Dedication

@ kelly1966

Dear K:

I try, I try. But, being human, I fail most of the time. Can you see though that even Tagore could feel his doubts and then try to resolve them rationally?

This poem is known to most literate Bengalis. It is not a literal translation. I avoided that route. I wanted it to sound naturally English, at least to Indian English speakers.

Thanks for your appreciation.

oj-kaku

 

@ Cheeniya

Dear Sri:

I understand, I know, I have no confusion regarding the matter in my mind. Yet, I am just a human being after all. So, I can't hide my pain, however irrational it may be. Your last few lines took me back, curiously enough to a paragraph I wrote in my story "A Flat Atop the New Market". I think I have told you in the past that I feel a strange attachment to this story. I almost sense a deja vu whenever I look back at it. I know not why. It's possible that I had put together bits and pieces of my life and my attitudes to life together to write this tale.

With reference to the part of your fb that I quoted, this is what I had written at one point of the story: Her recital was so moving that silence was the only tribute one could offer.

So, as I said, I know, I have no confusion and yet ... the tragedy lies in the simple fact that I am human. Fortunately though, I cannot give up either. Ultimately, writing to me is important, it is one of the few occupations, other than singing, that I think I am truly in love with.

What's to be done yaar! People in love are highly irrational. Aren't they?

Thank you so much wonderful friend!

oj

 

@ vyasan

Your perception is correct of course. I guess I shall be passing through these ups and downs. Can't be helped. But I enjoy the fb's I do get from some of the most sensitive persons at this site. That brings contentment. It could have been worse. On the whole I feel satisfied.

Thanks for reading.

oj

 

@ radsahana

Good Friend!

Thanks for your encouragement. Sometimes I lose interest. At others I am back in form. I think a reason why I do not attract comments is that my posts are too long. People may not have the time to read and you can't blame them for being preoccupied. Most probably short posts are what one should aim form. Let's see if I can manage to find the right size.

I am moved by your concern.

All the best.

oj-da

 

@ kamalji

Dear Kamal:

I don't think it is the goodness or badness of posts that matters as far as fb's go. You must keep in mind that people are busy. They cannot spend too much time on a post. My posts are invariably long and that is the main reason why people don't respond.

There is no point blaming others. One must look at oneself and find out one's shortcomings. Mine is excessive length. I experimented with three posts one after the other. The shortest one got the largest number of responses. The longest one received the fewest.

So, I need to decide what I want. Either I write for the sheer pleasure of writing, whether people read or respond. Alternatively, I write short posts and hope for the best. The ideal is a short and competent post. That's what Cheeniya has total mastery over.

So, the objective should be the Cheeniya length combined with the stuff I enjoy writing.

Let's see.

oj

 

@ Amma15

Young friend,

Thanks for the kind words.Tagore's range is truly wide. He did not write sad or melancholic pieces only. He wrote fun literature too. He wrote plays that would make people roar with laughter. Nonsense rhymes too.

He wrote so much that few people have read all of his works. But, I suppose, his most long lasting contribution consists of music. And, in music too, he chose fast as well as slow tunes. He experimented endlessly with beats.

Unfortunately, I haven't read more than 10 or 15 per cent of his complete works.

All the best and thank you again for reading.

oj-da

 

@ iyerviji

Thank you dear Pashenka. I really don't know how far I did justice to this poem. However, since you always speak the simple truth, I feel satisfied.

Best wishes.

oj-da