Comes and goes the tribal girl
Along the pebbled pathway below the blazing shimul.15
A coarse sari tightly winds around her dark slim limbs.
Probably some absent-minded artisan of God
Desiring to mold a certain black bird
And chancing on right elements
in the clouds and the lightning flashes of July
Fashioned that woman.
Both her wings
Remain concealed and unseen within,
Walking and flying have mingled in her lilting gait.
A few lac-covered bangles motley and white
Around her two plump wrists,
Carrying a basketful of clay on her head,
She comes and goes again and again.
Swaying the red border of her sari's fold
She caresses the sky with the spell of palash.16
December is almost over,
The north wind brings a slight hint from the south.
On the branches of the himjhuri 17
Young restless leaves keep on glistening
In winter sun.
The kites drift away on the pale blue sky.
15 Tall thorny trees with red flowers (Salmalia malabarica, Dc, Schott. & Endl.) 16 Another red flower, symbol of Spring (Butea frondosa Koenig-ex, Roxb.)
17 "icicle", white long-stemmed flowers hanging from tall trees (Millingtonia hortensis) Under the amlaki18 trees the ground is strewn with fruits,
Where gather boys in flocks.
Light and shade get entwined across the labyrinthine forest path,
Dead leaves come whirling all of a sudden,
At the mercy of a startled wind.
Behind the shrub
The swollen-neck lizard sits still on the grass.
Carrying her basket, the tribal girl comes and goes again and again.
My earth-made hut -
Being just constructed - keep busy labourers of all kind :
With their back in the sun
Slowly they consolidate the foundation.
Now and then
The distant whistle of a train is heard;
Hours pass and the day declines,
Ding dong rings a bell pervading the horizon's air.
While I watch,
With a touch of shame I wonder :
How could I purchase the service as a menial worker
Of this adolescent girl who has blossomed
In her body and mind
The innate energy of a woman
For a rural household,
Rich in self-giving
And serene like nectar tending others ?
18 Phyllanthus emblica Linn : its fruits are known for their medicinal properties, one of the three basic ingredients of ayurveda
Against an insulting salary, like a burglar I have stolen with my money
That very energy.
The tribal girl comes carrying her basket full of clay.
[ Bithika, "Avenue", 1933]