The Chorus Of The Chambavali Women
At the midnight hour
in the land of the champa flower
the champa flowers
o the champa flowers
its flagrant fragrance
sweeps out in the direction
of the palace
In the palace
the queen lies awake
upon her bed
her eyes bereft of sleep
She tells the king
I must have a hundred flowers
of champa
I must have them soon
The king he gathers her
in his arms and says
Take heart, my heart
Let the morning dawn
And I'll bring them to you
But the queen she cannot wait
The king is in a dilemma
If he is gentle she may cry
If he is firm she might die
At the deadly midnight hour
in the land of the champa flower
the champa flowers
o the champa flowers
its perfume runs amok
causing a havoc of desire
in the land of the champa flower.
As Natti and Sutradhar are planning to leave they are held back by the sounds of a sweet song - the women of Chamba are heading that way, singing together in chorus.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Call it what you will, I am now sure the fragrance of the chapma is erotic. In fact, is it not what bridal beds are covered with? So the King is right, if her is gentle, she might cry; if he is firm, she might die.....Ah! A thousand Bhairavis are not enough for this land and its exquisite tongues!
ReplyDeleteJulia
Probably the most ignorant translation of the poem written by someone who doesn't understand the language at all. Batalvi's punjabi is not the modern punjabi, a mix of rustic and archaic, his vocabulary will escape most punjabi speaking who live in cities.
ReplyDeletevaonlinenews must say poetry was good. some are fault but concept was clear thamks to sharing with us
ReplyDelete