Creative thinking as poetic thoughts on environmental issues
 The gifts of nature are enormous. But the humans from time to time
have ceased to perceive the invaluable gifts as fused in their living
conditions. As such disasters of varying types have taken place. One of
the major disasters caused by the humans to the nature is the
devastation of flora and fauna, in the name of modern civilization.
The air, water, trees, animals and birds have been disturbed and the
end result had been the ushering in of an ecological imbalance, which in
turn causes a boomerang effect on the humans themselves. All these areas
of ecological imbalance go into the creation of thirty short poems by a
lover of environment, Lal Hewapathirana.
A plea
Through his poems collected and titled as ‘Mihitala Matha’ (Mother
Earth) gives insights to a multi dimensional panorama of natural gifts
which are endangered by the humans. His poetry is a plea to save and
leave the mother earth in her pristine glory to yield better results for
the humans and other living beings. The opening poem is more a preface
which makes the reader aware of the impending danger of the changes
gradually caused to the environment, sky, earth, water, trees etc.
He asks a series of questions, which have been asked from years down
the centuries. Do you hear the chirping of the bird? Do you see
splendour of the waves in the vast oceans? Do you see the beauty of a
flower? Do you see the colourful hue of peacock? Is this earth not the
greatest gift of the nature? Is it not a marvel to see how you, I and
the environment are fused into each other as inseparable entities.
Having asked that series of questions in a rhythmic pattern, he makes
the reader feel that it is the greatest heritage that one should protect
for the posterity.
 The poet Lal Hewapathirana is a keen and sensitive observer of
nature. While he sensitively captures the power of nature, he too
visualizes the danger that could wipe off the same power by the hands
and actions of the greatest lovers, the humans, who make the best use of
the earth. He selects situations such as the living conditions of a
mother elephant and her child, the infant elephant who may dispossess of
the jungle habitat in which they spent their time.
Then comes the felling of trees and the two have no place to live.
They have to live in a strange place like a desert. Then Hewapathirana
outlines how the intelligent folk who lived in the past tried to protect
such beautiful gifts like waterfalls, forest abodes and lakes giving
vent to a religious and spiritual turn of mind.
At times it is visualized that they venerated and honoured nature as
life-giving heads. They would treat gifts as super human divine gifts
which should be given a due place of honour. This underlines the meaning
of the Vandana or pilgrimage concept passed down the centuries on our
soil. Though not directly indicated the innerness of all these poetic
creations lay emphasis on the life giving power of nature as a spiritual
gift from birth to death. He takes a synoptic view of a lagoon and
gradually depicts the tragic conditions which it undergoes. He talks to
fish in the lagoon.
Dialogue
“Leave the water and find an alternative place to live.” Then he
addresses a crab and asks us to why he laments. He sees how the water in
the lagoon is turning into a smelly thick layer of polluted layer of
water, unseen before. He sees how the factories work. Now the disaster
has caused to change the blissful climate into a dismal condition. This
poem ‘Kalapuwe Sokantaya’ (The Tragedy of the Lagoon), I felt, is one of
the most touching creative thoughts.
The term ‘green’ as come to stay in most subject areas with special
emphasis on environmental studies. Need to protect the trees and plants
with its greenery which is the greatest gift of nature, could be seen as
challenged. The need to know the essence of ‘green peace’ is underlined.
This is nothing but the need to protect trees which not only shelter us,
but also make the living conditions blissful. Then comes a poem on the
noisy atmosphere in which we live.
It is nothing but the sound pollution which goes hand in hand with
other pollutions. In the name of consumerism and sales promotion, the
human living conditions are disturbed. This may also pave the way for
humans to be rough minded and tough minded, which in turn will make them
loose the spiritual balance result in violence and crime. All in all,
the poet environmentalist Hewapathirana hints at the gradual imbalance
caused to the gifts of nature, from its pristine glory.
He recreates a dialogue that ensues between a tree and a creeper
where he visualizes the togetherness of lovers (Turulatha Adarya), in
each other’s arms, until the day of doom. I wish that this may be one of
the finest songs that could be sung by children of all ages.
Then the poet takes a look at some of the commonplace conditions like
‘acid rain’, ‘endangered species like turtles, coral reefs’, ’dangers
caused in the name of development’ , ‘pesticides’ and other linked
areas. Each poem for me looks like a unit of lesson in the teaching of
environment. On reading several poems again and again, I remembered a
wonderful book written by Philip Wagner titled ‘The Human use of the
Earth’ (1960).
This is an examination of the interaction between man and his
physical environment. In conclusion I wish to quote a few liens form the
book
“The idea of environment is well embedded in the geographic
tradition. So much is known of environments that we suffer most of all,
perhaps, from ignorance about just what they environment and where and
how their particular effects may count. Much ambitious writing by
geographers in the past has all too recklessly leapt from sketchy
knowledge of environmental conditions to grandiose assumptions about
human life and history,” (5pp)
The knowledge of the mere geographer is surpassed in these simple but
sensitive creations.
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