Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard: Stanza-wise Explanation
Stanza Wise Explanations
Stanzas 1 – 4
Text
The lowing herd wind slowly o’er the lea,
The plowman homeward plods his weary way,
And leaves the world to darkness and to me.
Now fades the glimm’ring landscape on the sight,
And all the air a solemn stillness holds,
Save where the beetle wheels his droning flight,
And drowsy tinklings lull the distant folds;
Save that from yonder ivy-mantled tow’r
The moping owl does to the moon complain
Of such, as wand’ring near her secret bow’r,
Molest her ancient solitary reign.
Beneath those rugged elms, that yew-tree’s shade,
Where heaves the turf in many a mould’ring heap,
Each in his narrow cell for ever laid,
Explanation: The “Elegy” begins with the description of the evening in a rural setting. The evening church bell tells the passing of the day. Cattle bleed as they turn homewards. Tired farmers and workers are returning from their fields. Darkness begins to cover the world. The speaker, that is, the poet is standing in a graveyard. All is quiet and only the owl hoots. Among a group of elm trees, there is the graveyard. The ancestors of the villagers are buried in the graveyard.
Explanation in Hindi: कविता की शुरुआत संध्या के शांत और गंभीर ग्रामीण दृश्य से होती है। चर्च की घंटी दिन के समाप्त होने का संकेत देती है। पशुओं का झुंड रंभाते हुए धीरे-धीरे मैदान से लौट रहा है। किसान थका हुआ अपने घर की ओर बढ़ रहा है और संसार अंधकार में डूबने लगता है। अब वातावरण में गहरी नीरवता छा जाती है।
इस शांति को केवल भिनभिनाते हुए कीट और दूर कहीं बजती हुई हल्की घंटियों की ध्वनि भंग करती है। आइवी लताओं से ढकी मीनार पर बैठा उल्लू चाँद से मानो शिकायत कर रहा है कि कोई उसके एकांत में बाधा डाल रहा है।
इन दृश्यों के बीच कवि का ध्यान कब्रिस्तान की ओर जाता है। ऊबड़-खाबड़ वृक्षों और यू-ट्री की छाया में गाँव के साधारण पूर्वज सदा के लिए अपनी संकरी कब्रों में सोए हुए हैं। वे लोग साधारण जीवन जीते थे और अब शांति से विश्राम कर रहे हैं।
Difficult Words – Meanings
1. Curfew
The evening bell that signals the end of the day.
शाम की घंटी जो दिन के अंत का संकेत देती है।
2. Tolls
Rings slowly and solemnly. गंभीर और धीमी आवाज़ में बजना।
3. Knell
The sound of a bell for a death or end. मृत्यु या अंत का सूचक घंटानाद।
4. Parting day
The departing or ending day. समाप्त होता हुआ दिन।
5. Lowing herd
Cattle making a deep sound while moving. रंभाते हुए पशुओं का झुंड।
6. Lea
Grassland or meadow. घास का मैदान / चरागाह।
7. Plowman
A farmer who ploughs the land. हल चलाने वाला किसान।
8. Plods
Walks slowly and heavily. धीरे-धीरे थकान से चलना।
9. Weary
Very tired. अत्यधिक थका हुआ।
10. Glimm’ring
Faintly shining or dim light. हल्की या मद्धिम रोशनी।
11. Solemn
Serious and quiet. गंभीर और शांत।
12. Beetle
A flying insect. भृंग / कीट।
13. Wheels
Flies in circles. गोल-गोल उड़ना।
14. Droning
Making a continuous low sound. लगातार भिनभिनाती आवाज़ करना।
15. Drowsy
Sleepy. उनींदा।
16. Tinklings
Light ringing sounds.
हल्की घंटियों की आवाज़।
17. Folds
Sheep enclosures. भेड़ों का बाड़ा।
18. Ivy-mantled
Covered with ivy plants. आइवी लता से ढका हुआ।
19. Tow’r (Tower)
A tall building (usually church tower). मीनार / ऊँचा टॉवर।
20. Moping owl
A sad or complaining owl. उदास या करुण ध्वनि करने वाला उल्लू।
21. Bow’r (Bower)
A private shelter or dwelling place. एकांत निवास / आश्रय स्थान।
22. Molest
To disturb or trouble. परेशान करना / बाधा डालना।
23. Reign
Rule or control. शासन / प्रभुत्व।
24. Rugged
Rough and uneven. ऊबड़-खाबड़।
25. Yew-tree
A type of tree often found in graveyards. यू वृक्ष (कब्रिस्तान में पाया जाने वाला वृक्ष)।
26. Heaves
Rises up. उभरा हुआ होना।
27. Turf
Surface layer of earth with grass. घास वाली मिट्टी की परत।
28. Mould’ring
Decaying slowly. धीरे-धीरे सड़ता हुआ।
29. Narrow cell
The grave. संकरी कब्र।
30. Rude forefathers
Simple, uneducated ancestors. साधारण / अशिक्षित पूर्वज।
31. Hamlet
A small village, छोटा गाँव।
Stanzas 5 – 8
The breezy call of incense-breathing Morn,The swallow twitt’ring from the straw-built shed,
The cock’s shrill clarion, or the echoing horn,
No more shall rouse them from their lowly bed.
For them no more the blazing hearth shall burn,
Or busy housewife ply her evening care:
No children run to lisp their sire’s return,
Or climb his knees the envied kiss to share.
Oft did the harvest to their sickle yield,
Their furrow oft the stubborn glebe has broke;
How jocund did they drive their team afield!
How bow’d the woods beneath their sturdy stroke!
Let not Ambition mock their useful toil,
Their homely joys, and destiny obscure;
Nor Grandeur hear with a disdainful smile
The short and simple annals of the poor.
Explanation: Here the poet continues to talk about the people buried in the graveyard. They are sleeping in beds that are low to the ground. No sound can wake them up. The twittering of the swallow, the morning call of the cock, even a horn cannot wake them. Their wives and their children do not care for them anymore. They were hard-working men when they were alive. They were skilled and efficient in plowing, harvesting, and farming. The speaker advises not to look down upon their simple life and hard work. Ambitious people think of village life as simple. But the ordinary villagers had their joy and sorrow much like others.
Difficult Word - Meaning
32. Breezy
Pleasantly windy; fresh air blowing. हल्की ठंडी हवा वाला।
33. Incense-breathing
Giving out a sweet fragrance like incense. अगरबत्ती जैसी सुगंध फैलाने वाला।
34. Morn (Morning)
Early morning. प्रातःकाल / सुबह।
35. Swallow
A small migratory bird. अबाबील पक्षी।
36. Twitt’ring (Twittering)
Making short, sharp, repeated sounds. Hindi: चहचहाना।
37. Straw-built shed
A small hut or shelter made of straw. फूस की बनी झोपड़ी।
38. Cock’s shrill clarion
English: The loud, sharp sound of a rooster crowing.
Hindi: मुर्गे की तीखी बाँग।
39. Clarion
English: A loud and clear sound (like a trumpet).
Hindi: तेज़ और स्पष्ट ध्वनि।
40. Echoing horn
English: A horn whose sound resounds or repeats.
Hindi: गूंजती हुई सींग/बिगुल की आवाज़।
41. Rouse
English: To wake up.
Hindi: जगाना।
42. Lowly bed
English: Humble resting place (grave).
Hindi: साधारण शैया / कब्र।
43. Blazing hearth
English: A brightly burning fireplace.
Hindi: प्रज्वलित चूल्हा।
44. Ply
English: To work steadily at something.
Hindi: लगातार कार्य करना।
45. Lisp
English: To speak imperfectly (like a child).
Hindi: तोतली भाषा में बोलना।
46. Sire
English: Father.
Hindi: पिता।
47. Envied kiss
English: A kiss desired by others.
Hindi: ईर्ष्या योग्य चुम्बन।
48. Oft (Often)
English: Frequently.
Hindi: अक्सर।
49. Harvest
English: Crops gathered from fields.
Hindi: फसल।
50. Sickle
English: A curved tool used for cutting crops.
Hindi: हंसिया।
51. Furrow
English: A trench made by a plough.
Hindi: हल की रेखा / खेत की मेड़।
52. Stubborn glebe
English: Hard, resistant soil.
Hindi: कठोर भूमि।
53. Jocund
English: Cheerful and joyful.
Hindi: प्रसन्न / हर्षित।
54. Team
English: A group of animals working together (like oxen).
Hindi: पशुओं की जोड़ी (बैल आदि)।
55. Af ield (Afield)
English: In the field; out to work.
Hindi: खेत में।
56. Sturdy stroke
English: Strong blow or strike.
Hindi: शक्तिशाली प्रहार।
57. Ambition
English: Desire for success or power.
Hindi: महत्वाकांक्षा।
58. Toil
English: Hard work.
Hindi: कठिन परिश्रम।
59. Homely joys
English: Simple domestic pleasures.
Hindi: साधारण घरेलू सुख।
60. Destiny obscure
English: Unknown or unnoticed fate.
Hindi: अस्पष्ट / अनजाना भाग्य।
61. Grandeur
English: Greatness or high status.
Hindi: वैभव / उच्च पद।
62. Disdainful
English: Showing contempt or disrespect.
Hindi: तिरस्कारपूर्ण।
63. Annals
English: Recorded history.
Hindi: इतिहास-वृत्तांत।
Stanzas 9 – 12
The boast of heraldry, the pomp of pow’r,
And all that beauty, all that wealth e’er gave,
Awaits alike th’ inevitable hour.
The paths of glory lead but to the grave.
Nor you, ye proud, impute to these the fault,
If Mem’ry o’er their tomb no trophies raise,
Where thro’ the long-drawn aisle and fretted vault
The pealing anthem swells the note of praise.
Can storied urn or animated bust
Back to its mansion call the fleeting breath?
Can Honour’s voice provoke the silent dust,
Or Flatt’ry soothe the dull cold ear of Death?
Perhaps in this neglected spot is laid
Some heart once pregnant with celestial fire;
Hands, that the rod of empire might have sway’d,
Explanation: The poet continues his praise for the ordinary villagers and says that the poor are not inferior to the rich in death. Every human life ends in death. The beauty, the wealth, the glory all lead but to the grave. The villager’s grave does not have the grandness in ceremonies and tombstones. But even grand and well decorated tombstones cannot bring a person back to life. So, there is no use of them. The poet ask us to keep the fact in mind that if the villagers had received proper education and they had ample resources at their disposable, they might have become a great politician or a wealthy person. Therefore, there may be a ruler or a poet buried in there.
Stanzas 13 – 16
But Knowledge to their eyes her ample page
Rich with the spoils of time did ne’er unroll;
Chill Penury repress’d their noble rage,
And froze the genial current of the soul.
Full many a gem of purest ray serene,
The dark unfathom’d caves of ocean bear:
Full many a flow’r is born to blush unseen,
And waste its sweetness on the desert air.
Some village-Hampden, that with dauntless breast
The little tyrant of his fields withstood;
Some mute inglorious Milton here may rest,
Some Cromwell guiltless of his country’s blood.
Th’ applause of list’ning senates to command,
The threats of pain and ruin to despise,
To scatter plenty o’er a smiling land,
penury - poverty
serene - bright,
unfathom'd - deep
blush - bloom
Hampden - John Hampden of Buchinghamshire was one of the leaders of the parliamentary party
dauntless breast - without any fear in his heart
tyrant- landlord
Cromwell - Oliver Cromwell was a great general and statesman during the reign of Charles I. He was responsible for the 1642 civil war.
applause - praise
senates - parliament
Explanation: Here the poet argues that the villagers who were dead would also have talent. There might be a Milton or a Cromwell buried there. They did not get opportunities to prove themselves. Like gems hidden deep under the ocean and like desert flowers, they have perished without notice. Given opportunities, they would have also succeeded. People would have read their deeds in history.
Stanzas 17 – 20
Their growing virtues, but their crimes confin’d;
Forbade to wade through slaughter to a throne,And shut the gates of mercy on mankind,
To quench the blushes of ingenuous shame,
Or heap the shrine of Luxury and PrideTheir sober wishes never learn’d to stray;
Along the cool sequester’d vale of life
They kept the noiseless tenor of their way.
Yet ev’n these bones from insult to protect,
Some frail memorial still erected nigh,
With uncouth rhymes and shapeless sculpture deck’d,
Implores the passing tribute of a sigh.
Annotations:
circumscrib’d- limited
wade --walk
slaughter -- massacre
quench -- suppress
ingenuous-- genuine
madding-- noisy
stray-- to deviate
sequester’d....life-- peaceful life
tenor-- course
uncouth rhymes-- ill-spelt memorial verses written by the village versifier
deck’d-- decorated
passing tribute--homage
Explanation: Continuing his praise for the rustic villagers, the poet says that the villagers did not wish to involve in treachery and deceit. They were honest people and they led simple lives. They kept themselves away from the mad crowd of the cities and kingdoms. They were true to themselves. They liked peace and honesty. But still, there were markings to note their memory. The tombstones were simple. The language was ordinary. But, there is truth in their memory.
Stanzas 21 – 24
Their name, their years, spelt by th’ unletter’d muse,
The place of fame and elegy supply:
And many a holy text around she strews,
That teach the rustic moralist to die.
This pleasing anxious being e’er resign’d,
Left the warm precincts of the cheerful day,
Nor cast one longing, ling’ring look behind?
On some fond breast the parting soul relies,
Some pious drops the closing eye requires;
Ev’n from the tomb the voice of Nature cries,
Ev’n in our ashes live their wonted fires.
For thee, who mindful of th’ unhonour’d dead
Dost in these lines their artless tale relate;
If chance, by lonely contemplation led,
Annotations:
unletter’d muse--semi-literate village artist
holy text--quotations from the Bible
dumb forgetfulness--utter oblivion
strews--scatters
pleasing anxious--use of oxymoron
precincts--boundaries
longing, ling’ring look--use of alliteration
pious drops--tears of sympathy
unhonour’d dead--neglected and inglorious forefathers of the hamlet
artless--simple
Explanation: In the above stanzas, the poet continues his contemplation about the simplicity and honesty of the dead villagers. He laments over the fact that the dead villagers rest in the graveyard without recognition. But he consoles himself by saying that this poem will be a tribute to them. They lived their lives with morals. They died in the care of a loving person. And, they closed their eyes with prayers in one’s eyes. One day, a kind soul may come and enquire after the dead one out of curiosity.
Stanzas 25 – 28
Haply some hoary-headed swain may say,
Oft have we seen him at the peep of dawn
Brushing with hasty steps the dews away
To meet the sun upon the upland lawn.
There at the foot of yonder nodding beech
That wreathes its old fantastic roots so high,
His listless length at noontide would he stretch,
And pore upon the brook that babbles by.
Hard by yon wood, now smiling as in scorn,
Mutt’ring his wayward fancies he would rove,
Now drooping, woeful wan, like one forlorn,
Or craz’d with care, or cross’d in hopeless love.
One morn I miss’d him on the custom’d hill,
Along the heath and near his fav’rite tree;
Another came; nor yet beside the rill,
Nor up the lawn, nor at the wood was he;
Stanzas 29 – 32
The next with dirges due in sad array
Slow thro’ the church-way path we saw him borne.
Approach and read (for thou canst read) the lay,
Grav’d on the stone beneath yon aged thorn.
Here rests his head upon the lap of Earth
A youth to Fortune and to Fame unknown.
Fair Science frown’d not on his humble birth,
And Melancholy mark’d him for her own.
Large was his bounty, and his soul sincere,
Heav’n did a recompense as largely send:
He gave to Mis’ry all he had, a tear,
He gain’d from Heav’n (’twas all he wish’d) a friend.
No farther seek his merits to disclose,
Or draw his frailties from their dread abode,
(There they alike in trembling hope repose)
The bosom of his Father and his God.
Explanation: In the concluding part of the poem, the poet writes his epitaph. He says that his epitaph would read thus: Here lies the young man who was not popular. His life was full of sorrow. Knowledge was his only wealth. He gave his life to misery and all he longed was for a friend to support. One need not look away to know about him. All that he did lies with him, close to god in the lap of earth.
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