Hard to Crack / Jalasūtram Rukmiṇīnātha śāstri
(from "A Poem at the Right Moment" / Velcheru Narayana Rao and David Shulman)
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Torture us, please,
impossible poet,
with your exuberance of stunning words
and delicious feeling slightly mixed
with bitter dryness. We need jaws of stone
to grind the elevated phrases you utter with ease
as you tease us through your labyrinths,
books cooked to the texture of rock.
kiñcit-tikta-kaṣāya-ṣāḍaba-rasa-kṣepātirekâtivāk-
sañcāra-pracayâvakāśamulalo kavy-udgha gaṇḍaśmamul
cañcal-līlan udātta-vāg-garimato sādhiñci vedhiñcumā
pañcāriñci pravahlikā-krṭa-krṭin pāṣāna-pāka-prabhū
This verse was composed by Jalasūtram Rukmiṇīnātha śāstri ("Jaruk"
śāstri) in ironic praise of the great Viśvanātha Satyanārāyaṇa, whom he
regarded as his guru. The texture of rock (pāṣāṇa-pāka) is a parodic addi-
tion to the well-known three textures (pāka, literally, "cooking to a certain
consistency") of poetry: drākṣā-pāka, "the grape," which is savored without
effort; kadalī-pāka, "the banana," which requires peeling before tasting;
and narikela-pāka, "the coconut," where the thick fibrous exterior has to
be removed and then the hard nut broken open.
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