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First draft – 1991 – to be completed by acknowledgments, other names of poets, thinkers, artists, translators, eminescologists, educators, desiring to be together unto poetry/shanti.

Albania, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Czechoslovakia, Chile, China, Denmark, Egypt, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, India, Iran, Irak, Israel, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Moldova, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nigeria, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Senegal, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Tanzania, Thailand, United Kingdom, USSR, USA, Yugoslavia

 

MEMBERS / HONORARY INVITED

 

Rafael Alberti, Robert Bly, Emil Cioran, Rosa del Conte, Yolanda Eminescu, Evgheni Evtushenko, John Fowles, Vaclav Havel, Daisaku Ikeda, Eugen Ionesco, Octavio Paz, Amrita Pritam (president since 1981), Salman Rushdie, Leopold Sedhar Senghor, Bogdan Suhodolsky, Grigore Vieru.

MEMBERS AT LARGE

Anna Aalten, B. Abanuka, Tawfik El Abdo, Prachoomsuk Achava-Amrung, Ioan Alexandru (organizer), Ion Andreiţă, O. M. Anujan, Lourdes Arizpe, Werner Bahner, Andrei Bantaş, Romano Baroni, Georges Barthouil, Al Bayati, Enric Becescu, Eva Behring, Amita Bhose, Danuta Bienkowska, Carlo Bernardini, Eveline Blamont, Ana Blandiana, Lucian Boz, Ion Caramitru, Margaret Chatterjee, Mary Ellen-Chatwin, Mihai Cimpoi, Silvia Chiţimia, Henri Claessen, Georges Condominas, Lean-Louis Courriol, Robert Creeley, Petru Creţia, Marco Cugno, Nicolae Dabija, Rodny Daniel, Nilima Das, Sisir Kumar Das, Mahendra Dave, Guenther Deicke, Francis Dessart, Stanislaw Dobrowolski, P. Vidyasagar Dayal, Metoda Dodic-Fikfak, Mihai Drăgan, Livia Drăghici, Jules Dufur, Zoe Dumitrescu-Buşulenga, Anton Dumitriu, Monika Egde, Christian Eggebert, Didona Eminescu, Roland Erb, Jiri Felix, Galdi Laszlo, Roy Mac Gregor-Hastie, Al Giuculescu, Allain Guillermou, Herbert Golder, Klaus Heitmann, Helena Helva, Gerard Herberichs, Carmen Hendershott, Anna Hohenwart, Peter Hook, Alexandra Hortopan, Kazimiera Illakowiczowna, Philip Iseley, Judith Isroff, Ion Iuga, Vilenka Jakac-Bizjak, Rafik Vihati Joshi, Elena M. Koenigsberg, Maria Kafkova, Iuri Kojevnikov, Henrik Konarkovski, Omar Lara, Leonida Lari, Maria Teresa Leon, Catherine Lutard, Keshav Malik, Muhamed Maghoub, Fidelis Masao, Liliana Mărgineanu, Pino Mariano, Constantin Mateescu, Anna Mathai, Dumitru Matkovski, Charles Mercieca, Ion Milos, Baldev Mirza, George Munteanu, Chie Nakane, Ion Negoiţescu, Wanda Ostap, Ayappa Panikar, Sheila Pantry, Daniel Perdigao, Augustin Petre, Irina Petrescu, Max Demeter Peyfuss, Jane Plaister, Franco Prendi, Carlos, Queiroz, Zorica Rajkovic, Lisa Raphal, Peter Raster, Ruprecht Rohr, Marcel Roşculeţ, Mario Ruffini, Angelo Sabbattini, A. M. Sadek, Zeus Salazar, Patricia Sarles, Monika Segbert, Joachim Schuster, Vinod Seth, Satyavrat Shastri, Andrei Simic, Norman Simms, William Snodgrass, Mihai Stan, Dumitru Stăniloae, Sygmunt Stobersky, Sanda Stoleru, Sorin Stratilat, Arcadie Suceveanu, Eric Sunderland, Bathelemy Taladoire, Akile Tezkan, Eugen Todoran, Fernando Tola, Mona Toscano-Pashke, Urmila Rani Trikha, Kliment Tsacev, Mihai Ursachi, Bruno Uytersprot, Nelson Vainer, Isabela Valmarin, Dimitrie Vatamaniuc, Romulus & Mihu Vulcănescu, J.L. Vig, Brenda Walker, Xu Wende, Reinhold Werner, Rudolf Windish, Mario Zamora

MEMBERS IN MEMORIAM

Anna Ahmatova, Sergiu Al-George, Gheorghe Anghel, Tudor Arghezi, George Bacovia, Ion Barbu, Lucian Blaga, Samson Bodnărescu, Alexandru Bogdan, N.N. Botez, Petre Brânzeu, Victor Buescu, Anta Raluka Buzinschi, George Călinescu, I. L. Caragiale, Iorgu Caragiale, Toma Chiricuţă, Pompiliu Constantinescu, Aron Cotruş, Ion Creangă, Dimitrie Cuclin, Mihail Dragomirescu, Mircea Eliade, Gheorghe Eminescu, Gheorghe Eminovici, Franyo Zoltan, Galgi Laszlo, Gala Galaction, Mozes Gaster, Onisifor Ghibu, Petre Grimm, Ion Goraş, N.I. Herescu, G. Ibrăileanu, Nicolae Iorga, Petru Iroaie, Josef Sandor, Ivan Krascko, Mite Kremnitz, Franco Lombardi, E. Lovinescu, Titu Maiorescu, Alfred Margul-Sperber, Veronica Micle, Matei Millo, Gheorghe Nedioglu, Constantin Noica, Ramiro Ortiz, Sylvia Pankhurst, Vasile Pârvan, Perpessicius,  Ioana Em. Petrescu, Gheorghe Pituţ, Miron Pompiliu, Augustin Z. N. Pop, Cornelui M. Popescu, Aron Pumnul, Salvatore Quasimodo, Ianis Ritsos, Mihail Sadoveanu, George Bernard Shaw, Ioan Slavici, Nichita Stănescu, Carmen Sylva, Carlo Tagliavini, Fani Tardini, Vasile Văduva, Tudor Vianu

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Ek shanti

Left in Dodona I ask Mahesh what I thought in the night for the poets communicate apofatically awakening poets’ killers even I am not Eminescu reincarnating Zalmoxis in Dacia then Egypt via Espagna following Ihesu in Himalaya that I am seeking Him see Margaret this Denmark of love left to all of D’s.

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Waste

Almost sound in all inheritage blood and brain

spread at imaginary wolves visits

jumps on temples forests Eminescu

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yes in Kali kalidasology with Eminescu’s Calin

at death centenary clowning clow

masochistically Kali home laughed

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Contemplative obedient epics with my fellow

countrymen my only wish Eminescu’s

to die unto their better half

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Mahavira of late old gods ladies evangelizing

one recited from Eminescu in the end

changing house by country of fools I left

*

Rodny in academy Eminescu inviting me to be

professor of European anthropology

while writing of a personal anthropology

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Yoga not permitted in this case sometimes Milarepa

in our discussions before Eminescu

eating the heart of ghost in the hills

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Influenced Hillerin calling Brenda for debt

at noon in Eminescu bookshop

like in Cambridge with hound

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White flower from you intended for the corps

of the logician I’ve told was early

and nowhere Eminescu’s tomb either

*

Alibi also soon daylight like in Brashov

hadn’t as bad returns as presciences

just take Buddha as poet Eminescu

*

A zone of solitude around everybody one’s life

imagine indeed how lonely Eminescu was

saying I am a Buddhist just being too Christian

His zone touched here heretically on beheading

hayavadana like ardhanariswara also

thinking like Mir to Veronica

*

Depict paintings like in Kangra Eminescu

valley valleology colored eyely  sight

intellectual reconcept photograph

*

 

The Buddha. Letters from the buddhahood to Eminescu

Under all circumstances you seem to be under the observation of the intelligence-people of your own Socialist Country who are doing this social service to harass you a great deal in any near future and certain people including the „ambassador” (the mathematician one!) in the Romanian Embassy here in Delhi are trying to molest your good name in India by spreading rumors about you and your being a „rogue” and say to people here that „you” are going to be exiled from Romania and/or are going to be punished in some way. You are simple sincere poet like Mihai Eminescu and all your life you will remain simple & sincere to Romania as you always expressed and praised Mihai Eminescu and worked sincerely for the cause of deeper understanding between India and Romania.

*

I also published Mihai Eminescu’s poem on page number 11 viz. The Elfland Damsel and in a footnote told how great a poet Mihai Eminescu was and how many new Romanian poets he has influenced. But this sick person, the very much sick person, your Romanian ambassador Mr. Mitu Nicu spoiled everything by raising a lot of hue and cry and luckily he also revealed the very confidential things of your government that they were about to frame cases against you and were about to „exile” you from Romania and that you were a „rogue” and argued with me for five hours (from 4.45 p.m. To 9.50 p.m. On 18.9.1979) in the Romanian embassy about many things on page 9 and also criticized why this person Gheorghe Anca who is not a poet at all and is not a representative of Romanian poetry has had been published by me in their National Day issue and of the magazine and if you had written the introduction (I wrote it myself) and if the photograph and poems were supplied by Anca?

*

I like to confirm our „International Academy Mihai Eminescu for Culture. Poetry & Arts” and also the Eminescologistic human love for human race. I am happy that „Tagore Institute of Arts” (India) and „Hafiz Iran Society” (Iran:Teheran) are all cooperating with us and in 1989 we hope to reach Bucharest at his anniversary.

*

I attended then the full Mexican Week celebrated in New Delhi and met poet Octavio Paz of Mexico who writes in Spanish. There also I mentioned you and hundred Romanian poets. I saw through 15 days World Trade Fair in November as also we had a British Council workshop on Poetry on November 27th where my two poems were taken and one was cyclostyled for discussion. Mention of International Academy Mihai Eminescu is very automatic then. It penetrates the ears of the listener: „100 Romanian poets”.

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You mentioned about Iasi’s letter demanding a sculpture of Eminescu. (From Iaşi, on the North of the country – which country? India or Romania? Did you publish a bust of Eminescu in any of I.A.M.E. Books? Did you? I didn’t create any such thing). You can send him a photocopy of any of the busts of Eminescu. I didn’t meet Mrs. Pratima Kumar. If I can put a statue of Eminescu in our front garden I send you a copy after the same – among the palm trees. I expect you very much at „India in World Literature” in Delhi University in February 1985. But a bust of Eminescu in the garden should be put now. Nana must have come back from Transilvania. Nana is always in touch with me. We have no distance between ourselves when she is a day-light child of India. You are a „midnight” child of India, working late in night on its topics and tell Rushdie I am the „Shame”.

I hope Nancy can work a ceramic bust of Eminescu – lower portion in Green, upper in Lotus flower colour.

Here alone I.A.M.E. is saddled, in a seal, on his birthday.

*

Eminescu Science Poetic meeting with best actor reciting our academy’s chief Mr. Eminescu – poetess Ana Blandiana of „When Trees have eyes” fame – it is impressive mention of varied subjects we have tried to touch about Indo-Romanian relations in a binding step on a cement platform. Yesterday, I put my records straight, one step ahead about great Romanian sections of my papers to search for all bits of papers, envelopes, chits, notes, letters, magazine clippings, poems, translations, etc. about Romania and yourself and our dear poets from Romania who came in touch with their poetry and unknown faces and common hearts and greatest arts and equal parts in our activities under the International Academy Mihai Eminescu. This I did to write something about us and our works for common knowledge and to present some written note/paper to the new journals which your department of Modern European Languages has started and sent me two copies -one of each journal for contributing material. I am giving some (European) translations of poems including  Romanian poems, including my poem on Eminescu „Why Eminescu came to us…” (Its Romanian translation printed I never received dear Anca, as it was published. Why didn’t you read this poem or its translation at Eminescu evening to Ana Blandiana). I added three or four lines to this poem retyping it yesterday to make it true international in scope:

„It was an Eminescu life given to poets at Versailles –

And Eminescu is no different or indifferent to Nagasaki

Eminescu is emancipation of at least South Africa

A running word for soft speaking Vietnamese

Or why should Eminescu come to life out of time

Eminescu is a necessary word and a necessary line

He has in his abode met all the more Tagore

Pushkin for a recall and has met Subramanian Bharati

Eminescu is now a pearl in every oyster of the mother pearl Earth

To be able to swim on seas at ease

Or why else should Eminescu come from beyond the oceans swimming towards eternity…!”

The underlined words in ticked lines are newly added and some stray words removed e.g. „lovely”  in following:

„Eminescu is the name of Rudraksha bead in every day rosary.”

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Subject: Eminescu bust by sculptor Ion Mândrescu & matters of Book/journals exchange, etc. with Romanian Educational Library & and poetry exchange with individual Romanian poets in Eminescu Year.

Thank you for your dated nil on 15.4.1989 and I was at International Academy Mihai Eminescu in fact waiting for Ion Mândrescu created bust which is however still awaited. If there is some technical difficulty you can get sent its pictures and/or articles and essays appearing about it in papers, as clippings, for our file and general reference purpose to others who may need.

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You can write to them that you can read a paper on Eminescu in/and folklore: i.e. Eminescu used folklore themes for his poetry, and has himself become a folklore theme in Romania.

*

EMINESCU, A FOLKLORE…

(by Vinod Seth)

They call Eminescu a poet, a gem

I always called him a diamond

I called him folk-lore

He, whom we call Eminescu

Hardly separated from the air anywhere

A poet called him a tree, an echo

But he who is as clear as stones in the brook

Is a smoothened dazzling diamond

Never from mountain poetry is torn

Eyes from his Brancusi bird

Fly high to sit by his bust

Ion Mândrescu, the artist of skill

Takes away poetry from his crust

And hangs on him the diamond bullets

To let him be the martyr in revolution

Poet he was, but poets don’t die

Eminescu was the folklore of revolutions

He hung poetry like muslin cloths

On his face a smile in store

Folklore made Eminescu and Eminescu made folklore

A Hindi, Sanskrit base as before

Eminescu took a round of whole this globe

Poetry beheads him, gives him folklore

Eminescu sings an epic tune to us

Eminescu we hear on telecom

Then we ask him May we come in?

Eminescu say Yes if you glass cut the rocks

P.S. You will be pleased   a sculpture (a woman’s head in brass in French Museum’s collection, made by Bruncush, was recently exhibited in the National Gallery of Modern Art, which was the first sculpture I saw from Bruncushi. If more than one busts of Eminescu are sent may be we can give them to some institutions.

*

LIBERTIES…

(By Vinod Seth)

Death in the year of Eminescu’s death

Better than Romanians speak

And speak they 25 years ache

Achile’s heal has kicked Ceausescu’s head

And with bullets riddled his face

We wouldn’t dare a return

While dying he doesn’t look as young

As much as in publicity photographs

which his ambassador has to give or gave

Liberty

Only you are young

Noe live with Romanian grace…

Up and up on this hill is love

Then on the peak is a flag

Brancusi has put there a slab

Romanians call it Eminescu’s grave

Up on the hill one year is past

Up on the hill a look down is cast

Flags fly 80 000 at half mast

Revolution is like those of the French

Like Shiva’s dance on Christ’s cross

They had a thirst for poison, had to quench

The people had told at last who is the boss

Christmas said it is Santa-Claus

Death said no! he has worn my dress

The only liberty is on peoples’ face.

Now will you read my poem again

Yes if my all friends are slain

And only free self of Romania is again

This army is friend of the poets

The army is Eminescu and also his poem

Eminescu at his death centenary awake

Has turned the quick most page

Salutes to people, to Eminescu, to army

Government’s area TV serial case

*

Namastai. By 1995 we will be together 101. The 1 is mine. The rest is fine. A legless and a handless mad one in Eminescu post-ardhanariswara. Mateescu renamed and divorced me in his novel after India, Vulcănescu used initials (my name prohibited) and Iuga put your dedication as for himself. Part of your autobiography in letters to me I take in this novel (acknowledging it here and at the end like Salman Rushdie).

*

Perhaps Umesh Mehta would publish this, for India, Stephen Gill for Canada, Sokka Gakay for Japan – even for having something from Romania, if not for challenging purpose burried inside and belonging to many agonies between ancestralities and newagers, between indology and creation, as at Christ’s death and after Eminescu’s. About credits of the book ask Pirandello.

*

Mais, a Bucarest vous ne pourrez plus exercer vos dons litteraires et artistiques comme a l’Academie Eminescu. Que ferrez-vous?… Vous avez une grande activite en ce moment, avec les traductions, le roman „fourmis blanches” – qu’est que cela veut dire? et les enfants que vous faites chanter.

*

The words that are used in our daily routine. Relations, colors. Interrogations, persons. A fi, simple expressions. Conversation, Dictation, Vocabulary, Masculine and Feminine, Opposite words, „caloianul”, counting, days, parts of the body, Danube, negation, „Noi avem castel frumos, ran-tan-tiro-riro-ran”, singular-plural, Încurcătura play writer, neuter, poem by National poet „Mihai Eminescu” Peste vârfuri, vry simple outlook of the Latin language and its comparison with Romanian, Slave, Tempus acquierendi et tempus perdendi, Vergilius father, Dante, Ante homines vita et mors, bonum et malum, past present and future tense, Sunt lacrimae rerum/sunt lacrimi în lucruri/that the things have tears in these, we have discussed this philosophically and with Eminescu writing Luceafărul, „Glossa” – most of the students remembered the first line of the poem „vreme trece vreme vine” – how to answer the question, these are practised from the Romanian booklet edited by the „George Anca” our teacher, story by M. Eminescu „Poveste Indică”.

*

Discussions on the topic „Murinda Shivratri” which was written by our „Sir”. Announcement of the programmed broadcast at the radio on 22.2.83 at 7.30 p.m. on the short wave band. Exhibition at the class teacher’s house, including the books of Eminescu, Arghezi, Blaga, Bacovia, Barbu, Calinescu etc. Announcement in the class, especially of the book „Istoria literaturii române de la origini până în prezent”. Poem „Rondelul oraşului din Indii”. Reading and translation of the poem into Hindi. Visit to the teacher’s house to see the exhibition. There we recited the poems. Our teacher’s friend Mr. Iuga also recited the poem. The photograph of the speakers are also taken. We read from the G. Călinescu book also.

*

Discussion on the Meghadut (Romanian version) which is written by Kalidas and its Romanian translation was done by our teacher (G. Anca). In which discussed with us on the following words: Norul – clouds. Vestitor – Messanger (one who gives the message). And he compared these words with the following lines given by M. Eminescu: Trecut-au anii ca nori lungi pe şesuri / Şi niciodată n-or să vină iară.

„Mai am un Singur Dor”. Teiul sfânt like baniyan tree. Apele plâng clar izvorând din fântâne (i.e. clear water weeps from fountains as springs). Quotation: „Dumnezeul geniului m-a sorbit din popor cum soarele soarbe un nour din marea de amar”. In this the significance of nour and marea de amar was justified.

Sergiu Al-George (Indologist): Translator of Gita into Romanian. Classical master pieces and modern Romanian archaic and universal. Mare de amar by Eminescu and Mare de-ntuneric by Lucian Blaga.

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Singurătate by M. Eminescu, comparison melancolie/vers with soka/shloka.

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Origini. Crainic – Nostalgia paradisului; Mircea Eliade – L’eternel retour. Lucian Blaga – Spaţiul Mioritic, Eonul dogmatic. Spengler (German philosopher). Vasile Pârvan, Idei şi forme istorice. Historical personalities and literary books: Nicolae Cartojan, Istoria literaturii române vechi; cărţile populare în cultura română. Polyhistors: Miron Costin, Dimitrie Cantemir (18th cent.), Ion Eliade Rădulescu, M. Kogălniceanu, Nicolae Bălcescu, B. P. Hasdeu (19th century), Nicolae Iorga, Ovid Densisianu, G. Călinescu, Mircea Eliade (20th century). Famous novels of the different centuries, like Răscoala and Ion by Liviu Rebreanu and Geniu pustiu by M. Eminescu.

*

You next ask me about any work I have been doing on Eminescu, and the answer to that, alas, is that I have not really touched on his poetry or prose for many years; not since to Introduction to „Luceafărul” I did in Miorita back in 1977, an essay I am sure is in the university Library there in Bucharest.

The Eminescu celebration seems to be building up considerably. My co-editor of Miorita Charles Carlton has prepared a special supplementary number of the magazine with Tom Perry, and we are cooperating with Brenda Walker of Forest Books (London) in publicizing her new translations of the poet’s works. Other than that, there is really no way to do more here. I am afraid as the years go by, it is more difficult to interest any among my colleagues in Romanian culture.

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George ANCA

16 iunie 2017

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