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Quote of the day by Sarojini Naidu: ‘Till ye have battled with great grief and fears…’
A feminist, revolutionary poet, Sarojini Naidu's quote reminds us that grief and scars are but marks of a life well-led.
A poet, feminist, and political activist, Sarojini Naidu was a woman of many talents. Born in a Bengali family in Hyderabad, she went on to become the Indian woman president of the Indian National Congress, and later the first woman governor of a state after independence.
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Her poetry, which is as vivid as it is lyrical, earned her the nickname Nightingale of India from Mahatma Gandhi. One of the stalwarts of the Indian independence movement, Naidu’s poems were generally on the themes of patriotism, Indian culture, natural beauty and romance.
Today’s quote of the day is an extract from her poem Life, which goes: “Till ye have battled with great grief and fears, / And borne the conflict of dream-shattering years, / Wounded with fierce desire and worn with strife, / Children, ye have not lived: for this is life.”
What does the Sarojini Naidu quote mean?
In her poem Life, Naidu refers to all listeners as children. She begins by addressing them at a stage when they are enamoured by the beauty and whimsies of life, which stands for childhood. The carefree happiness gives way to passion and longing as one grows older, which are strong enough to make one physically suffer.
However, Naidu refers to the listeners as children still and says that it is not until they have faced their fears and gone through grief that they have lived life. Living is having our dreams shattered, being scarred by our desires and being tired of striving for the life we want. That, according to Naidu, is what life is all about.
Why is the quote relevant today?
The modern man is getting increasingly accustomed to an easy life. Even turning on the switch is getting outdated; everything is now just a touch or a voice command away.
However, at the same time, the world is as chaotic a place as ever. Conflicts are on the rise, inequality and injustices abound, tragedies are commonplace, and things are a long way from getting any better.
Naidu is at heart a revolutionary leader. And it is that spirit that is needed most in the “children” of today. As they walk onto the battleground of life, they will be confronted with grief and fear, have their dreams shattered, and face many other setbacks. But the quote reminds us that it is all a part of a life well-lived, and thus should be embraced with open arms.
