Aathmaanaam: Translations from Heaven and Hell

Brand New   I gave my pen to a child A line drawing A poem An epic It created and laughed at me A creation beyond wonder Summoned me Footnote : “It took me four years to paint like Raphael, but a lifetime to paint like a child.” - Pablo Picasso

The Vision I saw God I didn't feel like asking anything He too left with a smile Even then there was peace of mind Footnote : What more do you want from life? What more do you want from God? A simple, direct, poetic declaration.

Work Is your morning prayer done Then That's your food Instead of wandering around Just go and sleep Footnote :  An anti-poem ... a parody ...

The Plant Like a lemon plant that grew in sewage water The fruits that I give will be big and sour If you add a little sugar and drink it won't it be good Footnote : It's plain, it's simple, it's direct ... Take everything with a pinch of sugar ...

Titles will form on their own It seems as if it has been a quite long time since I have thought about you After having eaten away the scales of the brain inside me where were you hiding Is it because you knew that I always have the habit of understanding exactly the opposite Let's leave all this chit-chat and come to the point When we last met I guess we were taking about movements Now do you see is that one movement that exists It seems as if it has been a quite long time since I have thought about you Footnote : Does the title of the poem connect with the poem itself or does it stand aloof? Is this about the various art and literary movements the world has seen? Note the philosophical tone. A nice soliloquy.

Poems of the Mind 1. He looked at the toilet ceiling he is not going to hang himself even then he looked 2. His hand was outside the window of the bus his fingers fell chopped titillated he gathered his fingers his journey continues again 3. The crowd was waiting he too began The cameras were on And then suddenly a machine gun The world stopped for a moment A crowd gathered around him A crowd gathered around him too Within him continued a moment The gathering ended and a crowd gathered around him 4. The sea waves were tirelessly abating The fish around started to bite him little by little From a distance one could only see it happening 5. The child started crying the relations were just worth laughing at Footnote: The title spawns an interesting question ... Do we write poems from the mind? Osho says that the center of consciousness need not be the mind ... it could be the navel ... it could be any other part for that matter ... Consciousne...

A letter to the Little Princess Hello How are you What new game have you found now How is your Scamp Between the flowering plants on the lawn beneath the green trees so high with butterflies around between the wooden walls from inside it's red kennel Scamp peeps out Outside there was a brown dog Scamp came out wondering what's happening Don't you know our gathering is under the tree Come soon, he said He made his way through the multi-colored dogs Asked a question we have gathered here to honor our chief What did he find with modesty Scamp said Carrying the bag behind The crowd dispersed The next story is for you to say With Love Forever Yours Footnote : The seemingly disconnected dots (lines) are connected by the 'little princess' ... Scamp (A Walt Disney Character) seems to be her another identity. Convoluted in appearance this children's poem is for the adult child. An evocative poem. Mischief brews itself and hides behind inno...

Music / Sound Wind me as a string in a violin Let us see if then at-least I can voice With that much perfection With that much softness With that much sharpness Chorusing with all the strings together Deep inside sound's deserted space so so softly an echo is heard Listening carefully It's the same perfection It's the same softness It's the same sharpness Footnote : Aathmaanaam's appreciation for musical bliss is evident from this poem. Diving deeper one could sense a longing and 'not belonging''.

My Rose-lings I am going to meet my two rose-lings this evening They know that I am coming I understand their swaying branches in the wind that prepare to welcome me with excitement They look at me in communion I enter the room after a smile I remove my footwear wash my face wipe it with a flower embroidered towel look at myself in a mirror and then come out lift a mug of water on my hand and pour it on my rose-lings more than the water I pour I am important to them They ask me softly what I did today Not wanting to lie that 'I was thinking only about you today' I list my deeds of the day I also tell them the moment I thought about them With a smile they tell me to go and sleep and that we will meet the next day morning I see them once again close the door and lie on the bed thinking about the approaching morning Footnote : The tense in the original shifts from future to present to past. I have maintained present tense in this translation....

Dream Acknowledge my dreams now I would at least have the relief that I lived before I left Why play this game of hide and seek When our faces see head-on light brightens up It is you I see your life beneath it's sea of ugliness It is hard to search you in beauty you are definitely not there I see your dream world among those millions of desires none are justifiable A dream a day and a dream within that dream Realizing that it was difficult to search you I created my own dream Acknowledge it now Footnote : It is interesting to watch the 'I' versus 'you' conflict and the circular loop structure. On Nov 12, 2016 8:54 PM

Aathmaanaam Aathmaanaam's first poetry collection titled 'A line on the paper' proved a unique view that poetry is a crowd of words. This book is a device that helps to group the 'codes' that hit us. This anthology depicts a scape that helps us to stop and identify the loud voices arising from culture, at that very moment they get generated. News present as a black shadow, as distracted light and in many more forms and at many more places paint the poetic scape. Socio-cultural 'I's and the individual 'I' are deconstucted through these poems. This begins the era of a new language and way of expression in the world of poetry that could soon become a norm. -  As introduced by Brammaraajan in the back cover of Aathmaanaam's poetry book titled 'Aathmaanaam poems' ... September 1989 Front Cover Art of the book 'Aathmaanaam poems' Abstract Art by Mexican Artist Leonardo Nierman I have tried to translate below the...