A life has been lost to the flames of waiting,
With no second chance in sight.
Why then, this endless hope for a return?
Rezauddin Stalin, a very famous Bengali poet, from Greater Jessore district of Bangladesh, shares his poem.
Rezauddin Stalin is a very famous Bengali poet, born in 1962 in Nalbhanga village of Greater Jessore district of Bangladesh. He got many local and foreign awards including Bangla Academy. His poems have been translated into 42 languages of the world. Along with poetry, he has established himself as a successful media personality. His basic thoughts on various issues of the society give us light. Rezauddin Stalin is now the international voice of Bengali poetry.
Birth Tongue
A life has been lost to the flames of waiting,
With no second chance in sight.
Why then, this endless hope for a return?
There is no door to open,
Yet I keep reaching for eternal life in the darkness.
When will the ancient path, shaped over thousands of years, offer me a place to rest?
The gentle spring and the fierce winter
Will reveal to me the wonders of snowflakes.
In this single life, whom should I turn away, who should I ignore?
Casting aside the language of disregard, in rage, I shatter the uncertain course.
Mother Earth will hold me once in this lifetime,
But how often will her song of freedom echo?
I do not yet know the force of harsh lightning,
So how can death frighten me
When I am not yet truly born?
Translated by Ashraf Chowdhury
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Published under the International Cooperation Protocol with Middle East | Life Magazine Abu Dhabi
Read: Before My Curtain is Drawn! – Poetry from Bangladesh
