Kali Kirtan: Two Bengali Devotional Songs to Mother Kali in English Translation
Translated from the original Bangla by Sreejit Datta
1. Bawdo Dhoom Legeche Hridi-Kawmole
(To Listen to the Original Bangla Song, written by Mahendranath Bhattacharya aka ‘‘Premik Maharaj’’, a nineteenth-century Shakta poet from Bengal, Click Here)
In the lotus-seat of my heart,
A great tumult has ‘rupted;
And my mind, crazed as it is,
Bears witness to this euphoric joy!
Out here, ‘tis a carnival of frenzied souls,
With the Mad Lord ‘n’ the Mad Lady presiding at it;
And in bliss – in supernal, eternal bliss –
The Joyous Lady swoons!
Seeing this scene, dazed are the crews
Of my senses and mine inner foes[1];
Seizing the chance lent by this riot,
Now the gateway to gyan has sprung open!
They call me a mad lover —
But has that shaken my mind’s resolve, ever?
With parents as mad as these,
Can a child turn out to be sane?
Hear, Mother Tara, O Thou reliever of worldly burdens!
Let me submit my appeal right away —
At the end of my days,
When mine ashes shall float on the river,
Pray, take me to Thy lap, and call me “Dear Child!”
2. Shyamā Mā Ki Ᾱmār Kālo
(To Listen to the Original Bangla Song, composed by Kamalakanta Bhattacharya, an eighteenth-century Shakta poet and yogi from Bengal, Click Here)
Is it true that my Mother Shyamā is dark?
Though they say Kālī is dark,
My mind differs with that part –
With Her dark form, the Unclothed Deity hath
Illumined the lotus-seat of my heart!
Now Shyamā’s fair, then She turns gold,
Then again She turns from blue to red;
The Mother’s ways I can hardly fathom,
In that pursuit a lifetime is spent!
Now Shyamā’s Puruṣa, then She’s Prakṛti[2],
Then again She is formless, most sublime –
In trying to fathom the Mother’s ways,
Kamalākānta will go insane in no time!
Notes:
[1] The ṣaḍ-ripu – lust, anger, avarice, delusion, conceit, and envy, taken together.
[2] Puruṣa and Prakṛti, respectively the Masculine-consciousness and Feminine-energy substrata of the universe, as per Sāṃkhya darśana
Feature Image Courtesy: Sreejit Datta
