Sur Kamod (Love-dependent) Love Dependent سر كاموڏ Shah jo Risalo in English (Shah Abdul Latif Bhitai Poetry) by Elsa Kazi

Sur Kamod (Love-dependent)  Love Dependent سر كاموڏ

Shah jo Risalo in English  (Shah Abdul Latif Bhitai Poetry)  by Elsa Kazi





Kamod-XIV
(Love-dependent)

Chapter-I
1
You noble are, I humble am
the seat of demerits am I
Seeing your queens, O king, your eye
turn not away from fisher-folk.

2
You noble are, I humble am
scores of defects abide with me
When heaps of smelling fish you see,
turn not away from fisher-folk.

3
You are king, master of the land
and I sell fish, poor fisher-maid,
Do not forsake me, for't is said
that I, oh king, belong to thee.

4
Those who do feed on smelling fish,
and fish is all their propertyThe king, the noble king, O see!
with them relationship has made-

5
The basket full of smelling fish,
and all the loaded herring-traysFishers, whose touch avoided is
and such unpleasantness conveys
The king strands in their thatch always
and gently holds converse with them!

Chapter-II

6
Now she longer catches fish,
nor cuts, cooks, cures as formerly;
She neither holds the scales and weight,
not fish-net in her hands we seeNow to the court-modes cleaveth she,
such as befits a kingly house!

7
Her hands and feet, her face and form
no more of fisher-maid remindAs there's a chief-string in the lute
she's queen of all the queens combined;
From the beginning all her ways
were queenly, noble and refined,
The king perceived it and did bind
the regal bracelet on her wrist!

8
Fie upon maids of princely caste
who walk stiff-necked, so haughtilyPraise to the daughter of the lake,
her true love to the king gave she...
Out of all royal ladies, he,
the pearl bestowed on fisher-maid.

Chapter-III

9
Court-ladies now adorn themselves,
to win king back with beauty spellsBut king midst fisher people dwells,
within his hand the fishing-net!

10
The fishing-net in hands of king,
and fisher-maid did rudder sway!
Upon the lake all yesterday
fish-hunting gay was going on!-

11
“On deep, clear waters of the lake,
with my beloved now I sail,
Of my desires none did fail,
all are fulfilled, none went astray.”

12
Upon the waters transparent,
along the banks float lotus-flowers,
And all the lake rich fragrance showers
as sweet as musk when spring-winds blow.

Chapter-IV

13
Credit of raising fisher-maid
Belongs to Tamachi,
He took her in his carriage, and
a human-being he
Made out of her,...in Keenjhar, see!
All say this is the truth.

14
Of those before the 'Jam' was born
the fish-maid nothing knows,
They don't attend ceremonies,
go not to weddings, nor to shows,
What hath lake-life to do with those?
they only know the head, the king.

15
...None gave king birth, to no one birth
gave He-He's generous,...aloneThe fisher women old and young,
as His relations He doth own;
"He is not born, He gives no birth"-
blance unique, to change unknown
Tamachi's high eternal throne,
so great and oh, so glorious is!