Alankar(Decor) -127 Poem by Indira Renganathan

What Is Gained Atlast....(Sestina)

Sestina is:
suited to a narrative because of its length and lack of rhyme. It gives the poet room to tell a story.
in English most often iambic pentameter but sometimes iambic tetrameter.
contained in 39 lines, grouped into 6, sixains (6 line stanzas) followed by a 3 line unrhymed envoi or tornada (a salutation or sending forth) The last 3 lines gather up and deploy all 6 end-words.
composed with 6 unrhymed end-words which must occur in every stanza but in a changing order that follow a set pattern. (this is known as lexical repetition) The order seems to turn the poem inside out, the first end-word eventually becomes the last. The pattern of end-words shift from stanza to stanza is a mathematical equation from which, if one were to write a 7th stanza, the pattern of the 1st stanza would be repeated in the 7th.

The set pattern of shifting end-words from stanza to stanza is:
1st stanza 1 2 3 4 5 6
2nd stanza 6 1 5 2 4 3
3rd stanza 3 6 4 1 2 5
4th stanza 5 3 2 6 1 4
5th stanza 4 5 1 3 6 2
6th stanza 2 4 6 5 3 1
L1 envoi 2-5 (even #ed end words incorporated internally into the line.)
L2 envoi 4-3
L3 envoi 6-1



What Is Gained At Last...

She is gazing at the farther thrown star
Wide eyed with a shut heart for a long time
Something it seems to say to her fondly
But her seasoned heart is firm and tight closed
That no room for any love to enter
She knows what life is all about on earth

Umpteen wheels of aeons have spun this earth
yet this world adores to be a young star
As if old and grey can never enter
Likes to stay with young heart for love all time
Yearns to stay in love alone all else closed
Forgetting but love grips hate so fondly

This she wonders how world can stay 'fondly'
Since her story is high sky and low earth
Tides up and low tumbling her drowned deep closed
This day she sums up all to find a peace-star
In vain only to feel two tracks of time
Two truckers hauling no love to enter

Mechanical days let no peace enter
Two hearts never merged into one fondly
Lived days were not loved days of them in time
Still love worked to issue offsprings on earth
Ashamed, she regrets for her matchless star
Who hauled the life for her but with love closed

What is gained at last..except her life closed
Joy and cheer were not allowed to enter
Not a soothing star but a shooting star
His rage could not kiss her calmness fondly
Sighing now she regrets her birth on earth
Sobbing bewails her wedlock now high time

She is gazing gazing for a long time
Unaware of the dark night getting closed
Farther star now is declined down the earth
To hide the sun dark grey clouds slowly enter
Dolorous day lulls her breathings fondly
Perhaps mutes the ache of that sleeping star

Now is a soul's time spaceward to enter
Heavy closed heart to find a love fondly
Born on earth to live with a caring star