Satires of Rabindranath Tagore
Satire No 1
The chariot is to run.
The devotees overwhelmingly crowded.
The path assumes a god itself.
The chariot assumes itself a god also.
The sun assumes itself a god too
while the Omniscient smiles.
Satire No 2
The kerosene flame admonished the earthen lamp,
If you address me as your brother, I shall throttle you.
Meanwhile, the moon rises shining the sky,
The kerosene flame welcomed the moon as saying,
Come on my brother, hi!
Satire No 1
The chariot is to run.
The devotees overwhelmingly crowded.
The path assumes a god itself.
The chariot assumes itself a god also.
The sun assumes itself a god too
while the Omniscient smiles.
Satire No 2
The kerosene flame admonished the earthen lamp,
If you address me as your brother, I shall throttle you.
Meanwhile, the moon rises shining the sky,
The kerosene flame welcomed the moon as saying,
Come on my brother, hi!
Translation: M Mizanur Rahman
From the large jug, drink
– Hafiz Shirazi
From the large jug, drink the wine of Unity,
So that from your heart you can wash away the futility of life’s grief.
But like this large jug, still keep the heart expansive.
Why would you want to keep the heart captive, like an unopened bottle of wine?
With your mouth full of wine, you are selfless
And will never boast of your own abilities again.
Be like the humble stone at your feet rather than striving to be like a
Sublime cloud: the more you mix colors of deceit, the more colorless
your ragged wet coat will get.
Connect the heart to the wine, so that it has body,
Then cut off the neck of hypocrisy and piety of this new man.
Be like Hafiz: Get up and make an effort. Don’t lie around like a bum.
He who throws himself at the Beloved’s feet is like a workhorse and will
be rewarded with boundless pastures and eternal rest.
– Hafiz Shirazi
From the large jug, drink the wine of Unity,
So that from your heart you can wash away the futility of life’s grief.
But like this large jug, still keep the heart expansive.
Why would you want to keep the heart captive, like an unopened bottle of wine?
With your mouth full of wine, you are selfless
And will never boast of your own abilities again.
Be like the humble stone at your feet rather than striving to be like a
Sublime cloud: the more you mix colors of deceit, the more colorless
your ragged wet coat will get.
Connect the heart to the wine, so that it has body,
Then cut off the neck of hypocrisy and piety of this new man.
Be like Hafiz: Get up and make an effort. Don’t lie around like a bum.
He who throws himself at the Beloved’s feet is like a workhorse and will
be rewarded with boundless pastures and eternal rest.
From: Drunk on the Wine of the Beloved
Translated by Thomas Rain Crowe
World Poet
-Farid Sayed
He was born on 25th Boishakh,
At Thakurbari of Jora Sanko.
With poems and songs he won the world,
And left dream behind to echo.
Mother’s fairytale and the words of soil
Enriched the sweetness of his thought,
From the chirping birds he got his lesson,
The realization of life that he sought.
His name and fame were spread everywhere,
The world famous composer of ‘Gitanjali,’
In 1913, awarded with ‘Nobel Prize,’
Robi of Bengal was praised profoundly.
Not only with pen, but also with picture,
He poured the colors of life joyously,
Our heartfelt Bangla was glorified all around
As the world poet presented it harmoniously.
-Farid Sayed
He was born on 25th Boishakh,
At Thakurbari of Jora Sanko.
With poems and songs he won the world,
And left dream behind to echo.
Mother’s fairytale and the words of soil
Enriched the sweetness of his thought,
From the chirping birds he got his lesson,
The realization of life that he sought.
His name and fame were spread everywhere,
The world famous composer of ‘Gitanjali,’
In 1913, awarded with ‘Nobel Prize,’
Robi of Bengal was praised profoundly.
Not only with pen, but also with picture,
He poured the colors of life joyously,
Our heartfelt Bangla was glorified all around
As the world poet presented it harmoniously.
Translation: Anis Fatema
