Kunwar Narain Translated by Apurva Narain

Kunwar Narain

An iconic figure in Indian literature, Kunwar Narain is regarded as one of the finest poets, writers and thinkers of modern times. He read widely, across literatures and disciplines, and blended an international sensibility with a grounding in Indian history and thought. He has written in diverse genres, including three epics considered classics of Indian literature, poems across eight collections, translations of poets like Cavafy, Borges, Herbert and Różewicz, short stories, criticism, essays, memoirs, and writings on world cinema and the arts. His oeuvre of seven decades since his first book in 1956 has evolved continuously and embodies, above all, a unique interplay of the simple and the complex. Widely translated, his honours include the Sāhitya Akādemī Award; Warsaw University’s medal; Italy’s Premio Feronia for distinguished world author; India’s civilian honour Padma Bhūshan; the Senior Fellowship of India’s Academy of Letters; and the Jnānpīth, India’s highest literary award. A reclusive presence, he has always published selectively.

 

Apurva Narain

Kunwar Narain’s son and translator into English, Apurva’s book of translations No Other World was published from India and England. His new volume of poetry translations, and a co-translated book of short stories, are due soon. His work has appeared in several literary journals. Educated in India and at the University of Cambridge, he also consults in the international development area, and has had interests in ecology, public health and ethics. Widely traveled, he writes in English.

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(Translated from the original Hindi into English)

The Last Days of Chandragupta Maurya

At least now make peace
with that invisible enemy
whose infinity has surrounded you
in your own citadel

How long will you battle
for that disputed land of glory
fast sinking and slipping away
from under your feet

As soon as you relinquish
your right to reign,
the fetters on your body will loosen
and give way, you will feel
a strange lightness

As soon as you accept
that other power, you will be granted
a loose cloak of friendship
a laurel crown
a wooden staff for support
and somewhere far in your own kingdom
a small abode
within which you will slowly become
detached from this world

You will be reborn centuries later
in some legend on an epitaph

this time not in the present
but in the past

and there you will find yourself etched
in the chronicle of wise kings

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* Chandragupta Maurya (reign: 321-297 BC), founder of the Mauryan Empire and a pivotal figure in history, was the first king to unify most of Greater India into one state. With his advisor Chānakya, he gave India a sound economy and a glorious stature. He later abdicated his throne, embraced Jainism and went to South India where he died at Shravanabelagola in modern-day Karnataka.
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चंद्रगुप्त मौर्य

अब तो सुलह कर लो
उस पारदर्शी दुश्मन की सीमाहीनता से
जिसने तुम्हें
तुम्हारे ही गढ़ में घेर लिया है

कहाँ तक लड़ोगे
ऐश्वर्य की उस धंसती हुई
विवादास्पद ज़मीन के लिए
जो तुम्हारे पाँवों के नीचे से खिसक रही?

अपनी स्वायत्तता के अधिकारों को त्यागते ही
तुम्हारे शरीर पर जकड़ी जंज़ीरें
शिथिल पड़ जायेंगी। तुम अनुभव करोगे
एक अजीब-सा हल्कापन।
उस शक्ति-अधिग्रहण को स्वीकार करते ही
तुम्हें प्रदान किया जाएगा
मैत्री का एक ढीला चोला
एक कुशा-मुकुट
सहारे के लिए एक काष्ठ-कोदंड
और तुम्हारे ही साम्राज्य में दूर कहीं
एक छोटा-सा क़िला
जिसके अंदर-ही-अंदर तुम
धीरे-धीरे इस संसार से विरक्त होते चले जाओगे
तुम्हारा पुनर्जन्म होगा सदियों बाद
किसी अनुश्रुति में एक शिलालेख के रूप में

अबकी वर्तमान में नहीं, अतीत में—
जहाँ तुम विदग्‌ध सम्राटों की सूची में
स्वयं को अंकित पाओगे।

 

Before Getting Drenched in the Rain

She met me
not in a poem of mine
but in a story

and not in the beginning
but somewhere in the middle
of an ordinary story, suddenly.

By then only half her life was left
which she had given to her family.

The two of us, hand in hand,
were coming down
a hilly winding slope

From summit to sky
dense dark clouds threatening to rain
had hemmed in the limits of flight.

Before getting drenched in the rain
she was in a hurry to return home.

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बारिश में भीगने से पहले

वह मुझे
मेरी किसी कविता में नहीं
अपनी कहानी में मिली

वह भी शुरू में नहीं,
एक औसत पारिवारिक कहानी के
बीच में कहीं, अकस्मात्‌…

तब तक आधी से ज़्यादा
उसकी सुंदरता ख़्त्म हो चुकी थी
और उसका अधेड़ जीवन
ज़मीन जायदाद की तरह पंजीकृत हो चुका था
उसके पति और बच्चों के नाम।

हम दोनों हाथ में हाथ डाले
एक घुमावदार पहाड़ी ढलान से
नीचे उतर रहे थे

बरसने को उतावले घने काले बादलों से
ढक गयी थीं—शिखर से आकाश तक—
उड़ान की हदें

बारिश में भीगने से पहले
उसे घर लौटने की जल्दी थी।

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