consists in realising the above
truth. When the jnana arise, ajnana
is destroyed, and it is realised that Brahman alone is the Reality.
According to Vasistha, the mind is not
different from the Absolute, Mind also originates from and merges into Brahman. However, the mind is the cause of all
illusions and the cause of the delusion, that “I” means the body the senses and
the mind. Karma (action)
according to Vasistha, is nothing but an activity of the mind. Vaasanas are the root tendencies and
inclinations in the mind. The mind is
the respository of the results of karma and Vaasanas of several
births. The mind and karma
(action) are more or less the potential and actual states of the same
activity. When the mind and the ego
(the ‘I’ thought) merge in the self (Atma), the illusion ceases and
bliss arises.
Sage Vasistha lays great emphasis on
human effort. It is Vasistha’s conviction that man is a free agent and it is
for him to mend his mind, senses and the vaasanas and choose the course
of action which contributed to his own good and the good of the group in which
he lives.
The treatise deals at great length as
to how the merger of the mind with the Atma is to be achieved. It is variously referred to as the
destruction of the mind (mano-naasa), quietening of mind (chitta
prasamana), restraint of the mind (Chitta-nirodha), purification of
the mind, stoppage of the activities of the mind (Chitta Vrithi nirodha),
discontinuance of the mind’s delusions (mano-bhrama nivrithi), restraint
of the vibrations of the mind (chitta chalana nirodha), destruction or
giving up of vaasanas (Vaasana Kshaya or Parityaga) and merger of
mind and the ego with the Atma (manohankara laya). For the one who, restrains the mind’s
activities by the various methods indicated, including the control of breath (Pranayama)
and posses through the seven stages of self realisation, (saptabhoomicas),
a vision of the real self and the attainment of bliss is possible. The above message is brought home through
several illustrative stories (Upakhyanas) the story of Induputras,
Prahladopakhyanam, Uddalakopakhyanam, Bhusundopakhyanam, Sibidhwajopakhyanam, Choodalopadesa
and several others.
Dr. Balaraju’s work does not read like
a translation, buts reads like an original.
His Telugu diction is superb, the language used is precise, expressive,
chaste and elegant and every word is profound with meaning. To explain and bring home the point made in
particular slokas or in support of the view expressed therein he quotes
appropriately from various scriptural and classical works and from the writings
of eastern and western scholars. His comments in the footnotes are illuminating and sum up in one or two sentences the essence of the
entire upakhyana, and give focus to the contents of each chapter. The entire work bears the imprint of his
monumental scholarship, his encyclopedic mind and his voracious reading. Above all, is his devotion and dedication to
the teachings of sage Vasistha underlying every sentence in his introduction,
translation and commentary, signifying that the work is wholly a labour of
love. The book by Dr. Balaraju is a
precious gift to the Telugu reading public, worth reading, worth possessing and
worth preserving for constant reference and study in daily life.
-N.
Sriramamurthy