Friendship. A word that conjures up probably one of the deepest feelings, yearnings and longings in us—and so universally as well. Perhaps, there’s nothing more that we wish for as children when we come in contact with the social world, and nothing more fulfilling than the feeling that past our momentary stay in this world we would have somehow succeeded in being remembered by a friend. Yet, ironically, the world scenario seems to be anything but a testament to that. Relationships that could be expressions of our friendship are instead commonly characterized by tension, miscommunication, maltreatment, vengeance, injustice, terrorism, war. It is, therefore, most significant that the theme of this poetry reading was chosen to be friendship.

Friendship comes in all ages, all colors, all nations, all religions—its diversity is as natural as the unifying essence of the seven colors of the rainbow. And it can be our unifying essence as we cultivate, nurture, live and cherish friendship in all its diverse expressions and manifestations: friendship between people, between nations, between cultures, between religions, between children, between man and woman, between human and other animals, between human and inanimate objects.

All this came to life as more than twenty readers captivated the audience with poems of their own choosing on the theme of friendship. The program began with a welcome by Dr. Bijoy Misra of the Outreach Committee. Then he introduced Prof. Leonard W. J. van der Kujip, the Department Chair of the Sanskrit and Indian Studies, who in his brief speech once again extended both his welcome as well as appreciation for the event and its organizers. It was followed by my reflections on friendship, combined with a reading of two of my own poems. More reading followed. Manifesting the rich diversity of the Indian culture, the readings were presented in eight languages—English, Sanskrit, Urdu, Hindi, Tamil, Bengali, Oriya and Gujrati. Most poets read their original works, in original languages, while a few read works of others, such as selections from the Rk Veda, Veda translation, and poems of Faiz Ahmed Faiz and Rabindranath Tagore. The poets and readers were Niranjan Dudani, Edith Parekh, Michele Jankowski, Arun Ray, Priest Lakshmana Sastri, P.E. Narasimhan, Pratyush Bharati, Naseem Hines, Masood Khan, Subhash Sehgal, Jaspal Singh, Amit Bordia, Uma Nelaiappan, Maya De, Alok De, Sapna Ray, Satyapriya Sarkar, Bijoy Misra and Chandu Shah. The program ended with concluding remarks by Boston’s beloved and popular storyteller Brother Blue. In the face of the audience, Brother Blue remarked as he stood facing them, he saw “the face of God,” and in the poems and words he heard during the program, he could hear Friendship sing!

If you are interested in other Departmental or Outreach Committee programs or activities, please contact: (617) 495-3295 or (617) 864-5121 (Dr. Bijoy Misra, Outreach Committee).

A few poems from the event are presented here.

Prayer(English) by Sajed Kamal
Mitwa (Hindi) by Jaspal Singh
Natpu/Thozhamy (Thamizh) By Dr. Uma Nelliappan

(Comments by Ranjani Saigal (Lokvani)

The multilingual poetry reading is an experience I shall cherish forever. While I did not understand all the words of the many poems in the language it was written in, it made me aware that poetry is truly an experience beyond words. Whether it was the "Ganapatam" rendition of the Rik Veda by Priest Lakshmana Shastri or the "Tarannum" rendition of Faiz Ahmed Faiz poetry by Naseem Hines that followed, I felt transported to a different world. Engligh translations for all poems were available.There were many sweet mother’s day moments to cherish. Dr. Uma Nelliappan wrote a poem in Thamizh, which was translated by her daughter Deepa.Their joint presentation was special. Maya De presented a poem written by Arjun Ray, who she says calls her "mom". Poetry is such a sweet bond! Sapna Ray’s Bengali poem paying tribute to her father who passed away was filled with emotions. The grand finale was Brother Blue’s tribute to his mother. At one point, he stopped speaking, picked up his mouth organ and played a tune that stirred our souls. This poetry reading is an annual event I urge all of you to attend this event and bring your children to this for it is truly a unique experience.)

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