I am pale with longing for my beloved;

Mirabai 1498 (Kudki, Pali district, Jodhpur State) – 1556 (Dwaraka)



I am pale with longing for my beloved;
     People believe I am ill.
Seizing on every possible pretext,
     I try to meet him 'by accident.'

They have sent for a country doctor;
     He grabs my arm and prods it;
How can he diagnose my pain?
     It's in my heart that I am afflicted.

Go home, country doctor,
     Don't address me by my name;
It's the name of God that has wounded me,
     Don't force your medicines on me.

The sweetness of his lips is a pot of nectar,
     That's the only curd for which I crave;
Mira's Lord is Giridhar Naagar.
     He will feed me nectar again and again.

[Translated by Nita Ramaiya]

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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on April 15, 2023

36 sec read
221

Quick analysis:

Scheme XXXX AXXX AXBB AXAX X
Closest metre Iambic pentameter
Characters 614
Words 116
Stanzas 5
Stanza Lengths 4, 4, 4, 4, 1

Mirabai

Mirabai was a 16th-century Hindu mystic poet and devotee of Lord Krishna. more…

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