Not for nothing was ಹಿಗ್ಗು (higgu: ~a spreading joy; a wholesome delight) one of Bendre’s favourite words. Here then is a poem of ಹಿಗ್ಗು, of joy, of delight.
As usual, here is a recording of my reciting (singing) the original Kannada poem.
The Face of Spring (ವಸಂತಮುಖ)
The day has bloomed, the forest’s gay,
The birds are singing songs of play;
Such is life, yes such is living:
As púre as the wind that’s blowing.
What variety, what balance!
The wind has broken the curse’s influence;
The spirit leaps, the spirit twirls
In joy that life’s a luminous whirl.
A hundred trees! A hundred throats
Each singing note upon exquisite note:
This scene of romance knows no bounds,
This beauty’s wanton and unbound.
(Translated by Madhav K. Ajjampur)
Poem Details: From the collection “ಸಖೀಗೀತ,” first published in 1937.
