Shamsul Islam

The Disease of Having No Disease

Dr. Wali Ashraf had my chest x-rayed yesterday.

The report stats I have no hart

And since I have no heart I have no disease.

I am recently suffering from the disease of having no

                                                                    disease.

We have lived through these bloody nine months

        in the nervous debility of bloodlessness

        in a sleep of sleeplessness

        in tears that did not dare well up

And thus all our ‘yeas’ gradually got frozen in to ‘nos’

or is it that flowers and leaves turn into wood

           even into layers of coal.

You can clean the unclean by rubbing them against coal.

            Teeth are like glittering soft white marble

            Stone has no life

            Lalon too has no life,

And when you don’t have life, you’re damned lucky.

Smoke forty cigarettes in eight hours,

Drink glasses of ‘heads’ every evening

And you’d see how things appear normal.

Let Chand Sultana come and go back

I wouldn’t ask even Ruku to come.

                That does not matter.

Dr. Wali Ashraf had my hest x-rayed,

The report states I have no heart ;

And since I have no heart, I have no disease,

I am, therefore, suffering from the disease

of having no disease at all.

                          Translated by M. Harunur Rashid

Shamsul Isalam (1942-) Poet, Story Writer and Juvenile Literature. Poetry : Jalouka He Nil Jamunar (1975), Chirabirinchir Taru (1982), Lohal Nulia (1985), Kalnemikal (1987), Story : Kusumer Ritu (1966), Cigarette o Anyanya Galpo (1976), Juvenile Literature : Bakbakum (1976), Shamser Gazi (1961), Isti Misti (1981). Awards : Troyi Award –1986, Prapar Literary Award –1994, Padma Literary Award-1997.