namdeo dhasal - poet and panther - hovell - ocrring

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  • 8/10/2019 Namdeo Dhasal - Poet and Panther - Hovell - OCRRING

    1/19

    NAMDEO DHASAL: POET AND PANTHERAuthor(s): Laurie HovellSource: Journal of South Asian Literature, Vol. 24, No. 2, MISCELLANY (Summer, Fall 1989),pp. 65-82Published by: Asian Studies Center, Michigan State UniversityStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/40873091.

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  • 8/10/2019 Namdeo Dhasal - Poet and Panther - Hovell - OCRRING

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    NAMDEO

    DHASAL: POET AND

    PANTHER

    Laurie

    Hovell

    To read

    NamdeoDhasal's

    poetry

    s

    to

    step

    nto the

    slums

    nd

    streetsf

    Bombay;

    t

    s toenternto centuries-old

    istory

    f

    both

    overty

    and

    vitality.

    Dhasal was born

    Mahar,

    n Untouchable

    n

    Hindu ndia.

    But Dhasal and millions f

    Maharswill not die Hindus. Since

    1956,

    Dhasal

    and an estimated ix millionUntouchables ave converted o

    Buddhism

    s a result f the fermenttarted

    y

    Dr. Bhimrao

    Ramji

    Ambedkar

    1892-1956).

    Dhasal

    is both

    poet

    and a Panther.

    His activities eflect he

    political,

    ocial and

    literary

    imensionsf the

    arger

    Dalit movement.*

    In

    1972,

    Dhasal foundedhe Dalit

    Panthers,"

    political roup

    oncerned

    with he

    rights

    f

    India's Scheduled astes nd soon he burst

    n to the

    Marathi

    iterary

    cene withhis book of

    poems,

    Golpitha, shocking

    depiction

    f

    Bombay's

    lums nd brothels.

    "Dalit" means

    ppressed,

    owntrodden.

    hasal's

    poetry,

    s

    that

    of the argerDalit movement,annot e separated rom tshistorical,

    political,

    nd social

    ontext.Dalit

    poems

    have

    purpose;

    he

    oets peak

    about

    nd

    for

    community.

    omeof these

    oets

    ay

    that

    f

    their

    olitical

    and social

    goals

    were met

    tomorrow,

    hey

    ould

    stop

    shouting,

    nd

    writing.

    The

    following oems

    re from

    hasal's

    Thi

    ytt

    Kanchi Thi

    lytt

    What

    GradeAre You

    n,

    What

    Grade?)

    published

    n

    1982. Here

    we find

    him n

    a

    reflective ood.

    By

    this

    ime,

    he

    Dalit

    Panthers ad

    already ndergoneeveralncarnationsndsplitsndDhasal's healthwas

    bad. His

    anger

    nd

    rebellion ad

    reached

    peak

    n

    Golpitha.

    The later

    book,

    What

    Grade,

    findsDhasal

    stepping

    ack.

    In

    the

    poems

    n

    this

    volume,

    Dhasal

    meditates n how

    far

    the Dalits

    have come

    since the

    Buddhist

    onversion.

    He reflects

    pon

    Ambedkar'

    position

    nd his

    influence

    n

    the

    ommunity

    n

    contemporary

    ndia.

    He

    considerswhere

    theDalit

    community-united

    r

    divided-might

    e

    heading.

    *For a study f Ambedkar nd theDalit movement,ee Eleanor

    Zelliot,

    "Dalit-New

    CulturalContext

    for an

    Old Marathi

    Word,"

    Contributionso

    Asian

    Studies,

    Vol.

    XI,

    1975.

    65

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    SOME

    BACKGROUNDN

    AMBEDKAR

    Dhasal and

    Ambedkarwere born

    Mahars,

    members f

    an

    Untouchableubgrouphose ccupation as the isposal fdead nimals.

    Traditionally,

    ntouchables

    erenot llowed

    oenter

    emples

    r use wells

    used

    by

    caste

    Hindus. Their hildren ould not

    enter choolsbut were

    forced

    o isten o the

    essons rom utside. Untouchables

    ould not

    ive

    inside he

    village

    with aste

    Hindus. Their

    very

    ouchwas

    considered

    ritually

    olluting;enerations

    go,

    f

    n Untouchable's

    hadow

    assed

    ver

    a caste

    Hindu,

    he aste

    Hindu

    equired

    series f

    purifying

    ituals.

    This

    had been theUntouchable's

    eritage

    or

    many

    enturies.

    But

    Bhimrao mbedkar

    anaged

    o

    acquire

    n

    education

    hroughthe

    upport

    f

    private

    cholarships.

    mbedkar ent o

    study

    tColumbia

    University

    s

    well as

    in

    London nd

    in

    Bonn.

    Finally,

    he returned

    o

    India

    n

    1923 as a

    barrister,

    eterminedo achieve

    political

    nd

    social

    rights

    or ndia's Untouchables.

    Ambedkar ecame

    a

    prominent

    olitician

    nd

    helpedpass

    laws

    which

    made

    untouchability

    nd ts

    practice

    llegal.

    He obtained

    rom he

    Indian

    government

    quota

    system

    or Scheduled

    Castes

    for

    filling

    government

    ositions,

    heUntouchables

    omprising

    hemain

    egment

    f

    this lassification.ut fter ears fstruggle,mbedkarinallyaveup

    any

    hope

    of

    changing

    he

    Untouchables'

    osition

    within he Hindu

    hierarchy.

    e

    rejected

    induism,

    religion

    hich e felt ad

    oppressed

    his

    people

    for enturies.

    n

    October

    f

    1956,

    ust

    twomonths

    efore is

    death,

    Dr.

    Ambedkar

    ed a

    mass conversion

    f ex-Untouchables

    o

    Buddhism,

    conversion

    n

    which

    alf million

    eople

    took

    hevows

    to

    become

    Buddhist

    aypersons.

    Since

    then,

    n estimated

    ix

    million x-

    Untouchables

    aveconverted

    o Buddhism.

    66

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    AMBEDKAR: 1978

    EQUALITY

    FOR

    ALL

    OR

    DEATH

    FOR INDIA

    After his

    I'm

    not

    going

    o write

    nything

    btuse

    Poetic wists nd counter-twists

    are not llowed

    5 Don't misfire:

    the arth

    might

    e there r not

    Straightuickgrab

    t

    by

    theroot

    This

    country

    rows

    ike castor il

    plant

    10 We love its worthlesseaveswithouteason

    We havebeen

    drooling

    We

    play

    with

    a strand f

    spit

    They

    don't

    ccept

    ur

    gift

    f ove

    15

    Theybetray

    hemselves--

    as

    if

    you

    could

    carve

    lump

    utof

    your

    wn

    flesh

    and

    eave

    t

    festering

    n

    a thick

    loody

    tream

    They

    re

    fired

    p

    with heir

    wn

    egotism

    They

    re

    possessed

    y

    neuroses

    20

    Killing,

    iolence,

    loodshed

    They

    re

    polluted

    y

    this ottentench

    They

    make

    veryone

    nto n

    Oedipus

    They

    want

    artition

    They

    want iots

    25

    They

    want o turn

    umans

    ntodemons

    Theywant oseehumanityestroyednemore ime

    Ashes

    nd

    skeletons

    Their

    ongs

    f

    death

    Their

    body/their

    rain/theirss

    30

    their

    rief/their

    lood

    Are

    they

    he

    nly

    nes born f

    mothers'

    ombs?

    The rest

    re from

    atsand

    dogs

    What n

    illusion

    hey

    ive

    n

    They re slaves otheirmotions

    35

    Lust and

    thirst

    Their

    dreamy

    mind-chariot

    alls

    part

    They

    deny

    he

    cceptance

    f

    ife

    67

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    They

    ift heir

    aces nd

    spit

    t

    the

    ky

    Do

    they

    hink

    hey

    ould

    pollute

    he

    ky?

    40 Theirfaces

    re blackwith

    hame

    Does

    condemning

    omeone lse's

    sanctitytake

    way

    theirwnsins?

    They

    hould

    top

    now

    They

    hould

    hange

    ow

    45

    Instead f

    ooking

    or he

    plinter

    n

    somebody

    lse's

    eye

    They

    hould

    et

    theboulder

    utof

    their wn

    You've

    gone

    beyond

    the

    power

    n

    your

    tatue

    You're evenbiggerhan hename f the ountry

    50

    You werenever

    stiff

    aying

    en

    The stream f

    your

    houghts

    transformed

    ur ives

    How could

    we

    ignore

    he

    ruth?

    We

    want o become

    ikethem-those

    hosewisdom

    lluminates

    55

    We want o be

    like them-those

    ho

    rest

    n

    the

    deep

    shade

    of a

    tree

    The inner

    oice s

    honest

    You

    weren't

    bigot

    You bent

    he imes o

    your

    will

    What

    eemed

    mpossible

    60

    you

    dropped

    n

    our

    aps

    You stand adiant

    efore

    s

    You neverhida

    secret

    My

    lifewas

    clear s a

    crystal

    that

    lashed

    eyond

    eath

    65

    You became

    he entral

    igure

    or ll

    Dalits

    Those

    who

    spoke

    gainst

    ou

    those

    who ridiculed

    our

    work-

    you

    didn't

    et

    ngry

    with

    hem

    You

    planted

    our

    eet

    n the

    wild-spinning

    arth

    70

    and stood

    ikea rock

    against

    heir

    mistaken

    eliefs

    The harshwords

    hat ame

    outof

    your

    mouth-

    their

    urpose

    was

    liberation

    In

    your

    heart

    ou

    storedolerance

    75

    In

    the

    ameheart

    tirred

    volcano

    f

    revolt

    Your

    revoltwas

    notblind

    nd

    dumb:

    68

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    to

    change

    yourself

    as

    to

    change

    he

    world

    New

    eyes,

    new

    heart

    Your

    faith

    was

    in

    awakening,

    ot

    revenge

    80

    awakening

    orn

    f

    study,

    f

    duty

    Your

    reputation

    asn't

    false

    You

    grabbed

    he

    banyan

    ree

    y

    the

    roots

    Weapons

    You

    didn't

    ake

    hem

    ut

    ust

    to

    fill

    your

    elly

    85

    You

    unleashed

    hem

    gainst

    njustice

    You

    did

    a

    post-mortem

    n

    the

    gods

    Satvi,

    that

    ate-reckoning

    oddess,

    you

    cut

    off

    her

    nose,

    snubbed

    t

    You threwhebarrenalesofheaven ndhell

    90

    into

    he

    gutter

    You

    fucked

    he

    33

    crores

    f

    cocksuckers

    ithout

    aring

    You

    set

    the

    water

    n

    fire

    The

    sky

    ame

    storming

    own

    at

    your

    ommand

    95

    and

    the

    easons

    walked

    heir

    way

    threaded

    ith

    old

    You

    took

    n

    the

    world

    You

    played

    with

    ire

    You playedusmusic nthe torm

    Suffering

    100

    the

    root

    f

    suffering

    freedom

    rom

    uffering

    the

    path

    f

    freedom

    You

    warmed

    o

    the

    ursed

    arth

    to

    meet

    with ow

    ones

    105

    to

    part

    rom

    oved

    ones

    tofeelunfillableesires

    the

    meaning

    f

    all

    this

    s

    suffering

    the

    meaning

    f

    birth

    s

    suffering

    the

    meaning

    f

    old

    age

    is

    suffering

    1

    10

    the

    meaning

    f disease

    s

    suffering

    the

    meaning

    f death

    s

    suffering

    O heir

    f

    conflict

    The

    man

    who

    gives

    good

    to the

    ong

    nd

    short

    you

    made

    him

    ransparent

    115

    We see

    through

    nd

    beyond

    very

    man

    69

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    They

    believe

    people

    re

    absolutely

    lind

    They

    believe

    people

    re ow

    They

    believe

    eople

    re slaves

    They

    fearhuman

    hadows

    120

    They

    wear rmor eadto toe

    They

    et

    anthills ise

    up

    around hem

    till

    hey

    mother,eethe,

    nd

    spitup poison

    After

    his

    nothing

    bscure

    s to be

    written

    Plow thewhole

    hing

    with

    donkey's

    low

    125

    EQUALITY

    FOR

    ALL

    OR

    DEATHFOR INDIA

    and

    on theheart

    arved

    AMBEDKAR:

    1978

    Translated

    y

    Laurie

    Hovell

    and Asha

    Mundlay,

    with

    Jayant

    arve

    NOTES

    The

    "we" and

    "they"

    n

    the

    poemmight

    e

    thought

    f as

    we,

    the

    Dalits,

    the

    oppressed,

    nd

    they,

    he aste

    Hindus.

    28-29:

    This s a reference

    o theBuddhist

    deal of

    enlightenment.

    82: The

    Buddha ttained

    nlightenment

    nder

    banyan

    ree.

    87:

    Satvi s a

    Hindu

    goddess

    who,

    in

    the

    mythology,

    isits

    newborn

    childrenndwritesheir ate cross heir oreheads.

    91 The number

    f

    Hindu

    ods

    s sometimes

    etermined

    s

    33 crore.

    (A

    crore

    s 10

    million.)

    99-102:

    Dhasal s

    speaking

    f Buddhism's

    our

    Noble

    Truths:

    1)

    Suffering

    s

    inherent

    n

    existence.

    2)

    The root

    f

    suffering

    s

    greed,

    hatred,

    nd

    delusion.

    3)

    Freedom

    rom

    uffering

    s

    possible.

    4)

    The

    way

    to

    freedom

    s

    the

    ight-foldath.

    124:

    A

    donkey's

    low

    is

    particularly

    nauspicious.

    A

    cow's

    plow

    is

    auspicious.

    70

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    8/19

    AMBEDKAR:

    79

    Your followersct

    ike false

    gurus

    Theyuse a loinclothor tieand babble

    Their

    heritage

    s

    mother-fucking

    Like Yama fucked

    ami,

    they

    uck

    heir

    isters

    5 These

    mpotent rjuns

    f countless

    enerations-

    all

    they

    an do is

    pop

    some

    virgin's

    herry,

    he

    un

    n

    their

    lood

    This

    bubbling

    mass

    who

    will

    pop

    it with

    pin

    This sad lonesome

    ain,

    where s it

    going?

    10 Won't

    somebody

    etthis

    ity

    n fire?

    Your death s

    consideredmonumental

    I

    saw it from he

    yes

    of a

    commonman

    Therewas no

    oy

    in

    your

    eath,

    o

    sorrow

    The real man

    ivesbefore eath

    15 The rest s

    simply

    ust,

    wirling

    ust

    In

    place

    of death

    'm

    trying

    o establish

    Beauty

    This s the

    proclamation

    f bread

    This s the

    parliament's

    rothel

    20

    This

    country

    e call Mother

    sleeps

    with he

    god

    of wealth

    and

    time s

    becoming

    more

    rthodox

    The

    life

    n

    my

    heart

    ecomesworthless

    s dust

    Green

    reams ade

    before

    my

    yes

    25 Now whocan weworship?

    Translated

    y

    Laurie Hovell

    and Asha

    Mundlay,

    with

    Jayant

    arve

    NOTES

    1-2: Dr. Ambedkarsuallywore western-styleuit ndnever dopted

    the

    khadi

    homespun

    otton)

    ress f

    the

    ndian

    National

    ongress.

    The

    lines

    mply

    hat is

    followers

    ttempt

    o

    mitate is

    dress

    but

    don't

    get

    t

    quite

    right.

    71

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    9/19

    4:

    In

    the

    Vedas, Yama,

    the

    god

    of

    death,

    nd Yami are brother

    nd

    sister.

    gnorant

    f

    the aws

    ofthemortal

    orld,

    ami wants o

    sleep

    with

    her

    brother.

    He banishes

    er,

    but she

    repents,

    nd he takes

    her back.

    This s the

    rigin

    f the

    Diwali

    Festival

    f

    Lights)

    oliday:

    n thefourth

    day

    ofthefestivalrothersonor heiristers.

    5:

    In

    the

    Mahbhrat,

    he

    hero

    Arjun

    as to ive for

    year

    s a

    eunuch,

    whilehis

    wife erves

    he

    king

    s

    a maidservant.

    72

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  • 8/10/2019 Namdeo Dhasal - Poet and Panther - Hovell - OCRRING

    10/19

    AMBEDKAR:

    1980

    1

    You

    died

    butdidn't

    nd

    Like

    us,

    you

    slept

    with

    your

    wife

    You

    had

    children,

    ut

    hey

    idn't

    lap

    n

    thebreeze

    We

    grew

    up

    like

    this,

    ike

    that

    5

    butour children

    ouldnever

    gnore

    our

    ffection

    Academician/

    echnician/

    olitician/

    cientist

    Philosopher

    These

    mendefine

    ou

    some

    way

    or

    another

    You lived ike a man

    10

    No

    acting

    n

    it

    no dramatics

    no

    imitation,

    o

    imitators

    Now

    this s old stuff:

    they

    wouldn't

    ouch s when

    hey

    ave

    us

    water

    15 Now

    this s old stuff:

    theymadeus sitoutside he chool n theveranda

    Now this

    s

    old:

    they

    wouldn't et us see

    theblack nd

    white eet f

    Vithoba

    20 Now

    they

    nd we are the

    ame

    This

    world's ocialism

    This world's

    ommunism

    And

    your

    deas-

    we've

    put

    hem o the est

    25 The implications this:

    our shadow an cover

    ur feet

    2

    We curse

    you

    too,

    but

    you

    gave

    us

    the

    ongue

    We even sink

    you

    n

    the

    water,

    ut

    30 yougaveus thewater

    We've

    done

    things

    o

    you,

    but

    anything

    an

    be doneto

    you

    73

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  • 8/10/2019 Namdeo Dhasal - Poet and Panther - Hovell - OCRRING

    11/19

    Yet the

    uestion

    f

    my oyalty,

    myhonesty

    35

    still

    emains

    Whoare

    you?

    Who were

    you?

    Whose re

    you?

    3

    The times re

    yours

    40

    but

    your

    eople

    till

    uffer

    A mendicantan be primeministerere

    but

    Mang

    can't,

    nor

    Bhangi

    In

    front f

    the

    hair,

    he

    parliament's

    rice

    s less

    In

    front

    f the

    aw,

    the

    prostitute's

    rice

    s

    less

    45

    I

    saw

    one

    thing

    n

    all

    this:

    the

    wheel f

    the easons

    omes

    o us

    equally

    You,

    like the

    wheel,

    were

    qual

    to all

    4

    It was a

    Friday

    An

    arithmetic

    ook,

    slate,

    50 and

    one

    piece

    of

    chalk-

    Mama

    got

    them

    rom

    hebazaar

    She

    was tired

    hat

    ay

    In

    the

    ight

    f the

    brass

    antern

    she

    had me

    massage

    erfeet

    55 Then hesaid

    'Baba-until

    fall

    sleep

    take

    look

    at this

    ook

    I

    never earned

    but

    you

    do one

    thing

    60

    Start

    our

    ducation

    and

    trace

    'B'

    for

    Babasaheb

    Mostkids

    tart

    ith he

    etter

    orGanesh

    but

    Babasaheb

    was

    more eautiful

    than hat odwith nelephant'sace

    65 So don't

    race

    ShriGanesh

    The lord

    of the

    people

    s

    never

    gly

    74

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  • 8/10/2019 Namdeo Dhasal - Poet and Panther - Hovell - OCRRING

    12/19

    He

    comes

    from

    mong

    men

    True

    Holy

    Beautiful

    70

    True,

    holy,

    nd

    beautiful

    this

    s

    Babasaheb

    Ambedkar

    orelsetherest fthis ookmeans

    nothing

    5

    While

    was

    writing

    his

    3

    o'clock

    struck

    75

    I

    know

    need

    drink

    but

    don't

    feel

    ike

    having

    ne

    I

    only

    want osleeppeacefully

    to

    wake

    up

    in

    the

    morning

    nd

    see

    no

    varnas,

    o castes

    Translated

    by

    Laurie

    Hovell

    and

    Asha

    Mundlay,

    with

    Jayant

    arve

    NOTES

    14:

    If

    a caste

    Hindu

    gave

    water

    o an

    Untouchable,

    hey

    would

    pour

    t

    from

    bove

    and

    be careful

    otto

    touch

    himfor

    fear f

    ritual

    ollution.

    Even

    the

    ouch

    f

    an Untouchable's

    essel

    was considered

    olluting.

    16:

    Untouchables

    ere

    not

    llowed

    nside

    chools

    ut

    had

    to isten

    o

    the

    lessonsfromhe choolveranda.

    19:

    Vithoba

    s

    the

    god

    of

    the

    mportant

    hakti

    devotional eligion)

    ect

    of

    Maharashtra.

    ntouchables

    umbered

    mong

    he

    pilgrims

    f

    the

    ect

    and

    were

    aint-singers

    n

    the

    00

    year

    ld

    tradition,

    ut

    until

    ndependence

    in

    1947,

    they

    were

    never

    allowed

    inside

    Vithoba'

    chief

    temple

    n

    Pandharput.

    note

    by

    Eleanor

    elliot)

    21-23:

    Dhasal

    in

    his

    maverick

    olitical

    areer

    has

    joined

    both

    the

    communistsndthe ocialists,s wellas theCongress arty.He implies

    here

    hat ll

    these

    political

    roups

    till

    hold the

    now

    ex-Untouchable

    s

    defiling.

    Zelliot)

    75

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  • 8/10/2019 Namdeo Dhasal - Poet and Panther - Hovell - OCRRING

    13/19

    26:

    In

    the

    ast,

    Untouchables

    eremade

    o iveoutside

    he

    illage

    walls.

    As an Untouchable's

    hadowwas

    heldto be

    polluting,

    e

    was

    normally

    not llowed

    o enter

    he

    village.

    But t

    high

    noon,

    when he

    hadowwas

    covered

    y

    the

    feet,

    n Untouchableould

    enter he

    village. (Zelliot)

    27-30:

    The

    speaker

    cknowledges

    hat

    mbedkar

    mpowered

    heDalits--

    without

    mbedkar,

    hey

    wouldnot

    havebeen onscious

    f their

    osition.

    Ambedkar

    ought

    or

    heir

    ights

    o

    enter

    emples

    nd

    to

    get

    water rom

    public

    wells.

    Any

    power

    hey

    ave

    to

    speak

    gainst

    im

    now

    s

    power

    that

    e

    gave

    them.

    42:

    Mang

    and

    Bangi

    are subcastes

    ithin heUntouchable

    ommunity.

    Mangs

    traditionally

    ade

    ropes,

    nd

    Bhangis

    leaned

    atrines.

    60:

    Traditionally

    he

    first

    yllable

    hat

    hildren

    earn s

    "shri,"

    which

    means

    "honorable"

    nd refers o

    the

    Hindu

    god

    Ganesh,

    or

    Ganpati.

    Ganesh

    s an incarnation

    f Shiva:

    he has the

    body

    f a

    man

    nd

    thehead

    of an

    elephant.

    Ganesh

    s a

    particularly

    opular

    od

    n

    Maharashtra.

    78:

    Varna eferso

    the lassical

    our-foldivision

    f

    Hindu

    ociety.

    The

    Manusmriti

    peaks

    of four

    varnas: the

    Brahmins

    the

    priests),

    the

    kshatriyas

    the

    oldiers

    nd

    rulers),

    he

    vaishyas

    the

    merchants),

    nd the

    shudras themenialworkers).Traditionally,ntouchablesre seen as

    adishudras;

    hey

    re

    so low that

    hey

    re

    noteven

    ncluded

    within he

    varna

    ystem.

    76

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  • 8/10/2019 Namdeo Dhasal - Poet and Panther - Hovell - OCRRING

    14/19

    WHAT

    GRADE

    ARE YOU

    IN,

    WHAT

    GRADE?

    Whatgrade reyou n,

    what

    grade?

    Have

    you

    rough-housed

    made

    t bounce

    5

    sunk

    even

    hands

    eep

    tell

    oh

    tell

    If

    you're

    hungry:

    at

    husk.

    For

    sleeping:

    rock

    Done

    that?

    Have

    you

    fucked

    menstruating

    oman?

    Fucked

    her?

    10 Dragged

    round

    hedead

    cattle?

    Dead

    cow?

    Rubbed

    he

    grindstone?

    rindstone?

    Know

    what

    hayale

    s? Cow

    gut?

    Saved

    stale

    bread?

    Ate t?

    Sucked

    he

    marrow?

    Marrow?

    15

    Fried

    he

    gibblets?

    Gibblets?

    Have

    you

    fondled

    ny

    breasts?

    Breasts?

    Kissed?

    Kissed?

    Filled

    thehole?

    The

    hole?

    Made

    your

    ockswell? Yourcock?

    20

    Knocked

    nyone

    p?

    Knocked

    er

    up?

    Done

    it from

    he

    back?

    The back?

    Done

    it

    twice

    n

    one

    night?

    Twice?

    You

    have

    otsof

    gaps

    What

    grade

    re

    you

    n?

    25

    What

    grade?

    Translated

    by

    Laurie

    Hovell and

    Asha

    Mundlay,

    with

    Jayant

    arve

    NOTES

    This s the itle oem fDhasal's1982 ollection. hasal'sexplicitexual

    references

    re

    shocking

    n

    a

    society

    n

    which,

    p

    until

    few

    years

    go,

    cinema

    ouples

    were

    not

    even

    allowed

    to

    kiss

    on screen.

    Most

    of the

    things

    hat he

    peaker

    sks

    about

    would

    be

    especially

    aboo for

    caste

    77

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  • 8/10/2019 Namdeo Dhasal - Poet and Panther - Hovell - OCRRING

    15/19

    Hindu: for

    example,

    having

    ntercourse

    ith

    menstruating

    oman s

    considered

    olluting.

    In

    Brahmin

    omes,

    menstruating

    omen re not

    allowed

    n

    thekitchenr

    near he

    odhouse.)

    Eating

    eef s also taboo

    for

    caste

    Hindus.

    The

    speaker,articularly

    n

    the ections n

    beef-eating,

    ells

    about heDalits'

    heritage

    f

    poverty.

    9: Hindus onsider

    menstruating

    oman

    itually

    olluting.

    10:

    Traditionally,

    ahars

    isposed

    fthe

    arcasses fdeadanimals.

    The

    cow,

    though

    acred

    o Hinduswhile t s

    alive,

    s

    impure

    hen ead.

    The

    Mahars ometimes

    tethemeat

    rom he ead

    attle,

    ndtheir ontact

    ith

    dead cows both

    reated nd

    perpetuated

    heirUntouchable

    tatus. The

    Mahar's

    poverty

    ssured heuse of

    every

    art

    f the ow.

    12:

    Hayale

    s the

    arge

    ntestinef a cow.

    78

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  • 8/10/2019 Namdeo Dhasal - Poet and Panther - Hovell - OCRRING

    16/19

    JUST

    A

    BIT MORE

    TIME

    Just

    bit

    more

    ime,

    my

    darling

    Just bitmore ime

    Hold

    on somehow

    Suppliesmay

    ome,

    they

    may

    not

    5

    They

    have

    captured

    ur

    bodies

    They

    have

    captured

    ur

    breath

    But the

    antern

    n

    our

    hearts-how

    an

    we

    blow

    t out?

    Injustice

    oes

    notfall

    with

    heharvest

    Or come

    pouring

    own

    n

    season

    10

    These

    days

    will

    pass

    Just

    s summers

    ass,

    rainy

    easons

    ass

    Hear-in

    thedistance

    Revolution

    umbles

    verywhere

    You

    hear t?

    Translated

    y

    Laurie

    Hovell and

    Jayant

    Karve

    79

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  • 8/10/2019 Namdeo Dhasal - Poet and Panther - Hovell - OCRRING

    17/19

    ABOUT

    SATAN

    These

    days

    certainly

    don'tgo aroundwith cross roundmyneck

    I

    said

    to

    her

    Why

    don't

    you

    write

    couple

    ines

    bout atan n

    the

    house

    5

    about

    he

    ruel

    ittle

    ames

    he

    plays

    with

    your

    ife

    how

    he

    carries n

    noisy

    nd

    naked

    how

    he

    gets

    hard-on/

    oses t

    and

    finally

    alls

    down

    ired,

    uiet

    n

    his own

    house

    When

    he

    feels

    should alk

    f the

    carlet

    mohur

    n

    bloom

    10 aboutus

    walking

    and nhand nthe ands f the ea

    fondling

    he

    waves

    that re

    white irds

    stealing

    corner

    f

    privacy

    nside

    he

    house/

    utside

    to

    merge

    with

    ne

    another

    . .

    These

    days

    can't

    do

    this.

    I

    am

    like

    Satan.

    15

    For

    my

    Satanic

    port

    I

    need

    thousandsf

    witnesses

    I minglewith hem,mixwith hem, ecome ike them

    If I

    can,

    caress heir

    leasures

    nd

    pains

    If

    possible

    even

    sharewith

    hem

    20 If

    nothing's

    ossible

    dance ike

    bearon a

    leash

    These

    days,

    very ay,

    she

    tunes he

    ambourand

    sings

    like

    a

    ruffled en

    before

    acrifice

    Eggs

    with

    lack

    beauty

    pots

    Bread

    madefrom

    craps

    25 Thefirstraughtfhomebrewna cup

    Hot

    blood

    for

    condiment

    Narcotic

    itten

    ongue

    Can

    Satan

    verbe

    too

    ntimate ith

    umans?

    I

    am

    intimate ith

    er

    30

    Does

    a devil

    ver

    isten o

    the tereo

    Watch

    TV?

    Spiff p

    his

    house? Need

    privacy

    Satan

    fears

    ight

    I mergewithight

    After

    ark

    my

    oul s

    restless

    35

    Satan

    grabs

    hold

    of

    her,

    rushes

    er

    ips

    rapes

    her

    80

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  • 8/10/2019 Namdeo Dhasal - Poet and Panther - Hovell - OCRRING

    18/19

    I

    said

    to

    her,

    write bout

    his emon

    n

    the

    house

    And that

    he

    could

    notdo

    Now

    Satan's

    turn

    as come

    40 surrender ind, oul,

    body

    and

    put

    cross

    round

    is

    neck

    Translated

    by

    Laurie

    Hovell

    and Asha

    Mundlay,

    with

    Jayant

    arve

    NOTES

    All

    italicized

    words

    ppeared

    n

    English

    n

    the

    riginal.

    Dhasal

    uses the

    English

    word

    Satan"

    n

    his

    poem.

    To

    an

    American,

    he

    term

    resonates

    with

    meanings

    rom

    he Christian

    radition.

    But to a

    Marathi-speakerhewordmust oundfresh, oreign.Dhasal livesin a

    part

    f

    Bombay

    where

    Buddhists

    ive next

    o Hindusnext

    o Christians

    next o

    Muslims;

    hristian

    mages,

    uch

    s

    crosses,

    re

    part

    f

    hiscultural

    milieu.

    In

    the

    poem

    Dhasal

    also talksof

    other

    foreign

    hings sing

    English

    words:

    tereo, V,

    privacy.

    Again,

    hese re words

    amiliar

    n

    our

    culture,

    ut

    to

    a

    Marathi-speaker

    hey

    might

    ound

    cosmopolitan,

    modern.

    3-4: Dhasal's

    wife,

    MalikaAmar

    hekh,

    s

    also a

    poet.

    Her

    father as

    thewell-known ommunistolk inger, mar hekh.

    9: The

    mohur ree s a conventional

    omantic

    mage.

    15-20: Dhasal has

    acquired reputation

    or

    his

    public

    ntics. Before is

    health

    ailed,

    Dhasal

    made namefor

    himselfs a

    drinker,

    man-about-

    town,

    nd

    political

    maverick.

    21:

    A

    tambouras a

    four-stringed

    nstrument,

    trummed ithout

    rets

    s

    a

    backgroundccompaniment

    o voice or other nstruments.

    23:

    Probably

    metaphor

    or woman's reasts.

    81

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  • 8/10/2019 Namdeo Dhasal - Poet and Panther - Hovell - OCRRING

    19/19

    24:

    In

    Marathi,

    he

    phrase

    s

    "seven-grained

    read."

    In

    American

    English

    his ounds ike

    health

    ood,

    ut

    n

    Marathit

    connotes

    overty:

    there sn't

    enough

    f one kind f

    flour;

    he

    remains f sevendifferent

    kinds f flourmust e mixed.

    27:

    Literally

    a chandol-bitten

    ongue."

    The chandol

    s a

    bird;

    here he

    image mplies drug-induced

    tate.

    82