Love

I know not the taste of love, nor the colour of desire

by Vidyapati c. 1352-1448

Translated by Ananda Coomaraswamy and Arun Sen (1915) · From Bangiya Padabali (trans. 1915)

Love

Rādhā:
I know not the taste of love, nor the colour of desire;
How may I have ado, my dear, with yonder swain,
That I should love him as you ask?
A young thing I, afraid of shame.

What can I tell you, dearest maiden?
I may not dare to have ado with him,
He is a herdsman lover, new-enflamed,
With all five arrows Love awakens his desire.

No sooner seeing me, but he will clip me tight:
Who then will save me, when my life is dying?
Vidyāpati says: Your fears are vain,
Believe me, that his love is not of such a sort.

✦ ✦ ✦

The Counsel of Girl-friends (Sakhīs), XXXI

MLA

Vidyapati. “I know not the taste of love, nor the colour of desire.” Translated by Ananda Coomaraswamy and Arun Sen. Poetry Codex, poetrycodex.com/poem/vidyapati/30/.

Chicago

Vidyapati. “I know not the taste of love, nor the colour of desire.” Translated by Ananda Coomaraswamy and Arun Sen. Poetry Codex. https://poetrycodex.com/poem/vidyapati/30/.

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