The Hungry Stones XII

Heavy and eerie silence reigned therein, The dark rooms looking as sullen as mean, As if they had taken serious offence Against me who had failed in their esteem, My heart feeling contrite was heaving tense, To have halfway deserted my fond dream. No one was there my inner thoughts to share, None who so some forgiveness to me spare, Aimless I wandered into my blank mind, And wished I could that royal guitar find To inveigle my heavy heart to sing: O Fire, this poor moth that in vain wished once To fly away, hast returned broken wing To thee, forgive him just this one instance, Burn away both his wings and make him lame, Nay, consume him in thy red scorching flame. As I wailed clue-less, my soul sinking low, Two warm teardrops fell from above on brow. Dark and deep clouds hung overcast on hills That day, the gloomy woods and bare river Awaiting in suspense with monsoon drills, An ominous calm prevailed all over. And soon it all shivered— land along sky, A wild tempest blew forth O howling by, Through pathless woods glaring its lightning teeth, Like a raving maniac snapping chain, Wishing to unleash hell, terrible pain To whoso there’s on hills, whoso beneath! And not a soul around was in the camp To wipe dark of my heart, nor light a lamp, I could sense: a woman lying on face— On a carpet below the bed, clasping Her wounded heart, and pulling hair in stress, Blood trickling down, in utter pain, laughing Still, bursting into a hard wringing wail, Now, rend her bodice, now beat breasts gone frail, And from nowhere winds roared in from windows, The pouring rains soaked further her sorrows. Through night the storm never did cease to rage, Nor did my fair lady's passionate cry, I wandered from room to room, a blind man, Unremitting sorrows my companion, And yet none there who could have consoled me, As I heard the cry: ‘stay back, all is false', Maher Ali the mad was there, no doubt, The old tenant of this odd wailing house, ‘Tell me what’s false?' I could not help but ask, Waiving me off was how he responded, Repeating, ‘stay back, stay back, all is false'. _____________________________________________ Narrative |01.04.2024| Note: A poetic translation of Rabindranath Tagore’s story in Bengali, Kshudhaarto Paashaana.