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#3062 - Thursday, January 31, 2008 - Editor: Jerry Katz
This issue brings you the poetry of Kanwar Dinesh Singh. His books are not available on Amazon.com, however they can be found in other online shops, mostly based in India. Do a search for his name.
The following portion of an interview with Singh, in which he mentions the social benefits of nondualism, is from http://www.himvani.com/news/2008/02/01/himachal-beauty-enthused-the-poet-in-me-kanwar-dinesh-singh/1258/himalayan-bookman/nilanshu/
Kanwar Dinesh Singh’s verse has originality, the spontaneity, simplicity and gravity which may bind any serious reader of poetry.
This man of intense poetic genius talks to Dr Nilanshu Kumar Agarwal about the influences on his poetry, poetic creation, pantheism, English Studies in India and several other issues.
NKA: In your poem ‘They and I‘, you have exhibited human destiny under the guise of the sun. The concluding lines “I am shorn of both/Light and Warmth” touch the innermost chords of the reader’s heart. Are you trying to establish a triad of Man, Nature and God? Are you indicating at the non-dualistic philosophy of the Upanishads in your poetry? Nature and Man are just the two different reflections of One Great Ultimate Reality. In the poem ‘Absorption‘, your pantheistic approach is evident, when you say “Come, and do absorb me/Within yourself.” This emphasis on pantheism and non- dualism can cure the various ills of the contemporary society. Perhaps, this approach can eradicate ‘the weariness, the fever and the fret’ of life. Your views, please.
KDS: The poem “They and I”
depicts the relationship between man and nature. Human sustenance
/ existence is dependent solely on nature. Yet, human being is
too self-seeking and ungrateful toward nature. Through symbolism
of Sun, the source of light, warmth and energy, this poem shows
how when Sun, during the first half of the day, is capable of
giving, human beings adore him, and when by fall of the night, he
loses capacity to give, human beings turn indifferent and callous
to him. It is the selfish nature of man that causes conflict with
nature. Man must realize the fact that he is dependent on nature
for all his needs, for his overall existence. Thus, the poem
primarily deals with ecological perspectives and human
ingratitude towards nature.
There are several other poems of mine in which you will find reflections on the triad of man, nature and God with emphasis on pantheism and non-dualistic philosophy. As, for instance, you have taken the poem captioned “Absorption“. This poem, on the one hand, invokes human beings (symbolized by rivers) to live in harmony / unison as all have one and the same destiny (symbolized by ocean), on the other, holds that all religious faiths are different passages leading to one Great Ultimate Reality, which is the Absolute Truth.
And I agree with you on your statement that emphasis on pantheism and non-dualism can cure the various ills of the contemporary society. Besides, this approach can certainly help eradicate what you call “the weariness, the fever and the fret” of life. In other words, with this approach, as a way of life in today’s world, we can make our living better, dignified and full of grace.
~ ~ ~
Here are some of Singh's poems, from http://sawf.org/bin/tips.dll/getcontributions?user=Sawf&contributor=Kanwar+Dinesh+Singh&class=Poetry&subclass=Original&pn=Contributors
love me more . . .
love me more
and love me
to an extent that
i die out and
the i in me
remains no more.
~ ~ ~
OCEAN
I was at an ostium
I thought I was
An ocean. I set out
And found myself
Flowing I was
A river
And the ocean was
Where I fell. . .
~ ~ ~
free haiku
be detached
from the world
and be god
~ ~ ~
WORLD
My vision of the world
Is puerile.
I open my eyes
And the world exists,
I close my eyes
And the world packs up.
The myth of creation
Alters with a blink.
Those who chime in
With me they relish;
Those who do not,
They perish
Finding out a resolve
For a never-ending query.
~ ~ ~
POLYMORPHIC SHADOW
My shadow
sometimes long
sometimes short
and sometimes disappearing altogether
as the light vanishes;
My shadow
being my aliquot
speaks of the verity
as if my existence lies
in the light, and
vanishes in the dark
as the light vanishes.