A Hundred Years from Now,
A hundred years from now Who could you be Reading my poem curiously A hundred years from now! How can I transmit to you who are so far away A bit of the Joy I feel this day, At this new spring dawn, The beauty of flowers this day Of songs birds that keep chirping away Of the crimson glow of the setting sun. How can I have them all with my love, And hope you will make them your own A hundred years from now?
Nevertheless, if you keep your southern door ajar, Sit by your window and look afar View the horizon stretch endlessly And imagine this possibillty-That one day a hundred years from now. Excitement from some heaven above could flow Could strike your inmost heart and make it glow. That on a bright spring day When you were feeling restless and carefree-Suddenly, There could blow with the southern breeze. Impatient and eager to please. Flying on restless wings, Full of pollen and the scent of flowers, And of what youth desires. An impulse from me that could make your soul sway. At a time a hundred years away!
A soul carried away by the tunes Overwhelmed by the flowers on display, Had then burst into poetry. Lovingly, A hundred years from now!
A hundred years from now Who will that new poet be Singing in your festivals merrily?
I send him my spring greetings-
Hoping he will make them his own
Let my spring song resound in your spring day
For a while let my tune stay-
In the fluttering of your soul, the humming of bees, And murmuring in leaves,
A hundred years from now!
Vishwaveena Rabe,
The universal veena strums on enchanting earth.
On land, water, skylines, forests, and groves,
On mountains, caves, rivers, streams, and oceans, Every day hums with sweet sounding music, Every day is full of delightful dances.
In ever-new spring every-new joys, ever-new festive notes. Lovely, very lovely harmonious sounds in arbors-
I hear, o hear, warbling amidst leaves and branches, Cuckoos calling in flower gardens all by themselves. The gentle breeze rolling over large lakes.
Melodious playful sweet sounding notes keep ringing out.
Over dense green forests the wind wanders about.
By riverbanks reed thickets rustling sounds arise.
Countless notes, innumerable voices, ever-flowing melodies, everywhere!
During monsoons ever-new Joys, ever-new festive notes.
Profound, very profound drum rolls rumbling through blue skies The goddess Durga in her destructive mood dancing. Behold clouds over rivers ceaselessly pouring, Behold their furious frightful notes reverberating Over secluded plal and tomal groves.
The streaming breeze singing stirring notes In darkness.
Frenzied lightning putting on a dazzling show under the sky.
Countless notes, innumerable voices, ever-flowing melodies, everywhere!
In the month of Ashwin new-joys, ever-new festive notes, On clear, very clear, very cloudless, bright days, Earth dressing itself up in autumn's graceful guises. The new moon glowing and sparkling, smiling brightly, Very clearly displaying itself In the midst of the azure sky. In Its white embrace the white veena strumming on-The overture sounding soft and sweet in the behag mode. j
Moonbeams seducing flower gardens to tunes of crickets chirping.
Countless notes, innumerable voices, ever-flowing melodies, everywhere!
1. The poem was written heralding the first day of spring and is dated 2 Falgoon 1302 (1895 AD) in Sanchoyita. In Bengali, the poem is titled "The Year 1400" (1993 AD)
2. This song-lyric is the first entry in the section on "nature” in Tagore’s Geetabetan (Collected Song-Lyrics). As such, it can be seen as the prelude to his song-lyrics on the six seasons of Bengal.
Fakrul Alam is Professor of English at Dhaka University