The Anniversarie by John Donne Complete Explanation in English and Hindi with Critical Appreciation

 

John Donne's Poem "The Anniversarie"

Introduction and Text of the Poem

The Anniversary by John Donne is a dramatic lyric in which the poet celebrates his love which is now one year old. In this three-stanza poem, the poet commemorates the first anniversary of seeing his beloved. The poet is the speaker and his beloved is the silent listener in the poem.
The central theme of the poem 'The Anniversarie'  is the immortality of true love which transcends death itself.
  The poem 'The Anniversary' has thirty lines; ten lines in three stanzas. The rhyme scheme is AABBCCDDDD. 

Text :-

All Kings, and all their favourites
All glory’ of honors, beauties, wits
The Sun it selfe, which makes times, as they passe,
Is elder by a yeare, now, than it was
When thou and I first one another saw:
All other things, to their destruction draw,
Only our love hath no decay;
This, no to morrow hath, nor yesterday,
Running it never runs from us away,
But truly keepes his first, last, everlasting day.

Two graves must hide thine and my corse,
If one might, death were no divorce.
Alas, as well as other princes, wee,
(Who Prince enough in one another bee,)
Must leave at last in death , these eyes, and eares,
Oft  fed with true oaths, and with sweet salt teares;
But soules where nothing dwells but love
(All other thoughts being inmates) then shall prove
This, or a love increased there above,
When bodies to their graves, soules from their graves remove.

And then wee shall  be thoroughly blest,
But wee no more, than all the rest,
Here upon earth, we’are kings, and none but wee
Can be such  Kings, nor of such subjects bee;
Who is so safe as wee? where none can doe
Treason to us, except one of us two.
True and false feares let us refraine,
Let us love nobly, ‘and live, and adde againe
Yeares ad yeares unto yeares, till we attaine
To write threescore: this is the second of our reigne.

John Donne Portrait

About John Donne

John Donne (22 January 1572 – 31 March 1631) was an English poet, scholar, soldier and secretary born into a recusant family, who later became a cleric in the Church of England.

Donne was the most influential metaphysical poet. His personal relationship with spirituality is at the center of most of his work, and the psychological analysis and sexual realism of his work marked a dramatic departure from traditional, genteel verse.
  When Dryden, Johnson and Dowden called Donne a metaphysical poet, they referred to the style of Donne. ... His poetry is metaphysical because of his individualism and his quest for learning. His poetry is full of wit. It is obscure and it indulges in far fetched conceits.

Donne is often considered the greatest love poet in the English language. He is also noted for his religious verse and treatises and for his sermons, which rank among the best of the 17th century.

Summary in English

One year has passed since the poet saw his beloved. All kings, their favourites, the courtiers, men of honour, beautiful women, witty men even the Sun is elder by a year now. Everything in the world have changed and suffers decay but their love has not changed with time. It has no tomorrow no yesterday, neither past nor future, and though it runs on in time, it never runs away from the lovers. It is stable and beyond decay.
The graves must hide their(lovers) corpses. If one grave might cover the two corpses, death would not spepeate them. Alas! as it is the fate of the other princes, they, each being as good as a prince in enjoying the love of the other, also must at last let their eyes and ears be closed in death, their ears which were nourished with genuine oaths, and their eyes, which were nourished with sweet-bitter tears. But their souls, possessed entirely by love, and admitting other thoughts only temporarily, shall then prove the constancy of their love. There love will increase in heaven when after death the souls will come out of grave and ascend to heaven.
And in heaven they shall be thoroughly blest; they shall be as much blest as other spirits. Here on earth they are kings in their love; none else is so crowned with love. As they are kings in their love, none else but they can be subjects of such kings- they are both king and subject in their love. None cam do treachery to them, unless one of them turns faithless. Let them refrain from fears, either real or groundless. Let them love nobly and live adding year to year until they are sixty. Then they will celebrate their love after year and years, it is only the second year of their love.

Summary in Hindi

सभी राजा और इनके चापलूस या कृपापात्र, सारे सम्मानित मनुष्य, सुंदर स्त्रियां और बुद्धिमान व्यक्ति खुद सूरज भी जो समय का निर्धारण करता है, जैसे जैसे समय बीतता है, यानी सूरज के उगने से ही सुबह होती है और डूबने से रात तो यह सारी चीजें अब पहले से एक साल पुरानी हो चुकी है।
यानी जब मैंने और तुमने एक दूसरे को पहली बार देखा था तब से आज तक में यानी एक साल बीत चुका है और इन सभी चीजों की उम्र एक साल बढ़ चुकी है।

जब समय बितता है तो बाकी सारी चीजें क्षय होने लगती है, बर्बाद होने लगती है। दुनिया की बाकी चीजें समय के साथ खराब होती है, लेकिन हमारा प्यार नष्ट नहीं होता, नहीं मुरझाता। हमारे प्यार का ना तो कोई आने वाला कल है, ना ही कोई बीता हुआ कल है। प्यार समय की गति के साथ दौड़ता है। फिर भी यह कभी प्रेमियों से दूर नहीं भागता। प्रेम सदा के लिए स्थाई रहता है, जैसा था हमेशा वैसा ही रहता है।

तो जब हम दोनों ने एक दूसरे को पहली बार देखा और इस बात को एक साल बीत चुके हैं। राजा बदल गए उनके दरबारी, बुद्धिमान व्यक्ति, सुंदर औरतें यहां तक कि खुद सूर्य इन सबमें decay हुआ पर हमारा प्यार वैसा का वैसा है। इसमें कोई बदलाव नहीं आया है।

दो कब्रों को मेरा और तुम्हारा शव छुपाना चाहिए क्योंकि हमारा प्यार timeless है। प्रेम पर समय का कोई असर नहीं पड़ता। पर physical body पर तो पड़ता है। एक दिन हम दोनों मर जाएंगे तो शायद हमारी बॉडी को अलग-अलग कब्रों में दफनाया जाएगा।
अगर एक ही क़ब्र में दोनों शव भी समां सकते हैं तो भी मृत्यु का मतलब यह नहीं कि वे दोनों अलग हो गए। मौत उन्हें अलग नहीं कर सकती। हम भी बाकी राजाओं के जैसे ही है, जैसे राजाओं का भाग्य होता है। तो कवि और उनकी प्रेमिका भी राजाओं के जैसे ही एक दूसरे के प्यार में आनंद ले रहे हैं जिन्हें प्रेम ने प्रिंसेस के जैसा ऊंचा स्थान दिया है।
तो अंत में मृत्यु के साथ ही ये आंखें जिनसे प्यार छलकता था और कान जो प्रेम भरे शब्दों को ग्रहण करते थे, मृत्यु द्वारा बंद कर दिए जाएंगे। उनके कान सच्ची कसमों से तुष्ट रहते थे। उनकी आंखें मीठे कड़वे आंसुओं से। आत्माएं जहां प्रेम के सिवा/ प्यार के सिवा और कुछ निवास नहीं करता यानी उनकी आत्मा है जो पूरी तरह से प्रेम से भरी थी और दूसरे विचारों को उनमें केवल क्षनिक स्थान प्राप्त होता था। तब उनके प्यार के स्थायित्व को सिद्ध करेगा, कि प्यार या प्रेम शरीर से आगे बढ़ चुका है। यानी स्वर्ग में भी जिंदा रहेगा जब शरीर कब्रों में दफन हो जाते हैं और आत्मा कब्र से निकल जाती है, स्वर्ग में चली जाती है तो प्रेम स्वर्ग में और बढ़ेगा और तब स्वर्ग में हमें पूर्ण स्वर्गीय आनंद मिलेगा। यह भाग्यवान होंगे, लेकिन हमें उतना ही आनंद मिलेगा जितना अन्य आत्माओं को। स्वर्ग में सब बराबर भाग्यशाली नहीं होते बल्कि बराबर संतुष्ट होते हैं। इस धरती पर हम राजा है, तो धरती पर है  वह स्पेशल है क्योंकि प्रेम ने उन्हें जो राजाओं वाली पोजीशन दी है, वह और किसी के पास नहीं ।
ना ही किसी राजा की ऐसी प्रजा हो सकती है। यानी प्रेम में speaker और उनकी प्रेमिका ही राजा और प्रजा है, और राज़द्रोह का प्रश्न ही नहीं उठता क्योंकि प्रजा खुद राजा है तो विद्रोह कैसा।
हमारे जैसा सुरक्षित कौन है? यानी हमारे साथ हम दोनों के अलावा और कोई विश्वासघात नहीं कर सकता यानी बस हम दोनों ही एक दूसरे को धोखा दे सकते हैं, कोई तीसरा नहीं।
हम सच्चे और आधारहीन भय से बचे तो कवि यह कह रहे हैं कि उनके प्रेम को कैसा होना चाहिए या एक तरह से प्रार्थना कर रहे हैं। स्पीकर यह कहते हुए कविता समाप्त करते हैं कि हमें उदारता के साथ शानदार तरीके से प्रेम करना चाहिए। यानी हम लोग प्रेम से जीये और अपने प्रेम में सालों साल जोड़ते जाएं। यानी हम लोग तब तक प्यार करें जब तक हम साठ साल के लिए न जी लें, जबकि ये तो हमारे प्रेम का दूसरा ही साल है, यानि कवि प्रेम के एक लंबे साम्राज्य का वादा कर रहे है।

Critical Appreciation of 'The Anniversarie'

It is the celebration ol a love that is a year old. It has not been affected by any change. It is love triumphant, resisting decay which invades everything in the world. But the poet cannot keep out the image and thought death. Death will sever the lovers. Love has crowned them kings, but kings too die, and they will be a prey to death. Those eyes of theirs, which have been fed with true oaths, and those ears of theirs, which have been fed with sweet-bitters, will be closed in death. But it does not mean the annihilation of their love. Their love will survive while their bodies crumble into dust in the grave. In heaven they will love again, and they will be blest like other spirits. This consummation is to be reached after they have loved nobly and lived on carth for three scores of years. And their love in heaven as blessed spirits is described by the poet as the second reign.
None of the mellifluous expression of the Elizabethan is here-none can be guh of their "taffetal phrases, silken terms precise." Donne writes in a simple and direct manner. The thought-process may be a little complicated, for the poet passes quickly from one thought to another, from one image to another, each being not necessarily related to the other. The Elizabethan sonnet-writers speak the sentiment of Petrarch, having established a cult of woman-worship, and partaking as they do in the diffused poetry of the age, they have sometimes the accents of a truc poet - but they are lacking in passion. They can just write smooth and fluent verse. Here we see all the difference between Donne and the Elizabethans. He infuses passion into poetry; and introduces the personal note ; and in his love-poetry, so unlike that of the Elizabethans, he expresses the varying moods and sentiments, sometimes these moods and sentiments being personal, even going down to stark realistic representation. It is the complexity of mood and feeling in his love-poetry, which is something new.
In The Anniversarie, we may note the different phases he passes through. First, the passing of a year since the lovers met and began to love. Has it affected any change in them ? The sun itself has changed in the course of a year-and kings and all their favourites, honour, beauty, wit have all changed. With the very idea of change, wrought by time, Donne begins with kings and their favourites. Now this is not fortuitous. The lovers are just like kings in their love. They have the covered position of kings. But kings are mortal too. The poet thinks decay and death that affect all in the world. Here the quick transition of thought is to be noted. Love that seems to be constant- and even eternal-makes him think of death. The haunting image of death recurs again and again in Donne's poetry. It is a sort of obsession with him. It is the 'macabre' that possesses his mind-the dissolution that is wrought by death. So in this poem he goes into details-each of the lovers rotting away in a different grave, the eyes that beamed love and ears that devoured words of love being now sealed in dust. From the idea of death the poet soon rises to the idea of love that is eternal, and it is the love that is lodged in the soul, and therefore it must be imperishable. The metaphor of kings is carried on again. After they have lived on earth as kings by right of their love, where none can do treason to the other (they are both kings and subjects in their love, and a subject can be guilty of treason to his king- and so here the question of treason does not arise at all), their souls will ascend to heaven where they will live as blessed spirits and their love can know no change. Ideas which seem to be contrary-death and eternity of love-are combined here, and developed dialectically. Now this is the way with Donne.

~ Shivani Sharma

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