The love scene I always love!

Hello Meena,

The moon has a magically romantic quality of catching us unaware. That is why even after reading thousands and thousands of verses on moon, poets still write about it and still describing the moon causes our heart to skip a beat.

If you can read and appreciate Tamil, get the verse by heart. I can assure you you will never have a sad moment in your life.

May your romance grow by leaps and bounds,
regards,
sridhar

Actually Sihi, Romance has driven out the illness. In fact posting this poem, writing it and thinking about it, has had a great therepautic effect on my mind and body.

I am back in action and am happy to know that you enjoyed this superb poem, Sihi.
regards,
sridhar

Dear Kamla,
Please don't say that you have also fallen sick. Take preventive medicine. Take rest. And try to ward off that disease bug. IL can illafford to let one of it star performers fall sick, especially when it is 3k-strong now.

I am happy that you liked the poem and my translation.
regards,
sridhar

The translator does not have any work to do if the original is powerfully written and the translator is hooked into it. Then the work transcreates itself in the language of translators choice. That happened in the case of Abdul Rahman's poem as well as this one.
Happy that you liked it.
In one way I should thank God that my first interest was on a love poem on moon and so I landed right in front of my moon, Indhu.
Had the poem been on Sun, I dread to think where would I have landed.
God is infinitely merciful.
regards,
sridhar

Looks like you are back, hale and healthy, God Bless!
I rarely fall ill.......well, I did tell my throat not to hurt, but it does:(
Take care, watching moon and 'moon' watching you should help:))

L, Kamla

Dear Vidya,
I am happy that the poem and especially the translation has appealed to you even after a skeptical reading. One reason the translation came out naturally is the fact that the poem lay buried in the roots of being for more than 30 years. And whenever I see the moon, my lips start to recite this poem. That kind of long and deep association made translation an effortless task.

I am happy and proud to have it certified by you, Vidya.

Now about your husband, poor soul! There are a million other ways of conjuring up romance than falling ill. I am sure you would have thought about one.
Of course one of the ways is to make him read a poem like this.

Hope you will choose a "healthy" way of conjuring up romance.
regards,
sridhar

Dear Sudha,
The power of a poem like this is it will not only spur a die-hard romantic to greater levels of romance, but will spare no one from its magic. And Sudha, there is no age bar for romance. You see I am already 28 plus but still going strong... ha ha ha.
Ancients knew the connection between the moon and our mental states. That's why even now we have the word lunatic which is derived from the word lunar, to describe the troubled state of mind. The connection between the moon and our minds and romance is more than what meets the eye.
Well, I did not "fall" for Indhu; because I raised myself in my romance with her.

Now about illness and romance and the other alternatives, I would leave that to the best judgment of NG of IL.
Just let this poor, innocent 28 year-old know what have you decided! ha ha ha
regards,
sridhar

Dear Vandhana,
This epic is pretty old. It was originally in Sanskrit under the name Pilkaneeyam. Bharathidasan rendered it in Tamil. In our college days we were introduced to this poem by our Tamil Teacher. And for us it used to be our first adventure in romance.
The fact that many students were literally going about the streets blabbering neela vaan aadaikkul udal maraithu.. shows the impact of this poem on our young minds.
Picnic in a sea-shore on a full-moon night, the mere thought of it sounds romantic, Vandhana.
regards,
sridhar

Dear Varalotti,
Your quoting B'dasan on Moon was quite captivating and your translation, even more so. I didn't believe when people called you a die-hard romantic. But now I have no option other than to believe.
When you are down with fever and are complaining about body aches and all, surviving on gruel and "rasanchatham", if you are this much romantic, how would you be while in the pink of your health!
God save your wife!

Jokes apart, I really enjoyed the poem which I had read many years back. It did bring back pleasant memories, Varalotti.
Get well soon and post even more romantic poems.
regards,
Kodha Lakshmi

Varalotti,
I thoroughly enjoyed the poem visualising the moon and the beautiful princess and the poet. The beautiy of the night on the full moon day is certainly highly romantic.
Thank you for a beautiful translation
Regards,
Meenu