POEM FROM TAMIL LITERATURE - FIERY YEARNING

ABOUT THE POEM:  The poem titled FIERY YEARNING is a translated version of a poem from Tamil literature. The poem describes how the girl's friend explains to her sweetheart on her insistence that her friend has become pale and lost her beauty due to the actions of her lover. She complains that her arms have grown thin and frail causing her bangles to slip off. The girl's friend informs her lover, who is in the mountains, about the deteriorated condition of her body. The imagery of the kanthal stalks with faded red blooms, battered by rain, symbolizes the girl's friend's weakened state, comparing it to a cobra with a shrunken hood lying lifeless. The girl's friend wants their lover to understand the physical toll his actions have taken and hopes for their reunion. FIERY YEARNING In pale hues, her brow doth fade, Once radiant spots in gloom cascade. Her plump arms, round and fair, Now frail, causing bangles to slip and flounder. Oh, my friend, do kindly impart To my lover from the mountain's heart, Where kanthal blossoms in crimson array, Drenched by rain, solemnly lay, Like a cobra, hood shrunken, so frail, Lying limp upon a weary shale. Bring to him the state of my frame, A testament of weariness and wane. (what the girl complained to her friend) Note: Kanthal or Gloriosa superba is a plant belonging to the genus Kanthal. It is native to Africa and Asia. Gloriosa superba is a species of flowering plant in the family Colchicaceae. Common names include flame lily, climbing lily, creeping lily, etc.,