Sarojini Naidu (1879-1949) Biography, Quotes, & Poem Indian Weavers
Sarojini Naidu (1879-1949)
About the Poetess
Sarojini Naidu, an eminent poetess, patriot, politician and a nationalist leader was born on the 13th of February 1879 in Hyderabad in a Bengali family. On this day February 13th India celebrates Sarojni Naidu birthday as National Woman’s Day of India every year. Sarojini Naidu was India’s first women Governer and also famous as ‘Bharat Kokila’.
She was educated at London and Cambridge. She began to write poetry at an early age. She was a gifted poetess and a fluent speaker in English. Her books The Bird Of Time, The Broken Wing and The Golden Threshold are very famous. She is a poetess of love and beauty. Her poems are beautiful lyrics and are highly musical.
Sarojini Naidu will also be remembered as the first Indian woman President of the Indian National Congress and the Governor of Uttar Pradesh. She used to write about Indian villages and festivals. She was gifted with a melodious voice and was aptly called The Nightingale of India’. She passed away on 1st of March, 1949. As a freedom fighter, statesman, educationist and poetess, she always remained a source of inspiration to her countrymen.
About the Poem
The poem is in a dialogue form. In it the poetess describes the three stages in the life of a man. The three stages are – birth, marriage and death. The poetess puts some questions to the weavers. The weavers tell her that they are weaving the clothes of a new-born baby, marriage-veils of a queen and the funeral shroud of a dead man. The weavers weave the clothes of a new-born baby in the early morning. They weave the marriage-veils of a queen in the evening. They weave the funeral shroud of dead man at night.
Quotes By Sarojini Naidu
- “Shall hope prevail where clamorous hate is rite.”
- “We want deeper sincerity of motive, a greater courage in speech and earnestness in action.”
- “Hark to a voice that is calling, to my heart in the voice of the mind.”
- “66 A country’s greatness lies in its undying ideals of love and sacrifice that inspire the mothers of the race.”
- “To quench my longing I bent me low by the streams of the spirits of Peace that flow in that magical wood in the land of sleep.”
- “My heart is very weary and sad and alone, For its dreams like the fluttering leaves have gone, And why should I say behind.”
- “Oh, we want a new breed of men before India can be cleansed of her disease.”
- “Shall hope prevail where clamorous hate is rite.”
- “The new has come and now the old retires. And so the past becomes a mountain cell. Where lone apart old hermit memories dwell.””I am not ready to die because it requires infinitely greater courage to live.”
INDIAN WEAVERS
Weavers, weaving at break of day,
Why do you weave a garment so gay ?
Blue as the wing of a halcyon wild,
We weave the robes of a new-born child.
Weavers, weaving at fall of night,
Why do you weave a garment so bright?
Like the plumes of a peacock, purple and green,
We weave the marriage-veils of a queen.
Weavers, weaving solemn and still,
Why do you weave in the moon-light chill ?
White as a feather and white as a cloud,
We weave a dead man’s funeral shroud.
-Sarojin Naidu
Appreciation
Indian weavers are known all over the world. They produce different kinds of cloth for you. Their cloth is cheap and durable. They share in our country’s economy. They are honest, hard-working and reliable.
Important links
What is poetry? What are its main characteristics?
What is a lyric and what are its main forms?
