FREIBURGER ZEITGEISTLITERATURE (Satis Shroff)

Where, do you hail from? I hail from a geographically landlocked Himalayan country surrounded by blue Shiwaliks and Mahabharat mountains, where the people actually live. Having grown up in the foothills of the Himalayas, I was fascinated and awed by the change in colours of the majestic massifs in the different seasons and times of the day. I’ve witnessed magnificent Himalayan sunsets of the Kanchanzonga with peaks bearing names like: Janu,, Kabru, Dome, Talung, Kanchenzonga, Pandim and Jubonu. I was thrilled to the core by the beauty unfurling in front of me. The Kanchanzonga, my Hausberg, has always been a sacred mountain and on its feet are precious stones, salt, holy scriptures, healing plants and cereals. It is a thousand year belief and tradition that the Himalayas, the Abode of the Gods, should not be sullied by the feet of mortals. The Himalayas are revered and have taught us to be resilient and to bear pain without complaining; to go with the times, to search for solutions...

NEPALI POEMS (Satis Shroff)/ नेपाली कविता ( सतिश श्रोफ्फ़ ) हिमाल बोल्दैन , मनिषझैँ   ठेल्दैना . हिमाल अघि बद्डैना , त्येसैकरण मनिश्हरु पर्बतमा चाडछन् . * * * हामि गीत गाउछौ : हिमाल , तिमीले सुन्यता दियौ , मलाई विश्वास दियौ , स्वर्गनै दियौ . * * * हिमाललाई हेरेर मा चुप - चाप भए . हिमालको माया देखेर , शिव र पार्वती देखेर मा खुशी र शंतोकी भए ; हिमालको प्रेमिनै भए . * * * पहाडको मुटुमा सुन्दरता देखिन्छा तर कालो शक्ति पनि . बेला बेलामा खात्रकार पहिरो , कहिले ढुंगा , कहिले हिउ . मनिष र जन्तु मरे . * * * हे भरिया किन हिमाल छाड्ने ? - हिमाल माथि छ , त्येस्कारण . - तल घाम छैन र माथि जाने . - पर्बतबाट घाम र तारा नजिक देखिन्छ . - खुट्टाले पिर्थीबी छुयो , टाउकोले स्वर्ग छुयो . * * * हिमाललाई हेरेर डमरु बजाए , भैरब्लाई प्रसाद चडाए . डमरु बजाए र प्राथना गरे . शिव र पर्बतिलाई पूजा गरे . राति...

O Catmandu! (Satis Shroff) O Catmandu! All I see is rubble, People buried by bricks, Waste fragments of stone. Wooden struts from ancient temples, Loose stones, Tumbled houses. The cries, shouts and helplessness, In Nepali and Newari tongues. Mothers looking for their children, Young Nepalese mourning the dead, People in motion, Searching incessantly, Like ants on heaps of rubble, That were once unesco heritage sites. The pagoda skyline has vanished. O Catmandu! The convulsions of the earth's surface, Has in the past demanded its toll Of human lives, As far back as 1934. When the Indian subcontinent Approaches the Eurasian landmass, Seismic shocks are inevitable. The movement of tectonic plates Causes damage not only without, In Catmandu, Pokhara, Khumbu Icefalls, But also within the denizens of Nepal. Social, psychological, Economical pain results. O Catmandu! ...