![]() |
Channels | ![]() |
In Focus |
Cartoons |
Education |
Environment |
Opinion |
Photo Essays |
Columns |
Business |
Random Thoughts |
Our Heritage |
Astrology |
Ayurveda |
Buddhism |
Cinema |
Culture |
Festivals |
Hinduism |
History |
People |
Places |
Sikhism |
Spirituality |
Society & Lifestyle |
Parenting |
Perspective |
Recipes |
Society |
Teens |
Women |
Creative Writings |
Computing |
Humor |
Individuality |
Literary Shelf |
Memoirs |
Quotes |
Stories |
Travelogues |
Workshop |
Book Reviews | Share This Page | ||||||
P-en-chants...Again: A Review |
|||||||
by Hema Ravi |
![]() |
||||||
P-en-chants…Again by Padmaja Iyengar-Paddy The sight of a decorated chariot is definite to attract the onlooker, to the devout it brings to life varied images with a socio-cultural significance: the human body symbolizes the chariot, with the five horses as senses, the mind holds the rein, the charioteer represents the ‘intellect’ and the passenger is the ‘Self.’
The first of the six sections, ‘Poetry and Me,’ portrays Ms. Padmaja Iyengar as one who believes that truth, and the power of truthful utterances never wane –
These thoughts are substantiated in the following lines:
A brilliant rainbow or an awe-inspiring tangerine sunset is unmistakably attractive to the religious and to the rational thinker, although their existential perceptions may vary.
Love is not restricted to a deep or intense fondness for another human. In the poems under ‘Many Splendored Love,’ Paddy talks about the ‘bonds strong’ that ‘pervade the universe in many ways..’ (I am Love p 34) ‘Love is an emotion, a sensation and a feeling, In Petrichor (p36), she passionately remarks:
Reading these poems reminded me of the lines from Kahlil Gibran On Love: “Love has no desire but to fulfil itself….” Paddy’s sense of humour is adequately revealed in yet another rhyming verse ‘Catches Win Matches” (p 38)
The twist in The Sequel..
I have always associated orange peels with their fragrance, their contribution to desserts and everything that is positive and enjoyable. I could never imagine that ‘The Orange Peel’ could be used for a villainous act:
The poetic devices in this verse are brilliant as it highlights the poet’s sensitivity and dexterity in using evocative language - ‘hum like a wren,’ nadir,’ ‘anguished,’ ‘caprice,’ ‘mend the broken fences…’ among others. In the third section titled ‘Life,’ the poem ‘Future Imperfect’ exhibits daring thoughts:
As a renowned psychologist mentions: “Sometimes you make the right decision, sometimes you make the decision right.”
Taming the “monkey-mind” removes a lot of confusions, whims, fancies and helps to arrive at decisions consciously even during the most challenging of situations, the despondent leap can be averted.
Contrastingly, in a lighter and optimistic mood, ‘Hey Chill’ asserts:
‘Greed’ serves as a caveat as it ‘one’s ego feed,’ ‘grows like a weed,’ and to ‘every form of temptation’ leads. (p 66) Mo(Re)vie(w)s has poetic reviews of movies that Padmaja Iyengar Paddy ‘stepped out to watch first day, first show, as she states in the acknowledgment, adding that she is no avid fan of films either.
In the ‘Tributes’ section, I was delighted to see a verse for the “missile man,” who is one of my role-models. “Wings of Fire” is an extraordinary story of courage and commitment, a must-read for all youngsters of the digital era.
Similarly, the tributes for the legendary Sachin Tendulkar, MS Dhoni and Virat Kohli and to the women with that indomitably spirited Aruna Shanbaug, Nirbhaya, Babies Falak and Asifa are laudable.
Embracing life as it comes, her concluding poem with the following lines lets me understand that she is truly a global citizen, who does not wish to stay in a bubble, instead, expand her horizons to the newly emerging world
|
|||||||
Share This: | |||||||
23-Apr-2022 | |||||||
More by : Hema Ravi | |||||||
Top | Book Reviews | |||||||
Views: 306 Comments: 2 | |||||||
Comments on this Article
Kartik 05/02/2022 09:54 AM
Padmaja Iyengar-Paddy 04/23/2022 15:14 PM |
|||||||
| |||||||