Nazrul’s lyrics of Mor Ghumogore Elo Monohor (In my Sleep, Came the Enchanting One) has been translated from Bengali by Professor Fakrul Alam
Enchanting one, I was deep asleep when you came
I salute you, reverentially, again and again.
In Sravan’s monsoonal cloud, the great Dancer danced
Torrentially. From up above, you caressed my eyes softly.
Possessed by the touch of the beauteous, charming one,
My whole body bloomed. For you, my Lord,
I filled my basket with flowers blooming in my garden.
But alas, and what a shame, you wouldn’t take any!
You undid my bun and took the flower from it instead.
How would I know what I said in my dream to make you leave?
Now that I’m fully awake, I weep and weep and keep calling you—
Oh, dear one, dear one!
Click here to listen to the rendition in Bengali by the late Feroza Begum(1930-2014)
Born in united Bengal, long before the Partition, Kazi Nazrul Islam (1899-1976) was known as the Bidrohi Kobi, or “rebel poet”. Nazrul is now regarded as the national poet of Bangladesh though he continues a revered name in the Indian subcontinent. In addition to his prose and poetry, Nazrul wrote about 4000 songs.
Fakrul Alam is an academic, translator and writer from Bangladesh. He has translated works of Jibonananda Das and Rabindranath Tagore into English and is the recipient of Bangla Academy Literary Award (2012) for translation and SAARC Literary Award (2012).
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