byron and shelley are two of the greatest british poets. both had the lofty sentiment of creation,love,as the theme of their poetic expressions.yes, although both wrote principally on love,lovers,and their fortunes,their modes of expression differ as widely as the poles.
byron was born and brought up in luxury,wealth,and liberty.he was an ardent and sincere devotee of libery,—yes,he dared to clain liberty in everything—great and small, social or political.he knew not how or where he was extreme.
byron’s poems are like a stimulating liquor,—the more one drinks,the more one feels the sweet fascination.they are full of charm,full of beauty,full of sincerity throughout.
in sentimentality,enthusiasm and straightforwardness of diction,they have no equal.he was a free and noble hearted man.his end came while he was engaged in a noble pursuit.he went to greece,where he sided with the patriots who were fighting for their liberty.his whole life,career and production are intertwined in love and liberty.
shelley,though a devotee of love,is judicious and pensive.his enthusiasm for love never appears in any strong out-burst of expression.he is a “philosopherlover”.he loves not only the beauty of love,or love for love,but “love in philosophy” of “philosophy in love”.he had depth,but not continuance:energy without youthful devotion.his poems are as the moonshine,placidly beautiful,somnolently still,reflected on the waters of silence and contemplation.
shelley sought nirvana in love;but byron sought action for love, and in love.shelley was self-contained and quite engrossed in his devotion to the muses.his premature and violent death will be lamented so long as english literature exists.
both shelley and byron’s works are worth studying by every lover of learning,for enjoyment of poetic beauty,and to appreciate the lofty ideals of love and liberty.
in these pages,i have the honour to offer my readers translations of a few poems from the works of byron.
hereafter,i shall try my best,to present them with the translation of the world reknowned sakuntala of the famous poet kalidasa of hindustan,the land of lord sakya buddha.
that the labour bestowed on the present publication will be appreciated by my readers is the writer’s earnest desire.
manshu