WIND

Poem –by  SUBRAMANIA BHARATI

 
[Translated from Tamil by A.K. Ramanujan]

THEME
The theme of this poem is that even when you face a lot of hardships and
obstacles in life, you should never give up, instead you should befriend
those obstacles.

The main theme of the poem problems in our lives are like wind. They
will come to us all the time. We cannot stop them or escape them. We
have to face them and bear the hardships.

There are people who are weak and frail. They don’t have goals in their
life nor will power or confidence to face these problems. Hence the
problems ruin their lives. they fail miserably and live a life of hardships
and troubles.

On the other hand, those who are strong and have confidence and will
power face these problems with all their might and in finally succeed
because problems make us strong and flourish in the world. Hence we
all should have strong will power.

PARAPHRASE

1. Wind, come softly………………..You’re very clever at poking fun at

weaklings.
Paraphrase: In this stanza, the poet is talking to the wind. He is
requesting the wind to come softly. So, he is saying that the wind
should not be very strong, loud .It should be soft and subtle. Then he
says that the wind is very powerful it is destructive, it breaks the shutters
of windows and scatters the papers. When the wind is very powerful, all
the books which are kept on the shelf fall down. So here, the poet is
describing the power of the wind. Then he says to the wind to look at the
destruction that it had done.  Whenever there is a strong wind all the
thing that are weak, like small plants, tiny children, etc., they all get
scared and they can even fall and get hurt. We can say that in the initial
part of the poem, the poet is referring to wind as a young child. He is
saying that it should come softly just like a small child does. In the later
part, we come to know that the wind is destructive just like a youth. Just
like a young boy or a young girl who is full of energy, violence and
destruction.

2. Frail crumbling houses, crumbling doors……………..the wind god winnows

and crushes them all.
Paraphrase: Here, the word ‘Crumbling’ is repeated so many times to lay
stress that everything crumbles in the face of a strong wind. So, the
writer is saying that when wind is very powerful, it is very strong, it leads
to breakage of everything.  Houses which are weak, fall, doors which
are weak fall, the beams on which the roof of the buildings are
supported, they also fall, all the wooden structures fall, all bodies of
people fall, animals, lives, hearts. So, he is saying that everything
crumbles. Everything that is weak reacts by falling down and breaking in
the face of adversity. So, the poet is saying that whenever a weak
person faces any adversity or challenge in life he breaks down and falls.
Here the poet is addressing to wind as ‘wind god’, and he is saying that
the powerful god of wind winnows, that means he sifts all the people and
those people who are weak fall down and get crushed. So here, a
comparison is made between wheat and people. Just like we winnow
the wheat to separate the grain from chaff, the wind god separates the
strong people from the weak people. When there is a strong wind, all the
things that are weak fall and get crushed.

3. He won’t do what you tell him……………….Do this, and the wind will be
friends with us.
Paraphrase: The poet wants us to make friends with the wind i.e. the
adversities in our lives.He says that the problems will not listen to us.
They will come, so we should be prepared. In preparation,we should
build strong homes and close the doors of our house firmly so that the
wind cannot get into. And then he says that we should also make our
bodies strong and hearts firm to face these challenges. And then once
we are strong enough all the challenges will be like friends. We will not
feel that they are troublesome.

4. The wind blows out weak fires……………………..We praise him every day.
Paraphrase : The poet has kept the wind on a pedestal. He is comparing
the wind to god. He says that wind is god and we praise wind every day.
He adds that everything that is weak gets finished off in the face of the
strong wind. And all the things that are strong, flourish and grow to
become stronger. He is giving us a very important message, that we
should not feel bad that we are facing so many challenges and
adversities in life. We should make our self physically and mentally
strong to face these challenges. And once we are strong enough, we will
overcome the challenges, we will become friends with them and then we
will be happy that we had these challenges in our life because they help
us become stronger and better.

ANSWER THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS IN 30 – 40 WORDS

1. What does the poet say the wind god winnows?

A. The wind God winnows means that nature sifts the weak things from
the strong ones. Everything that is weak is tossed by the powerful wind
and gets destroyed. Just like the winnower separates the grains of wheat
from the chaff, similarly, the wind god separates the weak from the
strong.
 
2. What should we do to make friends with the wind?
A. We must make ourselves strong to face the violent wind. When we
will be strong, the wind will not harm us, instead it will become a friend
and help us to grow and flourish.
3. Explain what the poet means by ‘Make the heart steadfast’.
A.The poet advises that while facing difficulties and challenges in life, one should
have strong determination and courage. Wind causes weak structures to crumble
and puts out a weak fire, but has no effect on a strong structure, in fact, it causes a
strong fire to bum more intensely. Similarly, a resolute heart can face all adversities.
4. What is the central idea of the poem ‘Wind’?
A . In Wind Subramania Bharati advises us to face challenges and obstacles in life
with grit and determination. For this we must be strong in mind and body. Only then
will wind be our friend. Wind represents the difficulties and challenges we encounter
in life. We should encounter them boldly.
5.

ANSWER THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS IN 100 – 120 WORDS

1. What challenges are posed by wind in the life of the poet and the common man?
Ans : According to the poet, wind disrupts our everyday life. Wind, and
accompanying rain, are forces of nature that are perceived as the tempest forces
which create impediments in a man’s life. Just as our problems which can arise from
nowhere, wind can hit us at any time of our life It mocks the weak and the frail. For
frail people, literally and metaphorically, wind creates barriers. Winds do not let a frail
body or a frail mind survive but on the other hand If you are strong, you have the
power and the will to survive and fight back, wind can never be a threat to your
being.
2. How does the poet use wind as a symbol in relation to human beings?
OR
Human life is full of hardships. How does the poet reveal it?
Ans. In relation to human beings, the wind has been used by the poet as a symbol of
hardships that life is dotted with. Men have to encounter terrible suffering, sorrows,
difficulties, and failure. So powerful are these troubles that only very strong people
are able to overcome them and move ahead. Weak, infirm and indecisive people
surrender in front of hardships and accept defeat. But , strong people with patience ,
unwavering minds and firm will fight against the hardships and emerge even
stronger. Human lives can never be devoid of struggles. One only need physical and
mental strength to overcome the unfavourable circumstances. The winds of troubles
cannot harm those who have the power to overcome the unfavourable circumstance.
The winds of troubles cannot harm those who have the power to stand firm. Strong
people can turn their difficulties into opportunities and learn lessons from them. They
know how to turn tides in their favour.

3. Which values of life do the poet emphasize in the poem?

OR

Do you think the poem wind is a didactic poem? What moral values does it preach?

Ans. The poem “ Wind” by Subramania Bharati teachers a very deep moral lesson
for human beings. The poet uses the wind as a symbol of problems in life while the
sturdy structure symbolize unflatering, strong human beings. The poet uses both the
symbols and direct statement to bring home the values of strong Physical health and
mental powers , confidence and a firm will.

Life is not a Cakewalk ; it is strewn with obstacles and challenges. However only the
weak willed and infirm people are unable to beat these obstacles and challenges
and meekly accept their failures and defeats. The forces of unfavourable, unhappy
circumstances fail to conquer those who have the courage. Such people beat all
odds against them and come out victorious and move on. Just as the wind
extinguishes only small flames and the high flames rise higher with the wind ,
similarly troubles terrify only those who have not equipped themselves with an act of
unflattering courage and determination. Difficulties are a part of life ; they cannot be
avoided, but they can be resisted through courage and confidence,

Thus, the poem is didactic in nature and emphasizes the values of courage ,
confidence and strong will.