Assamese Poetry: Guna Moran

Original: Assamese: Guna Moran - English Translation: Bibekananda Choudhury

Guna Moran

PANGS OF CHILDBIRTH
I was also a child
When my kid brother was born

As I heard the whimpers of my mother
Prompted by the delivery pain
Enquired with the grandmas gathered there the reason

Rather than answering
They all asked for a gift from me smilingly

At the moment of creation of a poem
I remember fondly that special moment of my mother
When I get swept in an unearthly feeling

In my motionless body
There exists no physical pain
In such a fearless-nonchalant condition
My shadow often asks me

What happened to you?

I stay
Dumb
Helpless
Just a serene smile drops down from my lips
Like the one
Glittering on the face of my mother
Just after my brother was born
***
THE BASIC BOOK
Forecast of weather
On the face of the sky
News of tide
High and low
On the swinging waves of sea

Am I at peace
Are my near and dear one
In pain
Face is the carrier of the concealed answers

Gist of the book
At the preface
Full volume of expression
At the face

The face is not just a face
It is the preface of personality
(one can understand the heart looking at the face)

Life means an assortment of words
Sonorous body means an open book

We are each
A coverless sounding book
Face is our prefaces
Therefore
At the moment of conversation with the guests
We ourselves understand
That was not clearly told
Reading the preface

The face is the original basic book
That can be read and heard
Without learning the alphabet
***


Afforestation Of faith

One may turn faithful by putting on faith
Faith is the basis of faith

Faith is being worshipped over the ages
We put in different names

Faith was the hidden factor behind the worship of the rock
By our grandpa
I the dumb fellow
Do not know the different means of faith

You first believe in yourself
I too first believe in myself
One cannot become entity of faith of someone
Who do not believe in faith in oneself

---

Bios

Author: Guna Moran is an Assamese poet & critic. His poems are being translated into Italian and France language and have been published in various national and international magazines, journals, websites, newspapers like The Tuck magazine, Spillword, The Merak magazine, Story Teller, The Poem Hunter, The Sentinal, The Hills Times, Best Poetry and so on.

Translator: Bibekananda Choudhury, an electrical engineer by profession, working with the State Government of Assam, has completed his Masters from BITS-Pilani. He has also earned a diploma in French language from Gauhati University. He has got published works (both original and translated) in Assamese, Bengali & English in popular periodicals and newspapers. His translated poems have been published in 'Indian Literature', the bi-monthly journal of sahitya akademy. 'Suryakatha', the Bengali adaptation done by him is being taught in the undergraduate Courses of Banglore University and Post graduate Courses of Gauhati University. A collection of 101 folk tales from the foothills of Patkai translated by him has been taken up by publication by Gauhati University. He is presently the editor-in-chief of Dimorian Review, a multidisciplinary web journal.

Setu, October 2019