Shiv and the Grasshopper

      (The song that Toomai’s mother sang to the baby)

 

     Shiv, who poured the harvest and made the winds to blow,

     Sitting at the doorways¹ of a day of long ago,

     Gave to each his portion, food and toil² and fate,

     From the King upon the guddee to the Beggar at the gate.

        All things made he—Shiva the Preserver.

        Mahadeo!  Mahadeo!  He made all,—

        Thorn for the camel, fodder³ for the kine,

        And mother’s heart for sleepy head, O little son of mine!

     Wheat he gave to rich folk, millet⁴ to the poor,

     Broken scraps⁵ for holy men that beg from door to door;

     Battle to the tiger, carrion⁶ to the kite,

     And rags and bones to wicked wolves without the wall at night.

     Naught he found too lofty, none he saw too low—

     Parbati beside him watched them come and go;

     Thought to cheat her husband, turning Shiv to jest—

     Stole the little grasshopper⁷ and hid it in her breast.

        So she tricked him, Shiva the Preserver.

        Mahadeo!  Mahadeo!  Turn and see.

        Tall are the camels, heavy are the kine,

        But this was Least of Little Things, O little son of mine!

 

     When the dole⁸ was ended, laughingly she said,

     “Master, of a million mouths, is not one unfed?”

      Laughing, Shiv made answer, “All have had their part,

     Even he, the little one, hidden ‘neath thy heart.”

      From her breast she plucked it, Parbati the thief,

     Saw the Least of Little Things gnawed⁹ a new-grown leaf!

     Saw and feared and wondered, making prayer to Shiv,

     Who hath surely given meat to all that live.

        All things made he—Shiva the Preserver.

        Mahadeo!  Mahadeo!  He made all,—

        Thorn for the camel, fodder for the kine,

        And mother’s heart for sleepy head, O little son of mine!

1 doorways   

n.门口，门道( doorway的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The houses belched people; the doorways spewed out children. 从各家茅屋里涌出一堆一堆的人群，从门口蹦出一群一群小孩。 来自辞典例句
• He rambled under the walls and doorways. 他就顺着墙根和门楼遛跶。 来自辞典例句

2 toil   

vi.辛劳工作，艰难地行动；n.苦工，难事

参考例句：

• The wealth comes from the toil of the masses.财富来自大众的辛勤劳动。
• Every single grain is the result of toil.每一粒粮食都来之不易。

3 fodder   

n.草料；炮灰

参考例句：

• Grass mowed and cured for use as fodder.割下来晒干用作饲料的草。
• Guaranteed salt intake, no matter which normal fodder.不管是那一种正常的草料，保证盐的摄取。

4 millet   

n.小米，谷子

参考例句：

• Millet is cultivated in the middle or lower reaches of the Yellow River.在黄河中下游地区，人们种植谷子。
• The high quality millet flour was obtained through wet milling.采用湿磨法获得了高品质的小米粉。

5 scraps   

油渣

参考例句：

• Don't litter up the floor with scraps of paper. 不要在地板上乱扔纸屑。
• A patchwork quilt is a good way of using up scraps of material. 做杂拼花布棉被是利用零碎布料的好办法。

6 carrion   

n.腐肉

参考例句：

• A crow of bloodthirsty ants is attracted by the carrion.一群嗜血的蚂蚁被腐肉所吸引。
• Vultures usually feed on carrion or roadkill.兀鹫通常以腐肉和公路上的死伤动物为食。

7 grasshopper   

n.蚱蜢，蝗虫，蚂蚱

参考例句：

• He thought he had made an end of the little grasshopper.他以为把那个小蚱蜢干掉了。
• The grasshopper could not find anything to eat.蚱蜢找不到任何吃的东西。

8 dole   

n.救济，（失业）救济金；vt.（out）发放，发给

参考例句：

• It's not easy living on the dole.靠领取失业救济金生活并不容易。
• Many families are living on the dole since the strike.罢工以来，许多家庭靠失业救济金度日。

9 gnawed   

咬( gnaw的过去式和过去分词 )； （长时间） 折磨某人； （使）苦恼； （长时间）危害某事物

参考例句：

• His attitude towards her gnawed away at her confidence. 他对她的态度一直在削弱她的自尊心。
• The root of this dead tree has been gnawed away by ants. 这棵死树根被蚂蚁唼了。