Dream Weaver
I am a tale weaver
I spin the words to make
colorful yarns
merging loose and broken ends
dissolving the knots
to create the cloth of dreams
and I owe it all to you
my weaver friend
who taught me the knack of
how to weave the rhythm of life
into tales of the soul
to write songs and verses
with all the smoothness
of my silken thoughts
to bring color texture and feel
to my work just as hers
to infuse the joy and sorrow
laughter and tears
known and unknown
mysteries of life
to merge the nostalgia of youth
with the grace of old age
to combine , compare and define
what's old and new
to blend haunting memories, broken dreams,
love's promises, passions and desires
To see what no other eye can see
to create
lyrical images
magical yet meaningful patterns
and weave an exquisite garment called life
© Tikuli Dogra
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Q&A
Q: How does Hindi poetry differ from other types of poetry?
A: Hindi Poetry that we read today is still relatively very young. The literature written before Khari boli (Modern Standard Hindi) in the Devanagari script was mainly in Sanskrit and then in regional dialects mainly Braj and Awadhi . It was only in the middle of 19th century that the actual Hindi poetry began to take shape in the wake of social awakening. I think the main difference between Hindi or any other poetry is the works of Devotional poets in 'Bhakti kal' during medieval time. The Bhakti or devotional movement was unique in itself. Those who laid emphasis on the importance of knowledge for the realisation of the Omnipresent were called ' Saint poets ' like Meera Bai and Tulsi Das. There have been poet seers and poetry written in praise of the God in literature around the globe but Poetry entirely devoted to Gods as a moral duty of the poets is only found in Hindi Literature.
Q: How do you define poetry in general?
A: Poetry for me is a spontaneous flow of life and emotions in all it's myriad hues. It's an expression of self. A way to connect and strike a balance with your inner and outer self. Any piece of writing which makes me reach out to it , involves me, holds me captive, makes me ponder, stirs the depths of my consciousness or just makes me all dreamy eyed and gives me wings releasing me from the mundane is poetry for me.
Q: Tell us something about yourself that not many people know about you. :-)
A: My writings are a window to my soul and heart. Most of them touch some aspect of my life. I wrote my first poem in Spanish and translated one of Jose Marti's poem from "Versos Sencillos" for my collage magazine. It was an overwhelming experience to be part of the 'Jose Marti' Celebration Month.
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Woven Sunset Dream - Photo Collage © Jen Pezzo
Posts
I love this Dream Weaver piece since i am a weaver in real life.. Haven't woven in a year or more.. but love the flow of this poem.. very peaceful.
ReplyDeleteI'm intrigues about your response about the development of Hindi poetry... I know much of the early work was done in Sanskrit mostly but was not aware of Braj and Awadhi...
Thank you for appreciating my poem Chris. I was inspired to write this poem From a hindi poem by Gulzar , lyricist and poet. This is a very special poem for me for various reasons.
ReplyDeleteHindi Poetry and prose goes back to middle of 7th century. In the medievial period lot of changes took place in Poetry writing.It was differenciated into nine Rasas(styles) like beauty, romance, heroism etc and Braj and awadhi took over sanskrit. Ramcharitmanas of Tulsidas is an example of it. Awadhi was the main literary vehical before khadiboli or hindi took over.These were the main spoken languages also. The area in which they were spoken held a huge cultural and religious significance and poet/ writers were largely influenced by this.
Congratulations, dear 'tale weaver'. More magic with words - that's my prayer for you.
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