A Different History
Great Pan is not dead;
he simply emigrated
to India.
Here, the gods roam freely,
disguised as snakes or monkeys;
every tree is sacred
and it is a sin
to be rude to a book.
It is a sin to shove a book aside
with your foot,
a sin to slam books down
hard on a table,
a sin to toss one carelessly
across a room.
You must learn how to turn the pages gently
without disturbing Sarasvati,
without offending the tree
from whose wood the paper was made.
Which language
has not been the oppressor’s tongue?
Which language
truly meant to murder someone?
And how does it happen
that after the torture,
after the soul has been cropped
with a long scythe swooping out
of the conqueror’s face –
the unborn grandchildren
grow to love that strange language.
he simply emigrated
to India.
Here, the gods roam freely,
disguised as snakes or monkeys;
every tree is sacred
and it is a sin
to be rude to a book.
It is a sin to shove a book aside
with your foot,
a sin to slam books down
hard on a table,
a sin to toss one carelessly
across a room.
You must learn how to turn the pages gently
without disturbing Sarasvati,
without offending the tree
from whose wood the paper was made.
Which language
has not been the oppressor’s tongue?
Which language
truly meant to murder someone?
And how does it happen
that after the torture,
after the soul has been cropped
with a long scythe swooping out
of the conqueror’s face –
the unborn grandchildren
grow to love that strange language.
Summary
This poem is autobiographical and is an expression of Bhatt’s conflict between her Indian heritage and her life in the English speaking world.
The first stanza talks about India; she values the way gods and nature are respected and allowed to thrive, but contrasts this, quite angrily, with the way society and religion are too rigid and enforce too many rules upon the Indian people. The second stanza sees her talking about her inner conflict about enjoying being part of English speaking culture.
This poem is autobiographical and is an expression of Bhatt’s conflict between her Indian heritage and her life in the English speaking world.
The first stanza talks about India; she values the way gods and nature are respected and allowed to thrive, but contrasts this, quite angrily, with the way society and religion are too rigid and enforce too many rules upon the Indian people. The second stanza sees her talking about her inner conflict about enjoying being part of English speaking culture.
First stanza
Indian society is represented as being very respectful of nature, which is portrayed as an embodiment of various gods and this shows that Indian society is very religious.
Pan is the only god that died in Greek/Roman mythology. The first two lines show that Pan emigrated to India. People tend to migrate to places for their benefits, and the following lines show that India is a beautiful place to live.
There is juxtaposition between “roam freely” and “disguised” - how can you roam freely if you have to be disguised as something else?
The word "sin" is repeated in the next nine lines, emphasizing how terrible the stated crimes are. Books hold history, and the author is saying that we should respect our history. Also, these lines are directly related to real Indian beliefs about books.
The next four lines that Sarasvati, the Hindu goddess of knowledge, should be appeased. Also, she is saying that the tree should not be insulted, since it sacrificed its life to make a work of art and this should be enjoyed and appreciated.
Indian society is represented as being very respectful of nature, which is portrayed as an embodiment of various gods and this shows that Indian society is very religious.
Pan is the only god that died in Greek/Roman mythology. The first two lines show that Pan emigrated to India. People tend to migrate to places for their benefits, and the following lines show that India is a beautiful place to live.
There is juxtaposition between “roam freely” and “disguised” - how can you roam freely if you have to be disguised as something else?
The word "sin" is repeated in the next nine lines, emphasizing how terrible the stated crimes are. Books hold history, and the author is saying that we should respect our history. Also, these lines are directly related to real Indian beliefs about books.
The next four lines that Sarasvati, the Hindu goddess of knowledge, should be appeased. Also, she is saying that the tree should not be insulted, since it sacrificed its life to make a work of art and this should be enjoyed and appreciated.
Second stanza
The start of the second stanza refers to the loss of native languages due to globalization, especially referring to the British conquest of India. The fact that an oppressor is mentioned intensifies this and the author is using this as a form of mockery, asking people why they’re speaking the languages of foreigners/enemies; telling them to 'wake up'.
The rest of the stanza tries to make men guilty by saying that somebody has caused a lot of turmoil in a previously peaceful and thriving country. Saying that the people who took over the country made the locals do things that they didn’t want to do via torture and injured them physically and mentally. The poet worries that the next generation are going to adopt the language of foreigners.
The start of the second stanza refers to the loss of native languages due to globalization, especially referring to the British conquest of India. The fact that an oppressor is mentioned intensifies this and the author is using this as a form of mockery, asking people why they’re speaking the languages of foreigners/enemies; telling them to 'wake up'.
The rest of the stanza tries to make men guilty by saying that somebody has caused a lot of turmoil in a previously peaceful and thriving country. Saying that the people who took over the country made the locals do things that they didn’t want to do via torture and injured them physically and mentally. The poet worries that the next generation are going to adopt the language of foreigners.