Prof. K V DOMINIC

Book Details

CONTEMPORARY CONCERNS AND BEYOND (POEMS)

Year Of Publish:

Contemporary Concerns and Beyond

K. V. Dominic

Authorspress, New Delhi

Preface

It is with great happiness that I am presenting before you my sixth collection of poems after Winged Reason (Authorspress, New Delhi, 2010), Write Son, Write (Gnosis, New Delhi, 2011), Multicultural Symphony (Gnosis, New Delhi, 2014), Abheepsa (Authorspress, New Delhi, 2016) and K. V. Dominic Essential Readings and Study Guide (Modern History Press, MI, USA, 2016). As the title reveals, the major theme dealt in the poems of this book is contemporary issues and concerns.

Let me state that I have adopted a poetic style of my own and I never try to imitate any predecessor or contemporary poet. Initially I had an apprehension if my poems and the style would be accepted by the readers. But the two dozen reviews and comments I received from renowned professors, poets and critics for the very first collection Winged Reason removed all fears in me and gave me boost to write more and more and thus came out the other collections in quick succession. When my poems and critiques on them were accepted warmly by the American publishing house Modern History Press and the poems were included in the syllabus of South Asian Studies in the universities of USA and UK, I have become more aware and confident that my poetry can go deep into the minds of readers, young and old.

There are 38 poems in this collection which were composed in 18 months from 2014. Variety is one of the charms of my poetry and I have dealt with innumerable topics and incidents in this collection. The topics range from problems, tortures and tragedies of the marginalized like women, beggars, transgender, children, the old, and issues of war and peace, nature, environment, vasudhaiva kutumbakam, tribute to farmers and soldiers, philosophical thoughts, karma, spirituality, social issues and criticism, haiku etc.

Before winding up my preface let me express my deep gratitude to my bosom friend as well as world renowned publisher, Shri. Sudarshan Kcherry for taking this book for publication. He has already published twenty titles of mine. He is such a unique personality, full of wisdom, philosophy and compassion, that one will be enticed to publish more and more from his publishing house. God bless him for the selfless service he has been rendering to the academic and writing community. Wishing all lovers of poetry an enjoyable navigation through the book,

Affectionately,

–K. V. Dominic

Contents

Page

Salute to Farmers
A Cremator’s Struggle for Existence
Aboobaker, Poor Patients’ Saviour
An Airport Made of Tears
Beggars and Animals
Brahman’s Leela
Child Trafficking
Circus Rani, Queen of Woes
Departure without Any Label
Eating Gives Bliss
Ecological Debt Day
Flower Vendor
Haiku
Hut in the River
I can Hear the Groan of Mother Earth
Karma is Akarma
Lessons from Fruit Trees
Mahadeva Prasad, Saviour of Deserted Girls
Maternal Attachment
Mother India, I Weep…
Murukan, God of Beggars
Nadarajan, the Ideal Neighbour
None is Born Free
Parental Duty
Parents Deserted
Servants Assume Masters
Shinu’s Marathon for Charity
Tearful Exodus
Transgender Techie Begging for Survival
Tribute to SAI Sanctuary
Tribute to Siachen Martyrs
Tyagi
Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam
Venkatachalam, Saviour of the Old
What is Karma?
What is Spirituality?
Women Denied Justice
Salute to Soldiers

1. Salute to Farmers!

Farming, noblest of all calling

Most terrestrial and natural

Innocent human beings beckoned

by mother earth to dig out

treasures from her infinite chest

Farmers gently hunt out using

spades, ploughs, harrows etc.

Wicked mafia sons suck her blood

Inject venoms to her veins

and even rape her to death

How pleasurable farming is!

Getting up early morning

farmers are allured by plants

just like their own children

Their eyes are bathed in happiness

when they find plants’ growth

leaf after leaf and flower after flower

and fruit after fruit getting to ripen

Their eyes are drowned in tears

when they find beloved plants

withered or dead by bad weather

Farmers, feeders of a nation

less remembered gratefully

or least honoured and rewarded

Always praying for the mercy of God

Risking drought and flood

they have only tales of tears

Outcome of their sweat

looted by the mafias

and they starve and cultivate

to feed the nation’s parasites

Numbers of their suicides

increase year after year

Let’s salute our farmers for they

are the backbones of our nation

A Cremator’s Struggle for Existence

Where man fears to occupy

a woman performs bravely!

Seleena Michael aged fifty one

lone cremator of Thrukkakkara

Municipal public crematorium

Cremating average twenty bodies monthly

Life with corpses for more than five years!

Two little daughters her assistants

Husband deserted a score year back

Then started life as housemaid

which ultimately led to role of a cremator

Taken this horrendous work on contract base

Will get Rs. 1500 for each corpse

of which 550 remitted to municipal office

Deducting cost of burning fuels

gets 450 for her dreadful work

Cremation takes three to six hours

Medicine addict bodies need longer hours

Kith and kin of body leave

once cremation fuel is ignited

Heat and fume of burning body

Explosive sounds of crushing bones

Dreading darkness of deep night

None but burning body as companion

But no force can dissuade her

firm determination to voyage life.

*Based on The Mathrubhumi report on 26 July 2015

Aboobaker, Poor Patients’ Saviour*

Aboobaker runs an old medical shop in Ponnani

Poor patients flood there with prescriptions

No name board but known well in four districts

Medicines worth rupees fifty thousand

given free to average hundred patients everyday

Sefless humane service for more than thirty years

Collects sample medicines during free time

from doctors, hospitals and distributors

Closed his profitable hardware shop and

chose this as his divine vocation

Lives happily with his service minded wife

Has already won many awards for his great service

*Based on The Mathrubhumi Sunday supplement report of 3 March 2016. Ponnani is a place in Northern Kerala.

An Airport Made of Tears*

Proposed Aranmula International Airport

A dream project of private construction group

Intends to construct airport city in 3000 acres

Eighty percent land paddy fields and wet lands

Rice and fish can earn four hundred crores per year

Runway being constructed over tributary of Pamba

will lead to flood in river during monsoon

Razing of four hills for filling wet lands

leading to water shortage and loss of biodiversity

Will affect serenity and sanctity of Parthasarathy temple

Three thousand poor families to be evicted

But they are not willing to leave

their sustaining lands, jobs and houses

Fake development policy of the State

Dancing to tunes of billionaire corporate

An airport totally unnecessary

Two international airports on either side

Two hours drive will take you there

Selfish discontent inhumane millionaires

insist on flying from the poor’s chest

Got sanction from Sate through foul means

Already filled hundreds of acres of paddy fields

Destroyed hundreds of species of fish, snakes,

amphibians, valuable plants and micro-organisms

Fled thousands of birds both air and water

Aranmula people are on indefinite satyagraha

Protest against merciless State and corporate

Young and old they clamour in unison

“We will never leave our houses and lands

Where will we go and how will we live?

We can’t leave our rich heritage village,

our Parthasarathy temple and holy groves

Let their armed force shoot us all

and construct airport over our corpses.”

Their elected government has betrayed them

The government pleads for the corporate

Ignores the pleas of opposition parties

Pooh-poohs warnings of environmentalists

Innocent villagers lulled by music of birds and hymns

Waken up again by heavenly symphony

And eased by gentle strokes of breeze in day time

are destined to bear day and night

piercing drones of planes one after other

Beware, Maoists are never born

They are made where injustice rules

*Arnamula is a Hindu heritage village in southern part of Kerala. The place is internationally known for Parthasarathy Temple, Holy Snake Boats and boat race, Aranmula Mirror and holy river Pamba. The poem was composed on 28 February 2014 and recited at the main auditorium of Pondicherry Central University on 20th March 2014 before leading English poets, writers and professors from all parts of the country. The project had to be cancelled in 2015 since the Supreme Court of India ratified the order of National Green Tribunal Verdict declaring Aranmula Airport Project as violating all environmental requirements. Consequently, Govt. of India withdrew its sanction for the Airport. The Left Democratic Front government of Kerala which was elected to power in 2016 is planning to revert the site to paddy fields.

Beggars and Animals

God’s own children beggars

legitimate heirs to the planet

ousted by their own siblings

live by laws of Nature

flow by the flow of the system

like birds and flies in the sky

animals on land and fish in water

never sow, reap or store for morrow

minimum dress for body’s need

seldom bathe seldom wash

nature protects them

from common diseases

no shelter from cold, rain or mosquitoes

but sleep with family on shops’ verandahs

sound sleep rid of morrow’s worries

get up early morning roused by birds

share their breakfast bread

with fellow beings crows and dogs

then seek for their food for the day

just as other beings do on the planet

Brahman’s Leela

Everything comes out of nothing

And goes back again to nothing

And this cycle goes on

Started from time immemorial

And continues eternal

All Brahman’s Leela

Book Details

CONTEMPORARY CONCERNS AND BEYOND (POEMS)

Year Of Publish:

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