ShantaAdvanced

सजनि कौन तम में परिचित सा

Sajani Kaun Tam Mein Parichit Sa

1 min read 4 versesDarkness Silence Tears

4 verses · ~1 min

सजनि कौन तम में परिचित सा, सुधि सा, छाया सा, आता? सूने में सस्मित चितवन से जीवन-दीप जला जाता!

छू स्मृतियों के बाल जगाता, मूक वेदनायें दुलराता, हृततंत्री में स्वर भर जाता, बंद दृगों में, चूम सजल सपनों के चित्र बना जाता!

पलकों में भर नवल नेह-कन प्राणों में पीड़ा की कसकन, श्वासों में आशा की कम्पन सजनि! मूक बालक मन को फिर आकुल क्रन्दन सिखलाता!

घन तम में सपने सा आ कर, अलि कुछ करुण स्वरों में गा कर, किसी अपरिचित देश बुला कर, पथ-व्यय के हित अंचल में कुछ बाँध अश्रु के कन जाता! सजनि कौन तम में परिचित सा, सुधि सा, छाया सा, आता?

इति

Rasa: Shanta
Stanzas: 4
Lines: 15
Reading time: ~1 min
Form: Geet (lyric song)
Metre: geet
Rhyme: irregular

The poem evokes a serene yet melancholic shanta atmosphere, centered on the ethereal manifestation of a divine beloved who emerges as a faint, comforting shadow within the soul's deepest darkness. A painting of this scene would depict a solitary, contemplative figure bathed in abyssal gloom, illuminated only by the faint, golden glow of a flickering inner lamp and the crystalline shimmer of unshed tears that capture the light like constellations. Symbolizing the spiritual intersection of longing and grace, the imagery juxtaposes the silence of the void with the vibrant, invisible vibrations of a soul-lute being struck by a phantom touch. The artistic tone is one of mystical intimacy, capturing the poignant duality of a quiet, devotional awakening that leaves behind the ache of mortal separation even while offering the sublime promise of a distant, celestial destination.

सजनि कौन तम में परिचित सा (Sajani Kaun Tam Mein Parichit Sa), by Mahadevi Varma runs to 15 lines across 4 stanzas, set as Four stanzas with a recurring refrain. Its governing rasa is Shanta, shaded by Shringara. The metre is geet. Rhyme falls as irregular.

A highly mystical Chhayavadi poem where the divine beloved is felt as a silent, comforting presence in the darkness of the soul.

Read it for अंधकार में किसी अज्ञात प्रियतम की अनुभूति and मौन वेदना और अश्रुओं का उपहार. 3 words in it carry older or regional senses, so the poem rewards a second pass.

The verse is hung beside Bombay Singer: Bathed in an atmosphere of quiet introspection and dignified stillness, the portrait captures a woman poised in a moment of profound musical contemplation. She stands gracefully in a richly textured interior, dressed in…

Words worth pausing on

सस्मित: मुस्कान से युक्त
हृततंत्री: हृदय रूपी वीणा के तार
क्रन्दन: रोना या विलाप

Threads

Darkness Silence Tears

The Poet

महादेवी वर्मा

Mahadevi Varma

1907 · 1987

Mahadevi Varma stands as the absolute pinnacle of lyrical mysticism in modern Hindi literature. Born in 1907 in Farrukhabad, she was a central pillar of the Chhayavaad romantic movement and is universally revered as the modern Meera for the intense spiritual devotion embedded in her verse. She lived a life of fierce intellectual independence. As the principal of the Prayag Mahila Vidyapeeth, she revolutionized women's education in India, while her literary salon in Allahabad became the epicenter of Hindi letters. Her poetic masterworks, including Yama, Nihar, and Rashmi, are profound meditations on sorrow, the eternal soul, and the quiet strength of the natural world. She did not merely write about pain. She transformed it into a vehicle for spiritual liberation. Honored with the Jnanpith Award in 1982 and the Padma Vibhushan, she passed away in 1987. She remains an immortal figure whose words continue to offer solace to anyone who has ever felt the ache of existential longing.