1.3 Basketful of Moonlight
Introduction:
This is an English translation of a poem written in Dogri language. In the poem, a small child in a village wants his father to return early and safely from the city to tell him stories. So he requests the moon to give seeds of moonlight to sow them to lighten the dark route from the city to his village.
Paraphrase
The speaker of the poem, a small child, requests the moon to give him moonlight. He wants a basketful or two baskets full of moonlight with seeds of moonlight. The child wants to sow the seeds of moonlight on the sides of the path that leads to his village from the city. He wants to sow many, many small moons of light all along the path.
According to the child, the whole village (= the entire working population of the village) goes to the city for work. By the time of their return to the village, it becomes quite dark as his village is quite far off from the city. Moreover, the route to the village is tough and full of snakes and scorpions. Still the villagers have to tread the same path as there is no cart or bus service.
In the case of the child, the speaker of the poem, he is always asleep by the time his father returns home from work. Then again, the father leaves early for work in the morning, while the child is still asleep. So the child repeats his requests for a basketful of moonlight on loan.
The child wants to light the dark route to his village so that his father can return early in the evening. Like any other child, he too wants to hear fairy tales and stories from his father.
To conclude, the child again earnestly requests the moon to give a basketful of moonlight so that he can sow the seeds of moon on the sides of the path that leads to the village from the city.
टोपलीभर चंद्रप्रकाश
कवितेतला मुलगा आकाशातल्या चंद्राला उद्देशून म्हणत आहे,
अरे चंद्रा, मला तुझा प्रकाश दे, एक दोन टोपल्या भरून तुझा चंद्रप्रकाश दे,
आणि थोड्या चंद्रप्रकाशाच्या बियाही त्यात घाल.
शहरातून माझ्या गावाकडे येणाऱ्या रस्त्याच्या दोन्ही बाजूंना, प्रकाशाचे खूप सारे छोटे छोटे चंद्र पेरायचे आहेत मला. रोज सगळा गाव (नोकरवर्ग/कर्मचारी) कामासाठी शहराकडे जातो,
मात्र परतताना वाटेवरती मिट्ट काळोख होतो..
गाव आहे माझा खूप दूर, रस्ता खाचखळग्यांचा आणि विंचवा
सापांनी भरलेला पण बस नाही धावत,
की कुठली गाडीही नाही येत त्या रस्त्यावरून.
बाबा घरी परततात उशिरा तोवर झोपी गेलेला असतो मी.
भल्या सकाळी ते पुन्हा कामावर जातात, तेव्हा गाढ झोपेत असतो मी.
म्हणून कवितेतील मुलगा पुढे म्हणतो,
अरे चंद्रा, तुझा टोपलीभर चंद्रप्रकाश मला उधार दे,
म्हणजे गावाकडे येणारा रस्ता मी उजळून टाकीन
आणि माझे बाबा घरी लवकर परत येऊ शकतील.
कारण मलाही त्यांच्याकडून ऐकायच्या आहेत पऱ्यांच्या कथा आणि खूप साऱ्या गोष्टी.
चंद्रा, तुझा टोपलीभर चंद्रप्रकाश मला दे.
रस्त्याच्या दोन्ही बाजूंना प्रकाशाच्या बिया मला पेरायच्या आहेत.
O moon,
give me moonlight,
basketful or two baskets full,
with seeds of moonlight.
From the city to my village,
on the sides of the path.
I want to sow many,
small, small moons of light.
The whole village goes to the city
daily to work.
It becomes dark on its way back
as my village is quite far.
The route is tough and full of
snakes and scorpions.
Neither bus nor cart plies.
When my father returns home
I am asleep.
And he goes back early in the morning
while I am sleeping.
O moon,
give me a basketful of moonlight on loan.
I want to light the dark route
so that my father returns early.
I too want to hear fairy tales
and stories from him.
O moon,
give me a basketful of moonlight.
I want to sow seeds of moon
on the sides of the path.
– Sunil Sharma (Translated from Dogri)
moonlight (मूनलाइट्)-light of the moon; चंद्रप्रकाश. whole (होल्) - entire; सर्व, संपूर्ण. scorpions (स्कॉड र्पिअन्झ्) -a kind of spider with poisonous sting in its tail; विंचू plies (प्लाइझ्) - goes to and fro; ये-जा करतात. loan (लोन्)- the act of borrowing, कर्ज, उसने. to light (लाइट्)-give light to a place; प्रकाशित करणे, उजेड करणे.
