Do things ever leave? Maya, illusion or reality, hovers around in stray thoughts, words. Its - her - presence is so all-pervasive that even if she has taken up space, her existence seems less hurting than the constant memory where even her aches like falling leaves are not soundless. Or is it only perception, or the fear of her, of her quiet exit?
The subtle pathos of Gulzar's poetry is also dryly taunting. Emotions are 'samaan', things. They take shape, become real. Maya does not merely haunt; she lives.
"saavan ke kuchh bheege bheege din rakhe hain
aur mere ek khat mein liptee raat padee hai
woh raat bhulaa do, mera woh saamaan lautaaa do"
A few wet days of rain are there
and in my one letter a night is encased
Take that night away, but do return my belongings.
The subtle pathos of Gulzar's poetry is also dryly taunting. Emotions are 'samaan', things. They take shape, become real. Maya does not merely haunt; she lives.
Fascinating. Emotions as things ('samaan'), with such things making up the landscape of one's mind -- or, by way of similar analogy, the "furnishings" or "appurtenances" sort of decorating one's "house." And yet, are they only decorative? Can these analogies be taken further to suggest an additional utilitarian value to some of these things, i.e. is there the memory of an emotion felt that might also serve as a chair, for example, or table in that house? How about a rock, tree, still pool or carpet of grass?
ReplyDeleteAs with the verse, "A few wet days of rain are there / and in my one letter a night is encased," it's fairly easy to picture some tumult or tempest leaving one's "things" in disarray to one extent or another. The question becomes, in the aftermath, can these things (only mementos?) be salvaged, repaired?
If so, the next question: Can they be manufactured? "Handcrafted" and/or "mass-produced"?
Thank you, Farzana.
M.
Mark:
ReplyDeleteThe tumult is there in the story, in the letter read out at the beginning. To give a background, it is a note written by the 'other woman'...at some point during the reading the wife asks, "Why did I let Maya leave when she is always there with us?"
I, of course, wanted to see Maya as more than a woman. Yes, emotions can be things, or rather things can get emotive connotations. One may recall, say, a chair for certain sentimental reasons or due to an occurrence or thought captured sitting in it.
These 'things' are in many ways like real things — some can be repaired, others are destroyed, lost forever. Or remain broken in the storage area.
{If so, the next question: Can they be manufactured? "Handcrafted" and/or "mass-produced"?}
Emotion-things manufactured might seem manipulated. However, even the spontaneous is manufactured on the spur of the moment. There are unique emotions for unique moments, therefore handcrafted. If the response is to a more universal aspect, then they'd probably remain in stock for such exigencies :-)