The Poem ‘An Evening Wet With Rain’ By Ved Pal Deep Summery Analysis Questions

The Poem ‘An Evening Wet With Rain’ 

 By Ved Pal Deep

 An evening wet with rain
As i walk through the lane
The heart beckons the hands to hold them with love
The mind also knows subtle signals of the breeze
Should i stand on the ground or waft with the wind
Windows, doors, awnings of the house are wet
Cool breezes stir the leaves of the yonder banyan tree
The collar of my coat is also wet with drops of rain
All around reigns silence

My feet are cold with water seeping through my shoes
My eyes are heavy with sleep, or is it fever?
The ground is very slippery; there is no place to stand.
The mind is exhausted, looks for some spot to rest.
Loss of hope has darkened the evening of my life too
And clouds gathering in the mind shed tears as they pass
The evening of trouble, my companion, is also depressed
And takes me along,  holding me by the arm.
In childhood, I stood alone in my courtyard
And waves of air brought the sound of cymbals
We regret that the days gone by don't return
How to call back times past and gone!
The evening prepares to go to sleep in the lap of night
Slowly, softly just as the sky's feet touch the ground
Shadows of trees rest in the dark tank
As some passing cloud casts a shadow over hills.

There is activity in the houses lit with electric bulbs 
Moonlight laughs holding the hem of the moon.
Where is my destination? Where is the hurry?
Light of the earthen lamp in a wayside modest inn awaits me.

 

Central Idea

This poem is the poet’s remembrance of an evening wet with rain. It Is an atmosphere of complete silence. The poet draws numerous images from nature to heighten the effect of silence and solitude. The poet is in a desperate mood. He regrets that the days gone by do not return.

 

Summary

The poem, “An evening wet with rain” has been written by Ved Pal Deep”, A Dogri writer and translated into English by ‘Shivnath’. The poet remembers an evening wet with rain. It is an atmosphere of complete silence. The poet is walking down the lane and finds everything wet. The poet is lost in the memories of his childhood when he had not to shoulder any responsibility. Now, the poet is burdened with responsibilities and worries. So, he beckons the hands to hold the responsibilities with care. His mind knows that the gentle breeze is signalling him to go and be nearer to his companion. The poet appears sad and confused. He doesn’t know whether he should stand on the ground and take a walk down the memory lane or allow himself to move with the air.

Windows, doors, sheets of canvas all are wet with rain. The leaves of the Banyan tree standing at a distance move slightly with the cool breeze. Only the sound of the leaves is audible. The collar of his coat is wet with the drops of rain. The poet observes silence in the atmosphere.

The poet’s feet have turned cold due to the water seeping through his shoes. His eyes are heavy with sleep or he is feeling feverish because he is tired. He feels the ground slippery and cannot find someplace to take rest. The loss of hope has darkened the evening of the poet’s life. He is in a state of despair. Clouds of hopelessness have gathered in his mind and as they pass through his mind, tears start coming out of his eyes. He doesn’t find anything comforting him in the evening of troubles. His companion i.e. the evening is also depressed. So he calls his companion to hold him by the arm and take him along.

The poet is reminded of his childhood days when he would stand alone in the courtyard listening to the sound of Cymbals. The waves of air would bring the sweet tunes of the Cymbal to his ears. He regrets that the days gone by do not return.

The poet says that evening is nearing to an end as the darkness is about to fall. The sky appears touching the ground (The Earth), owing to the darkness. The passing clouds are sending shadows over the hills. The shadows of trees continue to rest in the dark tank. The houses which are lit with electric bulbs are lively and full of fun. But the poet is wandering in the silent streets and knows nothing about his destination. Moonlight holding the edge of the moon
is laughing at him. He is in no hurry because he is unaware of his destination. He only knows that the light of an earthen lamp In a modest Inn on the roadside awaits him.

 

Brief

The poet shares his experiences of a rainy evening. He walks through a lane and finds himself all alone in the twilight. Initially, the rain and the breeze makes him feel good. His heart suggests him to hold the raindrops with love, and his mind perceives the noticeable signals that the breeze produces. The poet is clueless about whether to Wet himself in the rain or waft with the wind. The poet watches the windows, doors, curtains etc of the nearby houses getting wet. He watches cool breezes stirring the leaves of the banyan tree. The water seeping through his shoes has made his feet cold. The ground is slippery and his mind desperately needs somewhere to rest. The poet reflects upon the damn evening and thinks that his life is as grim as the evening.

Hopelessness has darkened the evening of his life. The utter disappointment has held him by his arms. The poet recalls his childhood when he would enjoy keeping alone in his courtyard. The breeze would bring him the music of cymbals. He regrets those joyful days which were not liable to be called back. The poet feels that the evening is drowning in the lap of the night, and the shadow has gathered into its dark tank. He does, however, trace out some electric lights in the houses. He also sees moonlight holding the hem of the moon.

 

Phraphrase 

 

Line (1-5)

On an evening, the poet is walking through the lane which is wet with rain. The poet is lost in the memories of his childhood days when he was free, without any burden of anxieties, worries and when he had not to shoulder any responsibility. Now, the poet is burdened with responsibilities and worries. So, he beckons the hands of his companion. His mind knows that the gentle breezes are signaling him to go and be nearer to his companion and hold his (companion’s) hand with love. The poet appears astounded/confused. He doesn’t know whither he should stand on the ground and take a stroll down memory lane or allow himself to move with air.

 

 

Line (6-9)

Windows, doors, sheets of canvas all are wet with rain. The leaves of the Banyan tree standing at a distance stir owing to the cold breezes. Only the sound of the movement of leaves is audible. The collar of he poet’s coat is wet with the drops of rain.

 

Line (10-13)

 The poet’s feet have gone cold due to the water percolating through his shoes. The poet’s eyes are heavy with sleep or the is feeling feverish because he is tired (his eyes and body specifically feel feverish). He feels the ground under his feet slippery. He could not find any place to stand. He is worn-out and his mind is completely tired. So he is looking for some place to take rest.

 

 

Line (14-17)

 Here the loss of hope has darkened the evening of poet’s life. He is in a state of despair and anxiety. Clouds of despair, anxiety, hopelessness has gathered in his mind as they pass / move through the dark lands of his mind, tears start coming out of his eyes. He falls into a complete state of depression because he doesn’t find anything comforting in the evening of troubles. So, he calls his companion to hold his (poet’s) arm and take him (poet) along.

 

Line (18-21)

The poet recollects his childhood days, when he would stand alone in the courtyard and listened to the sound produced by cymbals. The waves (movements) of air would bring the sweet tunes of the cymbals to his ears. The poet regrets that the days gone by do not return. He regrets that past cannot be brought back.

 

Line (22-25)

The poet says that the evening is nearing to an end as the darkness (night) is about to fall. The sky appears touching the ground (earth), owing to the darkness which is about to fall. Shadows of the trees continue to rest in the dark tends. The passing clouds are sending shadows over the hills. Everything around appears silent owing to the fall of darkness.

 

Line (26-29)

The houses which are lit with electric bulbs are lively and full of laughter. All the activities are going on in these bright houses. But the poet is wandering aimlessly and knows nothing about his destination. Moonlight holding the edge of the moon is laughing at him. The poet is in no hurry because he is unaware about/ of his destination. He doesn’t know where his destiny lies. He only knows that the light of an earthen lamp on the side of a road in the modest inn awaits him.  

 

Questions and Answers

Q. 1. What are the memories that the poet talks about In the poem?

Ans. The poet speaks about memories from his youth. He recalls the moment when he would stand alone in the courtyard, listening to the melodious sound of cymbals brought to his ears by the cold breeze waves.

Q. 2. What kind of atmosphere is created in the poem?

Ans. The poem reproduces the ambience of a rain-wet evening. The quiet, humid evening produces a dull and dangerous atmosphere. The evening is indicative of the poet ‘s fall in life. He has grown old and is in desperation. The poet compares his life to a flickering earthen lamp that can go out at any given moment. Thus the atmosphere is very depriving throughout the poem.

Q. 3. What makes the poet tired?

Ans. The continuous sleepless nights have made his eyes heavy. He feels feverish, and can’t find any place to rest. Loss of hope tires the poet. It is just hoped that will keep one going in one’s life. There’s no wish to live if there is no hope. Of course, a depressed person feels drained and tired.

Q. 4. What has darkened the evening of the poet’s life?

Ans. Hope is the principle which guides life. Life is based on hope; it leads us in the direction we should follow. If there is no hope, then life becomes sluggish and dark. Poet ‘s life is also hopeless and that’s what has darkened the evening of the poet’s life.

Q. 5. Discuss the poet’s regret in the poem.

Ans. The poet feels nostalgic and reminiscent of his good old days. He remembers the days when his life was filled with joy and happiness. Conversely, the poet’s present life is full of sorrow and despair. The poet often feels bad that he can not call back the past and the days that are gone.

Q. 6. Comment on the Imagery used by the poet in the poem.

Ans. Imagery refers to the use of words to describe ideas or situations, particularly in poetry. Imagery is of different types, including auditory, visual, tactile, olfactory, gustatory, and kinesthetic. In the poem, the poet uses visual imaging. He creates a clear picture of an evening wet with rain. Wet windows, door and awnings, wet collar of the coat, water seeping through the poet’s shoes, fluttering of Banyan leaves with cold breezes, the sound of Cymbals, activities in the houses lit with electric bulbs, moonlight laughs holding the hem are all the imageries used by the poet in the poem which leaves a lasting expression on our minds. All the images used by the poet in the poem that leave a lasting impression on our minds are moonlight laughs holding the hem. These are all examples of how rich images are used in his poem.