Ardh Satya

chakravyuuh me.n ghusane se pahale
mai.n kaun thaa aur kaisaa thaa
ye mujhe yaad hii na rahegaa
chakravyuuh me.n ghusane ke baad
mere aur chakravyuuh ke biich
sirf ek jaan\-levaa nikaTataa thii
isakaa mujhe pataa hii na chalegaa

chakravyuuh se baahar nikalane par
mai.n mukt ho jaa_uu.N bhale hii
phir bhii
chakravyuuh kii rachanaa me.n farq hii na pa.Degaa

maruu.N yaa maaruu.N
maaraa jaa_uu.N yaa jaan se maar duu.N
is kaa faisalaa kabhii na ho paayegaa

soyaa huaa aadamii jab nii.nd se uTh kar
chalanaa shuruu karataa hai
tab sapano.n kaa sa.nsaar use dubaaraa
dikh hii na paayaegaa

us roshanii me.n jo nirNay kii roshanii hai
sab kuchh samaan hogaa kyaa?

ek pala.De me.n napu.nsakataa
ek pala.De me.n paurushh
aur Thiik taraazuu ke kaa.Nte par
ardh\-satya

Translation

Ardh Satya (The Half-Truth)

Upon breaching the Chakravyuuh
My previous identity and state
Will remain erased from my memory
Upon entering the Chakravyuuh
That ,the chakravyuuh and me,
Lie separated only by a fatal closeness
Remains hidden from my eye

Upon exiting the chakravyuuh,
Whether or not I attain freedom from it
Will still,
Not cause a difference in the formation of the chakravyuuh

Will I murder or will I be murdered,
Will I be killed or will I be the murderer
Will forever remain unresolved

When a sleeping man awakes from his stupor
And starts to walk
Then will his world of dreams
Be lost forever from his sight?

And at that light, which is the light of judgment
Will everything appear equal?

At one end of the scale lies helplessness
On the other end, manhood
And right at the tip, lies
The Half Truth

I have added a very loose (unflattering and liberal) translation of Vijay Tendulkar’s poem Ardh Satya.I first heard it in the movie which goes by the same title as the poem. Recited with gut wrenching sincerity by that incomparable actor, Om Puri, It was no wonder that I was instantly hooked. I do not know if the poem was composed specifically for that movie but it expresses the dilemma faced by the protagonist of the movie in a few lines better than most reviewers can with a few pages.

To people unfamiliar with the Abhimanyu story and the Puranas, the chakravyuuh is a formation devised by Drona which is very difficult to breach in battle. The chakravyuuh consisted of many concentric rings of warriors with the chief in the middle. The specialty of this formation was that even when it was breached, the rings would close up again sealing the attacker within .There were only two other warriors besides Drona, namely, Arjuna and Krishna who knew the secret of breaking this formation. Arjunas son, Abhimanyu heard this secret while still in his mother’s womb but due to a trick of fate could only hear the part of getting into this formation but not how to exit it. Confronted by this formation he enters it bravely, fully sure that he can beat this system, but is swallowed within and dies a brave and valiant death.

I did not want to review the movie but I cannot resist a short recap. The Inspector played by Puri, is sucked into the mire that is the system and is forced to shelve his beliefs to get out of trouble. He is forced into the indignity of requesting the villain of this piece to exert his influence, to extricate Shah from a police case which he has fallen into while discharging his duty. Faced with his helplessness, and, shamed by his conduct, he redeems himself by killing the villain in everybody’s presence.

The poem asks the question, What are you willing to sacrifice in your quest?. In an ideal
World, a person would like to live his life according to his principles. But when confronted with an environment that is built on a different set of values, should he make his peace with it and conform or should he fight the good fight.
When the outcome of your choice erodes your identity, will you be able to make peace with yourself? What do you hold dear, your possessions or your principles? Is the pain endured worth the trouble of holding your position? Ultimately, it asks the question that lies at the very core of our existence, what do you stand for?