TO DAFFODILS

 

 

                        TO DAFFODILS

 

            Given below is a poem written by the English poet Robert Herrick . He was born in London on 24 August 1591 and died on 15 October 1674. He was not only a popular lyric poet but also an Anglican cleric.

 

               “To Daffodils” is a deeply musical  poem about the fleeting nature of life and beauty. It inspires the readers to spend their life’s transient moments as delightfully as possible. The poem succeeds in effectively highlighting the rapid transition of life from growth to decay. Daffodils, a product of nature, is used  as a metaphor, and is said to  pass quickly like human life.

 

                  Herrick’s most famous quotes, which are relevant here,   are:

(i)                “Gather ye rosebuds while ye may.

(ii)              “That man lives twice that lives the first life well”.                  

 

Here is the full text of the poem “TO DAFFODILS”

 

 Fair Daffodils, we weep to see

You haste away so soon;

As yet the early-rising sun

Has not attain'd his noon.

Stay, stay,

Until the hasting day

Has run

But to the even-song;

And, having pray'd together, we

Will go with you along.

 

We have short time to stay, as you,

We have as short a spring;

As quick a growth to meet decay,

As you, or anything.

We die

As your hours do, and dry

Away,

Like to the summer's rain;

Or as the pearls of morning's dew,

Ne'er to be found again.

                                                            ********

 

G.R.Kanwal

7^th April 2026

 

GOD IS MERCIFUL

 

          GOD IS MERCIFUL

            There are innumerable attributes of God . Some of them are common in almost all the religions. These are: He is omnipotent. Omnipresent, omni-benevolent, eternal, sovereign, immutable, righteous, invariably  good , and merciful.   

            The American clergy Henry Ward Beecher (1813-87) said :  the very  word “God” suggests care, kindness, goodness; and the idea of God in his infinity, is infinite care, infinite kindness, infinite goodness. We give God the name of good: it is only by shortening it that it becomes God.

            The first President of U.S. George Washington said: It is   impossible to govern the world without God. He must be worse than an infidel that lacks faith, and more than wicked that has not gratitude enough to acknowledge his obligation.

            Swiss theologian John Caspar Lavater (1741-1801) said: It is one of my favourite thoughts, that God manifests himself to mankind in all wise, good, humble, generous, great and magnanimous men.

            The Spanish poet and dramatist (1547-1616) rightly said that among the attributes of God, although they are all equal, mercy shines with even more brilliancy than justice.

            The English poet-playwright William Shakespeare (1564-1616) believed that the quality of mercy is not strained; it droppeth, as the gentle rain from heaven upon the place beneath; it is twice blessed; it blesseth him that gives and him that takes; it is mightiest in the mightiest: it becomes the throned monarch better than his crown. Mercy is an attribute to God himself.

            God is the supreme monarch of this world. He is most forgiving and merciful, otherwise we shall not find millions of wicked people breathing safely  in their dwellings, workplaces, and recreational  resorts . God  forgives the sinners again and again and assures them of His mercy whenever they decide to reform themselves and abandon their notorious past.

            Finally, look at the following  lines by the Persian Sufi  poet Jalal al-Din Muhammad Rumi (1207-1273):

           

 Come, come, whoever you are,

Wanderer, fire worshipper, lover of leaving.

 This is not a caravan of despair.

It does not matter that you have broken your vow

a thousand times. Still come,

and yet again come.

                                                            ********

G. R. Kanwal

6^th April 2026

                                                           

  

PRIDE, POWER, AND ARROGANCE

 

PRIDE, POWER, AND ARROGANCE             

            Pride is both a virtue and a vice. If you heal a sick person , you can be proud of your achievement. But if you kill him out of enmity, you commit a sin, and your action is most vicious.

            Forgiveness, not revenge , is a noble deed. Humility, not pride, is venerable. Pride is not the noblest feature of any quality you may be having. Humility makes your actions, in spite of your powerfulness, lovely and admirable.

            Power should be constructive, not destructive. It ought to be forward-looking , not  regressive.  Napoleon  Bonaparte ( 1769-1821), the Former Emperor of France,  said : Even in war moral power is to physical as there parts out of four.

            An American banker and journalist Frank A. Vanderlip (1864-1937) said : Since nothing is settled until it is settled right, no matter how unlimited power a man may have, unless he exercises it fairly and justly his actions will return to plague him.   

            Misuse of power anywhere is sinful and condemnable.

            The French philosopher and Catholic writer Blaise Pascal (1623-1662) believed: Justice without power is inefficient; power without justice is tyranny. Justice without power is opposed, because there are always wicked men. Power without justice is soon questioned. Justice and power must therefore be brought together, so that whatever is just may be powerful, and whatever is powerful may be just.

            Arrogance is defined as “ the  quality of being unpleasantly  proud, behaving as if one is more important or superior to others. It involves an exaggerated self-opinion, often characterized by rudeness, contempt, and the dismissal of others’ views.”

            The Scottish philosopher and historian David Hume (1711-1776) said: When men are most sure and arrogant they are commonly most mistaken, giving views to passion without that proper deliberation which alone can secure them from the grossest absurdities.

            Finally, before concluding, this quote by the Russian writer Leo Tolstoy (1828-1910): An arrogant person considers himself perfect. This is the chief harm of arrogance. It interferes with a person’s main task in life ---becoming a better person.

                                                            *******

G.R.Kanwal

5^th April 2026

 

THE LOTUS EATERS

 

THE LOTUS EATERS             

 

                     The Lotus Eaters

Hateful is the dark-blue sky,

Vaulted o'er the dark-blue sea.

Death is the end of life; ah, why

Should life all labour be?

Let us alone. Time driveth onward fast,

And in a little while our lips are dumb.

Let us alone. What is it that will last?

All things are taken from us, and become

Portions and parcels of the dreadful past.

Let us alone. What pleasure can we have

To war with evil? Is there any peace

In ever climbing up the climbing wave?

All things have rest, and ripen toward the grave

In silence; ripen, fall and cease:

Give us long rest or death, dark death, or dreamful ease.

            The poem given above was written by the English poet Lord Alfred Tennyson (1809-1892). It is about the Greek mariners who happened to come to the land of lotus-fruit and ate that fruit as a result of which they became dormant  and decided not to resume their journey of active life, travelling from one place to another, without any rest and relaxation.

           

            Tennyson’s source for this poem is Greek poet Homer’s Odyssey (Book IX). Odysseus, the Greek hero, was the king of the island of Ithaca. In English literature, he is referred to as Ulysses. Tennyson also wrote a poem about Ulysses who was aged and yet the converse of the Lotus-eaters . He wanted to remain active till his death and follow knowledge like a sinking star. He said to his companions including The Lotus Eaters : Every hour can bring new things, and with this personal  belief, he exhorted them ‘to strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield’.

 

            The questions raised by The Lotus Eaters are absolutely valid. No great thinker, no top-ranking philosopher, and  no religious saint or spiritual  mystic  can declare them as meaningless.  

           

            This is what they say and ask:

 

(i). Death is the end of life. (ii).Why should life all labour be. (iii). Time driveth onward fast, and in a little while our lips are silent. (iv). What is it that will last? (v). All things are taken from us, and become portions and parcels of the dreadful past. (vi). Let us alone.

 

                        They also ask questions which may not be fully relevant. For example: What pleasure can we have to war with evil?

 

                        But again, here is a most relevant  observation :

           

            All things have rest, and ripen toward the grave in silence---ripen, fall, and cease.  

                                   

                                    Finally, let us look at these lines by a modern English poet William Henry Davies (1871-1940);

                                    What is  this life if, full of care,

                                    We have no time to stand stare?

                                    …………………………………………………

                                    A poor life this if, full of care,

                                    We have no time to stand and stare.

                                                            ********

G.R.Kanwal

4^th April 2026                     

SOME FAMOUS EXPRESSIONS FROM THE BIBLE

 

                SOME FAMOUS EXPRESSIONS FROM THE BIBLE

           The Bible is a collection of religious texts that are central to Christianity and Judaism, and also esteemed in other religions such as Islam. It was originally written in Hebrew and common Greek. Its contents consist of instructions, stories, poetry, prophecies, and other literary compositions characterized by specific themes.  

          It is not wrong to say that The Bible is not merely a book. It is a living scripture that has a unique series of beautiful ideas, and admirable moral maxims.

            The Scottish essayist and historian Thomas Carlyle (1795 -1881) exclaimed :  A noble book! All men’s book! It is our first, oldest statement of the never-ending problem ---a man’s destiny, and God’s ways with him here on earth; and all in such free-flowing outlines,--grand in its sincerity; in its simplicity and its epic melody.

            Here are some famous expressions from the Bible:-

1.      He that is slow to anger is better than the mighty; and he that ruleth his spirit than he that taketh a city.

2.     Go to the ant, thou sluggard; consider her ways , and be wise.

3.      Refrain your tongue from backbiting.

4.     Let the dead bury their dead.

5.     A living dog is better than  a dead lion.

6.     For dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.

7.     Take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry.

8.     Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.

9.     Eye for eye, tooth for truth tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.

10.                         Father, forgive them ; for they know not what they do.

11.                         If a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand.

12.                         In my father’s house are many mansions.  

13.                         Man’s life on earth is a warfare.

14.                          Ye cannot serve God and mammon.

15.                         Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.  

16.                          No man can serve two masters.

17.                         As is the mother, so is her daughter.

18.                         Many waters cannot quench love, neither can the floods drown it.

19.                         God created man in his own image.

20.                         The love of money is the root of all evil.

                                                            ******

G. R. Kanwal

3^rd April 2026

 

 

 

 

 

ONE-LINERS PACKED WITH WISDOM

 

          ONE-LINERS PACKED WITH WISDOM

1.     Knowledge is power.---Francis Bacon.

2.     A little knowledge is a dangerous thing.----Alexander Pope.

3.     They also serve who only stand and wait.----John Milton.

4.      The foolish run after outward pleasures and fall into the snares of vast-embracing death.---Katha Upanishad.

5.     Truth is the highest virtue, but higher still is truthful living.---Guru Nanak.

6.     Heard melodies are sweet, but those unheard are sweeter.---John Keats.

7.     Poetry is the spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings: it takes its origin from emotion recollected in tranquility.---William Wordsworth.

8.     If winter comes, can spring be far behind?----P. B. Shelley.

9.     Advice is like snow ---the softer it falls, the longer it dwells upon, and deeper it sinks into the mind.-----S. T. Coleridge.

10.                         Those who will not reason, are bigots, those who cannot, are fools, and those who dare not, are slaves.----Lord Byron.

11.                         Nature that taught us in our hearts to fear, cannot be banished from our guilty hearts,----Christopher Marlowe.

12.                         Patriotism is the last refuge of a scoundrel.----Samuel Johnson.

13.                          Try again. Fall again. Fail better.----Samuel Beckett (Novelist and playwright).

14.                         Those who are at war with others are not at peace with themselves.---William Hazlitt.

15.                         There is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so.----William Shakespeare.

                                                            ******

G.R.Kanwal

2^nd April 2026

NON-ATTACHMENT

 

                NON-ATTACHMENT

            Non-attachment is one of the main teachings of Lord Mahavira (c.599-527 BCE). He was the 24^th and last Tirthankara of Jainism.

            A Tirthankara is a supreme spiritual teacher.  He is  “one who has conquered the cycle of rebirth, attained perfect knowledge and established a path for others to achieve liberation.”

            Lord  Mahavira’s teachings consist of: (i) Non-violence  i.e. advocating non-injury to all living beings in thought, word and action. (ii) Truthfulness  (iii) Non-attachment  which also means non-possession and detachment from people, places, and material possessions. (iv). Anekantavada i.e. non-absolutism of truth and reality which are not final but conditional and have many challenges to it. In fact, opinions about every rule, law, faith, belief, and conviction, etc., differ from one another and each one has some different element of truth and reality in its composition. (v). Equality. It means that every soul has the potential to attain divine consciousness.

            Non-attachment is non-possession and is also known as  Aparigraha.

            It is unfortunate that human beings are greedy by nature. Their lust for more is unlimited. They lack contentment. Their desires go on multiplying. Initially, they humbly seek one house and when they get it they pray for the second house and thus the number of houses sought by them go on becoming larger and larger. What is true about houses is equally true about other possessions. They want to be recognized as the richest persons, not the poorest ones. They fail to realize that all the possessions in this world are un-exportable to the other world at the time of a person’s death.

            The German religious reformer Martin Luther (1483-1546)  said: Lord God, I thank thee that thou hast been pleased to make me a poor and indigent man upon earth. I have neither house nor land nor money to leave behind me.

            It is painful for a human being going to the other world to think that he has to leave behind all his possessions.

            Non-attachment , that is non-possession, is a blessing. It is sensible to replace possessiveness by contentment which means “a state of peaceful happiness, satisfaction, and ease of mind, often characterized by being pleased with one’s current situation or possession without desiring more.”

                                                            *******

G.R. Kanwal

1^st April 2026     

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