SELECTED POEMS OF HORU THAKUR Selected Poems of Horu Thakur The soul beset by God -wishes to surrender itself. Who is this with smeared limbs Of sandal wreathed with forest blossom. For a beauty in him gleams Earth bears not on her mortal bosom. He his hair with bloom has crowned, And many bees come murmuring, swarming. Who is he that with sweet sound Arrests our feet, our hearts alarming? Daily came I to the river, Daily passed these boughs of blessing, But beneath their shadow never Saw such beauty heart-caressing. Like a cloud yet moist with rain His hue is, robe of masqu

Facsimile of translation of Didyapati's song, page 235 I FROM SANSKRIT RAMAYANA

A Rose of Women † Now lilies blow upon the windy height, Now flowers the pansy kissed by tender rain, Narcissus builds his house of self-delight And Love's own fairest flower blooms again; Vainly your gems, 0 meadows, you recall; One simple girl breathes sweeter than you all. †Meleager Page - 411

CHAPTER TWO To him thus besieged with pity and his eyes full bewildered with crowding tears, to him weak with sorrow, Madhusudan spake this word. KRISHNA “Whence hath this stain of darkness come upon thee in the very crisis and the stress, O Urjoona. this weakness unheavenly, inglorious, beloved of un-Aryan minds ? Fall not into coward impotence, O Partha; not on thee does that sit well; fling from thee the miserable weakness of thy heart, O scourge of thy foes.”                         urjoona “How shall I combat Bhishma in the fight and Drona, O Madhusudan. how shall I smite with arrows those venerable heads? Better were it, not piercing these great

BHAGAVAD GITA CHAPTER ONE dhritarashtra In the holy field, the field of the Kurus, assembled for the fight, what did my children, O Sunjoy, what did Pandu’s sons? sun joy Then the king, even Duryodhan, when he beheld the Pandav army mar­shalled in battle array, approached the master and spoke this word. “Behold, O Master, this mighty host of the sons of Pandou by Drupad’s son, thy wise disciple, marshalled in battle array. There are their heroes and great bowmen, like unto Bhema and Urjoona in war, Yuyudhana and Virata and Drupad, the mighty warrior, Dhristaketou and Chekitana and Kashi’s heroic king; and Pourujit, Coontybhoj and Shalvya,

An Aryan City* Coshala, by the Soroyou, a land Smiling at heaven, of riches measureless And corn abounding glad; in that great country Ayodhya was, the city world-renowned, Ayodhya by King Manou built, immense. Twelve yojans long the mighty city lay Grandiose and wide three yojans. Grandly spaced Ayodhya’s streets were and the long highroad Ran through it spaciously with sweet cool flowers Hourly new-paved and hourly watered wide. Dussarutha in Ayodhya, as in heaven Its natural lord, abode, those massive walls Ruling, and a great people in his name Felt greater, — door and wall and ponderous arch And market

SELECTED POEMS OF CHANDIDAS Selected Poems of Chandidas Love, but my words are vain as air! In my sweet joyous youth, a heart untried, Thou took’st me in Love’s sudden snare, Thou wouldst not let me in my home abide. And now I have nought else to try, But I will make my soul one strong desire And into Ocean leaping die: So shall my heart be cooled of all its fire. Die and be born to life again As Nanda’s son, the joy of Braja’s girls, And I will make thee Radha then, A laughing child’s face set with lovely curls. Then I will love thee and the

ON KARMA* Action be Man’s God Whom shall men worship ? The high Gods ? But they Suffer fate’s masteries, enjoy and rue. Whom shall men worship ? Fate’s stern godhead ? Nay, Fate is no godhead. Many fruits or few Their actions bring to men, — that settled price She but deals out, a steward dumb, precise. Let action be man’s God, o’er whom even Fate Can rule not, nor his puissance abrogate. The Might of Works Bow ye to Karma who with puissant hand Like a vast potter all the universe planned, Shut the Creator in and bade him work In the dim-glinting womb and luminous murk; By whom impelled

SELECTED POEMS OF NIDHU BABU Selected Poems of Nidhu Babu Eyes of the hind, you are my jailors, sweetest; My heart with the hind’s frightened motion fleetest In terror strange would flee, But find no issue, sweet; for thy quick smiling, Thy tresses like a net with threads beguiling Detain it utterly. I am afraid of thy great eyes and well-like, am afraid of thy small ears and shell-like, And everything in thee. Comfort my fainting heart with soft assurance And soon it will grow tame and love its durance, Hearing such melody. II Line not with

To the Cuckoo* 0 Cuckoo that peckest at the blossomed flower of honey-dripping Champaka and, inebriate, pipest forth the melodious notes, be seated in thy ease and with thy babblings, which are yet no babblings, call out for the coming of my Lord of the Venkata hill. For He, the pure one, bearing in his left hand the white summoning conch shows me not his form. But He has invaded my heart; and while I pine and sigh for his love, He looks on indifferent as if it were all a play. I feel as if my bones had melted away and my long javelin eyes have not closed their lids for these many days. I am tossed on the waves of the sea of pain without finding the boat that is n