Page:History of Bengali Literature in the Nineteenth Century.djvu/444

 420 BENGALI LITERATURE But this exceedingly difficult task of writing religious songs which should be at the same Dulness and artifici- time artistic and passionate has its ert ake) own dangers and pitfalls. When the prasad, inspiration does not reach its high- water mark, the resulting song is apt to be either dull and flat or laboured and artificial. There is nothing like the dulness of a religious writer at his dullest. This trait, now and then noticeable in Ram-prasad himself, is often very marked in the less inspired song- writers who accompanied or followed him. There is not much in these inferior poets (always with exceptions, of course) which is worth detailed study or attention and we shall pass over themas briefly as_pos- ক oe sible. Of the two sons of Raja Krsna- dra. chandra, Raja Sibchandra and Kumar Sambhichandra, the latter is a better poet, no doubt, but his productions are stilted and conven- tional and are of too trifling a quantity to deserve any further comment. The production of Kumar Narachandra, a member of the same family, are however more abundant and are of a better quality, though not absolutely free from the same trait. He could reproduce the spirit and even the language of Ram-prasad pretty well. We select three of his songs (beside one which we have already quoted) which are not so well-known as they ought to be. যে ভাল করেছ কালি আর ভালতে কাজ নাই, ভালয় ভালয় বিদায় দে মা আলোয় আলোয় চলে যাই ॥ মা তোমার করুণ! যত বুঝিলাম অবিরত ডাকিলাম কত শত কপাল ছাড়া পথ নাই ॥ জঠরে দিয়েছ স্থান করোনা মা অপমান কিসে হবে পরিত্রাণ নরচন্ত্র ভাবে তাই ॥