I
Now tidy your house,
dust especially your living room
and do not forget to name
all your children.
II
Watch your step. Sight may strike you
blind in unexpected places.
The traffic light turns orange
on 57th and Dorchester, and you stumble,
you fall into a vision of forest fires,
enter a frothing Himalayan river,
rapid, silent.
On the 14th floor,
Lake Michigan crawls and crawls
in the window. Your thumbnail
cracks a lobster louse on the windowpane
from your daughter's hair
and you drown, eyes open,
towards the Indies, the antipodes.
And you, always so perfectly sane.
III
Now you know what you always knew:
the country cannot be reached
by jet. Nor by boat on jungle river,
hashish behind the Monkey-temple,
nor moonshot to the cratered Sea
of Tranquillity, slim circus girls
on a tightrope between tree and tree
with white parasols, or the one
and only blue guitar.
Nor by any
other means of transport,
migrating with a clean valid passport,
no, not even by transmigrating
without any passport at all,
but only by answering ordinary
black telephones, questions
walls and small children ask,
and answering all calls of nature.
IV
Watch your step, watch it, I say,
especially at the first high
threshold,
and the sudden low
one near the end
of the flight
of stairs,
and watch
for the last
step that's never there.
Analysis of the poem
A.K.Ramanujan is one of
the well known modernist poet. as a modern poet, he often talks about
transculuralism. even he talks about hybridity of human beings in his many poem
. what is more important about his poems is that they are highly realistic and
matter-of-fact.
The present poem “Chicago
Zen” is the best example of hybridity, transculuralism and transnationalism . in this poem Ramanujan tries to show his
feeling and experiences when he is in
abroad or in Chicago USA. the beginning of the poem is as below ;
“ Now tidy your house,
dust especially your living room
and do not forget to name
all your children”
The
above lines has two different meanings. the first meaning is very simple it is
said that it is necessary to keep house clean where we live. it is even more
necessary to keep the living room clean, because who so ever will come to home
they first sit in living room. this is simple and superficial meaning of the
first two lines. while second meaning is philosophical one Ramanujan suggest
the reader that living room means ‘MIND’. it is necessary to keep your mind
clean. he further says that one should not fill one’s mind with much knowledge
and information. he believes that the more we learn , the more we get confused
and finally we lost in short he says that one must live with minimum burden of
knowledge and information.
While in second two
lines Ramanujan highlights the importance of name and surname when we are in
country like USA. it is only because of our name we are able to show our
identity as Indian is Chicago, USA. then in second stanza Ramanujan says;
“Watch your step ,
slight may strike you ;
blind in unexpected
places”
Here, Ramanujan says
that when you are in places like Chicago, everything is new for you , not only
that but whatever you see, it is unexpected and totally surprise for you.
beginning from people, culture , atmosphere, things , food etc…. are new and
unexpected for you. moreover , things are unexpected at such a level that for a
moment, you will be blind and mad. here, poet confesses the reality as a living
in foreign.
After this, there is
sudden change in the poem . he becomes confused and talks about Himalaya river
and lake Michigan of USA. he says that in USA traffic lights took orange
colored . the whole scene of traffic light looks like wild forest fires. after
that he talks about Himalaya river of India and lack Michigan of USA. in short,
there is constant change in the thought of poet because confused between Indian culture and American culture .
however, in such confusing situation
Ramanujan finds out way. he decides that whatever he see , he should not
surprise just remain indifferent about new place Chicago for this he uses the
word “perfectly sane”. he says,
“And you , always so perfectly sane”
Here, Ramanujan says
when you are in foreign country at that time you need to feel that you are
sane. sane means you are able to think and you have to accept new world when
you are outside your home or country. in short, one should not surprise in
foreign world but one should behave normally and simply.
After that, he talks
about one serious problems of those Indian who live in abroad. He says
that one can not come Indian whenever one wants. the reason is the foreign
countries are very strict about Visa, passport and travelling. everything
regulation. Secondly, even it’s fare and tickets are very expensive which
Indian can’t afford so when one miss
home, children, wife, village etc…. at that time he feels very bad and crying like because he can not go to meet them since family is seven-seas away it is
not possible to frequently visit home poet hopelessly says;
“……..the country
can not be reached by jet.
nor by bout on
jungle river”
In short, when you miss
home , neither jet , plane nor bout will help you because due to the rules of
passport and visa, you can not travel home for some fixed time.He talk about practical facts and than givesolution which is also practical.
However, even in such
worst condition, poet suggest one way to go to home in India. according
to him , it is possible for a person to go to India at home. there is one source. he says ;
“(one can go home)
only by unswereing ordinary
black telephones,
questions wall………..
and answering all
calls of nature……”
The poet here says that
one cam feel that one is at home by calling at home with family members. he can
be at home by talking with his children. he can be at his village by
remembering farm, river and other natural surrounding . in short, among all
immigrants the remembrance of home, children and natural surrounding would take
the person home.
Toward the conclusion
of the poet warns those persons . who is new in Chicago, USA. life in Chicago
is very difficult so one must be careful. living in Chicago is like climbing
staircase. he says ;
“watch your step…..
and watch for
the last step
that’s never there”
Here, poet talks
about ‘escalator’, in escalator, person has to be careful when he climbs,
because it is constantly in motion. moreover, in escalator there is no last
step or first step. it is like flowing river. The Poet compares life
with escalator and flowing river. according to him in all condition, life goes
on and one , life never stops for anyone every moments new and priceless. all
these ideas about life is taken from Zen Buddhist philosophy of life. Zen
Buddhist believes that;
“life is a continuous process”
Thus, Ramanujan talks
about so many things together in his poem “Chicago Zen”. it is best example of
Zen Buddhist philosophy of life.
