The Shade of Humanity Is Grey: Human Beings Are Neither Good nor Evil but an Amalgamation of Both

By The Humanitarians

The literary work which is a collection of translated short stories and poems from various Indian languages into English shows the grey shade of humanity. It will give the readers an overview of humanity regarding the various shades of humanity, good or evil, which are seen in everyday life and spirituality that is based on the essence of the supreme power. The short stories and the poems present an in-depth study of human beings and their relationships with others thereby showcasing the universal values of love, service, compassion, kindness, empathy, renunciation, nobility and magnanimity. They also present the vices ingrained in humans such as greed, cruelty, selfishness and hypocrisy. The literary work presents:

Dr. Panchali Mukherjee (Assistant Professor and HoD, Department of Languages, T. John College, Bangalore)

Ms. Pooja Basnett (Asst. Prof - Journalism, Department of Languages, T. John College, Bangalore)

Mr. Sunil Kumar Shrestha (BCA Alumnus - T. John College, Bangalore)

Ms. Nagarathna M.L. (Assistant Professor- Psychology, Department of Languages, T. John College, Bangalore)

Ms. Deepika Rachel R. [B.A. (JEP) Student, T. John College, Bangalore]

Humanity is enthralling when you see various nuances of it. Human experiences are didactic, teach us lessons of life, change our perceptions and leave us wise. An act of kindness makes one attain spirituality and brings one nearer to god. Humanity in its various shades presents itself before us in these stories. The poems spell out a model code of conduct for one and redefines religion for us.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Partridge Publishing India
• Release date: Feb 11, 2016
• ISBN: 9781482871166

The Humanitarians

Dr. Panchali Mukherjee (Assistant Professor and HoD, Department of Languages, T. John College, Bangalore) Ms. Pooja Basnett (Asst. Prof - Journalism, Department of Languages, T. John College, Bangalore) Mr. Sunil Kumar Shrestha (BCA Alumnus - T. John College, Bangalore) Ms. Nagarathna M.L. (Assistant Professor- Psychology, Department of Languages, T. John College, Bangalore) Ms. Deepika Rachel R. [B.A. (JEP) Student, T. John College, Bangalore]

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Copyright © 2016 by The Humanitarians.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

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www.partridgepublishing.com/india

Contents

The Unfortunate’s Heaven

Bio-Note

1

2

3

4

Glossary

After Reading A Letter

Temples of Shiva

Relinquish!

What worth is it?

We dedicate this book to the spirit of humanity.

The Unfortunate’s Heaven

Translated from Bangla to English

Author- Sarat Chandra Chatterjee

Translator- Dr. Panchali Mukherjee

(Assistant Professor and HoD,

Department of Languages,

T. John College, Bangalore)

Bio-Note

Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay (1876-1938) who was born in Hooghly, West Bengal, India and died in Kolkata, West Bengal, India was a famous Bengali novelist, short story writer and dramatist of the early 20th century. He has written many novels, short stories and plays. His works have been translated into many Indian languages and have been successfully dramatized on stage and adapted to movies.

1

Thakurdas Mukhopadhyay’s* aged wife died after seven days of fever. Old Mukhopadhyay’s* trade in paddy had made him quite rich. His four sons, three daughters, grand-children, sons-in-law, neighbours and servants were all there – the death resulted in an apparently big celebration. People from all over the village had come crowding in to watch the grand funeral procession. The mourning daughters besmeared their mother’s feet with lac-dye and her head with vermilion, the daughters-in-law smeared their mother-in-law’s forehead with sandalwood paste and covered her both with costly clothes then they wiped the last grain of dust from her feet with the loose ends of their saris. Flowers, leaves, fragrance, garlands and the din made one think that it was not a matter of grief – it seemed as if after fifty years, this was a new journey for the mistress of the big house. Old Mukhopadhyay* bade farewell to his lifelong companion with a serene expression on his face, secretly wiped one or two tears and began consoling his grieving daughters and daughters-in-law. Loud chants of Hari*! shook the morning sky as the entire village accompanied the funeral procession. Kangali’s mother joined the procession