Sarojini Naidu: The Palanquin Bearers

Lightly, O lightly we bear her along, she sways like a flower in the wind of our song.

• Lightly, O lightly we bear her along,
• She sways like a flower in the wind of our song;
• She skims like a bird on the foam of a stream,
• She floats like a laugh from the lips of a dream.
• Gaily, O gaily we glide and we sing,
• We bear her along like a pearl on a string.
• Softly, O softly we bear her along,
• She hangs like a star in the dew of our song;
• She springs like a beam on the brow of the tide,
• She falls like a tear from the eyes of a bride.
• Lightly, O lightly we glide and we sing,
• We bear her along like a pearl on a string.

Summary

This poem is about a group of men, known as palanquin bearers, who are carrying a noble bride to her new home. They are singing happily as they walk.

The bearers feel that the bride is very light and easy to carry. They say they carry her "lightly" and "softly." They are happy and proud of their job, moving smoothly and "gaily" as they sing. They feel she is extremely precious and delicate, comparing her to a "pearl on a string."

The poem uses many comparisons to describe the bride's gentle movements as they walk. She sways gently like a "flower in the wind." She moves gracefully, like a "bird" skimming the top of a stream. She seems ethereal and joyful, like a "laugh from the lips of a dream." She is beautiful and bright, hanging like a "star" in the air or springing like a "beam" of light on an ocean wave.

The poem also captures the mixed emotions of the moment. One comparison describes the bride falling "like a tear from the eyes of a bride." This single line shows that while the occasion is happy, the bride is also experiencing the natural sadness of leaving her childhood home.

Overall, the poem paints a picture of a joyful, delicate, and precious moment, celebrating the beauty of the bride and the happiness of the bearers who are carefully carrying her.

Questions

1. Who are the speakers in the poem "The Palanquin Bearers"?
2. Who is being carried in the palanquin, and where is she likely going?
3. What is the overall mood of the palanquin bearers? Support your answer with a phrase from the poem.
4. Identify and explain the simile used in the line: "She sways like a flower in the wind of our song."
5. Identify and explain the simile used in the line: "We bear her along like a pearl on a string."
6. What does the comparison to a "pearl on a string" tell us about how the bearers view the bride?
7. List two similes from the first stanza and two similes from the second stanza.
8. What is a refrain? Identify the refrain used in this poem.
9. What is the effect of the repetition of words like "Lightly, O lightly" and "Softly, O softly"?
10. How does the "song" of the bearers affect the bride's movement, according to the poem?
11. Explain the meaning of the line: "She skims like a bird on the foam of a stream."
12. Explain the meaning of the line: "She hangs like a star in the dew of our song."
13. The poem presents contrasting emotions. Explain the contrast between "She floats like a laugh" and "She falls like a tear."
14. What does the "tear from the eyes of a bride" symbolize?
15. What are the two main emotions depicted in the poem?
16. What is the rhyme scheme of the first stanza?
17. How does the poem portray the traditional Indian culture of a bride's farewell (vidai)?
18. What impression do you get of the bride from the various comparisons used in the poem?
19. Why do the bearers say they bear the bride "lightly"? Does it only refer to her physical weight?
20. What is the central theme of the poem?
21. Explain the image: "She springs like a beam on the brow of the tide."
22. How do the bearers feel about their duty?
23. What role does nature (flowers, birds, streams, stars) play in the poem's imagery?
24. What is the significance of the poem's title?
25. Summarize the journey of the palanquin bearers in your own words.

Answers

1. The palanquin bearers who are carrying the bride.
2. A newly-married bride is being carried. She is likely going from her parents' home to her husband's home.
3. They are happy and cheerful. The poem says, "Gaily, O gaily we glide and we sing."
4. The bride (she) is compared to a flower. It means she is delicate and moves gently to the rhythm of their song.
5. The bride (her) is compared to a pearl on a string. It means she is very precious and valuable to them.
6. It shows they think she is very precious, special, and needs to be carried with great care.
7. First stanza: "like a flower" and "like a bird." Second stanza: "like a star" and "like a tear."
8. A refrain is a line repeated in a poem. The refrain is: "Lightly, O lightly we glide and we sing, / We bear her along like a pearl on a string."
9. It creates a soft, gentle, and musical rhythm, like a lullaby or the swaying motion of the palki.
10. Their song makes her sway gently, like a flower in the wind.
11. It means she is very light and moves so smoothly that she seems to float, just as a bird skims the top of a river.
12. It means she is bright, beautiful, and precious, shining like a star seen through the morning dew (which is their song).
13. "Like a laugh" shows her happiness for her new life. "Like a tear" shows her sadness at leaving her parents' home.
14. It symbolizes the bride's sadness and sorrow of leaving her family and childhood home during her vidai.
15. The bearers' happiness and the bride's mixed feelings of happiness (joy) and sadness (sorrow).
16. The rhyme scheme is aabbcc.
17. It shows the tradition of carrying the bride in a doli (palanquin) and captures her mixed feelings of joy and sorrow during her vidai.
18. She is very beautiful, delicate, precious, and light.
19. No, it means she is so delicate and precious that they don't feel her weight as a burden. Their happiness makes the job feel light.
20. The central theme is the traditional journey of a bride in a palanquin, describing her beauty and the mixed emotions of her farewell.
21. It compares her to a ray of light (beam) that moves quickly and brightly on top of a wave (tide), showing her beauty and movement.
22. They feel happy, proud, and responsible. They consider it an honor to carry the precious bride.
23. Nature is used to create similes that describe the bride's beauty, lightness, and delicate nature.
24. The title is significant because the poem is told from the point of view of the palanquin bearers, describing their experience.
25. Happy palanquin bearers are carrying a new bride in her doli, singing a song about how beautiful, light, and precious she is as they walk.