Writing about damsels
Laurel Botsford
A few months ago, I was privileged to be in attendance at the Namel
Malini Punchi Theatre in Colombo 8 for the launch of a wonderful book of
poetry entitled the Damsel of Death by Namel Weeramuni. An enticing
title, and whilst waiting for the launch to begin I wondered what kind
of poetry one might expect under such an intriguing name.
Mysticism
Soon the launch was under way. An air of mysticism settled over the
crowd; after all this was poetry! And leafing through my newly dedicated
book, my imagination began already to search for the hidden meanings
found in each poet's heart.
The stage was simply set; a projected book-cover as backdrop,
dignitaries to the left and podium to the right; where our main speaker,
the Professor Wimal Dissanayake of the University of Hawaii, USA began
his introduction.
Professor Dissanayake is a learned man it is sure and we were
entertained by several references with high sounding names and concepts,
encouraging us to search for the connections in this book of poetry and
to bring forth ideas that seemed to wish to remain hidden from our
thoughts and feelings.
The Professor concluded and during the discussion period I raised the
question of the use of the Imagination in both the writing and the
reading of poetry, and proposed, as the Professor agreed, that this was
certainly one of the most important aspects of being a poet and a reader
of poetry; taking license and offering us intriguing alternatives by
sweeping us oftentimes away from the pedantic measuring of syntax and
the portrayal of what is considered normal.
Many have ventured the suggestion that it is not possible to write
good poetry unless the poet is composing in the mother tongue. In my
opinion, Namel Weeramuni writes very well in English, his second
language, and by now I have had many a pleasant opportunity to
experience the world through his eyes and through his book Damsel of
Death.
A poem like God Created Class, for instance, has the power of evoking
uncomfortable and conflicting emotions in us by hitting home on the
popular belief that God created Man in His own image.
In A Parrot's Dream there is an intense feeling of attachment through
the repeated use of identical opening lines in each stanza; "My dear
parrot, You are my lover;" an attachment however of desperation brought
on by the incomprehensibility of the world around, and by a deep longing
for freedom. The question remains: Whose freedom?
And finally Doomed to Loneliness in which we see the poet's self
portrait laid bare, feeling himself cold as stone, empty, trapped and
immobile in a foreign land having once run; his distant thoughts now
realizing the worth of what he had earlier run from.
Complex
I will proudly say that I have enjoyed my sojourns with nearly all
the poems of Damsel of Death; explored slowly, and with absorption
whilst sipping a cup of afternoon tea or just prior to reaching for the
switch of my bedside lamp.
Some are simple and one needs only to enjoy their simplicity. Others
are more complex, needing time to allow his explicit choice of words to
germinate, bringing forth their meanings across the unusual combinations
of sounds not normally heard together nor on the same line.
"Hats off to you, Namel!" |
