Poem : I BURN’D MY BOOKS…
---\"Books are the liberated spirits of men.\"
-- Mark Twain (1835-1910)
--- “When a work appears to be ahead of its time, it is only the time that is behind the work.”
--Jean Cocteau (1889-1963)
---“I have received your book of poems just sometime back, today. I have no words to express your talent. The world should know. So very classical, one can easily compare these with any of the poems of the great poets of the classical era. So very emotional & depth in them. Thank you for this wonderful gift.”
--From Sagnik Sen, (singer, painter, pianist and poet), India, June 2021
www.sagniksen.com
(On my book “Poetical Ravings,” second edition, March 2020, Mauritius).
--- “If learned men force instruction into the ears of the ignorant and thereby incur disrespect, the fault is their own. Why blame others when with all their wide learning, they know not the nature of those others ?”
--(Ed) T. B. Krishnaswami : “TEN TAMIL ETHICS.” Madras, India : The South India Saiva Sidhanta Works Publishing Society, 1937. Full acknowledgements are made to the authors, publishers and rights-holders.
*****
1st section
First book publish’d in 1997
“Poetical Ravings.”
Big hopes, but big deception…
Hardly anybody car’d…
Went with the wind…
Went up in smoke…
2nd
Misguid’d expectations.
Some 2000 copies print’d.
Misunderstood the masses,
Even critics.
Gave away about 275 copies.
Paid the postage…
3rd
Few responses.
Most bother’d not.
Universities, colleges,
Government departments
Libraries…
Went unknown,
Unwant’d…
4th
The remainder sat yonder.
The boxes pil’d up.
With time, sagging boxes…
The boxes sagg’d with the weight,
The unbearable weight
Of going unknown,
Spurn’d,
Uncar’d for…
5th
Months roll’d by,
Years elaps’d.
The sagging went worse.
Groggy stuff,
But still unwant’d
Even with the passage of time.
Time went slowly,
So slowly…
6th
What a sight…
What an experience…
For how long to endure it…
Mistaken ideas,
Right from the start.
Misjudg’d the reception.
Nobody car’d…
7th
Finally, years later,
Open’d some boxes
For a peek…
Alas !...
What a shock !...
Bookworms had drill’d holes
In the books…
The unwant’d books,
Unwant’d by humans,
But food for bookworms…
8th
Some solace, at least :
The books provid’d food
For bookworms…
The books had holes in them :
They had turn’d HOLY !…
Holy Lord !...
9th
The bookworms were neat :
They came,
Ate
And went away,
Cleanly,
Ne’er leaving a mess…
10th
The mess was the very idea of publishing.
Flaw’d was the very idea,
From the start…
But, this be the fate of some writers :
New books drill’d by worms.
Unseen,
Unwant’d…
11th
Still, publishing logically follows writing.
But the fate be unknown,
Even for books.
Anyway,
The poet still holds sway :
He gave life to the books :
He will give them a fiery death…
What else be left to do ?...
12th
A further insult would be
To let the books litter…
To send them to the dump-yard…
Burning is cleansing.
The books be like the phoenix :
They will rise from their ashes..
(A mistype made “asses” appear here…
But, that Backspace be a wondrous thing…
Thank God for Backspace and Delete…)
13th
For now, intense heat
From the fiery pyre.
Like a wood-bas’d cremation pyre :
I had to cremate my books…
I was like a moth sneaking closer
To the devastating fire…
The smoke will disappear.
The holy books will vanish.
Physically.
But, they will still remain…
14th
The books disappear’d.
They were littering the place.
They had to go.
Ay, they had to go.
Like the returning spring,
They will return
Anew,
In another series,
Edit’d,
Revis’d,
Augment’d…
15th
SLOW forward.
March 2020.
The second edition.
Revis’d,
Augment’d.
But dastardly Covid broke loose :
The printing stopp’d :
Everything seiz’d up…
16th
Months later,
Matters resum’d,
Work resum’d.
Printing was complet’d.
Just 200 copies,
This time.
Cut down to size.
Brought down to earth
By reality.
Reality checks…
From 2000 to 200 copies…
17th
Some 195 copies given away FREELY.
Not one copy sold.
Still, no reply from many addressees,
Universities,
Libraries,
Government departments,
Diplomatic missions,
Colleges,
“Personalities”…
A few positive replies…
I paid the postage myself…
I paid the price :
In more sense than one…
Many trips to the post office :
Queuing up in the rain,
Swelt’ring in the sun…
18th
No response ?
Little response ?...
What the heck !
Stop complaining,
Stop moaning…
Serve you right
For casting pearls
To the wild winds…
19th
The burden be gone :
No more sagging boxes
This time round…
Buy one, get one free ?
Nay :
Buy nothing :
Get it free !...
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Soman Ragavan
25 November, 2024
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