ఓ ప్రేమ దేవత!

ఓ ప్రేమ దేవత! హిమగిరికేగి
తపమొనరించెదన్
మరణామరణములెరుగక
వనమాలిని నిన్జేరుటకు వేడెదన్.

ప్రేమించితిని నిన్ ఓ లతాంగిని
మోహించితి నీ అణువణువున్
కరుణించవా నా ఆత్మాంజలిని
కరుణించవే ఓ కరుణాకరీ!

కాటుక కన్నులు నీ కామగుణమ్ము
నేటి యామినిని కామినిగా జేసె
కర్కోటక క్రూరమౌ యీ చలి
మాటి మాటికి నన్ను కాటు వేసె.

పదునెనిమిదేళ్ళ లేబ్రాయము
యదలో ఒక బరువై చిందులాడెన్
కొదమ గులాబీ మనసు
మధుర ప్రణయ విందులు జేసెన్.

జీవిత పథముపై నడుచు ప్రేమ రథమ్ము
కవితలల్లి చెప్పి నన్ను కవ్వింప జేసె
నా వెల్గు నొందు ప్రతి వాడితో నెయ్యము జేయ యీ
కవిత నాలో ద్రవించి కరుణ జూపె.

These five poems were written in 1972. Inspired by a friend, whose name occurs in the first poem, I made this maiden attempt to write; I was eighteen years old. It is his association that introduced us to the world of poetry and the classics. We owe a lot to him and to his father, the epoch-making poet and scholar late Shri Gunturu Seshendra Sarma for igniting an ever-lasting interest in us in literary matters. We cherish those meetings with Shri Sarma saheb who was a treasure trove of knowledge. As said, sataam sakrit sangamameepsitam param. The association of the enlightened, even if it is once, is a celebration; hence always looked forward to. His deep knowledge of classic literature and Ramayana and Mahabharata was commanding. It used to be illuminating in his presence.

Seshendra's personality was beaming, inspiring and awesome, all at the same time. He would take one sloka which he was pondering upon at that moment and expound its soul to us. We would then commit that sloka to memory and learn all its aspects including its grammatical arrangement. He was endowed with highly refined attitudes and was a great conversationalist. Above all, he was a perfect human being.

It is worth recording here our deep sense of gratitude and respects to Shri Seshendra Sarma saheb by recollecting one gesture of his.

It was summer afternoon in 1974. We were in the funeral procession of our maternal grand father passing through the road between Nampally and Gosha Mahal towards Puranapul. Sarma saheb moved on that road in black Mercedece Benz to Gyan Bagh Palace. He might have seen us, two brothers in the procession. We did not notice that. He sent his son, our friend Vanamali in the evening all the way from Panjagutta to our place in Abids to inquire as to what had happened. We were moved by his unalloyed affection and humane concern.

And, in spite of his busy official schedule, he made it a point to attend my marriage in mid-summer 1979 at Eden Gardens. I treasure the book of Aldous Huxley which he presented to me on that occasion with his wishes and autograph. He also graced the occasion of my brother's marriage at a later date.

I was terribly grieved when I learned about his demise in April 2007. I was on tour; I genuinely regret for not being able to pay my last respects to him.