TERM II - Unit 2 – Poem _-
Wandering Singers
Warm Up
Discuss in pairs, circle the names of musical instruments from the grid. One is done for you.
2.
Piano
3.
Tabla
4.
Veena
5.
Swaram
6.
Ghatam
Guitar
1. Nadaswaram
Where the voice of the wind
calls our wandering feet,
Through echoing forest and
echoing street,
With lutes in our hands
ever-singing we roam,
All men are our kindred, the
world is our home.
Our lays are of cities whose
lustre is shed,
The laughter and beauty of
women long dead;
The sword of old battles, the
crown of old kings,
And happy and simple and
sorrowful things.
What hope shall we gather,
what dreams shall we sow?
Where the wind calls our
wandering footsteps we go.
No love bids us tarry, no joy
bids us wait:
The voice of the wind is the
voice of our fate.
Sarojini Naidu
B. Pick out the rhyming pairs
from the poem and fill in the table.
|
1st stanza |
|
2nd stanza |
|
3rd stanza |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
1st stanza |
2nd stanza |
3rd stanza |
|
feet - street |
shed - dead |
sow - go |
|
roam - home |
kings - things |
wait - fate |
C. Read these lines and
answer the questions given below.
1. Where the voice of the
wind calls our wandering feet
Whose ‘Wandering feet’ is referred
to here?
The 'wandering feet' refers
to the feet of the singers in the poem.
2. With lutes in our hands
ever-singing we roam,
All men are our kindred,
the world is our home.
Who does ‘we’ refer to? What
do they have in their hands? What is its name?
'We' refers to the wandering
singers. They have lutes in their hands. 'Lute' is the name of the musical
instrument
How are the men in the world
related to the singers?
The singers consider all men
in the world as their kindred, meaning they see everyone as their relatives or
family.
3. Our lays are of cities
whose lustre is shed,
Here ‘Lays’ means
__________________
a.
lying down b. stories c. to keep
4. The laughter and beauty of
women long dead;
Explain the meaning of the
above line.
This line means that the
singers' songs tell about the joyful times and the beauty of women who lived in
the past and are now deceased. Their stories and memories are kept alive
through the singers' music.
WRITING
D. Answer in a paragraph.
What does Sarojini Naidu say
about the Wandering Singers? Write in your own words. (in about 60 words)
Sarojini Naidu portrays the
wandering singers as people led by the call of the wind, traveling through
various places while singing and playing their lutes. They see the entire world
as their home and all people as their family. Their songs narrate tales of old,
forgotten cities, the beauty of women from the past, ancient battles and
rulers, and both happy and sad events. They don't seek material possessions or
lasting connections, as their journey is dictated by the wind, which they
consider their destiny.
E. Think and answer.
1.
Are the
singers homeless travellers? Why do you think so? Yes, it seems the singers are homeless travellers. The poem mentions
"the world is our home," suggesting they don't have a fixed
residence. They are constantly moving wherever the "voice of the wind
calls" their feet, implying a lack of a permanent place to stay.
2.
Do the
singers have hopes and dreams? If not, why? The
poem suggests that the singers do not focus on gathering hopes or sowing
dreams. The lines "What hope shall we gather, what dreams shall we sow?
Where the wind calls our wandering footsteps we go" indicate a life lived
in the present moment, guided by their wandering nature rather than future
aspirations or personal ambitions.
3.
What are the
themes of the singers’ songs? The themes of
the singers' songs are the stories of past times. They sing about cities that
have lost their glory, the beauty and joy of women who are no longer alive,
historical events like old battles and the reigns of ancient kings, and also
about the simple emotions and experiences of life, both happy and sorrowful.
