The tragedy of being a woman

The tragedy  of being a woman

Translated  By

P.R.Ramachander

(When I read this  in Tamil as posted by  Pasupathi Nathan   in face book, though male , my eyes got filled up with tears. I have never thought of a woman’s life from this miserable stand point..If I call all women as  “ the ocean of  misery” I would be making a mistake  as many  of them do lead a happy life and  are a source of joy for every one around  . May be this poem is trash  and hyped imagination  .But I felt that those who do not know Tamil    should read it.

Though  unfortunately a lady  is pictuarised  as a trove  of  love , from where a man has every right  to get joy  by stories, movies, TV serials  etc. How many of us are  ready to see  this other   side of their ilfe. A worst side-dark side, neglecred side  This is  supposed to be   in the words of a female school teacher )

In all those times   when the children of my class ,

Run to me    and tell me, “Miss  , she has attained age”,

I laugh within my mind in bare  nothingness,

Today  also one little child , punished  by nature,

Is standing  in the corner  of the class room with a bent head.

Every month  some baby in my class   becomes   adult,

With  red stain in   the back  of her white  uniform.

Amidst   the students    roaring   with laughter,

When I see  her walking back,  I feel very  bad,

Then   an invitation would come from her house ,

And all children  woud go and give her  a present,

As  her teacher , I too have    to give her a present,

After the celebration is complete , she would again be sent to school.

While   sending  her to school   they would   warn her  ,

“Do not play in the ground, Come directly from school to home  ,

Do not cycle     for a very long distance etc ” and she  will come to study.

Pimples would start appearing in her face,

At night   she would start getting multi coloured dreams,

A one sided love to some  boy  would bud in her  mind,

She will forget that  and again   she will get another love,

And some day    , she  would really become an adult,

And then only she would know   about this world.

She would realize that  all around her  the world  is only a drama,

In this world   , if she gets   some male  , who knows ,

How to honour   her feminineness , who hears all that she says,

Who is interested  in her  heath,  who kisses her   with love  ,

Who wipes   her tears   when she   is sad,

Who knows how to carry her     for all the time to come,

Then  she would  live a life  and

Suppose she does not get one male  like that,

Like all other ladies   she would also become a robot,

Crushed in the wheel of time, Raped  in  the trade of marriage,

She would one day wake up    after   all the suffering,

And understand    what really is the world of males.

She would then understand  the number of varying types of men,

One  who acts saying he is in love, one who berates her saying she is puppet,

One who  is not able to tolerate her who shouts her  saying   her skin in black,

One who says  marriage  only ,  if he is paid money,

One who calls her a prostitute if   she argues,

One who  strikes  her on her  cheeks , if she retorts him,

One who tortures her  within four walls of a room,

One who teases  her in public, drunkard .,

Lazzy bum  , spendthrift   and so on.

Unable to do anything  ,  neglected in everything,

Unable to express   the desires of her mind,

Unable to show outside  the needs of her body,

She would  marry    some stranger,

Give birth to babies, nurture them,

Get baked  by the side of stove in the kitchen,’

After serving needs of her husband whenever he needs it,

Just like every lady , developing gray hairs at thirty,

With   skin folding at forty , she would become a hag  in fifty,

And   would die   when she   attains seventy  .

“Miss  , she has attained age”,

Today  also one little child , punished  by nature,

Is standing  in the corner  of the class room with a bent head