Date of Publish: 2019-02-12

A few poems of Hang Miji Hanse

 

O Mother Earth

 

O’ mother Earth

Your sons of God

Seeks the nectar from your bosom

 

For that

Rig compressor, pump-motor

And many mechanical monsters

Amongst them in the form of

A son of God

I too am a mechanical monster

 

There is objective

There is aim

There is hope

There is dream

 

And there is

Greed, jealousy, distress, crookedness

 

I am an address of technology

Priest of the search for nectar

It is my new dimension

A new journey commenced

 

My closest relative

 

My closest relative

My very own blood

Is a stranger

 

I don’t get a hunch

About his movements and thoughts

I don’t get any clue

About his likes and dislikes

I don’t just know

What are his hopes and aspirations

 

Why he does love

Why he does weep

Where he gets angry

Where he finds joy

I really am clueless

 

He is a total stranger to me

Perhaps

He is none other than

 

Winter

 

The winter days begets me immense sorrow

The ice cold air that I breathe in

Knocks at me raw heart

One by one

The blood red petals of memories

Fall off

 

The interior of my house

Shakes again and again

 

The winter days brings me great discomfort

 

 

I did not understand

 

Being practically a pauper

I was quite happy

With whatever I have

 

She asked for my heart

I handed over with all tenderness

They asked for my feelings

I doled out generously

They begged like anything

To get hold of my consciousness

They continued nagging

Separated me from my dreams

They threatened and snatched my brain

 

Turned into a pauper

I am doing fine

I am accustomed in a humdrum life

 

But just could not understand

Why they did not ask for

My sorrows, sufferings and wants.

 

One Cannot Be Intimate with Human Beings

 

One cannot be intimate with human beings

They are greedy cunning merchants

They transform everyone into a commodity

Just for the sake of reaping some benefit

They can make a commodity out of their offsprings too

So one need to be cautious

 

They dupe making relation a reference

They can satisfy their causes

Vending a merchandise of kindness

Making an exhibition of beauty

They can loot the heart

So it is better not to maintain relation

One should not be intimate with people

 

Translated from Assamese into English by Bibekananda Choudhury

 

About the poet

 

Hanseh is an bilingual writer and poet of eminence from west Karbi Anglong. He is considered to be one of the experts of Karbi culture and traditions. He has about 15 published in his credit. Participated in national and international seminars as speaker and paper presenter. Presently working as Executives Engineer in Irrigation department

 

 

Original : Assamese : Hangmiji Hanse

Translation : Bibekananda Choudhury

Translation : Bibekananda Choudhury

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