Krishna, You Know Me Not by Sugatha Kumari - Poetry: The Best Words in the best Order - #BlogchatterA2ZChallenge 2021

 Krishna, You know Me Not 

Sugatha Kumari

(Translated by Ministhy S Nair)

Here in the corner of Ambady

Inside my small mud hut, I reside

Silently.

Krishna, You Know Me Not.

Clad in colourful skirts, anklets tinkling

With a shiny pot at my shapely waist

Black kohl of desire in my eyes,

I have never been to your side. 

Krishna, You Know Me Not.

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Half coloured by the flirtatious Kalindi,

Eyes cast down shyly, body trembling,

I have never sought my clothes from you,

With my hands outstretched.

Krishna, You Know Me Not.

Inside the dark forests as your flute beckons

Dressing half-done, ignoring the boiling milk

Incomplete household chores, regardless of my 

Robes slipping, hair undone, not seeing my crying child,

The raised eyebrows of my spouse,

I have never come running with my friends

To be with you.

Krishna, You Know Me Not.

I listened as their anklets' sounds faded afar -

Then with eyes cast down, always returned

To my work, chaining my life down within;

With a thousand little chores.

Krishna, You Know Me Not.

When you shone like the full moon

Sensuous dancing gopikas all around you,

As the flute turns naughty and then maddening

Anklets burst out laughing, bangles round shapely arms

Flashing rainbow colours, golden bodies swaying ecstatically,

Dresses undulating, but I have never danced thus with

 my hair all afire.

Krishna, You Know Me Not.

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Exhausted by the dance, body drenched in sweet sweat,

Resting myself against the flowering tree -

Bosom heaving with desire,

I have never stared at your enchanting face.

Krishna, You Know Me Not.

Never has any wily girlfriend passed on 

My lovelorn message to your ears,

Never have I waited for your approaching footsteps

Within a white flowered arbor, within the deep woods.

Krishna, You Know Me Not.

As a hundred white flowers bloomed

Spreading intoxication in the moonlight,

I have never rested my eager head

Against that manly, blue chest.

Krishna, You Know Me Not.

When your flute melodiously announced

The arrival of spring,

Locking myself within my home,

I offered my soul at your feet,

Shedding tears of joy, unknown to anyone.

Krishna, You Know Me Not.

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Gokul resounds with heartrending cries!

Akroor has arrived to take away

Krishna to Mathura, they shout!

Struck dumb, motionless as I sit outside my house

Horse hooves approach, a chariot nearing.

As I raise my eyes...

You radiate like the full moon night

Inside the King's chariot.

Women cry from behind, cows and calves run alongside,

You look back, with anguished, reddened eyes. 

As I freeze like a cold stone structure,

Though you know me not, Krishna,

Your chariot stops for one moment before me.

You look at me, tears filling your eyes to the brim.

A compassionate smile, so divine from your lips for me.

Krishna, do you know me after all?

Krishna, did you know me all the while?

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The Poet: Sugatha Kumari (1934 - 2020)

Sugatha Kumari is one of the most loved poets of Kerala, known for poems that are sensitive and philosophical. She was also an environmentalist and feminist with a heart that beat for the downtrodden in society. She founded Abhaya, a shelter for mentally challenged women and was also actively involved in the Save Silent Valley Movement, where her poem titled Ode to a Tree' (Marathinu Stuthi) became a symbol of protest for the movement. Having won numerous prestigious awards, when she passed away due to COVID-19 complications, it was a huge loss to Malayalam literature.

The exquisite 'Krishna, You Know Me Not' is a classic poem, which describes the feelings of an unknown gopika who sings her heart out, a gopika who has kept away from all the numerous things done by other gopikas to attract the attention of their beautiful, blue-bodied Krishna. She has never looked at him with eyes drenched with desire, or run to him with her friends, or danced the Rasa Leela with him, her anklets jingling. She has never waited for his approaching footsteps or rested her head against his manly chest.

 The beautiful refrain, 'Krishna, You Know Me Not' comes at the end of every stanza. Though she has offered her soul at his feet, she has never interacted with him. However, when Akroor comes to take him away to Mathura, and when all the gopikas weep at the separation, Krishna himself looks back with reddened eyes filled with anguish. 

However, as she watches, Krishna stops his chariot for a moment in front of her house, his eyes filling with tears as a divine smile blooms at his lips. Her heart fills with immense joy as she looks at him and asks, 

"Krishna, do you know me after all? Krishna, did you know me all the while?"

The longing and the unexpressed love of the gopika make this poem unforgettable. No wonder it has caught the eye of the listener, having attained a unique status in the annals of Malayalam literature. The emotions within the poem have inspired numerous dancers to create poignant pieces around it. The poem has also been put to music and sung soulfully by both Chitra and G Venugopal. The superlative English translation by Ministhy S Nair is a boon to non-Malayalam speaking readers.

Sugatha Kumari - Times of India

If you would like to listen to the beautiful rendition of the poem by Chitra, here is the link:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JBdcqIl0Ir0

This post is a part of #BlogchatterA2ZChallenge2021

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