A.K Ramanujan- Poet Introduction
A.K. Ramanujan whose full name is Attipate Krishnaswami Ramanujan was an Indian poet, scholar, linguist, philologist, folklorist, translator, and playwright. He wrote predominantly in the English and Kannada languages.
He is a recipient of the Padma Shri award, the MacArthur Fellowship, and the Sahitya Akademi Award (awarded posthumously for his poetry collection “The Collected Poems”). ‘Obituary’, a poem by A.K. Ramanujan was published in his poetry collection “Relationships” in 1971.
Obituary poem by A.K. Ramanujan
Father, when he passed on,
left dust
on a table of papers,
left debts and daughters,
a bedwetting grandson
named by the toss
of a coin after him,
a house that leaned
slowly through our growing
years on a bent coconut
tree in the yard.
Being the burning type,
he burned properly
at the cremation
as before, easily
and at both ends,
left his eye coins
in the ashes that didn’t
look one bit different,
several spinal discs, rough,
some burned to coal, for sons
to pick gingerly
and throw as the priest
said, facing east
where three rivers met
near the railway station;
no longstanding headstone
with his full name and two dates
to holdin their parentheses
everything he didn’t quite
manage to do himself,
like his caesarian birth
in a brahmin ghetto
and his death by heart-failure
in the fruit market
But someone told me
he got two lines
in an inside column
of a Madras newspaper
sold by the kilo
exactly four weeks later
to street hawkers
who sell it in turn
to the small groceries
where I buy salt,
coriander,
and jaggery
in newspaper cones
that I usually read
for fun, and lately
in the hope of finding
these obituary lines.
And he left us
a changed mother
and more than
one annual ritual.
Stanza wise summary of the poem Obituary
In the first stanza of the poem Obituary, the speaker talks about the death of his father. He says that when his father passed away, he left behind him a dusty table with papers, debts, and daughters, and a bedwetting grandson named after him by the toss of a coin.
In the second stanza, the speaker continues to describe what his father has left behind. He says figuratively that their house leaned on a bent coconut tree in the yard, which happened gradually throughout their growing years. His father who seemed to be very hot-tempered (burning type) burned properly at the crematorium.
The first two lines of the third stanza are a continuation of the previous stanza, where the speaker says that his father burned as before easily and at both ends. His father has left his ‘eye-coins’ in the ashes which still look the same and several rough ‘spinal discs’ some of which burned to coal.
The fourth stanza is a continuation of the fifth stanza. The speaker says that the ‘spinal discs’ (which are nothing but his father’s cartilage) that have burned to coal have to be picked up by the sons and thrown, as instructed by the priest.
They must do so facing east where the three rivers meet near the railway station. The speaker also says that there is no headstone for the dead father with his full name and the engraving showing his date of birth and death.
The fifth stanza continues from where the fourth stanza left off. The speaker says that since his father is cremated and not buried, there is no headstone at the grave giving significant details of his life.
There were certain incidents in his father’s life that were not in his control, like his caesarean birth in a brahmin ghetto and his death due to heart failure in the fruit market.
In the sixth stanza, the speaker describes his father’s obituary column in a newspaper. He says that someone told him that his father’s death was mentioned in two lines in an inner column in a Madras newspaper. These papers are sold in bulk exactly four weeks later to street hawkers.
The seventh stanza continues the narration where the speaker says that those newspapers are then sold by the hawkers to small grocery stores where the speaker buys salt, coriander, and jaggery in newspaper cones which he usually reads.
In the eighth stanza, the speaker says that he usually read those newspaper cones for fun and more recently in the hope of finding his father’s obituary. The speaker then reflects that his father has left them with a mother who isn’t the same person as before and more than one annual ritual.
Themes in the poem Obituary
Central Theme of the poem Obituary
The main theme of the poem Obituary is the consequences the son (speaker) and his family faces on the death of his father. The poet explains in detail how a patriarchal family copes with the demise of their head.
The inheritance his father leaves behind is useless since there are more liabilities than assets. Though his father seemed to have been an authoritative figure when he was alive after death is portrayed as a weak person who was controlled by fate.
The poem also highlights the strained relationship between the father and son. Throughout the poem, the speaker does not show any sign of grief at his father’s death.
The speaker seems quite contemptuous of his father and even indifferent toward his death. The speaker also makes it clear that he performed the last rites for his namesake and not out of affection.
Other themes in the poem Obituary
Ridicule of rituals
The other theme in the poem could be the ridicule of rituals and superstitious practices. The poem could be a satire on rituals because they are conducted mechanically per the instructions given by religious figures.
The poet describes how during the performance of the last rites they have been asked by the temple priest to throw ashes facing east where three rivers meet. This is a complete contrast to the western funeral culture where the dead are buried in a graveyard with an epitaph on their tombstone.
The poet also makes fun of the concept of putting an obituary in the papers. He is sarcastic about how those newspapers are eventually used to pack groceries, thus indirectly disrespecting the dead.
The poet wants to convey that a death in the family ultimately leaves an emotional scar, especially on the women and it also leaves the family with the burden of conducting an unnecessary annual ritual.
The poet could also be touching upon the inevitability of death and the transience of life.
Line by line interpretation of the poem Obituary
Father, when he passed on,
left dust
on a table of papers,
left debts and daughters,
a bedwetting grandson
named by the toss
of a coin after him,
The poet begins the poem Obituary by describing the useless inheritance his (or an imaginary person’s) father left behind upon passing away. He says that his father left papers on a dusty table which means that the papers are not valuable.
For instance, they are neither title deeds to any property nor a will. He also left debts to be paid by his heirs, most likely by his eldest son, and daughters, who are probably unmarried.
In the olden days, daughters were considered a burden because the girl’s family had to not only take responsibility for all the marriage expenses but also give a huge dowry to the boy’s family. This indicates that the father has left his family with nothing but liabilities to be paid off.
He also has a grandson who is too young to do anything as he’s still a bedwetting baby. The poet mentions that this grandson is named after his father, by tossing a coin. This implies that the poet’s nephew was not even named after much thought, or maybe they couldn’t decide on an appropriate name.
Overall, the poet seems very disappointed as there are no assets left for the family’s future. The poet uses a sarcastic tone because his father hasn’t left anything valuable but just debts.
a house that leaned
slowly through our growing
years on a bent coconut
tree in the yard.
Being the burning type,
he burned properly
at the cremation
The poet continues his narration saying that his father even left a dilapidated old house because it was leaning on a bent coconut tree. This could be a figurative way of saying that the house was also worthless in terms of value. It could also be a metaphor for the parasitic life the family was living because they were always poor and had to borrow money.
It was not only the house that was old even the coconut tree in their yard was old and bent. The poet is thus conveying the message about the poverty that they were left in after his father’s death.
The poet then says that his father was ‘the burning type’ and that he burned properly during the cremation. This could be a metaphor for his father’s hot-headed temperament.
He is also using parallelism by saying that because his father often burned with rage, he burned properly at the crematorium as well. The poet is being scornful by talking crudely about his father’s death.
as before, easily
and at both ends,
left his eye coins
in the ashes that didn’t
look one bit different,
several spinal discs, rough,
some burned to coal, for sons
Continuing his narration, the poet says that his father burned properly (as before, easily and at both ends). Here ‘both ends’ could mean his body from head to foot. He also says that along with his father’s body his ‘eye coins’ burned as well.
Here ‘eye coins’ refers to the system of placing coins on a dead person’s eyelids. This is supposed to give them a quicker passage into the afterlife. It could also be a metaphor for the coins his father carried about with him. Even though these coins were burnt along with the corpse, they seemed to look the same as before (didn’t look one bit different).
He also mentions the ‘spinal discs’ that were rough. These are nothing but the discs left behind from his father’s spine. Some of these discs burned to coal. Thus, his father’s body was gradually reduced to bone and ashes.
to pick gingerly
and throw as the priest
said, facing east
where three rivers met
near the railway station;
no longstanding headstone
with his full name and two dates
The poet continues by saying that the sons had to pick up these burnt ashes very cautiously and throw them facing east just as the priest had instructed them to do so. In the east, the three rivers meet near the railway station. The poet could be poking fun at the rituals that they had to perform. He is probably not in favor of performing the last rites in this manner.
The poet also says that there is no permanent headstone with his father’s full name and dates mentioning his birth and death. This is because as per the western system of burial, the dead are usually buried in a grave along with a tombstone indicating their date of birth and death.
to holdin their parentheses
everything he didn’t quite
manage to do himself,
like his caesarian birth
in a brahmin ghetto
and his death by heart-failure in the fruit market.
Since there is no headstone, there is no epitaph for the dead person. Usually, there will be a two-three-line description on the gravestone highlighting prominent aspects of that person’s life. The poet is scornful about his father’s life as there doesn’t seem to be anything significant about it.
He stresses the fact that most of the happenings in his father’s life seemed to be out of his father´s control (everything he didn’t quite manage to do himself). For instance, his father was birthed through a c-section (caesarian birth) and not naturally.
Moreover, he was born in a brahmin ‘ghetto’ which could mean that their community was already overpopulated. Though he was born as a Brahmin, regarded as the uppermost caste in the Hindu religion, the manner of his birth was perhaps regarded as unrespectable.
His father’s death due to heart failure in a fruit market implies that his end was also not in his control.
Overall, the poet seems to regard his father with contempt. Despite being born into an upper caste his father did not have a grand life or any achievements to his credit.
But someone told me
he got two lines
in an inside column
of a Madras newspaper
sold by the kilo
exactly four weeks later
to street hawkers
The poet gets information from a third party that his father eventually got an obituary of two lines in an inner column of a Madras newspaper. This also seems to indicate that his father was quite unpopular as he got merely two lines in the remote corner of a local newspaper.
This newspaper was sold in bulk (sold by the kilo) exactly four weeks after the obituary appeared, to street hawkers. All this could mean that his father did not have a high status in society and the newspapers with his obituary were ultimately sold as scrap.
who sell it in turn
to the small groceries
where I buy salt,
coriander,
and jaggery
in newspaper cones
that I usually read
The street hawkers in turn sell these newspapers to the local grocery stores as packing material. The stores are the ones from which the poet buys salt, coriander, and jaggery in newspaper cones.
By listing these groceries, the poet probably wants to emphasize how poor they are because he’s buying basic commodities from small shops where they reuse old newspapers to pack the items. The poet says that he usually reads these paper cones.
for fun, and lately
in the hope of finding
these obituary lines.
And he left us
a changed mother
and more than
one annual ritual.
The poet continues, saying that he read these newspaper packets for fun but also most recently in the hope of finding his father’s obituary lines. He ends his narration on an abrupt note saying that his father left his family in a sorry state (a changed mother and more than one annual ritual).
‘Changed mother’ could mean that his mother is now a widow and hence will be looked down upon by society. It could also mean that she was emotionally disturbed and shocked by her husband’s sudden death.
‘More than one annual ritual’ could refer to the annual death anniversary that the family has to hold in remembrance of his father’s death. Thus, the poet gives a lengthy account of his father’s death, not expressing any sorrow and the burden cast on the entire family.
Analysis of the poem Obituary
The poem Obituary by A.K. Ramanujan has a unique narration style as the poet uses an enjambment, where the ending line of each stanza continues into the next stanza, almost throughout the poem.
In this poem the poet sketches the personality of his dead father, the feeling of contempt that he has towards his father, and the apparent lack of grief on his father’s death. Though the identity of speaker is not specified, we can assume that the speaker is the poet itself.
An Obituary is a notice of death of a dear one, usually published in newspapers by family members. It generally includes a brief biography of the deceased person. Though the poem is titled ‘Obituary’ and is supposed to have a sorrowful note, the poem is a contrast, having a note of resentment.
The poet makes fun not only of his father but also of the various rituals that have to be unquestioningly followed on someone’s death. Through the poem, the poet seems to have written his version of an obituary for his father, though it is a disrespectful one.
The poet also draws a contrast between the Hindu system of burial and the western or predominantly Christian system of burial. In the latter’s culture, the dead are buried in a graveyard with a tombstone containing a suitable epitaph along with the date of birth and death. His father wasn’t even good enough to deserve that because neither the manner of his birth nor his death was in his control.
Ultimately, the message that the poet is trying to convey is that a person’s life is temporary, irrespective of the status or position enjoyed in society. Thus, when people die the only things they leave behind are their possessions. These will be left for others to enjoy as the mortal body will either be buried or cremated.
The poem ‘Obituary’ is written in eight stanzas of seven lines each. It does not follow any specific rhyme scheme or meter and is written in a direct, conversational tone, making it easy to read and understand.
Poetic Devices in the poem Obituary
Alliteration:
“left debts and daughters”
Metaphor:
“house that leaned …. on a bent coconut tree in the yard”, “being the burning type he burned properly….”
“left his eye coins in the ashes that didn’t look one bit different”
Enjambment:
This occurs almost throughout the poem. E.g., the transition between line fourteen in the second stanza and line fifteen in the third stanza “…. burned properly at the cremation—as before, easily….”
