Dedicated to all mothers, and their mothers!
`Where was I all these years, mother?'
`In the womb of my desire.'
`And you, mother?'
`In the dreams of your father, my dear.'
`And father, what was he doing?'
`He was in search of us both.'
`Son dear, it is time for you to eat now.'
`Mother!'
`Yes.'
`Why should I eat?'
`To become strong like Rama.'
`Who was Rama?'
Of late, I am studying the metre maMdAkrAMta in great detail. maMdAkrAMta has been made famous by kAlidAsa. He wrote his entire mEghadUta in this metre. mEghadUta is perhaps one of the first books of messenger poems. In this the cursed yaksha, separated from his beloved, spends a year in rAmagiri, where rAma and sItA too spent some time during their years in the forest. Here is a maMdAkrAMta in telugu marking hanumaMta as rAmA's emissary to sItA. I imagined him using this metre for this purpose.
One of the finest love stories of ancient India is the marriage of rukmiNI. Her brother was a sworn enemy of Krishna, but she loves only Krishna. So she sends a message expressing her love through a brahmin to Krishna. After sending it, she worries to no end with all sorts of thoughts. Her mental state was brought out brilliantly by the fifteenth century Telugu poet pOtana, who must have lived somewhere around Warangal, near the present Hyderabad. I am very fond of this poem and offering it as a gift to all the lovers around the world.
Here is wishing all ikOlam friends, young and old, a very happy and prosperous new year. This year, for several reasons, I was hard pressed for time. So I could not design my card elaborately. I believe there is still something in it.
