ENTE BHASA - A POEM IN MALAYALAM

 

The grand idiom of the sea nearby

And the steadfastness of the Sahya mountain

The bliss that the Gokarna temple gives,

And the cheerful brightness of the goddess Kanyakumari

The purity of the river Periyar which is like the Ganga,

And the sweetness of the milk of tender coconuts,

The pleasing fragrances that emanates

From sandalwood and many spices,

The inherent energy of the Sanskrit language,

And the beauty of sweet Tamil-

My language is one compact of all this.

Oh pride, you dance about drunk with joy.

On the tender lips that try to lisp,

The first word that mingles with the mother's milk

Is Amma :Mother.

Other languages are just foster mothers.

Our own language is our mother.

Only if children drink the milk of the mother's tender love

Do they attain the fullness of healthy growth?

Even heavenly nectar is nectar to us

Only if our mother serves it to us.

Who  do say Kairali is clumsy;

She who has sung for people

The first poem and the Fifth veda

And the precepts of conduct and the Upanisads?

How shameful it is, how sad

That you forget your duty as sons.

Unless you enslave yourselves to your mother-tongue

You do not deserve to rule;

Unless you bow your heads in reverence to her

You cannot hold them up proudly.

Why should I speak more?

From tomorrow whoever comes to Kerala

For the alms of Knowledge

Would have his bag filled.

From times immemorial

This land is famous for its lavish generosity.

These were the lines written by VALLATHOL NARAYANA MENON in his poem ENTE  BHASA in Malayalam.  The poem aptly expresses the pride in one's mother tongue. This feeling is  in Vallathol; all the more powerful because of his traditionalism and nationalism.  In this poem he expresses his clear thinking and genuine love for mother -tongue.

He enriched Malayalam with translations from many Sanskrit classics. When he was 75, he started a translation of RigVeda  so that  common people could get access to the thoughts of the great book through their mother tongue. He has the credit of translating Valmiki Ramayana into Malayalam.

Narayana Menon popularly known by his family name Vallathol and his poetry are an example of the essential strength of the traditional culture of our society. Next to poetry, Vallathol  loved KathaKali drama style of Kerala.  Credit for earning the present popularity and appreciation of KathaKali should go to the life long zeal and tireless effort of vallathol.

His literary pursuit began from an younger age when he composed Rituvilasam a poem in Malayalam describing the seasons of the year imitating Kalidsa's Ritusamharam.

Following the fashion of his time he composed an epic poem Chitrayogam based on a story from Kathasaritsagar. When published the book earned mixed reception. From then he was at the zenith of his power composing best poems. They were of different kinds : lyrics, narrative poems, drama.

Vallathol's contribution to Malayalam Literature is valuable and vast.

(This blogpost is  a part of BlogChatter's Half Marathon 2023)