Unattainable Birth

Rabindranath Tagore,has written a lot of poems,songs,prose, we Bengalis are fortunate to have a person like him. He has left us many years ago,we still remember him and adore him. The poem I am about to translate is my favourite.

“Unattainable Birth”

One day this meeting will come to an end,

My eyes will close for the last time.

The night will end and daylight will begin,

The awakened world will be followed by morning.

The business of the world will continue,

mankind will be spending their time with mirth and sorrow.

I remember all this while I look at the sky

I am watching all this eagerly.

Whatever I see nothing seems worthless,

Today I think everything that I see is unattainable.

Even the worst place on this earth seems hard to get,

The world’s most unsuccessful life is unattainable.

What I didn’t get can remain what I did get that too,

still give  me what I thought was worthless.

Rabindranath Tagore won the Nobel prize for literature. It is the first Nobel prize won by Asia. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Eid al – Adha–The major festival,The Greater Eid

English: Map of the Muslim Population by Percentage in the World (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Qurbani campaign in Somalian refugee camps, Eid Al Adha 2011 (Photo credit: IHH Humanitarian Relief Foundation/TURKEY)

Quran Passage (Photo credit: jmortonscott)

Let the Quran Speak (Photo credit: umar nasir)

English: A picture of people performing (circumambulating) the . This picture taken from the gate of Abdul Aziz seems to divide the Kaaba and the minarets into mirror images of one another. Français : Pélerins en train de réaliser la Circumambulation (ou Tawaf) autour de la Ka’ba. Photo prise depuis la porte Ibn Saud, d’où la vue présente une symétrie en miroir presque parfaite. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

A plate served to guests during Eid-al-Adha, in Turkish traditions. It contains dolma (sarma, stuffed vine leaves), börek (a traditional Turkish pastry), and kavurma with a little piece of traditional home-baked bread… kavurma is a meat meal served during Eid-al-Adha and almost always made from the meat of the sacrificed animal (Eid-al-Adha being the Muslim holiday of sacrifice). (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

On the Twenty sixth of October the Muslim world celebrated Eid al -Adha.It is also called ‘Feast of the sacrifice’,the greater Eid and Bakri Eid. It is an important religious holiday,celebrated by Muslims worldwide.It is to honour the willingness of the prophet Ibrahim (Abraham) to sacrifice his young first-born son Ismail,as an act of submission to God’s command and his son’s acceptance to being sacrificed, before God intervened and provided Abraham with a ram to sacrifice instead.

Eid al -Adha is the latter of the two Muslim holidays,the former is Eid al-Fitr.The basis for the Eid al -Adha comes from the 196th verse of the second Surah of the Holy Quran.The word Eid appears in the 5th Surah of the Holy Quran with the meaning “Solemn Festival”. The three days and two nights of Eid al -Adha are celebrated on the tenth,eleventh and twelfth and the last month of the lunar Islamic Calendar.In the international Gregorian calendar,the dates vary from year to year, it is approximately eleven days earlier each year.

The Eid al -Adha celebrations start after the descent of the Hajj from mount Arafat,it is a hill east of Makkah. The ritual observance of the holiday lasts until the twelfth day of Dhu-al Hijjah. Eid sacrifice may take place until sunset of the thirteenth day. The days of Eid has been singled out in the Hadith, as “days of remembrance.”

In many Muslim cultures the graves of the deceased are also visited during the day of Eid al-Adha. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Poetry of Tagore Translated by Ranu

English: This the picture of a collection of 108 temple of hindu god “Shiv” in Burdwan(Westbengal,India) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

English: This is the famous gate at the centre of Burdwan(West Bengal,India) town.This gate was made by Burdwan Maharaja to welcome Lord Curzon. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I have translated Tagore’s poem on mother.I am aiming to translate some more of his poems into English.The following is about the faithful servant.

“My Faithful servant”

His unattractive face and lack of consciousness– makes my wife believe that,

Whatever is lost in the house, she says,Keshto is the thief.

At every step of the way standing or sitting,he hears but pretends not to–

He gets more abuse than his wages, still he doesn’t learn.

I need him so much,I scream , “Keshta”—

However much I hurry,I cannot hear him,I look for him everywhere.

When he is given three things he keeps one,and is unaware where the rest are—-

If he is given one thing he brings three in seconds and doesn’t know where they came from.

He takes a nap in the  morning and afternoon—

In the middle of all the noise I call him ” stupid,naughty, idiot”

My anger gets worse when I see him standing by the door laughing;

Even then I find it hard to get rid of him ,he is with me for such a long time.

My spouse with a very angry face tells me,’I cannot bear this any more—

I am leaving all your possessions, you can stay with your Keshta;’

He doesn’t know how to take care of the things, my things have disappeared.

where are  they gone—I am continuously spending  money to replace them.

When he goes for shopping it is hard to trace him all day;( I think in my mind)

how  hard, can it be to get a servant to replace Keshta!

with this thought in my mind I run and hold his hair and bring him—;’

I tell him,You scoundrel you leave  today,I am getting rid of you;’

He leaves slowly, I think my responsibility is over; next day I wake up and see

he is standing with the ‘Hukka’ that silly man;

With a quiet face and devoid of sadness, a picture of a Simpleton

I try to let him go but I cannot,what can I do,he is my faithful servant.

That year I made some money from brokerage.

I decided to go to Brindabon for pilgrimage;

My wife wanted to go, I tried to make her understand—

A husbands good deed is considered a wife’s good deed also,otherwise it increases the expenditure.

I kept the expenses low, I collected my things and put them in a bag

My wife got everything ready,she cried and said,

‘in a strange land with Keshta you will suffer a lot.’

I said ,’Oh God Nibaron will go with us.’

We reached Burdwan by train, after getting off,

a very calm Krishnakanto brought my Hukka,where is Keshta?

Such audacity of his ,how much can I tolerate daily?

No matter how much I blame him I find him happy, my faithful servant.

I got off at Sridham; and found on the south,left,back and front all

the ruffians,within seconds caught my throat. They wanted to go with me,

Six or seven of us joined together like very good friends we

stayed in a home; It felt that with hope and comfort our days will be spent happily,then came the disease small pox,

where is Brojobala,Bonomala, Bonomali ,Hori I asked?

They all left when they heard small pox. I am dying of this disease.

I am alone in a room, the small pox has covered all of my body.

I call every day in my pathetic voice, Keshto come closer to me,

After all these days in a strange land,I am going to die.’

I look at his face my heart is filled with love,he is such a close friend—

Everyday he stood by me,my faithful servant Keshto,

English: This is the inside view of the palace of Burdwan Maharaja at Burdwan(West Bengal,India). (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

He gave me water,asked me how I was,he put my hand on his forehead,

He stood quietly,without any sleep or food.

He told me repeatedly,master,do not worry,listen—

you will go back home,you will be able to see my,’Ma Mistress again.’

After I got better,he caught fever;

He took my terrible disease on his body.

He was unconscious for two days,his digestive system failed—

All the times I wanted to get rid of him,he wouldn’t go; and when I realized I wanted him to stay,he was gone.

I completed pilgrimage and came home after several days.

Today I no longer have my faithful servant —my loyal friend Keshta.

‘

English: Ink-on-paper painting by Rabindranath Tagore (undated). (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Rabindranath Tagore

English: Sarada Devi, mother of Rabindranath Tagore Русский: Шарода Деби (Шарада Деви), мать Рабиндраната Тагора Українська: Шарода Дебі (Шарада Деві), мати Рабіндраната Тагора (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

English: Rabindranath Tagore Русский: Рабиндранат Тагор (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

English: Rabindranath Tagore Русский: Тагор, Рабиндранат (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

In his lifetime Tagore wrote in all sorts of literary forms. Despite that, the name of poet stuck to him. He was called viswa-kabi(the universal poet) by his own people. He was certainly one who wrote variety of poems.When one surveys his poems, one could exclaim as Dryden did about Chaucer,’Here is God’s plenty.’He began writing poems at a tender age. It is said that when he lay dying,poems kept coming to him. Although he was incapable of writing himself,he dictated the poems,he checked them to be sure they were formed perfectly.

I have read many poems of Tagore.I never thought of translating them.To me they were there to read and enjoy.The feeling that I should translate them to show the beauty of his work,came to me only lately.In English there are limited words one can use to translate Bengali prose,poetry or songs. I am aware,my translation will fail to catch the depth of Tagore’s poetry. I have finally found a poem,Tagore wrote,The title is “To Remember”.

“To Remember”

I do not have any recollection of my mother.

Only when I go out to play suddenly without any reason

A kind of tune keeps ringing in my ears,

as if the sound mixes with my mother’s words in the middle of my game.

Did my mother sing while rocking my swing–.

My mother has gone but, as she was going she left the song.

I do not have any recollection of my mother;

Only in September, early in the morning in the garden of the white flowers,

the wind spreads the smell of the flowers wet with dew;

Why then does my mothers words,echo in my mind;

perhaps when my mother carried the decorated basket of flowers—-

The smell of Pooja transformed into my mother’s smell and came to me.

I do not have any recollection of my mother;

Only when I sit in the corner of my bedroom;

I look far-away at the blue sky from my window—

All of a sudden I feel my mother is looking at me very intently;

She used to have me in her lap and look at me,

that is the look she left all over the sky as a reminder for me.

I have tried to translate the Bengali poem written by Tagore into English. I hope it is okay!

Ranu

An example of handwritten Bengali script. Part of a poem written by Rabindranath Tagore in 1926 in Hungary. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Rabindranath Tagore won the Nobel prize for literature. It is the first Nobel prize won by Asia. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

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Alphie family’s final trip

Toronto Skyline (Photo credit: Bobolink)

English: Nizamuddin Dargah and Jamaat Khana Masjid, in Nizamuddin West, Delhi (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

English: Moinuddin Chishti Dargah in Ajmer, India (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

It has been a long time since I was employed as;Alphie,Susan and Gepetto’s guide. We all had very pleasant trips.We learned a lot from this experience. Gepetto has written the names of all the places they visited.He is excited, he will be able to show all his collections. He will see his friends and he will know,who his teacher will be.

Alphie tells me he has acquired a lot of very important lessons.Something he wouldn’t have learned,if he hadn’t gone on the long trips. Visiting the mazars(holy places) was very educational.He liked visiting Nizamuddin Awliya’s mazaar.There were lots to see and a whole lot to learn. He also said,he liked his visit to Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti’s Dargah. This is the place that convinced him,  “A lie is a lie,he was thinking of the word,”Outwit.”  He felt guilty for deceiving his master.His plan to continue deceiving people was outrageous. It seemed as though he had a reawakening,he made up his mind to apologize to all those who were tricked by him.

The family’s itinerary was slightly changed.They took a flight from  Lahore to Karachi.They had few stops on the way. From Karachi they will land at Heathrow international airport. They will fly to Toronto and stay overnight. Hopefully they will reach Yellow Knife sometime this week. I spent a few very delightful weeks with the family.Susan reminded me to wish all our readers the best and to bid them goodbye and God bless on their behalf.

So, this is the temporary tour guide, Ranu ,wishing all our good friends Goodbye and God bless you!

UK – London: Heathrow Airport – Welcome to Britain (Photo credit: wallyg)

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The Alphie family’s visit to the Great Pyramid of Giza

Egypt: Esneh (Photo credit: Brooklyn Museum)

King’s Chamber of Khufu’s Pyramid at Giza (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

All Giza Pyramids in one shot. Русский: Все пирамиды Гизы на изображении. Español: Las Pirámides de Guiza (Egipto). Français : Les Pyramides de Gizeh (Egypte). Català: Les Piràmides de Giza, a Egipte. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Gepetto showed some interest to acquire some knowledge of:The Great Pyramid Of Giza.I realized it will be something we all can learn about.We discussed the best way of dealing with the subject was to take an imaginary trip to Egypt. We were excited we came up with this idea.

The great Pyramid of Giza is also known as the Pyramid of Khufu or the Pyramid of Cheops. It is the oldest of the seven ancient wonders of the world.This pyramid was the tallest man-made structure in the world for over 3800 years. At first it was covered by casing stones.It formed a smooth outer surface.Today we see the underlying core structure.Some of the casing stones can be seen around the base. There have been some theories of how these huge stones were moved. Most accepted idea is, it was built by moving the huge stones from a quarry and lifting them into place. It seemed to be a huge task for the builders,due to the fact there were no machines to carry out this project.So only logical thing was to use man-power in order to accomplish this task.

There are three known chambers inside the Pyramid.The lowest chamber is cut into bedrock upon which the pyramid was built and was unfinished. The King’s chamber and the Queen’s chamber are higher up within the pyramid structure.This pyramid is the only one known to have ascending and descending passages.The building includes two mortuary temples in honour of Khufu.There are three smaller pyramids for Khufu’s wives,there is an even smaller pyramid , a raised causeway connecting the two temples and small mastaba tombs(house for eternity or eternal house).

The greatest stimulus for the ancient Egyptians was their belief in after life.They believed that the soul could live only if the body was preserved from corruption and depredation.

It is believed that The Great Pyramid was built for the fourth dynasty Egyptian Pharao, Khufu, and was constructed over a period of over twenty years. The architect is believed to be Khufu’s vizier,Hemon or Hemiunu.

Our imaginary journey took us to places we never thought of before. We all were thankful to learn some amazing facts of Egyptian architecture. Gepetto was trying to figure out,how many thousands of people were needed to build this  massive structure. We were impressed to know how hard these workers had to work. It was a very pleasant lesson for us. We are so used to all these inventions,which have made us lazy. We have spent one more day for our travel.

It is now time to say, Goodbye and May God bless us all!

Statue of Khufu in the Cairo Egyptian Museum (JE 36143) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The Sphinx and the Great Pyramid of Giza (Photo credit: Sam and Ian)

Great Pyramid of Giza (Photo credit: Brendan Costigan)

My Job In Gander Academy

Fourth Grade (Photo credit: edgeplot)

Istiqlal Mosque, Indonesia

islamic_cosmology (Photo credit: williamcromar)

Pancasila Sakti – Indonesia (Jakarta) (Photo credit: Chez Julius Livre 1)

In the name of Allah (Photo credit: Hossam Rida)

Eid ul-Fitr prayer at Istiqlal Mosque, Jakarta, Indonesia 日本語: イド・アル＝フィトルのお祈りする信者達、イスティクラルモスクにて (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The interior of Istiqlal mosque. The grand domed prayer hall supported by 12 columns covered with stainless steel plates. The design is minimalist, simple and clean cut, with minimal adornment of alumunium geometric ornaments. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

English: Jakarta, taken from Istiqlal mosque Jakarta panoramic view around Medan Merdeka (Merdeka square), the center of Jakarta and the nation. Monas (National Monument) on the foreground with rising Jakarta skylines on the background. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Southeast Asia Mosaic (Photo credit: Recovering Vagabond)

Istiqlal Mosque (Photo credit: Matthew Kenwrick)

English: A fountain by the Istiqlal Mosque, Jakarta 日本語: イスティクラルモスクの噴水 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

English: mosque in Jakarta (Indonesia) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The architecture of Indonesia reflects the diversity of cultural,historical and geographic influences that has shaped Indonesia as a whole.Invaders,colonizers,missionaries and traders brought cultural changes that had profound effect on building styles and techniques.Traditionally the most significant influence is Indian.However Chinese,Arab—and since the 18th and 19th centuries —European influence have played significant roles in shaping Indonesian architecture

Istiqlal Mosque or Masjid is in Jakarta, Indonesia. It is the largest Mosque in Southeast Asia in terms of capacity to accommodate people and building structure. This national Mosque of Indonesia was built to commemorate Indonesian independence ,as nations gratitude for God’s blessings.The name Istiqlal is an Arabic word for independence. After the independence of Indonesia from the Netherlands in 1949, the idea became popular to build a Mosque for a country with the largest Muslim population in the world.

There are seven gates to enter the mosque,each named after Al-Asmaul-Husna the names of God in Islam. The number 7 represents 7 Heavens in Islamic Cosmology. The ablution fountains are located on the ground floor.The main prayer hall and the main courtyard are on the elevated first floor. The main rectangular prayer hall is covered by 45 metre diameter central spherical dome. The number “45” symbolizes the year of proclamation of independence 1945.the main dome is adorned with stainless steel ornamental pinnacle that took form of a crescent and star,the symbol of Islam. The smaller secondary dome is also adorned with stainless steel pinnacle with Arabic calligraphy Allah.

The dome is supported by twelve round columns and the prayer hall is surrounded by rectangular piers carrying four levels of balcony. Twelve columns represent the birthday of Prophet Muhammad on twelfth Rabi-al- Awwal. The main building of Istiqlal consists of five floors,’5′ represents the Five Pillars of Islam .It also represents Pancasila ,the five principles of Philosophical foundation  of the Indonesian nationhood.

On the main wall on qibla there is a mihrab and minbar in the center. On the main wall there is also a large metal work of Arabic calligraphy of Surah Taha 14th verse in the center.

Wudu at the Istiqlal Mosque, Jakarta, Indonesia. 日本語: イド・アル＝フィトルのお祈りの前に身を清める信者達 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The dazzling alabaster marbled Istiqlal mosque of Jakarta, Indonesia, seen from the base of its tower. The national mosque of Indonesia, also the largest mosque in Southeast Asia. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

‘O River’

River Whale (Photo credit: goingslo)

English: The transliteration of “bengali” in Bengali language. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

O River is a Bengali song.The singer is Hemant Kumar from Kolkata. I thought of translating into English because of its lyrics and the singer’s depth and passion,while singing it.I have listened multiple times and did not get tired. Here is my translation,I have added my thought to give a clear picture of the mood.

        ‘O River’

I only want to ask you,

Tell me where is your country?

Is there no end to your flow?

O River

You don’t have anything to hold you back,

Is this why you have no home?

One moment I see you flowing slowly,

And the next moment you are flowing swiftly.

Tell me O River where is your country?

Is there no end to your flowing?

With your flow you break a bank, and then you build another.

Someone who has no bank to break or build,

What do you do for it?

You are falsely thinking I am a stranger,

But I want to be a friend and I like to know,

Do you have no time to spare?

I would like to know your happy and sad moments.

Tell me ,O River where are you from?

Is there no end to your movement?

The river of life is our journey which we agree to take. Every living thing also goes through this journey. All of us are here for a purpose we are expected to learn,things to teach,much to learn and more to give. The choice we have is learning to navigate and understand the current of the river we find ourselves in.Sometimes the waters are cool and clear ,sometimes they are not.Despite the problems we might face, we have to be ready and work out the problems that face us,so that we can make our journey effortless and enjoyable!

Imam Reza Shrine

Mashhad, the holy shrine of Imam Reza (Photo credit: Arian Zwegers)

Tomb of Sultan Mahmud of Ghazni in 1848. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

English: Imam Reza shrine Imam Reza stone grave (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

English: Author: IA Source: Taken at the shrine of Imam Ali Reda in Mashad, Iran, in August, 2005. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Imam Reza shrine is in Mashad ,Iran.It is a complex which contains the mausoleum of Imam Reza ,the eighth Imam of twelve shiites.It is the largest mosque in the world in dimension.It is the second largest in capacity.Within the the complex there are the Goharshad Mosque,a museum,a library.four seminaries,a cemetary ,the Rezavi university of Islamic Sciences,a dining hall for pilgrims,vast prayer halls and other buildings.

The complex is the centre of tourism in Iran.

In 1818 Imam Reza was murdered by Al-Mamun and was buried beside the grave of Harun.This place was called Mashad al-Rida( the place of martyrdom of Ali al-Rida) Shiias and Sunnis visit  this place for pilgrimage.By the end of the 9th century a dome was built on the grave.This place has been devastated and rebuilt a number of times.In 993 the holy shrine was ruined by Saboktakin,who was a Ghaznavid king.His son Sultan Mahmud of Ghazni ordered it to be repaired.The celebrated Muslim traveler Ibn Batuta visited Mashad in 1333.He reported that it was a large town,it had abundant fruit trees,streams and mills.It was a great dome of elegant construction,the walls were decorated with colored tiles.Opposite the tomb of the Imam is the tomb of Caliph Harun al- Rashid.It is surmounted by a platform bearing chandeliers.

In the 15th century during the Shahrokh era ,it became one of the main cities of the Timurid dynasty.In 1418 his wife Goharshad funded the construction of an outstanding mosque beside the shrine. It is known as the Goharshad Mosque.

English: Goharshad mosque, Mashad. Iran. Photo is supplied (taken) by Zereshk. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The dome of Imam Reza holy shrine, covered with gold-coated bricks, (built:1333 AD), Mashhad, Iran. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)