Jabberwocky/Jaborkhaaki

‘Jabberwocky’ from Lewis Carroll’s ‘Alice’s Adventures In Wonderland’ continues to remain my favorite nonsense verse of all times. It has been translated in many a language, and the Bengali translation, ‘Jaborkhaaki’ was done by Mr. Satyajit Ray, and was published in his children’s magazine ‘Sandesh’ quite many years back… The voracious reader I was as a child, I had come across both versions around the same time. It was my first brush with the Existence Of The Inexplicable, probably my first realization that Life can get quite scary at times, quite tumultuous, but one must retain the courage to charge forwards with the ‘vorpal blade’, the ability to swish it ‘snicker-snack’ and the determination to finish off all the Jabberwockies plaguing one’s life.

JABBERWOCKY:
'Twas brillig, and the slithy toves
Did gyre and gimble in the wabe;
All mimsy were the borogoves,
And the mome raths outgrabe.

"Beware the Jabberwock, my son!
The jaws that bite, the claws that catch!
Beware the Jubjub bird, and shun
The frumious Bandersnatch!"

He took his vorpal sword in hand:
Long time the manxome foe he sought—
So rested he by the Tumtum tree,
And stood awhile in thought.

And as in uffish thought he stood,
The Jabberwock, with eyes of flame,
Came whiffling through the tulgey wood,
And burbled as it came!

One, two! One, two! and through and through
The vorpal blade went snicker-snack!
He left it dead, and with its head
He went galumphing back.

"And hast thou slain the Jabberwock?
Come to my arms, my beamish boy!
O frabjous day! Callooh! Callay!"
He chortled in his joy.

'Twas brillig, and the slithy toves
Did gyre and gimble in the wabe;
All mimsy were the borogoves,
And the mome raths outgrabe.




AND THE BENGALI VERSION… JABORKHAAKI
[Well the Bangla version is not ubiquitous in its availability, and neither has it been included in any compilation of Ray’s work (another work of his that’s been similarly ignored is ‘Papaangul-the tale of a group of weirdly cute looking creatures that wanted to sail the Seven Seas on a sieve), so I’m quite glad that I remember it wholly, and have thus, been able to put it here…]


Billigir oi shithle joto tobe
Galumgiri korchhe bheu’er dhaare
Aar jotoshob mimshe borogobe
Momtarader gebgebiye mare

“Jashni bachha joborkhaaki’r kachhe,
Raamkhichuni, Raabonkaamor taar,
Jashni jetha jubju boshe gachhe,
Bandorchenchha mukhti kore bhaar”

Tao shey niye bhurpi talowar,
Khunjte gelo manxume dushmone
Onek khunje shondhe jokhon paar
Thaamlo giye Tumta gachher bone

Emon shomoy dekhte pelo cheye,
Ghupchi bone chulli chokher bhaata,
Joborkhaaki aaschhe bujhi dheye,
Hilphiliye mosto kore hanta

Shon-shon-shon chollo torobaari,
Shanik,shinik joborkhaki shesh
Skondhe niye mundokhaana taari
Galumphiye jaaye shey aapon desh.

“Tor haate tei Joborkhaaki gelo?”
Shudhaye baape chamuk hashi heshe
“Aaye bachhadhon aaye re amaar kelo,
Bimbi amaar, boshna koley eshe..”

Billigir oi shithle joto tobe
Galumgiri korchhe bheu’er dhaare
Aar jotoshob mimshe borogobe
Momtarader gebgebiye mare..