Women Poetry: Dr. Kamala Wijeratne, Sri Lanka

Exclusive: Women Poetry: Edited by Padmaja Iyengar-Paddy

Dr. Kamala Wijeratne

THE THIN LINE

There is a very thin line between a human and a monster

As signified by the story of Medusa a lovely woman thwarted in love 

Broken and transformed into a fury.

Isn't it the nature of man to love?

As I t is of devils to hate?

For the human and the demon dwell in the same abode

This six-foot bony frame

Wrapped in nerve fiber and muscle coat

Love makes the boundary

Between man and beast.

Remember the Beauty and the beast.

And tales told us as children

How sleeping beauty awoke after hundred years

And Snow White came back to life

It is all about the power of love.

Poor Medusa. she was forced to cross the line

And never return 

The Beast did and so many others

Like Angulimala 

Poisoned with hat,e crossed the line 

That divided man from monster

And recrossed with the overarching love of the Buddha

Medusa hated and cast away

Had no such love to help her recross the line

***

MEDUSA DECONSTRUCTED

Was it Wrong to Love?

To be transformed from human woman to devilish monster

What audacity? What crime?

Let us put you on the dock Medusa,

And inquire into your transgression

Beautiful Medusa, delicate and fragile

A young maiden with an uncluttered heart

Swept off her feet by an unalloyed passion for Poseidon

Tall, sturdy and debonaire

Black locks gleamed on his neck and chin

A keen blu- eyed man for all seasons

Courteous and kind, soft in speech

CAN ONE BLAME YOU FOR FALLING IN LOVE?

But stiff and cold Athena did

She was perhaps jealous of the young maidens’ glowing youth

And suddenly conscious of her own loveless life

Wrinkled by too much brain she broke up Medusa’s love

And turned a tender maid into a fury

Crossed in love Medusa’s passion sprang into her hair as serpents

And her frozen heart turned onlookers to stone

I for one will not chastise you Medusa.

***

Dr. Kamala Wijeratne is a well-known poet and short story writer of Sri Lanka. She won awards for her poetry as well as her short stories from the state. In 2019, she was awarded the Sahithya Rathna Lifetime Award which is the highest award given to a writer in Sri Lanka. In 2019, she published her first novel which has won the award for the best novel in English. Wijeratne is an educationist in the field of English Language Teaching. Her specialty is English Literature teaching. Her research in these areas were published in a book entitled Culture Language and Literature. She has worked at the National Institute of Education as well as at two national universities. 

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The Myth of Medusa Deconstructed :: Setu, March 2021

Dr. Kamala Wijeratne, SRI LANKA

Exclusive: Best of Women Poetry: Edited by Padmaja Iyengar-Paddy

A WOMAN

‘A woman is appointed’ one said aloud shocked.

‘A woman to such high office?’ another mocked.

‘A woman to a place where the heart of the nation throbbed!’

Another with doubt and disdain quipped.

‘Shame! Chaos and blunder’ a cynic lamented.

‘Surely a political stooge!’ a wisecrack shouted.

‘Nepotism and corruption’ FB fans posted.

‘This is the end’ the media reported.

The males of the species watched, disconcerted.

The woman began her actions with decision.

‘She keeps awake all the night hours.’

A skeptic noted, ‘reading all past reports’

‘That is a delaying tactic”, the wisecrack said,

with intent to hinder.

‘She’s going back to the past’ they criticized.

‘She has a new report, a new plan of action’

a positive thinker conceded.

‘She’ll take decisive action’ a media person beamed.

‘She will sack all those at default’ the secretary informed.

‘That is us’ they all whimpered.

‘Oh! the woman of the species.

She’s done the deed’ everyone shouted.

Dr. Kamala Wijeratne was awarded the Sahitya Ratna, Life Time Award- which is given to a writer once in a lifetime for her contribution to literature, in Sri Lanka. Previously she has received awards from the state for her poetry (2004) as well as for her short fiction (2013,2015) besides the Godage Prize (a prestigious publishing House in Sri Lanka) for her short fiction (2013 and 2015) and her poetry (2017). She is a well-known educationist, teacher trainer and curriculum designer. She has eleven volumes of poetry to her credit. In 2019 she ventured to write her first novel.  

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Best of Women Poetry -2020 :: Setu, March 2020

Dr. Kamala Wijeratne, SRI LANKA

ICONS

In her babyhood

she was given dolls

to kiss and cuddle

to bathe and dress

to play with and sleep with

wasn’t she after all

going to be a wife

a mother and a mother’s mother

nursing husband, children

and their children?

To her brother they gave guns

air guns, water guns

guns that spluttered

and guns that splattered

water and paper

all over the courtyard

guns that touched her forehead

and said, ‘Fall, fall down’

She fell down and picked herself up

and pulled the gun from his hands

and told him,

“It’s your turn now

You fall down.”

he fell down

and picked up the doll

from the floor

and threw it on her face

She shot the doll through and through.

DAUGHTER AND SON

When she was born

mother was much cast down

she so much wanted a son,

to carry on the family name

to prop up the ancestral home

but here she had born

a hapless female

who needed going after

to be chaperoned and watched over

until safely delivered

into the hands of a young man.

Then she had a son

the heir long waited for

he was born fulfillment and hope

she thought herself supremely blessed

and held her head high

and above the rest

she showered everything on the son

choicest food at table

the most expensive clothes

the best school, best tutor

and best of everything.

The daughter of course

was second best,

she had to wait her turn

wasn’t she girl after all?

The son took the best of the dower

rode and played with the fashionable

soon, the ancestral house was sold

and the name dragged in the mind

the mother had nowhere to go

no one to succor her

no one to tell her woes

for the daughter had

chartered her own course

and gone out of her orbit.

Out on the road, looking for a home

she was accosted by a woman

who seemed to have won

the world, and she

took her hand and said

“Shall we go to my home

it has no name or status

but it has fire in it

and warmth, it has

doors and windows

that you can open and close.”

Together they held their hands

and climbed the steps

to enter the flat of a

very small size.

ALL WOMEN

The flight comprised all women

the pilot and the crew

could they make the journey true

safe and sound, would

they take off and land

as they should?

Would they bungle at the start

or up in the blue sky

would it be a smooth touch down?

All women air crew

is it possible or true?

will they have the nerve

to guide the plane

across the sky?

Women have never done

such a thing before

can they do such a thing now?

So the tongues wagged

the critics enlarged

the danger and fanned the fear

but the ladies rode the air

and brought the plane back

safe and sound.

Dr. Kamala Wijeratne has been publishing her poetry since 1983. She has published ten anthologies of poetry including a collection for children. She is also a short story writer. She has received State Literary Awards for her poetry (2004) and short stories in (2013) and (2016) from the government of Sri Lanka. She has also received awards from the prestigious publishing house, Godage and Brothers for her short stories in 2013 and 2016. Her poems have appeared in international collections of poetry, published by prestigious publishers like the Penguin Books and National Book Trust, India.

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Women, Power & Creativity :: Setu, March 2019