Burmese poem: Zaw Gyi’s Hyacinth’s Way – This is My Way (with English translation)

Note:- Ma Beda = Water hyacinth (Eichornia Crassipes) is called ‘Beda’ in Myanmar.It grows in the deltaic creeks and streams,

floating up and dawn with the ebb and rise of the tide.

The poet metaphorically uses the word ‘Ma Beda’ meaning ‘Miss Beda’, in the whole series of his poems.

He effectively compares the lovely hyacinth to a girl.

Saya Zaw Gyi had written a long series of poems about Beda, actually representing her as a tough girl/women struggling in the world. I like the one,”Still wearing the flower”, where in the rapid flowing stream, she met few hundred ducks (read men), after successfully resisted their attack and the rough weather and rough stream, she claim that she was still wearing her flower! The following poem had given a lot of strength to many readers facing the difficulties in life.

“Still managed to continue wearing the flower on her head”

• Rejoicing in the tidal creek, the blue coloured Miss Beda,
• Wants to dock at the shore near.
• The floating coconut approached and hit her side.
• It was quite a painful strike.
• Effectively hindering from soft landing at her preferred site .
• Miss Beda was attacked and drowned again by the another tidal wave.
• But she struggled and managed to float again on the nearby surface.
• Refloating again in the stream is also not an ‘easy ride’ thing.
• The ducts from the drain come out into the stream again, swimming.
• She was alone bearing the kicking attacks of hundreds of the ducks.
• But Miss Beda never gives up.
• She bites her lips but managed to wear the flower with a beam.
• While struggling in the rapidly flowing stream.

(Sorry for my lousy translation. Read the origin in Burmese below and better professional translation which I got later) 

Source: Learn NC

 From Kyaw Kyaw Oo’s blog 

I got this better translation later. Above was my translation.

Source of poem below- “Keep on flowing Ayeyarwaddy…”- anthology of the Myanmar Poetry –
Zaw Gyi : Hyacinth’s Way  – This is My Way

Rejoicing in the tidal creek, the blue coloured Miss Beda,
Giving pretext of the jasmine flower,
She wants to dock at the shore near.
Rejoicing in the tidal creek, Miss Beda of a bluish colour,
Giving pretext of the belle lady,
She fancies to stop at the shore here.
Rejoicing in the tidal creek, bluish Miss Beda,
Giving pretext of the small stupa,
She desires to land at the shore hither.
With a sail aloft while I glide,
The words of the piper I have learned to abide,
Wearing like a sash the noble wish of escape, bluish lady
Beda
Flowing up and dawn in the tidal creek’s water,
She says, this is my way; no other.

– Noble wish of escape.
The wish of escape from endless births of Samsara, and
taking the other way round, it means the attainment of Nirvana

Pic Wikipedia