Poems of Aduri Satyavathi Devi
Poem-8
Festoon of Lights in a Jingling Festival of Joy
Telugu Original: Aduri Satyavathi Devi
English Translation: Munipalle Raju
Uninterrupted in my inner niches
For ever in some corner or other
A dancing Jingling Festoon of lights
A constant Festival of Joy
Enacts a play of life and letters!
Would not my sources of breath and strength
Dry up sadly if I miss this procession on the stage?
A soft shawl of silky yarn covering my shoulders
With lyrical words on lips
When strolling on a shore alone.
Suddenly an aromatic breeze
Surrounds me like violin melodies many.
Slowly softly the night of snowfall moves away
All the smiles with unfurling rose petals
Swing to and fro like the crescents of moon
intoxicated with Love.
Then standby to witness
The inaugural of an aesthetic festival
A procession of bursting sentimental race
Scene after Scene Precisely enacted
The Curtain drops and
The image of stage transformed
Desires dissolve amidst salty and bitter currents
Into Tides, Falls and seas or oceans
To submerge me with a face of Horror.
When the grip is weakened and lost
And buried under the debris of ruins
When the creeper of life is withering in wintry cold
The grand festival of dancing lights
Rushes for my rescue with a kindly speed
With intense but friendly smiles
Weaving a sweet aroma around
To hug me tight to her bosom deep.
Raising me on her lighted horns
Like wind blowing unrestricted
Wandering deep in the forest valleys
High on the squares of endless skies
Amidst Scenes of anguished humans
She does not abandon my hand a moment
A profound and emotional reflection lively
Stifling me and speechless
Mingles into myself.
The melody of a bird hitherto unheard
A strange footprint never before seen
They gift me the sun’s all-seeing eye,
They bathe me in the poetic river, fresh and lush
A flowery field of universal fraternity
An approving laughter of brilliant skies.
No longer the currents of selfish and bitter times
Dare to misguide me to deceitful paths
Nor could they near my electric image pure
And when I resume my onward march
Determined and strong steps unhesitating
The false nets crumpled helpless and lifeless
*****
Telugu Original : ‘Deepa Thorana Chalanotsavam’
Aduri Satyavathi Devi was born in Guntur in the year 1948 and settled in Visakhapatnam after marriage in 1969. She began her literary career as a lyricist at the age of 13. She wrote a variety of lyrics numbering about 300 — light, classical, devotional, patriotic, children’s and others. More than 50 songs of Satyavati Devi were broadcast over All India Radio. Eventually she made forays into various other literary genres like Poetry, Short story, Essay, Radio Play, Musical Feature, Books, Film reviews, Forewords etc..She created a substantial corpus of poetry with more than 180 poems included in 4 anthologies of poetry. She received accolades from readers, scholars, critics and litterateurs for her sensitive rendering of poems. She participated in many Poetry Meets, Festivals conducted by All India Radio, Doordarshan and the Sahitya Akademi. She was widely translated into English and Hindi. Some of the translations appeared in renowned journals like Indian Literature (English), and Samakaaleen Bharateeya Saahitya (Hindi).
She published her first volume of lyrics Vennello Venugaanam in 1988. Her first volume of poetry Rekkamudavani Raagam was published in 1992 followed by Jalapaata Geetam in 1997 and Veyirangula Velugu Raagam in 2006. Hindi translation of Rekkamudavani Raagam came out in 2008 as “Pankh an Modnevaalaa Raag” and a miscellany of various facets of her literary endeavour Vennela Paarijaataalu was published posthumously in Dec 2008. She received many prizes and awards for her literary pursuits and accomplishments like STVD Kalasamithi Award for Rekkamudavani Raagam in 1993, and Telugu University’s “Pratibha Puraskaram” as “Best Poet” in 1994, “Krishna Sastry Award” from Andhra Lalita Kala Samithi (Secunderabad) in 1998, UNESCO Literary Award in 2000, and “Ramavruksha Benipuri Janma Sataabdi Sammaan” from Jaimuni Academy (Panipat) in 2002. An English translation of her poem, “Veyirekkala Pavuram” (Myriad Winged Bird) has been included in the syllabus of English texts in the poetry section of Degree year students by the Common Core syllabus Committee in AP from 2008.