My last poem I posted titled “Woh Mohabbat hi kya” was my first Hindi one on my blog yet. And to help my fellow blogger friends, who do not understand Hindi, I translated it to English. The problem was that I wasn’t completely happy with my own translation, because I felt it lacked the soul of my original poem and it was a more literal translation. Since, this blog is not intended to be a Hindi – English class, I figured something needed to be done about it. But, I had often read many times that translation is never perfect. The following quotes will give you an idea of what I’m saying.
“Poetry is what gets lost in translation.”
― Robert Frost
“It is as impossible to translate poetry as it is to translate music.”
― Voltaire
“The original is unfaithful to the translation.”
― Jorge Luis Borges
“You know, they say in France that translation is like a woman:
she is either beautiful or faithful. ”
― Marjane Satrapi
But there is so much more to translation than just trying to be exact replica of the original. Why ? Because I’ve read Rabindranath Tagore’s poems from his book Gitanjali, translated into English, and trust me they are incredible. Not being a Bengali myself, perhaps I may have missed out on the subtlety of his writings, but I think it’s more important to be able to really feel the soul in the writing. And the translation can be soulful too, given the writer translating it, pours his own heart, emotions and soul into it. Translation is an art, albeit a skilful one. Below are some of my favourite quotes, which convey my point precisely.
“When we learn to speak, we learn to translate.” ― Octavio Paz
“Having been borne across the world, we are translated men. It is normally supposed that something always gets lost in translation; I cling, obstinately, to the notion that something can also be gained.”
― Salman Rushdie
“So many people consider their work a daily punishment. Whereas I love my work as a translator. Translation is a journey over a sea from one shore to the other. Sometimes I think of myself as a smuggler: I cross the frontier of language with my booty of words, ideas, images, and metaphors.”
― Amara Lakhous
So, why am I talking about translation so much? Because, I found a friend to help me resolve my dilemma of having to translate my poem and yet retain the emotions at its core. I believe she is one of the talented few people, who understand and express emotions regardless of words and language; she is truly a gifted translator. I am talking about Prachi Chhabra, whose blog I follow, because she posts the most beautiful songs and ghazals in Hindi along with their translations, which are perfect !
So, I thought why not ask her to help me out? Being the sweet girl that she is, she readily agreed ! I was very happy when she emailed me her version, which is certainly more poetic and closer to the soul of my Hindi poem. Here below, is Prachi’s translation.
What’s that morning worth, if it doesn’t begin with you
What’s the worth of that night, if it doesn’t have a dream about youWhat’s that truth worth, if it doesn’t defeat all the lies
What’s that poet worth, if his pages aren’t covered in inkWhat’s a heart worth, if it cannot experience love
What’s a life worth, if it cannot distinguish loveWhat is that love worth, if you’re not concerned about your lover
What is that Ranjha worth, if he weren’t looking for Heer at all!
I would certainly like to thank Prachi for having helped me out and hope to collaborate with her on more poems in the future. Also, after having read her email I thought rather than just editing the original post, why not post it separately and also share a few thoughts on translation itself ! I’ve realised that I am not yet very good with translation when it comes to my own writing, and certainly have a lot to learn about it.
But I would really love to hear your thoughts, of all my fellow bloggers here on WordPress. What are your thoughts on translation? Most of us are fluent in at least two languages, one being English. How has your experience been with translation? Be it reading or writing, I would love to hear about it.
I would like to end this post with one of my favourite quotes, which always makes me think and gives me hope to try and work harder on being better at translating my own writing.
“Something may have been lost in translation, but it certainly wasn’t love”
― Erich Segal, The Class
– Cheers, your fellow blogger & friend, Advaita Inamdar. 🙂
Photo credit : Generous heart by Shan Jeniah Burton used under CC by 4.0
10th August 2016 at 9:51 am
Loved it
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10th August 2016 at 9:52 am
Thank you Sukriti! I’m glad you loved it 😊💕
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17th June 2016 at 9:30 am
I can only imagine one day meeting you in India and discussing such topics in depth and in person over chai. That is my wish. 😉
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17th June 2016 at 9:42 am
Yay! Em, I would certainly love that too. To share a cup of chai with my favourite poetess would be a dream come true. India or Seattle, anyplace will do actually 😉😘💕
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17th June 2016 at 9:43 am
I suppose there is Skype…although I’ve never done that really. 🙂
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17th June 2016 at 9:46 am
Hahaha… Yeah I’ve never skyped before either. It’s never appealed really. Just like I still prefer writing letters! There’s a certain charm to old school methods which I rather cherish 😉
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17th June 2016 at 9:47 am
Understand. Well, I’m keeping the option open in my back pocket. Because, why the hell not. One of us would be wide awake and the other near sleep…could be fun! 😉
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17th June 2016 at 9:50 am
Hahaha… I prefer being the one awake in that case, or else I won’t remember what we talked about. I might even be inclined to think it was a dream! 😂😜
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17th June 2016 at 9:52 am
Well, I can be fairly entertaining when sleep deprived, almost tipsy. You will get lots of giggly laughs. But, to be fair we’d have to have 2 calls. So we each get a chance to be awake and remember. 😉 ❤
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17th June 2016 at 9:56 am
😂😂😂 Okay, that sounds like a fair deal! 😉👍
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17th June 2016 at 11:48 am
And I’m your favorite poetess? Didn’t mean to gloss past that. That’s an honor. And I’m humbled. ❤
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17th June 2016 at 11:49 am
Hahaha… EM, Please have a look again at my Liebster award post… I’ve written my true thoughts there!
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17th June 2016 at 11:50 am
Love you, Addy. I can almost feel myself hugging you. You radiate warmth thousands of miles away. I’m so blessed to know you.
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17th June 2016 at 11:54 am
Same here Em! Every time I read your poetry (or rather hear it! 😉), I feel close to you and like I’ve known you for ages! I’m happy to say I’m a fan of your blog and you 😘
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15th June 2016 at 10:42 am
Oh I completely agree with the problems one faces while trying to translate something! I put up some shayeri on my blog (post title- Cuppa coffee and some shayeri) and while I did translate it, I was unhappy with the results too. But it served they purpose nevertheless! There’s only so much one can do with translations!
Cheers…
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15th June 2016 at 10:45 am
Thank you Aishwarya! I will go have a look at your blog soon 😊👍
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9th June 2016 at 1:19 pm
I really liked this article of yours… I really get strucked while translating my poems 😞
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9th June 2016 at 1:27 pm
I read this article few days ago…. and I was writing a poem that time… generally when I write poems in hindi , I also translate it to English. But this time I really had an urge to not translate it in English cox I had a fear that the poem might loose its depth… do read it ” ek nazariya aisa bhi ” .. do give it a read…
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9th June 2016 at 1:39 pm
Wait, I’ll go take a look. I don’t know how I missed it!
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9th June 2016 at 1:42 pm
Lol no that’s ok.. but I was saying that I used to feel that the poem loses its depth when translated … this article indeed changed the way I think ..
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9th June 2016 at 2:00 pm
I think you should give it a try. Ask for help if need be. But your poem must be translated! It’s a masterpiece 👌😊💕
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9th June 2016 at 2:02 pm
Hmm… I will definitely try 😊
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9th June 2016 at 2:10 pm
👍😊
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8th June 2016 at 10:11 pm
At times I was also afraid to translate some of my malayalam poems. As you said, I was also araid as it will take away the soul of the poem..
But this piece is really wonderful.. your friend did it in the perfect way..
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7th June 2016 at 3:44 am
Great piece alot of dedication xx
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7th June 2016 at 5:53 am
Thank you! 👍😊💕
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7th June 2016 at 3:23 am
Avinamdar,
Thank you for this post. It makes me feel I am not alone, in my struggle for perfection when it comes to translating poetry. And not only perfection, but I try to think carefully on how possibly can I translate this phrase or that, so it will give the readers the same vivid description it gave me first time I read it in its native language?
It is absolutely an art. Not everyone can do it. You have my best and strongest wishes to achieve gratification with each translation.
Please enjoy a great week ahead!
Dajena 🙂
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7th June 2016 at 5:50 am
Thank you Dajena! 👍😊💕 I am very happy to hear you liked my post and agree with my view! Thank you so much for reading and sharing your thoughts, hope you have a great seek too👍😊
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6th June 2016 at 9:25 pm
You left me speechless. One of the most amazing posts i have seen till now. Wonderful
Keep up the good work! 🙂
Thank you.
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6th June 2016 at 9:28 pm
Thank you Aanchal! I don’t think I’ve read your blog. Will head there soon… Thanks for sharing your thoughts 👍😊
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6th June 2016 at 9:34 pm
haha no problem 🙂 Read it anytime.
Thank you 🙂
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6th June 2016 at 9:36 pm
👍😊
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6th June 2016 at 9:16 pm
Wow. I’m utterly speechless. (Well. Look at THAT)
I’m so touched. It’s been less than a month since I started sharing the things that are close to my heart on my blog, and I’ve realized how much I actually love translating things. It’s like pottery, I think. Until it gets the perfect shape, it’s not ready to be called the beautiful vase the mud is intended to become. Yes. I think that’s what it is.
I’d love to collaborate on more of your works. They’re honest, and there are very few things that top my list apart from that when it comes to words. So good.
PS. Couldn’t agree more with Erich in the end there!
PPS. Some trivia: Gulzar learnt Bengali to read Tagore’s original works and live them. I’ll do the same. Soon 😀 You should try it too!
Much love!
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6th June 2016 at 9:24 pm
Omg. I had no idea about Gulzar learning to read Tagore! I think I might do that sometime too. It’s a wonderful idea. The last two quotes were for you, so I am glad you liked it. Thanks Prachi 😊💕
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6th June 2016 at 8:37 pm
I agree. Translation is integral when you are writing in a language other than English here. Translation is definitely underrated. It is a skill which writers who write in more than one language need to learn in order to connect effectively with their readers.
And of course, you write so well!
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6th June 2016 at 8:40 pm
Thank you Eva! 👍😘 I’m good at translation when I’ve not written it myself.😛 Sometimes emotions get in the way of translating my own writing, I just can’t find the right damn words then! 😂😂😂
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6th June 2016 at 9:10 pm
Hahaha.😂😂 That happens. I can understand. But trust me, you do it pretty damn well!
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6th June 2016 at 9:13 pm
Okay, if you say so. 😜👍😘
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6th June 2016 at 9:16 pm
Haha. Trust me on that. Your poem had effect on me in both its versions. Hindi and English. It think that is a complement in itself. No worries na! You translate really well. 😘
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6th June 2016 at 9:20 pm
😊💕
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6th June 2016 at 8:30 pm
My great grandmother spent years and with immense dedication,translated the Bhagavad Gita for us to read & understand its essence….I think it was her greatest gift to the family. So yes, even if some subtleties are lost here & there, it still was of help…I personally haven’t read it, but my mom has:)
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6th June 2016 at 8:36 pm
Wow, that is amazing! I applaud your grandmother, because I’ve read the Bhagavad Gita (as it is) in English twice, and it’s by far the most difficult books to truly grasp let alone translate! She must be a very intelligent and devoted writer to have achieved that. You must read it Divya, there is so much knowledge to gain from it. It will be worth the effort, I assure you! 👍😊
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6th June 2016 at 8:41 pm
Thank you for the very kind words Advaitha😊…I really should!!:)
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6th June 2016 at 8:46 pm
Thanks for sharing that Divya! When you do read it, be sure to share some of it in posts with everyone. The Gita is something that everyone benefits from! 👍😊
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6th June 2016 at 8:48 pm
Definitely 😊
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6th June 2016 at 4:53 pm
aha!
This one is wonderful!
Language doesn’t matter though!
Poetry is itslf so beautiful
hey!
: )
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6th June 2016 at 4:55 pm
I agree poetry is beautiful! But so many times we don’t realise that poems we read are translated ones, yet they sound equally enchanting! I think translation is an overlooked skill quite essential to literature. What do you think?
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