Dialectics of Being and Belonging: An Analysis of the Poems of A.V. Koshy by Dr Zeenath Ibrahim

Finally, the first paper on me by Zeenath Ibrahim published in Singularities pp79-89. The best poets call forth the best critics and I am not surprised that destiny made her write the first paper on me - I could not have wished for a better study, one I know will be a landmark. A poet or creator is only as great as his readers make him and I am blessed to have been granted such a fine reader. Thanks Dr Zeenath, Arundhati Roy scholar, for this. The full text is given below for all of you to read and enjoy. All copyright reverts to the author and the text can only be shared with due acknoweldgements to magazine and author. Thanks to Reena Prasad for technical or technological help. Forgive the spacing mistakes, if any, they are mine made in copying and pasting. 
http://www.singularities.in/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/journal-pdf.pdf

The Dialectics of Being and Belonging:
An Analysis of Ampat Koshy’s Poems
Dr. Zeenath Mohamed Kunhi
Asst. Professor
Centre of Research and Advanced Studies in English
Farook College, Calicut, Kerala

The literary world of the twentieth century saw a revolutionary rise in fiction-writing, sidelining poetry, the once acclaimed genre. However, with the onset of the new millennium and the phenomenal spread and popularity of social networking sites, poetry writing and reading has gained renewed impetus. This one-time ‘endangered species’ which was limited to the syllabi of schools, colleges, universities, and probably to the few die-hard fans of poetry has found a productive platform on cyberspace, reclaiming its fading glory. A number of poets have stamped their marks, with a repertoire of excellent poetry in the rising number of online poetry groups and literary hubs. Such groups also stand witness to some mediocre stuff, but, what remains significant is that poetry is now read, enjoyed and critiqued like never before.

One of the most prominent poetic voices acclaimed and acknowledged by academicians,writers and laymen alike is Dr. Ampat Koshy, an Indian writer in English. He is one contemporary writer who has carved a niche for himself in the literary world of networking sites with his prolific outpouring of poetry and a commendable collection of prose works. His published collections of poetry include Soul Resuscitation and 2 Phases 50 Poems. His book A Treatise on Poetry for Beginners (now Art of Poetry) as the name suggests is a delightful discourse on the nuances of verses and verse-writing, and was chosen by Butterfly and the Bee as one of the best reads in India in 2012. His monograph of essays called Wrighteings: In Media Res and his doctoral thesis Beckett’s English Poetry: Transcending the Roots of Resistance in Language, both published works are proof enough of his astounding scholarship and erudition. A short story collection awaits publication by Lifi and his poem “A Shayira of Sorts” was nominated for the Pushcart Prize for Poetry for 2012. His poems have also found prominence in many poetry journals, magazines, e-zines and anthologies in different parts of the world like USA, UK, Canada and India. He regularly contributes to The Camel Saloon where three of his poems have become editor’s picks, including “Africa” and “Hurt”. He is presently teaching English Language and Literature in Faculty of Arts, Jazan University, Saudi Arabia as an Assistant Professor. A versatile genius, he dabbles in art, music and literary criticism as well.
Writing is the quintessence of his existence and this passion for writing is well
articulated when he states: “I write, therefore I am. When I am no more, I won’t write anymore, of course, but when I stop writing, even if I am, I am no more” (terrestrian). Though he has experimented with various genres and has excelled in probably all of them, it is his poetry that has attracted a wider readership. 
His verses are marked by a rare elegance that results from a blend of unmatched scholarship and eloquent simplicity. The poetic themes are variegated and are the products of a highly complex personality. His poetry also showcases experimentation in form and structure. Most of his poems deal with love, family, death, alienation, existential angst, meta-poetry and social issues. But mostly it is about a ‘quest’ for something: probably a quest forthe self, a search for wholeness, an insatiable desire for perfection both in art and life or an attempt to relocate his roots through memories from the past that probably provide him anchorage in foreign lands despite his rootless identity. The most intense of his verses spring mostly from his solitary life abroad, far from family and friends. This partly self-imposed exile and its ramifications find expression in most poems of Dr. Koshy. 
The title and the opening line of the poem “I do not know what I seek” speaks volumes of his sense of nostalgia and his passionate yearning to be with his loved ones so as to add meaning to his exile:
I do not know what I seek.
In the midst of my island
This spreading pool of loneliness
widens
engulfing every green thing
on this auspicious day,
overflowing its borders.
His sense of longing is triggered by his inability to belong and the resultant attempt to find meaning in a converging experience defines his sense of being. The overflowing ‘pool of loneliness’ and its consumption of ‘every green thing’ evokes in the readers poignant images of seclusion and emptiness. The image of the lone rock jutting out like an ugly tooth emphasizes the dilemma of the diaspora on alien shores. The recurring images of nostalgia and dislocation
that reverberate through his poetry are also indications of his ambivalent identity. Again, the poet’s attempts to escape or seek respite in fleeting ties are actually thwarted by his firm bonds of permanence that form the basis of his essence:
The fish too escape.
Only a lone rock remains
jutting out like an ugly tooth
splashed by black waves
in the dying rays of the setting sun.
It’s another love I spay.
The poet’s identity is marked by his multicultural exposure. The series of poems
published in Brian Wrixon’s anthology Tripping on Words: a Literary Atlas” is a mosaic of his variegated experiences that lie scattered over differing points in the space schema. The long poem is an attempt to recreate meaning out of a disjointed, disintegrated and dilemmatic life and personality. Each poem acts as a fragment of a coherent whole and at the same time exhibits an identity of its own. This poetry of assimilation is an exercise in the process of acculturation, integration and identity formation.
The section “Trivandrum” takes the readers to the by-lanes and alleys of his childhood and adolescence. Memories of immaculate nature and a non-corrupt world remain etched in his “mnemonic memory’s cartography” (ToW 112). A world of smells and tastes haunts the poet who is still on the lookout for “the elusive answer” to a question that he never framed, that has none.
(loc.cit.).
The section “India” (ibid. 113) is the product of his indisputable love for his homeland – ‘Kafka’s father,’ as he states. The ambivalent attitude that he displays in the poem is the objective outcome of his deep love that comes from an insider viewing his world with an outsider’s lens.
The reference to Kafka is also an exercise in intertextuality, probably indicating the poet’s quest for the Kafkaesque womb!
“Bangalore” (ibid. 112-113) for him does not offer the idyllic charm of the Trivandrum mapped in his memories. It is only a world marked by disparities where the poet enjoys watching and critiquing the “rich lap up luxuries,” though he admits that he too was at times lured by the glitz and glamour of the ‘jaded metropolis’, when he states: “at such times/ you were the lover/ Iwanted/ to rape/ surreptitiously.” 
“Jeddah” (ibid. 113-114) recounts the love-hate relationship with the royal port city. The ambivalence is marked probably by the ordeals of his professional life there and the brief hiatus of measured happiness in the company of his family and friends.
“Al Khums” (ibid. 114) is a poem about Libya where the poet calls to mind his dear and near ones even in moments of extreme happiness, anticipating them to partake in his joy in absentia.
Stuart Hall points out in his essay “Cultural Identity and Diaspora” that cultural identity in the diasporic existence “undergoes constant transformation” (435). Consciously or unconsciously the poet’s self too undergoes constant transformations, and that is probably the reason why the poet appears more composed and stoic in the section on Jazan. Perhaps the theme of longing here harps on the desire for change and movement. The eponymous city Jazan provides him with more hope:
…maybe you will be
my Alexandria
in Arabia Asia,
you let me wander your crevices
the why yet to be revealed
amidst your minarets and muezzin calls
as if I’m waiting for my Damascus
The last line of his poem “Hope” from Soul Resuscitation sums it all up: “Hope is what we live on.” These different fractions of poems fit in like the pieces of a jigsaw puzzle, framing the ‘whole’ of the poetic persona where the joints bear reserves of some elusive meaning. The series both in texture and structure reflect the fragmented self and its attempt to attain completeness through unification or the multiples selves that seek to converge into a single purpose of existence. The scattered presences of the ‘self’ without belonging to any particular place interrogate his sense of being. It is striking to note that his idea of being and becoming is rooted in the quest for meaning underlying the very fluid nature of his existence where the only waterfront seems to be love and duty. These fractions also assert the poet’s liminality as a diaspora and his endeavour to assimilate his present and past; his host and home; the conscious and the unconscious and his self and the other. It is in these liminal spaces that the poet undergoes the individuation process of self-realization, i.e, “the process of strengthening,
differentiation and assimilation (integration) into consciousness of the various non-egoic parts of the psyche…” (Fiumara 178). The unified structure of this poetic montage is also a metaphoric assertion of the fact that “Individuation begins with a withdrawal from normal modes of socialization, epitomized by the breakdown of the persona...liminality”(207)..
The cultural plurality of his homeland reflects in the expansive use of his language and expresses itself in the sublime and grotesque array of words. The poem peppered with abuses strongly underlines his frustration and inability to coerce with the new cultural ethos.
Simultaneously a part of him is sensitive to the changes and makes a constant effort to fit in.
Self-imposed or not, displacement does act as a stimulant to Koshy, as some of his best verses spring from his diasporic sensibilities.
The lines from the poem “Birds” again emphasize the intensity of the poet’s sense of nostalgia and grief at the thought of his separation from his beloved ones:
I never knew the face of death
has lips one longs to kiss
give death a miss!
and,
next year die of surfeit never stop
even an instant to think
of how those faces that face
you lost are tearing you up
The reader may be taken in to believe that the poet actually seeks to forget those bonds from which he finds no escape by indulging in the ‘cup’ of copiousness. But it is again his ‘childhood dreams,’ the ‘blue sky’ and ‘white clouds’ that he seeks solace in. A deep sense of his death marks his poetry and the poet in fact tries to brace up his ties by embracing his pain and anguish that keep his dreams and memories animated: “sleep and dream/ and mayhap find peace.” The poem redirects us to childhood memories and questions of being that the poet is now conscious of and inspired by.
“(After Rilke): An Explanation” the first poem by Koshy in Soul Resuscitation is one of his best and as the connection to the German poet implies, is a fine exercise in “impassioned monologue.” The obvious take off is Rilke’s first Duino elegy which takes Koshy’s theme of alienation and isolation to existential dimensions, attempting to make occasional penetrations into the phenomenon of existence. The poem which abounds in symbolisms and allusions is characterized by an ontological chase creating meaning out of residues nonentities.
In the poem, memory and past images accentuate the poet’s solitude and it is his sensitive consciousness that compels him to seek answers to his existential dilemma. His philosophy of living is rooted in love and faith and this forms the essence of his being:
you are that being
each atom beyond grasp
unexpected sweetness pierces him
occasionally
when he passes a window
and hears them play “in summertime”
The allusions to Bob Dylan’s “Covenant Woman” and “In the Summertime,” in fact,
unveils man’s desperation to achieve anchorage through the sublimity of love which he often feels eludes him. The mystery and elusiveness of love is as obscure as the phenomenon of existence itself. The oxymoron “murderously sweet” reminds one of Yeats’ “terrible beauty” which again is highly eloquent in Rilke’s line from his first elegy- “beauty is nothing but the beginning of terror.” Love for the poet does not rest in the magnetism of physical forms of
elegance but is something transcendental, a sublime entity that may even find expression in little acts of kindness and unstinting commitment to causes as the men in Yeats’ poem. It is through this medium that he aims to find answers to his ontological quest and connect to the Unknown.
On an autobiographical note, it could be argued that the poet’s self- imposed exile which may partly be pecuniary in disposition, something not driven wholly out of materialistic ambitions, and as the introduction to 2 poets 50 poems suggests, is something nobler: “His greatest desire is to build a village for people having autism where all their needs are met. He runs an NGO called “Autism for Help Village Project” with his wife for this dream to come true.” The poetic persona waits for the Lord to “rebuild” him and “fill him up” so as to save him from the vacuity of a purposeless life. The line separating his becoming and being seems to grow fainter at times. The idea is elaborated in the poem “When I consider how my life is spent” from the anthology 2 Phases 50 Poems:
I beat my wings against a pane of glass
behind it the light that would kill me off
this is living death. I neither die nor live
only one thing is clear. there is nothing called love.
To begin with, the pun on the word ‘spent’ is striking and antithetical. The idea of spending one’s life points directly to questions of ontology and the meaning of spent when taken as ‘wastes away’ reflects on the possibilities of damnation. The paradoxical nature of existence is conveyed by the clever play on words.
Again, in the poem “(After Rilke): An Explanation” physical beauty is merely transient and lacks essence as the hair that “false/falls across your face,” just a symbol of terror that points to the pseudo existence that mankind generally indulges in. The war images of “a cobbled street full of dead bodies” and the “small white wild flowers” littering the street take the readers to world of futility and terror. Man is obsessed with self-love and such narcissistic tendencies propel him to revel in a sense of false security, which eventually culminates in his own destruction –both physical and spiritual:
it only wants security to establish what one calls love
this is the secret
fear rules the city and her
and me and him (After Rilke)
Death and destruction leave man with residues of meaning to rebuild and reform his sense of being. The poet, probably see in ‘nothingness’ and ‘void’ the rationale of reformation that may carry one to the metaphysical realms of purpose and being. But man is yet to come to
terms with the essence of his existence and penetrate into the secret of eternal happiness:
the little robin red-breast sings outside her wings
each and every atom of hers
is still beyond his reach (After Rilke)
The speaking persona, unable to comprehend the selfless song of the robin red-breast
cries out in existential angst:
why do you love when such terror inhabits the world
of objects
that horrify us with their longevity? (After Rilke)
The bird is reminiscent of Hardy’s “Darkling Thrush” with its “full-hearted evensong/
Of joy illimited.” For both the birds, hope in humanity and love forms the basis of their living.
The resilience of the birds, not altered by corrupt thoughts is contrasted with the “crumbling” humanity which disintegrates into a state of nothingness. Koshy demeans human life and diagnoses the limitations of mankind by the contradictory images of the selfless bird and self-obsessed man. The references to Kahlo and Diego implicate the ‘false’ notions of love as perceived by the ordinary. Kahlo’s liaisons with Josephine Baker (Hubpages) and Diego’s infamous and incestuous relationship with Kahlo’s sister Christina (Fridakahlo fans) reinforces
the images of Eliot’s moral wasteland where love is mechanical, vacant and transient. Man’s inability to find real love, to move beyond superficial sexual gratification and his obsession with momentary indulgences are congruous to the dissolution of his very essence, his purpose of life and his sense of being. The ethical degradation and moral decay prevent man from attaining
ubermensch or ‘superman’ status. Violence, war and power are all consequences of man’s self-oriented objectives that further belittle his existence, forcing him to degenerate from nothingness to nothing:
like kahlo
outcast other killed forever voices stilled
gone under the earth forever
will mine too?
In addition to the theme of existential angst, this poem can also be taken to be an artist’s hunt for meanings, his/her attempts to trap “abstractions” in the permanence of his/her art and his/her urge to be heard. The bird mentioned earlier is as mortal as the speaking persona but it is its song that becomes the insignia of its essence and permanence. Perhaps the poet’s intentions in alluding to Kahlo are manifold. As writing is living for Koshy, painting was Kahlo’s essence. She states: “…I am happy to be alive as long as I paint” and “The only thing I know … is that I paint because I need to” (Fridakahlo fans). The act of painting and writing can be translated as the essential media for achieving what is ‘beyond their reach’ (After Rilke).
The poem “Son and father” is yet another poem that borders on the quest for ideal love.
The poem set in a conversational mode begins with a question posed by the father: “why does your heart ache, my son?” The failure of the son to meet his soul mate is deftly drawn in the son’s answer:
I longed to meet someone
in the journey who’d make me blossom
and someone I’d do the same for
I still haven’t come across such a one.
The title is fraught with biblical connotations and definitely, on a more sublime level deals with the discord and disparity that mankind is doomed to be in. The mistrust, guile, deceit and treachery behind the crucifixion, now operate at a wider level and the poem ends on a note of dystopia. The same theme is extended in his poem “Nirbhaya” but his philosophy of life rooted in Christian existentialism is more hopeful of the consequences:
then what a good thing
heaven and hell are separate
and a great gulf is fixed in between
His poem“Yekaterina: A Russian folk story retold in verse,” at the outset, comes across as
the poetic adaptation of a simple Russian folklore. The poem recounts the tale of a poor girl who was alienated by her step parents and given asylum by the moon. The moon which acts as a saviour in this poem is shorn of its mask in the sequel poem “the girl in the moon.” The ‘moon’ here functions as the metaphoric representation of the illusory gleam offered by his life abroad:
till later her laughter
suffused
by the orange
of a rising sun, changed to sorrow
Loveless reality on alien shores dawns on the persona as the ‘moon’ finally melts away “hiding
in the sky’s forests.” Even though he finds respite in divine faith, it is not done at the sacrifice of his worldly duties. It is love, duty and conscientiousness that form the core of his existence. As he sings in the poem “O Rumi”:

O Rumi 
intoxication with the divine
is not the only way
O Ghalib 
the way of the senses
is not the only one
It not sensual love either, but a love of a higher order, borne out of his sense of trust and responsibility that opens the “unending vistas / of Keen Delight.”
The poem “Hunger” is powerfully intense in its portrayal of the poet’s sense of exile and solitude. The reference to Marcel is noteworthy, especially in the context of this study. The allusion to the Christian existentialist and philosopher is obvious. “What defines man are his
exigencies” claims Marcel (34) and the poems of Koshy as portrayed are the products of his ontological exigencies. If the first name is to be considered, the ‘Marcel’ in question may be a reference to the French novelist and critic Marcel Proust. This leads one to the intertextual conclusion that the indication may be to his famous work In Search of Lost Time (previously translated as Remembrance of Things Past) which recapitulates certain past events as an attempt to anchor on to memories, which, again is a recurrent theme in Koshy’s poems.
The process of ‘rememoration’ found in many of his poems often functions as an antidote to his sense of isolation and aids in his strong urge for belonging. It is in his sense of belonging that he finds meaning. In addition to his endeavour to accommodate change and movement, he also makes an attempt to come to terms with his hybrid sensibilities – postmodern, diasporic,
Indian and sometimes even feminist. Milton Singer had remarked about A.K. Ramanujam’s poems as having “double self” composed with the components of Eastern and Western epistemologies (Singer xiii), but Koshy’s poetry points to the “multiple selves” that compose a complex personality. In spite of his sense of diaspora, it is not the physical places that matter to him but the “Real Spaces of the Mind” (ToW 114) where “places become driftwood” and residual experiences shape his being. “I did not find you in mandir or masjid” (2 Phases 30) is yet another poem that explores the inconsequentiality of physical spaces.
While most of his poems are retrospective in nature, the poem “Heart” is introspective and reflects on the desertion within. While his physical form experiences a floating existence, it is his heart that chains him to a ‘shape’ and this probably alludes to his love, his roots, his past, his God, his ideals or even his ideology. The ambivalence reflected in the line “I hate you for
chaining me to a shape” echoes his heightened sense of existential angst. The dialectic of being and belonging is seen to run through most of his poems, sometimes explicit and at times implicitly woven.
Koshy’s is a voice resonant with the anguish of living and loving. In an interview to
Copyleftwebjournal he states : “I bleed red tears on to paper, mainly, and they become words
and birds and fly away.” The flight of his imagination and poetry is triggered by the politics of his identity, pain of separation and the recurring memories of a past that provide leverage to a conflicting present. It also marks a consciousness that is in constant struggle with the self and the external world where he tries to spin meaning out of the ensuing pain, anguish and dilemma.
The adroit use of arresting allusions and images also points to the multi-layered nature of his verses and the possibility for further exploration of themes and forms. Borrowing the words of another noted poet and author of Ekalavya Prathap Kamath, it can also be said that Koshy’s works are “the products of a mind that is restless and vibrant, with a micro-fine sensibility, down to earth humility despite its mind boggling scholarship and an eye that sees a detail always left unnoticed by others.” He is definitely a distinctive and potent voice in the sprawling FB literaryscape. His postmodern sensibilities, adept use of English language, ever expanding intellect and sensitive approach to life put him across as a writer of extraordinary calibre.
References:
Fiumara, Romana. “The Psychology of the Individuation Process and Group Analysis: The Role
of ‘Pronominalism’.” Group Analysis, 22(2), 1989. 177 – 187. doi:
10.1177/0533316489222007 . Web.
Kahlo, Frida. Qtd. Fridakahlo fans. 1 Jan. 2008. Web. 5 Oct. 2013.
<http://www.fridakahlofans.com/biocomplete.html>.
Hall, Stuart. 2006. “Cultural Identity and Diaspora.” The Postcolonial
Studies Reader. Ed. Bill Asheroft, Gereth Griffiths, Helen Tiffin. 2nd ed.
London: Routledge. 435-438. Print.
Homans, Peter. Jung in Context: Modernity and the Making of a Psychology. Chicago:
University of Chicago, 1979. Print.
Koshy, Ampat. The Camel Saloon. 3 May 2010. Web. 20 Sept. 2013.
<http://thecamelsaloon.blogspot.com/2013/02/i-do-not-know-what-i-seek.html>.
---. Copyleftwebjournal. Archive of Alasdupur. 7 Sept. 2013. Web. 8 Oct. 2013.
<http://copyleftwebjournal.wordpress.com/2013/09/07/world-poetry-is-trending-nowbecause-
of-the-possibilities-of-new-media-an-online-interview-with-ampat-koshy/>.
---. Slideshare. Terrestrian. n.d. Web. 25 Sept 2013.
< http://www.slideshare.net/terrestrian >.
---. “Tripping on Words: A Literary Atlas. Ed. Brian Wrixon, et al. Brian Wrixon Books,
2012.112-116. Print.
Koshy, Ampat and Gangane, Gorakhnath. 2 Phases 50 Poems. Ontario, Canada: Brian Wrixon
Books, 2013.
Marcel, Gabriel. Tragic Wisdom and Beyond. Trans. by Stephen Jolin and Peter McCormick.
Evanston, IL: Northwestern University Press, 1973. Print.
Meredith, Angel and Koshy, Ampat V. Soul Resuscitation: A Poetic Journey. UK:
Destiny to Write Publications, 2013. Print.
Nicole, Corinna. http://lifeofanartist.hubpages.com/hub/When-Frida-Kahlo-Set-Her-Eyes-on-
Josephine-Baker. Web.
Rilke, Raina Maria. http://www.poemhunter.com/best-poems/rainer-mariarilke/elegy-i/. Web.
Singer, Milton B. “Introduction: Two Tributes to A.K. Ramanujan 1.”

My author page has 500 likes!

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Dr-AV-Koshy/232091103474997

A new review of my first book Wrighteings: In Media Res by Anita Travis White

A new review of my first book Wrighteings: In Media Res by Anita Travis White

If only this book had been written in 2002. How snugly it would have situated itself amongst the concepts of organizational design and theory in my graduate studies in health administration both on my shelf and in my brain. Actually, the writing had begun during this period although I did not know this author until several years later. Compact, substantial, precise, Wrighteings challenges the intellect on many subjects. For the lay reader, it may take a bit of effort to get through. One must feed one's mind continually. Highly recommended. A brilliant book by a brilliant author.

http://www.amazon.com/Wrighteings-Media-Ampat-V-Koshy/dp/3844397310

I am in this book.

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10151900068489543&set=a.390739019542.168377.731519542&type=1

Poem of mine translated into Portugese by Cleber Pacheco author of many collections of poetry in Portugese.

My poem Pura Yoga translated into Portugese, for the first time! by none other thanCleber Pacheco author of many collections of poetry.

SÁBADO, 7 DE DEZEMBRO DE 2013

AUTOR CONVIDADO (DR. Ampat Koshy)
O autor convidado de hoje, Dr AMPAT KOSHY,da ÍNDIA, é crítico,poeta,editor,contista,pesquisador,ensaísta e professor universitário.Esta´é minha tradução para o seu poema Pura Yoga.

PURA YOGA

Sempre pensei que cada célula do corpo
é capaz de sentimento.
Somos portas para o Desconhecido.
Quando nos invertemos
e voltamos os pés para o céu
e mãos para a terra,
abrimos fissuras de fogo
para as profundas
águas,janelas para as estrelas.
Fazê-lo é estar em sintonia
com o orgasmo da matéria
e alinhados
com a energia do amor.
Meu amor,nunca te vejo
plenamente enquanto ser
em minha cabeça
em pura união
de entendimento.

Pura Yoga

I always thought every cell of the body
is capable of feeling.
We are doors to the Unknown.
When we invert ourselves
and become feet to sky
and hands to earth
opens the fire fissures
to the deeps
and the waters, windows to the stars
To make is to be in tune
with matter's orgasm
and in line
with energy's love
My Love, I never see you
as fully as when being
on my head
in a pure yoke
of under-standing.
Koshy



http://www.translittera.blogspot.com/

Happy I am going to be in Dazzling Bards (Volume one) of poets of today who write in English by Kiriti Sengupta to be brought out with an introduction by Yayati Sri Madan Gandhi, founder-president of Poetry Society of India.

Let me make a quick announcement here. This is something that I could never imagine beforehand. It was Subhankar Paul, the editor of 'Hiranyagarbha' who practically forced me to write on the contemporary Indian poets, the ones who are writing in English-language. I went on writing, critiquing, and much more with my select poets and their works, and kept counting on the scores of remarks of my readers and well wishers on the posts I made. My enterprise reached its pinnacle as Sri Madan Gandhi, the founder-president of The Poetry Society of India happily agreed to produce and publish my manuscript in the form of a book, titled MY DAZZLING BARDS (Vol:I). The book will be published in a month's time, and will be available all across the nation. I have personally requested Sri Gandhi to write the foreword of my book.

My beloved poets, you beget and feature in all the ten chapters that my book will comprise of. Would you, please, let me know your feedback?

I take this opportunity to present my first rendition in Hindi (edited by Nitin Soni, New Delhi.):

हर दिन सुनहरा होता है
बस अपनी और सिर्फ अपनी ही
नज़र का फरक बन जता है।

ये जो सूरज है, इसे
रात भी भुलाती नही
चांद भी सुबह
मुस्कुराते हुए नज़र आता हैं।

An article on my poetry.

My Beloved (Part IX)

Here comes a poet, who loves to research on the words and their mechanism of unfurling flavors; an extremely talented academician Dr. Ampat V Koshy (Ph.D.) is my next poet. He is presently an assistant professor in the department of English, Faculty of Arts (Girls), Academic College, Jazan University, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. He did his research on Samuel Beckett’s poetry in English, majoring in modern English poetry. Dr. Koshy was born in Trivandrum, Kerala, and he has had three poetry titles, and four titles on serious literary critiquing. Once a regular columnist with the Plumtree Books and Publishers (United Kingdom), Dr. Koshy prefers to remain reticent about his literary achievements. In the year 2012 a poem of his was nominated for Pushcart Prize for poetry. He loves to be referred to as a ‘natural poet’ who derives much inspiration from almost everything that surrounds him, and that poetry is his ‘spontaneous’ expression. As the noted critic-translator-poet Bina Biswas remarked, “Dr. Koshy is not drawing from Borges or Nicholas Boileau or Paris Review interviews, although he mischievously sends his readers on such wild goose chases. He is drawing from texts he is teaching and his experience as a seasoned poet and critic who appreciates reading new poetry.” Let me share a few of his poems:

Chanson

Far away, love is
waiting
alone in a double bed with
hope
that one day there will be no hollow
nearby. Thus it copes.

Far away, love is
waiting, thinking
one day there will be someone
who appreciates me for
my....self, and all else thereby

Far away love is waiting
silver hair in its black
far away

Love never fails
because
it cannot lose, anyway
in a contest
where the rules keep
changing
each and every day
not knowing what is happening
It only keeps on going
far away
pretending
everything's alright
far away... elsewhere, tonight

As I said in my introductory lines, Dr. Koshy has this brilliant ability to wrap and unwrap his poems with flavor. Chanson is a lyrical French song, and by using it as the title, the poet immediately includes some lyrical flavor into the poem. And look, I am not wrong at all. With ‘everything's alright / far away... elsewhere, tonight’ Chanson turns up to be an orator’s delight! The following poem reveals the ‘spiritual’ self of Dr. Koshy:

Shivashakti

Why, when it comes to you alone
am I not able to
hurt you?
When everyone else hurts me
I swallow it, in my pride
remain standing, to their dismay
It leaves only a blue mark on my neck
and I destroy its effect.
I can hurt them back
if I want.
You alone get away
with 'blue' murder.
What pleasure do you get
in being cruel to me
testing the limits of my patience
sawing off your own support?

This is a splendid creation by Dr. Koshy as it superimposes the image of Lord Shiva, who only consumed the unholy of the universe, on the pivotal sketch of a general male who is supposed to cushion the stresses of livelihood! Dr. Koshy stood impeccably male, and I simply can’t resist myself from quoting one of my poems here (Ref: The Reciting Pens, Inner Child Press, U.S.A., 2013):

Y-gene

My friends were aware of the wish I nurtured.
If I had a daughter,
I would name her Srividya!
No, I was not influenced by any actor.
There are a lot of disputes, prevailing over
the sibling rivalry of the sisters
in every corner of Bengal.
I thought my daughter would grow up to say
‘Hey! You were all so wrong.’
Our prayer room hosted a dazzling crystal Sri Yantra
on the holy altar.

My wife’s desires were too girly.
She wished to drape her daughter
in frilled dresses to look gorgeous.
She also had good plans to find her daughter
the best possible groom, so that my wife could live hassle-free!
Prior to her labour, my mother-in-law
keenly observed my wife’s navel and opined,
‘Come on, it’s a boy!’
It was a boy of course -
A cute little thing of two and a half kilos.
To take care of the borderline weight,
special supplements were arranged.
My wife looked bright in pride, and
you could see it in her eyes.
We thanked and worshiped the Narayana
right after the Holy Bath.

My son is now at school.
It’s a co-education convent.
After his school he returns home and tells his mother,
‘Girls were all sitting on the left.’

(Translated into English by Rituparna Sarkar from the original Bengali written by Kiriti Sengupta.)

Gina McKnight: N a d e z h d a

Gina McKnight: N a d e z h d a: World acclaimed poet Dr A.V. Koshy is presently working as Assistant Professor in Department of English, Faculty of Arts for Women, Jaza...

The esteemed Journal of Literature and Aesthetics - an international peer reviewed journal, one of only two such in Kerala, the other one having been run by the late P K Rajan - has my poem in it, thanks to Prathap Kamath  It also has a great poem by Ra Sh called Creation and an article by Prathap on Dattani's Tara. This poem was rejected twice, first for an African anthology by James Robert Myers and then by Sunil Sharma for the Authorspress Indo- Australian anthology, so I am happy that it finally appeared. It is about Booker T Washington who wrote Up From Slavery. He is M L King Jr.'s forerunner in America. Thanks to Srinivasan sir, chief editor and founder, for everything and proud to appear in a magazine where great writers like Derek Walcott have appeared. The photo of Booker T is there on the page, and my poem is on it. The moral of the story is my poems will keep appearing... despite everything...

Here is my simple poem:

1) UP FROM SLAVERY
For Booker T Washington

booker t
you belonged to a different time
but sitting in a corner in india
when i was a child
reading you
your mother's prayers and your uncle tom humility
touched me
i will never forget you
or what you taught me
booker t
that wrong isn't right
that might isn't light
that hate can't bait
and no one can keep anyone
slaves, endlessly

freedom rings
from your memory
even to today's slaves
booker t
be they in india
or u.s. of a
or anywhere else
in mine or field

you will always shine
when they count the death blows
to slavery
great booker t!

(c) 2013 Koshy A.V.

As a double whammy or treat, in Holistic Thought, Prathap Kamath's department journal, my article on Othello has also finally appeared. Don't know how to thank you enough, dear Prathap.

http://www.boloji.com/index.cfm?md=Content&sd=Articles&ArticleID=15168

Two of my books and three I wrote forewords or back cover blurbs for near to the launch.
The launch is on October 19th.
YMCA NEW DELHI 6- 9.30 am
Authorspress and Butterfly and the Bee are the ones involved.

https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=741878289162940&id=232091103474997

Look at the picture - my books are Art of Poetry and Samuel Beckett's English Poetry and the books I wrote for are Sangeeta Suneja's inspirational book and Madhumita Ghosh's and Bina Biswas's poetry books.

How to buy my book Samuel Beckett's English Poetry

Dear Friends...

The Book "Beckett’s English Poetry: Transcending the Roots of Resistance in Language” by A.V. Koshy is now available on flipkart published by Authorspress India at the following link
"http://www.flipkart.com/becketts-english-poetry-transcending-roots-resistance-language/p/itmdzjuwh8bgbzvz?pid=9788172737221&otracker=from-search&srno=t_1&query=beckett+koshy&ref=d6d11c53-1985-4b2e-9fb1-523761e8fcc1"


Overseas buyer can purchase the same book at a price of US $21.00 per book which includes courier charges.

The buyer can transfer the funds to the publisher AUTHORSPRESS a/c through PAYPAL using the following email ID: authorspress@hotmail.com. Supply number of copies wanted plus shipping or mailing address.

Where flipkart is not supplying (which is often the case) note that Authors press will charge you Rs.550 only – if you are ordering in India directly from the publisher and in return will allow you free postage anywhere in India. You may order the book through VPP or can deposit the amount to the following bank:
BANK - ALLAHABAD BANK
BRANCH - DARYAGANJ, NEW DELHI, INDIA
A/C - AUTHORSPRESS, NEW DELHI
A/C NO. - 20018280998
IFC CODE - ALLA0210411

Thank you
Dr A.V Koshy

Ichhamoti Review - Home

Ichhamoti Review - Home - has  my poem and article on haiku in it.

My book Beckett's English Poetry: Transcending the Roots of Resistance in Language is now available on flipkart.

http://www.flipkart.com/becketts-english-poetry-transcending-roots-resistance-language/p/itmdzjuwh8bgbzvz?pid=9788172737221&otracker=from-search&srno=t_1&query=beckett+koshy+authorspress&ref=fb8a3b26-437a-4143-80f4-cd3ba7f75930

My book on Beckett will finally come out on flipkart in two weeks

Thanks to Bina Biswas for all the help. Thanks to Sudarshan Kcherry of Authorspress India for everything - no words can express my heartfelt gratitude to him for bringing out my book on Samuel Beckett's English Poetry: Transcending the Roots of Resistance in Language, in 2013, after helping me in his inimitable style with the title and quality editing and printing and cover that matches and competes with the best in academic publishing in the world anywhere and surpasses most in his restless indigenous and transnational innovativeness and trail-blazing pioneering originality of vision. I also thank my mother Sara - no more - to whom this book is dedicated, Dad, Dr K Radha (now retired) Anna Gabriel Koshy, my kids, Mary Annie AV Avy Varghese Aardvark and AV Abraham, my friends the late Aveesh K, Santosh Babusenan Satish Babusenan Sree Kumar Tommy John Gorakhnath Gangane Chitra Panikkar Bina Biswas Prathap Kamath - for their enormous patience, love, care, long suffering and faith in my ability to do this eventually. I also thank George Korah of Primalogue and Jonsy. The same for all my dear fb friends without whose likes and comments I feel I can no longer exist. I was possessed by the spirit of Beckett when I wrote this book. No regrets, whatsoever.
The book will be available on flipkart in two weeks and later in infibeam etc. It costs 550 Rs for the Indian market and 21 dollars for the international market. Enjoy. — with @Authorspress India

Buy my book.A treatise in poetry for beginners

If you have Kindle for PC, tab , phone or Mac which you can download and install for free you can now buy my popular book A Treatise on Poetry for Beginners from Amazon India Kindle store for just 113 rupees finally and get it delivered by whispernet to your comp or phone or tab instantly! Available now at last in India!

"http://www.amazon.com/A-Treatise-Poetry-Beginners-ebook/dp/B009DB8ZGI/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1373281211&sr=8-1&keywords=a+treatise+on+poetry+for+beginners

Review of Soul Resuscitation/Allusions to Simplicity by Angel Meredith/Koshy A.V.

A Review of Soul Resuscitation, 50 poems, written by Angel Meredith and Dr. AV Koshy, (published by Barry Mowles & Destiny 2 Write Publications) two writers from the Jouralspace era. I am a voracious reader of AV Koshy but am not familiar at all with Angel Meredith’s writings. Both are well written but this book does not cling to my heart nor stir my imagination as I am accustomed to in the poetry by Koshy.

The book is written in two parts: the first Angel’s poems. Death Bed has wonderful imagery and was understandably enjoyed because of my daily dealings with death. Beautifully described. Insipid is a strong and vivid painting of our modern societal breakdown. Watchers left me hanging on a branch wondering if it would break. I was not impressed with the finale. Her poems become predictable.

My expectation from Dr. Koshy is to saturate my imagination with deliciously creative illusions. In this particular book I found this with only several of his pieces. After Rilke is a good example of that. Reference to the gang-rape victim in India is made in the poem Nirbhaya. Well done. Koshy has a way of making things vanishand two of these types are found in this book, “How to make love vanish”, and “How to make myself vanish”. He has a poem out in another collection, “How to make a poem vanish”. I like his ability to steer the reader off course. Far off course. Unfortunately I do not find that much here.
References to death are made by both writers in this collection as are descriptions of the decaying of society.

Angel and Koshy are talented writers and leave just enough here, however, to lead the reader wondering what may be produced by them in the future.

by Summer Wind

"http://www.lulu.com/shop/angel-meredith-ampat-koshy/soul-resuscitation/paperback/product-20622893.html

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