ROYAL ORDER

English Translation of  Tagore's original Bengali poem “Raj Byabastha”  by DEBIDAS RAY

The emperor - out of fear – stays put in the police station,

Whatever laws he promulgates, are never complied with.

His roving spies are always on the look out,

If by chance, any saintly person strays and is found alone

They have to inform the king at once -

For his safety, they keep the saint in prison.

                                                                                                  

English Translation of Rabindranath Tagore’s poem entitled “Raj Byabastha” in his collection of poems “Chharar Chhabi” in Sanchayita,4th ed.1943, p762.

Published in POETRY WORLD, vol 3(no9),January 2011,p29.

IN SICK BED

English Translation of  Tagore's original Bengali poem " Rogasajjaay" by DEBIDAS RAY 

In the land of Gods during dance festivals,

if even for a moment, a tired Urvashi

by chance misses a single step,

the King of Gods does not pardon her.

In venues where human beings meet

there too, the same rules of heavens apply.

That is why, there is diffidence underlying

my literary work because I fear that

due to exhaustion at the end of a burning fevered day

there may occur – in such pursuit - laxity

and inadvertent faltering in steps.

English translation of the introduction to “Rogasajjaay” – a collection of poems written  in sick bed by Rabindranath Tagore in SANCHAYITA, 4^th.ed, 1943, p876.

 Published in POETRY WORLD, vol 3(no 8), December 2010, p26.