Mother Courage: Rosebuds under Chinar shade

Upon a first glance and a scan of the title “Mother Courage: Rosebuds Under Chinar Shade” appears to be a book of poetry honouring mothers. While this assumption is correct, this work, from Prof. G. M. Mir, is much more than just detailing a son’s relationship with his mother, whom he loves intimately. It also touches on varied themes ranging from art, culture, life, society, heritage, the prevailing situation in Kashmir, Sufism, education, and much more.

The author narrates memories that reveal the deep attachment he had for his mother, while also showing his mother’s huge capacity for unconditional love and the upbringing of her son. The poem “Light is Gone” is a manifestation of that loss, that sorrow, that pain, that agony and that hope.

“Thou hath gone beyond the twilight
The hush of rustling summer shades
The noise of spring rains
The songs of warbling birds do click on our hearts
You were, you are and you shall remain deep in our hearts,
Lest thy forget us in heavens oh dear”

At yet another point, in the poem “Tears Vibrant Tears”, the poet finds his tears as the only source of catharsis to give vent to his pent-up feelings at the loss of his dear mother:

“Sustain, console and stimulate tears
In this hour of grief my only companions, tears
The hot saltish, mercurous flood
Does it ease my grief?”

While going through the poems dedicated to his mother in the compilation, one agrees with these lines in the foreword to the book written by Mushtaq Ahmad Bhat, who says that “Mother Courage: Rosebuds Under Chinar Shade” is a comprehensive metaphorical title beautifully coined by the author for his anthology. The memories of the mother who has left for her heavenly abode seem to be reverberating in the poet’s emotional empathy. The poet, with a bonafide intention, has portrayed his mother as an epitome of sacrifice, courage and commitment, who by her benignity and benevolence has fostered her children’s sensibilities to their full potential and brought them up impeccably well.

And without going too far, just these lines from the poem “Feeling” — “I see with open eyes / She was breastfeeding lotus and lilacs” — are enough to convey that the poet is yet to reconcile with the demise of his dear mother and instead, he sees her living and performing her duties as a mother and the caretaker.

Prof. Mir’s collection is a tapestry of forms and modes, which chronicles a mother’s courageous passage through the bumpy roads of life. The line from the poem “Historical Shady Muse” — “This chinar lulled us all under cosy bosom” — shows how mighty the poet’s mother is for him. Her resilience to life reminds one of Hemingway’s The Old Man and the Sea protagonist Santiago, who believes “man is not for defeat” and proves it till the end.

Prof. Mir is alive to the problems confronting our children. In the absence of schools and colleges because of long strikes, he foresees a bleak future for them.

The very opening poem of the book, titled “What a Future?”, portrays the uncertain future of the present generation of kids in this part of the world, and these lines convey the whole lot of their state of mind and the monotony of the rough events they are caught in:

“The school kids crying with joy and laughter.
One more hartal, one more pelting day.”

This is a satire on our education system as well. And thank God, these days seem to be over now. Hope peace continues to prevail.

The author himself says “Poetry is my love and life. I expressed my life through these verses to share my poetic joy and aesthetics with my students.” This really comes true when going through the various poems in the book. Each line expresses the poet’s love for nature, his land, his people, the streams, falling cataracts, woods and mountains.

See these lines, and one can really feel that the author expresses his love for life manifested in nature:

“The roar of Lidder heard
At Balethul she ascends
The crimson mirrored Lidder
Then disappears
In the shades of dusk in the herds of nomads”

On his journey to the publication of this book, the author has tread a long way from being a columnist, teacher and photographer. He has willingly, though, tried to repeat many of his favourite images and metaphors from his first book of Urdu poems “Gulai Lala Sehraoon ka.”

The poet is awakened to the agony and pain his people are in. Brought up in the countryside of North Kashmiri lush green meadows, beautiful mountain chains, the powerful images of nature with the downpour of rain have been blended with the sufferings and sorrows of his people in the poem “Flash of Rain”, whose emotions, he says, have frozen to the extent that no external beauty can bring them relief, connecting with Coleridge’s assertion that “happiness lies but within.”

“Sudden downpour in the courtyard
The corner rads of the roof sent down
Water columns as icicles
The air is fragrant and spring is in full bloom.
The sun came out like wine in the goblet
All rejoice and are happy except
Bleeding KASHMIR.”

In yet another poem entitled “Kashmir: The Land of Chinars and Burning Embers”, the poet has quite successfully reflected that aspect of brotherhood, composite culture, love and compassion of his land, which he believes is universal in its appeal. See the imagery of the poem:

“Enveloping sweet Dal and Wular in my bosom
My breasts open to the world sweet and serene
Ringing the bell of harmony and brotherhood”

Feel the way the poet has used the imagery of Dal Lake, which attracts people to its bewitching beauty, and the Wular Lake, its deep waters, which are calm, serene, peaceful and reflective of the peace-loving nature of the people of Kashmir.

“The dazzling sun on dewy grass
Suddenly the Summer injects its hot breath
To fill cherry and blackberries by its blood”

Like many conscious citizens of society, Prof. Mir laments the way truth and values have taken a back seat in contemporary times. He believes that the knowledge which was there for enlightenment is no longer performing its role. In the poem “Death of Knowledge” he uses the powerful phrase “truth has been eclipsed” to express such feelings.

The poet, time and again, portrays the harmonious blend of religious practices prevalent for ages in Kashmir. It is a fact that Rishi-Sufis focused not only on spiritual pursuits but also on social, economic and cultural development of the Kashmir Valley. The author seems to be greatly impressed by these traditions and the impact reflects itself time and again while going through the book.

The poem “Sometimes Back at Dargah” (reference to Hazratbal — the shrine on the banks of the famed Dal Lake) is reflective of such a discourse:

“The abode of spiritual sanctity
The hovering of cooing pigeons
The images of doom of the shrine
Under chinar on marble stairs
I lay down for hours to ask for repentance”

“As free as a bird” is the most common phrase used to symbolise freedom. Being able to fly about at will has long seemed to be the epitome of freedom. In the poem “Birds” the poet has beautifully compared the free and carefree life of a bird with the complicated, troublesome life of a human being. Simple comparisons drawn in the poem between the two make one believe how the human being has complicated his life unnecessarily, owing to his greed and thirst for power and material wealth, and usurped his own freedom.

“Birds need but small cosy nests
For shelter of their offspring
Humans need skyscrapers
For dominance.”

The image of skyscrapers here is man’s longing to be heard as a powerful creature and showing down others who are weak and underprivileged.

The present compilation from the poet is reflective of his mature thought, which sees life in totality rather than in fragments. While treading the “bumpy roads of life”, the author has learnt lessons of tolerance, compassion, love, endurance, sacrifice, giving and sharing, and has woven the same into beautiful images in the poems. And the lines from the last poem of the book “Self-recognition” is the epilogue to such a discourse which the poet holds dear to his heart and is proud of:

“I cure my sores with roses /
I burn my palms with icicles /
I weep with weeping willows /”

I hope the book “Mother Courage: Rosebuds Under Chinar Shade” is well taken by the literary circles of the valley and beyond. I also expect that the publishers will give more attention to proofreading in the 2nd edition of the book, such as missing commas, semicolons, full stops and hyphens, which become bottlenecks to understanding and comprehending some poems.

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