English Translation – Select Verses

Since we first uploaded the book Chithrakavyam in the year 2000, we tried, and are still trying, to have the Chithrakavam translated in English. So far we have not found a scholar who could do it for us. 

However, in 2000, I met Dr. J. G. Bhatt in Austin, Texas. He was the father and father-in-law of my friends Kalyani Anand and her husband K. G. Anand. Dr. Bhatt was a Sanskrit scholar, originally from Gujarat but settled in Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu. Although he was visiting his daughter briefly at that time, he took some time to translate some of the verses in English just to illustrate how rich Chithrakavyam is, and what a great service Sri. P. K. Srinivasan rendered to enrich Sanskrit literature, by transliterating Chithrakavyam from Grantham. He admitted one needs a very high level of Sanskrit to translate the entire book. We are sharing some of the verses below.

Verse number 7, page 3

वृक्षाळिः कीदृशी च्छायां न करोति च शूलिनः ।
   पत्नी का प्रश्नयोरेकं विदुषा वाच्यमुत्तरम् ॥ ७
वृक्षाळिरिति – अपर्णेत्युत्तरं  ज्ञेयं।

This particular verse is like a riddle.

When do trees not provide shade? Who is the wife of Shiva? The poet is challenging the learned to provide just a one-word answer for these two questions.

The one-word answer to the riddle-like verse is अपर्णा (Aparna), which means without leaves. A leafless tree provides no shade. Lord Shiva’s wife Parvathi is also known as अपर्णा (Aparna).

Verse number 43, page 9

गृध्रा इत्युत्तरं यत्र तत्र प्रश्नः कथं भवेत᳭ ।
कीदृशाः पाण्डवाश्चेति प्रश्ने वा कीदृगुत्तरम᳭ ॥ ४३ ॥
गृध्रा इति – के शवप्रीतयः? इति उत्तरं स्यात᳭ । स प्रश्न एव “पाण्डवाः कीदृशाः ?” इति प्रश्नस्य
(केशव प्रीतयः) इति उत्तर
म᳭

What should be the question for which the answer is “Vultures”? To the question ‘how are the Pandavas,’ what should be the answer?

This verse is a riddle in grammar. In the first stanza, the poet says that to get to the answer “vultures,” how an intelligent question can be phrased which also becomes an answer to the question how Pandavas are. It is like this: केशव प्रीतयः. Who (के) like or love (प्रीतयः) dead bodies (शव). The nature of Pandavas is to love Krishna. When के and शव are joined, it becomes केशव (Keshav) which is also the meaning of Krishna or another name for Krishna.

Verse number 52, page 12

What is it that quenches thirst? By doing what the women knot their hair? Using Sanskrit and Tamil words provide your answer in a single word.

The answer is वारि (Vari) – which means water in Sanskrit and combing hair (வாரி) in Tamil.

किं तृष्णाशमनं स्त्रीभिः किं कृत्वा बध्यते कचः ।
गीर्वाणद्राविडोक्तिभ्यां एकमेवोत्तरं वद ॥ ५२ ॥
किं तृष्णेति – वारि – गीर्वाभाषया जलं । द्राविडभाषया वारि; (வாரி) कङ᳭कतादिना परिष्कृत्येत्यर्थः ।

Verse number 62, page 12

कविता कीदृशी रम्या पद्मसंबोधनं कथम᳭ ।
प्रतिलोमानुलोभ्यां एकेनैव वदोत्तरे ॥ ६२ ॥
कवितेति – सारसेति पदं प्रातिलोम्येन सरसा इति भूत्वा प्रथम प्रश्वनस्य उत्तरम᳭ । आनुलोम्येन तु सारसेति
पद्मसंबोधनं वदतीत्यर्थः ।

How beautiful poetry ( कविता) can be and what is the other name for lotus? Answer is one word which when read from left to right should be the answer for the first question, and when read from right to left the answer for the second question.

The answer is सरसा (Sarasa) which means ‘interesting with a particular mood,’ whereas सारस means ‘lotus.’

Verse number 104, page 19

विराटो गाणिकासङ्गी राक्षसप्रीतिरच्युतः ।
श्र्लाघ्यते दासता लोके भावं वद सखे द्रुतम् ॥ 
मध्ये राक्षससंसर्गात् अनर्थो हि सतामपि ।
राक्षसापगमस्स्यात् चते सुलभो ह्यर्थनिश्चयः ॥ १०४ ॥
विराट इति – ‘रा’ इति मध्याक्षरापगमे विट इति भवति । राक्षस इत्यत्र ‘क्ष’ इति वर्णापगमे रास इति

A strange situation is being mentioned in the first stanza. The king Virat (a pious person) keeps company with court-dancer, Krishna is affectionate to demons, and slavery is praised in this world. Dear friend, why is this like that?

To this, in the next stanza, the poet says that the touch with the demons brings calamity even to the righteous persons. But when the demon is done away with, the meaning is clear.

Thus when रा (Ra) is removed from विराट (Vi-raa-ta), it is विट (Vi-ta)the jester who keeps company with the dancers, and when क्ष (ksha) is removed from राक्षस (Raa-ksha-sa), it becomes रासप्रीति (Ra-sa-pree-thi) meaning the love for dancing with the Gopis, the milk maids which Lord Krishna normally does. Similarly, removal of from दासता, changes the word to दाता (daa-thaa), which means the donor who is praised for his donations.

Verse number 196, page 37

श्रृण्वन्नादरतस्तत्र सीतावृत्तं हनूमतः ।
उद्यन्तं भास्करं दृष्ट्वा भीतोऽभूद्रघुनायकः ॥ १९६ ॥

श्रृण्वन्निति । उद्यत् भानुदर्शने फलभ्रान्त्या हनुमान् तत् ग्रहणाय गच्छेत् यदि सीतावृत्तान्त श्रवणविच्छेदो
जायेतेति भीत इति भावः । बाल्ये उद्यन्तं सूर्यम् आलोक्य हनूमान् फलभ्रान्त्या तत् ग्रहणायागच्छदिति
पुराणकथा ज्ञेया ।

While hearing the narration about Sita from Hanuman (who returned from Sri Lanka), looking at the rising Sun, Rama was upset with fear.

The poet in this verse is indulging in some fun, keeping the audience guessing. Hanuman in his childhood, when he saw the rising Sun, leaped into the sky mistaking the Sun to be a big ripe fruit. So in the above verse, it was early morning just as the Sun was rising, Rama was afraid that Hanuman may once again leap into the sky and charge towards the rising Sun and leave the Sita-story incomplete.

Part II, Verse number 8, page 79

In one of the pictorial presentations of poetry (Chithrakavyam), the poet’s mastery over the the words is expressed in the prayer to Goddess Lakshmi, the Goddess of wealth as below:

मा रमा तेन्दिरा नामाऽमानाध्यपदाऽसमा ।
मा सदा प्रणतं भीमाऽमाभीतं पातु मा रमा ॥ ८ ॥

Lakshmi is called Ma as also Ra-maa, is particularly known as Indira because She is Asamaa (असमा) meaning incomparable, and is worshipped by A-maa-naa (अमाना), those who have conquered pride. Fierce as She is, may She protect me (whoever is saluting Her) from ignorance. Here Ma means knowledge and Aa-maa (आमा) means ignorance.

We concluded with a simple prayer to Lord Krishna.

Part II, Verse number 77, page 134

नन्दात्मजन् दयासारं गोपीभाग्यं परात्परं ।
सुराधीशं तमोदूरमेति हृन्मेतिसुन्दरं ॥ ७७

Soul of Nanda (नन्दा), essence of mercy, the great fortune of Gopis (the milk maids), the ultimate existence, the Lord of the Gods (deities), the all-pervading beauty, protect me from darkness ((lead me from ignorance to real knowledge).