Krishna as Partha Sarathi and Arjuna in Consultation

ShantaBeginner

गगन ने धरा से कहा एक दिन

Gagana Ne Dhara Se Kaha Ek Din

7 verses · ~2 min

गगन ने धरा से कहा एक दिन, सिर्फ पत्थर बसे हैं तुम्हारे हृदय में!

झरे फूल कितने इसी धूल में, पर कभी भी तुम्हें मोह करना न आता, मिटे रूप कितने तुम्हारे कणों में, कभी भी तुम्हें याद करना न भाता!

सदा अर्थियों की चितायें जलीं, पर तुम्हें एक आँसू बहाना न आया, सदा तुम मिटाती रही कि तुम पर कभी वेदना का जमाना न आया!

न जाने तुम्हारा न नाता किसी से किसी का तुम्हें साथ भाता नहीं है, कि उर्वर तुम्हें जो बनाया प्रकृति ने वही गर्व उर में समाता नहीं है! सदा खेलती तुम रही जीवनो से, न काँटे खटकते तुम्हारे हृदय में!

धरा कुछ हिली अब न बोलो गगन, मै विवश हूँ कि मुझको दिखाना न आता, सतह देखती रोशनी ये तुम्हारी, उसे प्राण मन मे समाना न आता!

धधकती अनल को न देखा न देखी करुण वारि-धारा छिपाये हुये हूँ, इसी धूल की रुक्षता के सहारे अरे सृष्टि का क्रम चलाये हुये हूँ!

मिटाया न अपने लिये हाय उनको, कि जिनको खिलाय कभी अँक मे ले! जनम औ'मरण बीच मैं ही पडी हूँ, न जीवन जनम दे, मरण गोद ले ले! कहो सुख कहूँ या इसे दुःख मानूँ, बसा एक कर्तव्य मेरे हृदय में!

इति

Rasa: Shanta
Stanzas: 7
Lines: 30
Reading time: ~2 min
Form: Free verse
Metre: free verse
Rhyme: irregular

The poem evokes a profound sense of shanta (tranquility) through a cosmic, philosophical dialogue between the vast, detached sky and the stoic, burdened earth. Visually, this could be rendered as a stark, minimalist landscape where a towering, ethereal horizon gazes down upon a vast, dusty plain littered with the faint, spectral imprints of past civilizations and funeral pyres. The scene captures the heavy contrast between the sky’s cold, judgmental clarity and the earth’s silent, subterranean suffering, symbolized by the hidden, molten fire beneath a dry, cracked surface. The artistic tone is somber yet stoic, portraying the earth not as heartless, but as a weary, selfless guardian who suppresses her own grief to maintain the eternal cycle of creation, ultimately finding peace in the fulfillment of an inescapable, lonely duty.

गगन ने धरा से कहा एक दिन (Gagana Ne Dhara Se Kaha Ek Din), by Pratibha Saxena runs to 30 lines across 7 stanzas, set as Dialogue-based stanzas between the personified Sky and Earth.. Its governing rasa is Shanta, shaded by Karuna. The metre is free verse. Rhyme falls as irregular.

Read it for आकाश और पृथ्वी के माध्यम से कर्तव्य और सहनशीलता का द्वंद्व and धरती की मूक सहनशक्ति और सृजन की विवशता. 2 words in it carry older or regional senses, so the poem rewards a second pass.

The verse is hung beside Krishna as Partha Sarathi and Arjuna in Consultation: Bathed in an atmosphere of profound philosophical tension and quiet intimacy, the scene depicts Lord Krishna—whose complexion glows like the deep monsoon sky—seated upon an ornate palace bed in earnest discourse with a…

Words worth pausing on

उर्वर: उपजाऊ
रुक्षता: रूखापन या सूखापन

Threads

Sky Earth Creation

The Poet

प्रतिभा सक्सेना

Pratibha Saxena

Dr. Pratibha Saxena holds a distinct and vital place in contemporary Hindi literature. Her work connects the rigorous intellectual demands of academia with the sensitive realities of human relationships. Born on February 9, 1938, in Madhya Pradesh, her life path took her from the lecture halls of Kanpur, where she worked as an educator, to a diasporic existence in the United States. This geographical shift is highly visible in her diverse literary output, which includes poetry, short stories, and satire. In collections like Uttar Katha and Seema Ke Bandhan, she examines the modern domestic sphere. She highlights the subtle constraints placed upon women and the shifting dynamics of family life with deep psychological insight. Her language carries a quiet and confident thoughtfulness that never shouts but still commands complete attention. Saxena has spent decades enriching Hindi literature, demonstrating that a writer can remain deeply rooted in their native culture while living far from home.