Bangle sellers

1. Bangle Sellers Presentation by: CVVMMK Dhaveji School Assistant Science Taylor High School Narsapur 534275 Andhra Pradesh [email protected]

2. Bangle Sellers Sarojani Naidu

3. The poem " Bangle Sellers " was first published in the year 1912 by Sarojani Naidu in her collection of poems called " The Bird of Time ."

4. The wearing of bangles is considered to be very auspicious and of symbolic value bordering on the religious.

5. Bangle sellers are we who bear Our shining loads to the temple fair... Who will buy these delicate, bright Rainbow-tinted circles of light? Lustrous tokens of radiant lives, For happy daughters and happy wives.

6. Some are meet for a maiden's wrist, Silver and blue as the mountain mist, Some are flushed like the buds that dream On the tranquil brow of a woodland stream, Some are aglow with the bloom that cleaves To the limpid glory of new born leaves

7. Some are like fields of sunlit corn, Meet for a bride on her bridal morn, Some, like the flame of her marriage fire, Or, rich with the hue of her heart's desire, Tinkling, luminous, tender, and clear, Like her bridal laughter and bridal tear.

8. Some are purple and gold flecked grey For she who has journeyed through life midway, Whose hands have cherished, whose love has blest, And cradled fair sons on her faithful breast, And serves her household in fruitful pride, And worships the Gods at her husband's side.

9. Bangle Sellers

10. Bangle sellers are we who bear Our shining loads to the temple fair... We are Bangle sellers and we carry heaps (lots) of shining bangles to the temple fair...

11. Heaps of Bangles

12. Lots of Bangles

13. Who will buy these delicate, bright

14. Rainbow-tinted circles of light? Rainbow-shaded circles of light?

15. Lustrous tokens of radiant lives, For happy daughters and happy wives Shiny symbols of happy lives , For happy daughters and happy wives

16. Some are meet for a maiden's wrist , Some bangles suit for the girl’s wrists

17. Silver and blue as the mountain mist,

18. Some are flushed like the buds that dream Some are rosy like the buds that dream….

19. On the tranquil brow of a woodland stream …on the peaceful ridge of a woodland stream

20. Some are aglow with the bloom that cleaves To the limpid glory of new born leaves

21. Some are bright with the colouration that cuts to the transparent beauty of new born leaves

22. Some are like fields of sunlit corn,

23. Some are like Sunny corn fields,

24. Meet for a bride on her bridal morn,

25. Some, like the flame of her marriage fire,

26. Or, rich with the hue of her heart's desire,

27. Tinkling, luminous, tender, and clear,

28. Like her bridal laughter

29. and bridal tear.

30. Some are purple and gold flecked grey

31. For she who has journeyed through life midway, Middle aged woman,

32. Whose hands have cherished, whose love has blest,

33. And cradled fair sons on her faithful breast,

34. And serves her household in fruitful pride, who has attained fulfilment by successfully rearing her sons

35. And serves her household in fruitful pride, who has attained fulfilment by successfully rearing her sons

36. And worships the Gods at her husband's side.

37. Sarojini Naidu has foregrounded the auspiciousness and the symbolic value of the custom of wearing bangles by repeating "happy."  

38. The 'happy' daughters look forward to their marital bliss while the 'happy' wives are content and glory in the fulfilment which is a result of their marital status.

39. Each of the next three stanzas deal with the three stages in the life of an average Indian woman - a virgin maiden, an expectant bride and finally a mature matriarch.

40. The bangles are of many colours. However, each stage in an Indian woman's life is described lyrically and appropriately according to the colour of the bangle suitable to that stage:

41. for the maiden virgin who is always dreaming of a happily married life it is a misty silver and blue,

42. for the expectant and passionate bride it is a golden yellow, and for the mature matriarch it is a "purple and gold flecked grey."

43. Similarly Sarojini Naidu very poetically describes the desires of an Indian woman according to each stage of her life :

44. the  virgin maiden is carrying in her heart countless dreams of her future married life and she is compared to a " bud that dreams ."

45. The young bride is described as brimming over with passionate desire although she is nervous about what the future holds for her as she leaves her parental home - " bridal laughter and bridal tear ."

46. Finally, she describes the proud and faithful matriarch who has attained fulfilment by successfully rearing her sons - " serves her house in fruitful pride -" and hence is permitted to take her rightful place by the side of her husband in all the domestic religious rituals