ये कौन चित्रकार है

To read poetry requires thought. Developing the mental faculty for discovering, expressing, or appreciating the poetic insights could occupy a better part of one’s creative lifetime. As they say, in order to enjoy poetry, a person does not need to be a poet.  One only needs to learn to appreciate the beauty in such creative works.  With my somewhat rudimentary sense of appreciation for the poetic beauty of the verses.....sharing with you few beautiful verses, simple yet deep, exploring one single recurring thought – Praising eternal beauty of the nature and the UNKNOWN force behind its creation.

First poetry is by lesser known Marathi poet Suryakant Khandekar. Pan. Hridayanath Mangeshakar also brilliantly composed and rendered this work. The composition literally follows verses' meaning. The thought in the poetry enfolds in itself an element of Unknown, and delineates the beauty of nature and things therein, yet completely hidden from the view an element unknown which manifests itself in this beauty.

त्या  फुलांच्या गंध कोशी

सांग तू आहेस का
त्या प्रकाशी तारकांच्या
होतीसी तू  तेज का
त्या  नभाच्या नील रंगी
होऊनिया गीत का
गात वायूच्या स्वराने
संग  तू  आहेस  का  ||

मानवाच्या  अंतरीचा प्राण तू  आहेस  का
का वादळाच्या सागराचे घोर ते तू  रूप का
जीवनी या वर्षणारा तू  कृपेचा मेघ का
आसमंती नाचणारी तू  विजेची रेघ का
त्या  फुलांच्या  गंध  कोशी … .. || 1 ||

जीवनी  संजीवनी तू  माउलीचे दूध का ?
कष्टणार्या बांधवांच्या रंगसी नेत्रात का  ?
मूर्त तू  मानव्य का  रे बालकांचे हास्य का  ?
या इथे अन त्या तिथे रे  सांग तू आहेस का  ?

त्या  फुलांच्या  गंध  कोशी … .. || 2 ||

This recurring thought appears in one of Sri Aurobindo’s poems known as “WHO”. This piece of poetry raises similarly questions, embedding within itself an answer to them  

In the blue of the sky, in the green of the forest,

Whose is the hand that has painted the glow?

When the winds were asleep in the womb of the ether,

Who was it roused them and bade them to blow?

He is lost in the heart, in the cavern of Nature,

He is found in the brain where He builds up the thought:

In the pattern and bloom of the flowers He is woven,

In the luminous net of the stars He is caught.

In the strength of a man, in the beauty of woman,

In the laugh of a boy, in the blush of a girl;

The hand that sent Jupiter spinning through heaven,

Spends all its cunning to fashion a curl.

These are His works and His veils and His shadows;

But where is He then? by what name is He known?

Remember the lyrics of the track that was played at the beginning of each episode of Bharat Ek Khoj. This is Nasadiya Sukta from RigVeda, first the original Sanskrit version followed by its Hindi translation. Notice again axiomatic eternal question of the creation in nature. 

नासदासीन नो सदासीत तदानीं नासीद रजो नो वयोमापरो यत |
किमावरीवः कुह कस्य शर्मन्नम्भः किमासीद गहनं गभीरम ||

सृष्टि से पहले सत नहीं था
असत भी नहीं
अंतरिक्ष भी नहीं
आकाश भी नहीं था
छिपा था क्या, कहाँ
किसने ढका था
उस पल तो
अगम अतल जल भी कहां था

सृष्टि का कौन है कर्ता?
कर्ता है वह अकर्ता
ऊँचे आकाश में रहता
सदा अध्यक्ष बना रहता
वही सचमुच में जानता
या नहीं भी जानता
है किसी को नही पता
नही पता
नही है पता
नही है पता

Yet another simple but profound poesy portraying this thought is from this Hindi Movie “Boond Jo Ban Gayee Moti” sung by Mukesh

हरी हरी वसुंधरा पे नीला नीला  ये गगन 
के  जिस   पे  बादलों  की  पालकी  उड़ा  रहा  पवन
दिशाएँ  देखो  रंगभरी ,  चमक  रही  उमंग  भरी
ये  किस   ने  फूल  फूल  पे  किया  सिंगार  है
ये  कौन  चित्रकार  है , ये  कौन  चित्रकार 
ये  कौन  चित्रकार  है .. ..

तपस्वीयों  सी  हैं  अटल  ये  परवातों  की  चोटियाँ
ये  सर्प  सी  घूमेरादार , घेरदार  घाटियाँ 
ध्वजा   से  ये  खड़े  हुए  हैं   वृक्ष   देवदार  के
गलीचे  ये  गुलाब  के , बगीचे  ये  बहार  के
ये  किस  कवी  की  कल्पना  का  चमत्कार  है
ये  कौन  चित्रकार  है ..
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 P.S. updating this post as I forgot to mention that this Song from movie "Boong Jo Ban Gayee Moti" was written by noted lyricist Bharat Vyas who has also penned the immortal prayer song "Ae Malik Tere Bande Hum" from movie "Do Aakhein Barah Haath".