# Suman Pokhrel

Suman Pokhrel (September 21, 1967) is a Nepali poet, lyricist, translator and artist. He is noted for creating impressionable images across his poems that revolve around the nuances of life. Universities in Nepal and India have included his poetry in their syllabi.
Pokhrel is the only writer to have received the SAARC Literary Award twice. He received this award in 2013 and 2015. He is recipient of several other national and international literary awards including Shaluk International Literature Award and Asia's Inspiring Poet Award.

## Quotes
### From Poetry

* Every morning I wake up with the news of bloodshed. I feel my body, desperate to know whether I’m still alive.
** Every Morning
* Thank God, my name isn't in the list of those who died or were killed yesterday!
** Every Morning
* An uneasy rhythm of life is more life like than an easy death.
** Khorampa
* I chose none to ask why the wind was blowing there chasing the fogs
** Khorampa
* I asked none why life ends in ways uncertain.
** Khorampa
* The dream too thinks twice, gets filtered to go soft to be seated on children's eyes.
** Children
* Even if they (Children) try to pluck it, the flower submits itself onto their hands. If it happens to prick their heels, the thorn scorns itself all its life.
** Children
* I wonder– didn’t the Creator really do injustice? With a power to defeat everyone without any battle, children are busy at play with the most beautiful moments of their life. Once they grow conscious of it, those moments will have gone away never to return to them.
** Children
* Once positioned on their(children's) lips, even the scariest of words come out as a melodious lisp.
** Children
* Even If they (children) fall during their play, the nature, having come under the spell of their creative sports, doesn’t know when they again start to play so full of jest. Believing that they fall unknowingly the ground, mostly, does not even hurt them.
** Children
* If they (children) smash, the flower vase assumes a smile while turning into pieces. For a chance to be spilled by their hands, anything they hold gets spilled itself full of happiness. For a chance to play with them, water forgets about its own colourlessness.
** Children
* Let me not so much be lost in involvements as would make me incapable of recognizing the fragrance of the flower beaming in my own yard.
** Entanglements
* May I not so much be lost as would have No time to look at myself Ever.
** Entanglements
* May I not so much, so much be lost, just To see the hue, grace, glory gone Off the face of my beloved As I’d wake and be conscious.
** Entanglements
* Will you please go journeying for your own sake, till I come living a moment of life?
** Entanglements
* Through years of my prime I walked with a heart crazy about love.
** The Tajmahal and my Love
* I wanted my heart to bloom and shelter a shadow of love
** The Tajmahal and my Love
* I wanted to paint a picture, in indelible print, across the canvass of my heart.
** The Tajmahal and my Love
* I am tipsy after my own feelings themselves have become wine. I forget myself, world and all.
** The Tajmahal and my Love
* If I'd ever grown prosperous like Shah Jahan was, I'd not have waited for my beloved's death before I erected a Taj Mahal.
** The Tajmahal and my Love
* I want the fever to grab me forever and want you to be my fever
** Fever
* Tonight, may I get so drunk in love that I do not see any dreams!
** May I Not See Dreams
* Commands- you're sure to hear from above if you're placed down below.
** Commands
* I like desires like children and their plays that tease me now and then into knowing life.
** Desire
* I salute my desires with a bow., were it not for them to come and play mind would be empty just like me.
** Desire
* I believed all along, one day everyone would go mad just to see me sane.
** Before Making Decisions
* Even after all that, each and every being here believe, that the heat will be defeated and coolness will prevail. The experience knows that the rule of an autocrat cannot last long.
** Heat
* Haunted trees covered behind the curtains of their own leaves stare at the dark from the fringe of streets.
** In Midnight Street
* Lampposts look in the glow of their defeated light robbed by the fog but cannot tell if the streets lying by stretching limbs in courtyards are sleeping face downwards or supine.
** In Midnight Street
* Creation does not cease just because there is darkness!
** In Midnight Street
* I would regard meanings given by others so far as refreshing boon, I would still be enamored of rose or any heartless flower's smell if tender tides of your affection had not suffused the pollen of my heart with loving aroma.
** You are, as You are
* I shall not go out at all given that my love is here shall always stay attached to these hearts. I shall never bid farewell to this place! But I have to send this body anyhow from here.
** I shall bid no Farewell
* What heart touched is what is touched what heart experienced is what is experienced where heart lived is what is lived.
** I shall bid no Farewell
* I could not say which one was more authentic, their fate or the slender woody sticks that supported their shacks.
** Among freed Bonded-Labourers
* I felt I was getting enraged and losing my speech like them losing their dreams.
** Among freed Bonded-Labourers
* I was feeling like mad by the melody of birds singing out of tune in the settlements where travels lose their own destinations.
** Among freed Bonded-Labourers
* Is freedom dearer than life? or does it become easier to live when life becomes difficult?
** Among freed Bonded-Labourers
* Life was running, running after a mirage-like desires.
** An Encounter with Life
* I asked my life why it carried along my dreams but chose to escape me.
** An Encounter with Life
* Still enveloped in a blanket of dreams my life continued to lie still, pretending as if it was in a deep slumber.
** An Encounter with Life
* The road kept coming, and continued going somewhere alone.
** A Story of the setting Sun and the Moon
* This evening, too the Sun had to tell the same story before he went away, leaving the forlorn moon hankering after his light.
** A Story of the setting Sun and the Moon
* Let us be honest we have praised Angulimala will make no difference if you convey my salute to Amrapali.
** Before Buddha’s Statue in the Rain
* This moment I am keener on the stories of valour washed away by this year's monsoon floods than the abstract shapes glued to myths, history and stories.
** Before Buddha’s Statue in the Rain
* When this flood blocks the road I am worried more by my soil getting washed, than by getting late to reach my destination.
** Before Buddha’s Statue in the Rain
* Should I complete this poem or should I put my room’s light out?
** Before Switching off Light
* In how many minds should I go crazy? whom should I ask?
** Before Making Decision
* Which eyes should I look for to find the ultimate unreasoned answer?
** Before Making Decision
* Without asking anybody’s advice I turned myself insane.
** Before Making Decision
* You who are sitting before me have the power to change my consciousness into painting, poem, melody or anything else!
** Between Rainbow and Melody
* I know you'll speak no truth at this time. I've to be guided solely by your silence, your eyes and the inaudible appeals of your heart.
** Between Rainbow and Melody
* The walls are releasing heat , as if they are angry with each other. The room has been insaned by the heat. The bed is inflamed as if it were an oven. The bed sheet is soaked with sweat, and about to run away getting stuck to the man.
** Heat
* The experience knows that the rule of an autocrat cannot last long.
** Heat
* From the sky one cannot touch the heart of the stone petrified with a desire to live after living a life of softness for long, one cannot get to touch the tenderness of a flower smiling despite being battered in turn by heat and frost.
** From the Sky
* The lovers feel that they are content looking at each other from a distance. The repulsiveness caused by heat between them, is more powerful than all cravings for love and lust.
** Heat
* Having been ripped open and drained by the crowd when I enter my home, many homes seem to be waiting for me to give a shape to this life which is about to perish.
** Home
* I'm searching a heart inside me-- a heart that's ebullient by swallowing the entire pain of the creation, a heart jubilant by accepting the entire tears of the world, a heart aglow by merging the entire dark within itself a heart that's smooth, effervescent and clean.
** I am Searching a Heart
* This market speaking life when heard from each person is now making staggering confused noise of all people speaking together.
** Standing in a Market
* Man and woman cease to be humans once they get lost into crowds.
** Standing in a Market
* Are people like market who live as humans when they’re alone but live as great complexity when they’re in groups?
** Standing in a Market
* Pristine river of lives is swallowed by the crowd- Human getting lost into humans.
** Standing in a Market
* All trees and birds sky and stars bosoms and bangles were seeing everything.
** While Parting
* I had also read on the face of surroundings some broken some disconnected some cracked expectations.
** While Parting
* I’ve touched some sentences and have kissed some words.
** While Parting
* Eyes that obstruct the road can be removed but what happens when hearts block the passage?
** While Parting
* Do not think I’ve reached where I am now by slipping like a landslide or evaporating like a cloud.
** While Parting
* I’ve climbed up here holding the hilt of time’s sword after driving it into my tender heart.
** While Parting
* Whether anybody comes to convince me or not a part of my life does always ache arresting my chest.
** While Parting
* May I splinter away from myself break into whole units and live in each with perfection!
** Song of Soul
* This ME made whole by combining countless fragments could not live in any one part with complete ease.
** Song of Soul
* May I discard the outer cover of time from the layers of poetry by immersing the poet in its entirety within me
** Song of Soul
* May life remain enamored of its own charm
** Song of Soul
* May the river of love always flow from its own lap.
** Song of Soul
* May my pain remain drunk singing its own love songs
** Song of Soul
* (May) the dead body of agony remain asleep resting its head on a pillow of flowers.
** Song of Soul
* May I free myself from the labyrinth of knowledge
** Song of Soul
* May I pack all inventions in burlaps and hide them in corners of Einsteins’ brains.
** Song of Soul
* May I free myself from the ever-pressing chest and enter the garden of imagination by leisurely hiding brain on hill summits.
** Song of Soul
* May I take off clothes covering shame at the border leaving them hanging on dry trees of arrogance and run by wearing the rays of the sun.
** Song of Soul
* May I create plain fields by collecting clouds and bedeck them with arching rainbows.
** Song of Soul
* Playing ball of wind reaching the other end of The Road Not Taken may I call in Robert Frost by holding hands and request Ginsberg to recite Howl facing the world.
** Song of Soul
* May I exchange T.S. Eliot’s The Wasteland with the future of this earth like a lunatic’s dreams and make one season of poetry farming by tilling with the pen of desire.
** Song of Soul
* Fell in love with these hearts and this soil these houses, these walls and streets.
** I Shall Bid No Farewell
* Every moment age is creeping up stealthily, but life, life is melting down like a candle that is flickering around.
** A Birthday Greeting to Myself
* Life is withering away like a candle that is melting down.
** A Birthday Greeting to Myself
* Life incinerates incessantly trying to smile and keeps broiling continuously pretending to be alive.
** A Birthday Greeting to Myself
* Death is shaping up slowly and quietly but life, life is melting down like a candle that is flickering all night.
** A Birthday Greeting to Myself
* Neither my acts have wiped the woes of any sufferer out, nor have I cured pains of wounded ones; with the faith pompous mercenary, O' Glorious! O 'Lord Almighty! how can I bow my head in your adulation?
** O' Lord Almighty!
* Neither my deeds contain any essence nor, my gestures have sense of zeal, my days are creeping forth for nothingness; with this body deficient of heart and soul O' Glorious! O' Lord Almighty ! how can I come close to you?
** O' Lord Almighty!
* Tonight, let us exchange every part of our bodies and every space of our souls with each other.
** Let Us Affix Our Being Together
* The eyes hold tears for so long, let us fill it with love and passion.
** Let Us Renovate this Night
* Let us convert this night we are breathing together, to a bright morning.
** Let Us Renovate this Night
* Unaware about my surrounding, unconscious I live.
** I'm in Oblivion
* It’s not my wish to walk intoxicated; to live for never is not my choice.
** I'm in Oblivion
* A portion of life, every moment gets torn out of me hurting, and flees away.
** I'm in Oblivion
* Wishing to grab the life with nothingness wanting to erase the sigh of tiredness forgetting myself completely from my being why do I seek embrace of yours do not ask me, I know not, I am in oblivion.
** I'm in Oblivion
* Let my pains remain with me.
** Let My Pain Remain
* Let my pains remain with me, I won't utter, I express it not.
** Let My Pain Remain
* My heart itself is a wound, no medicine can cure it. It deepens further if stared at, and hurts more if touched.
** Let My Pain Remain
* This ambiance of candlelight reminds of nights that traveled its way, in entangled embrace of yours and mine.
** A Reminiscent Candlelight
* I like you everywhere on you.
** You Everywhere
* May I get melted in closeness and get blazed in embrace.
** May I get Engulfed
* I wish me to cry for no reason in excess of love.
** May I get Engulfed
* I wish me to vanish somewhere around here.
** May I get Engulfed
* The feeling I groped assuming love was nothing but a fire.
** Setting Fire on Desires
* Keep some fires burning in your heart; I would extinguish it if I could, or get myself engulfed with it.
** Setting Fire on Desires
* I shall give you a song, and you fill melody in it.
** Let Us Renovate this Night
* I want to be everywhere of you.
** You Everywhere
* How could it be wished that poetry of a mellow age be born when this time is taking showers in the drama of loathsome taste!”
** Bereft of Poetry
* It's not as easy as it is with chewing shame and foolishness to chew the wreckage of broken time.
** Bereft of Poetry
* I'm bereft of poetry on this planet, from where the beauties of Creation are vanishing away furiously.”
** Bereft of Poetry
* What was wafting in the smoke of burning tires? Where had time caught in the traffic jam not reaching?”
** Dhaka
* I had read on the face of surroundings; some broken, some disconnected, some cracked expectations.
** While Parting
* I want to love the self that you say is you.
** My Search of You
* May my pains remain with me, I won't utter, I express it not.
** May My Pains Remain with Me
* I gather all of my sorrow, and bring you in my reminiscence, I think of you and forget all of my pain.
** Reminiscences
* When I closed my eyes withdrawing myself from darkness I saw light glowing everywhere.
** A Rendezvous with Life at Midnight
* I spry my closed vision over the streets of this city and the shadows lurching within it.
** Wealth
* The road meanders, wandering in tandem with itself.
** Journey
* Ascending and descending, uphill and downhill, the road inclines and slopes, sliding down yet climbing anew.
** Journey
* The road never halts.
** Journey
* Splitting love among differences between love and soul, love and the heart, love and the body love and life and slicing it further into multiple pieces how may I offer you my entire love?
** How May I Offer You the Entire Love?
* I have offered many of my self to you to get a single you.
** Embracing the Abyss
* I lived my youth in dreams of others.
** How Much Did I Live
* Someone asked me, 'Is there water in your pot?' I pointed to the leaves of a coconut tree.
** I Am Not Writing Anything at the Aryaghat

### From Prose

* Strength of creative writing lies in the skill of handling words and articulating artistic expression of feelings.”
** Foreword, 'Tales of Transformation: English Translation of Tagore's Chitrangada and Chandalika', Lopamudra Banerjee, (2018)
* In influencing write-ups, words seem to move despite residing still on paper.
** Foreword, 'Tales of Transformation: English Translation of Tagore's Chitrangada and Chandalika', Lopamudra Banerjee, (2018)
* In many a situation, the images that words hide while walking forth are the desired meaning of particular words rather than the word itself. Those words sing and dance by coming out of the paper.
** Foreword, 'Tales of Transformation: English Translation of Tagore's Chitrangada and Chandalika', Lopamudra Banerjee, (2018)
* Language is texture of images and music. We speak in images and rhythm, by taking help of words.
** Foreword, 'Tales of Transformation: English Translation of Tagore's Chitrangada and Chandalika', Lopamudra Banerjee, (2018)
* In literary translations, it is this very articulation of expressions that matters the most to bring home to the readers the full essence of the original text in question.
** Foreword, 'Tales of Transformation: English Translation of Tagore's Chitrangada and Chandalika', Lopamudra Banerjee, (2018)
* Chance of source language influencing the target language and that of the translator intervening onto the style of original writer are major challenges in literary translation.
** Foreword, 'Tales of Transformation: English Translation of Tagore's Chitrangada and Chandalika', Lopamudra Banerjee, (2018)
* On translating text into the new language as it is in source language, there is a chance of it being emerged as an absurd sentence in the target language making no sense at all. In the attempt to make the translation meaningful to the target language, there exists a risk of the original work getting meddled by the translator’s style.”
** Foreword, 'Tales of Transformation: English Translation of Tagore's Chitrangada and Chandalika', Lopamudra Banerjee, (2018)
* Literary translation is not merely an act of picking words from one language and keeping it by dipping in the vessel of another language. Those words need to be rinsed, washed, carved and decorated as much as possible.
** Foreword, 'Tales of Transformation: English Translation of Tagore's Chitrangada and Chandalika', Lopamudra Banerjee, (2018)
* Poetry emerging from a poet enters into the reader only when it comes within the readers’ 'sphere of intellect.
** Translator's Note, Bhaarat: Shashwat Aawaj, trans. Suman Pokhrel (2019)
* A reader cannot take poetry by expanding it beyond his/her consciousness, rather can take by shrinking it within.
** Translator's Note, Bhaarat: Shashwat Aawaj, trans. Suman Pokhrel (2018)
* There exists a chance of every poem getting changed while reaching every reader. This ‘getting changed’ is a form of ‘getting translated’, in a way. So, every assimilation of any poem is a translation.
** Translator's Note, Bhaarat: Shashwat Aawaj, trans. Suman Pokhrel (2018)
* Before getting translated, a poem already gets shrunk or expanded within the ‘sphere of intellect’ of the translator in the original language, and it again gets shrunk or expanded within the ‘sphere of intellect’ of the translator in the target language.
** Translator's Note, Bhaarat: Shashwat Aawaj, trans. Suman Pokhrel (2018)
* In translation of poetry; there exists a possibility of components like imagination, art of wordplay, skill of constructing internal rhythm and expand of knowledge of the poet getting affected by the constraint and differentia of the translator.
** Translator's Note, Bhaarat: Shashwat Aawaj, trans. Suman Pokhrel (2018)

### From Interviews

* Poetry is a potent tool capable of guiding societies worldwide through its invisible aesthetic strength.
** Interview with Dagmara K.
* Imagery plays a vital role in conveying a message, bringing it to life, and engaging readers' senses and emotions.
** Interview with Dagmara K. at Spillwords
* Anything that touches my heart holds the potential to inspire me.
** Interview with Dagmara K. at Spillwords
* Nature is the grandest warehouse discovered on this planet, hence anything that touches my heart holds the potential to inspire me, as it enables me to delve into my emotions and forge connections with others through shared experiences.
** Interview with Dagmara K. at Spillwords
* The importance of forging meaningful relationships and exploring the intricacies of human connections has served as a catalyst for my creative expression.
** Interview with Dagmara K. at Spillwords
* Through my writing, I aim to highlight the significance of fostering healthy and fulfilling relationships and inspire others to cherish the bonds they share with fellow human beings.
** Interview with Dagmara K. at Spillwords
* Imagery immerses readers in the ambiance created by the pebbles of words, making it compelling and memorable.
** Interview with Dagmara K. at Spillwords
* My ultimate aspiration in life is to contribute to a world where peace prevails, as peace is the ultimate achievement to realize in life.
** Interview with Dagmara K. at Spillwords
* Writing is also like love, if one can't have the courage to be a renunciant, they cannot write well.
** Interview with Dagmara K. at Spillwords
* At this juncture, the 'world' is no longer confined to just one or two places; it has spread worldwide.
** Interview with Dagmara K. at Spillwords
* Nature is the grandest warehouse discovered on this planet.
** Interview with Dagmara K. at Spillwords
* I firmly believe that everyone should be free to pursue their desires as long as it does not harm others or society.
** Interview with Dagmara K. at Spillwords
* As human beings, we have an innate need to create and innovate from within ourselves to address our own concerns.
** Interview with Dagmara K. at Spillwords
* I believe that the human being is the most complicated chapter of existence, with thousands of dimensions.
** Interview with Dagmara K. at Spillwords
* As a writer, I believe that showing or letting readers feel is often more convincing than telling, and imagery allows me to accomplish just that.
** Interview with Dagmara K. at Spillwords
* Peace is the ultimate achievement to realize in life.
** Interview with Dagmara K. at Spillwords
* Poets are the most difficult creatures to work with.
** Interview with Dagmara K. at Spillwords
* Human being is the most complicated chapter of existence.
** Interview with Dagmara K. at Spillwords
* As humans, we seek ways to fill gaps in our lives through love, food, pleasure, challenges, and more.
** Interview with Dagmara K. at Spillwords
* Nepal is my home, a land of many wonders, but the greatest of them all is its unparalleled diversity and rich heritage.”
** Interview with Dagmara K. at Spillwords
* I dread to think of a society devoid of love, compassion and humanity.
** Interview with Romain Molina
* Love is a feeling and its expression is an art.
** Interview with Romain Molina
* I found the Taj Mahal as the most appropriate example of artistically expressed love.
** Interview with Romain Molina
* As my childhood got opportunity to grow up amidst variety of geography and people practicing different cultures, I could experience the very essence of our diversity.
** Interview with Romain Molina
* Poetry is part of our culture in many ways.
** Interview with Romain Molina
* I am quite sure that poetry will live long with our generations to come.
** Interview with Romain Molina
* Love, compassion, humanity are values which are irreplaceable.
** Interview with Romain Molina
* The Taj Mahal is not just a monument, but a symbol of love.
** Interview with Romain Molina
* We cannot imagine a mind without body.
** Interview with Romain Molina

### Others

* A good poem cannot be written with one's mind on the earth. Though one has to write poems about the earth and existence, one cannot write poems while staying grounded. To write an outstanding poem, a flight to the heights of transcendence is needed. However, a person cannot always remain in that elevated state. When one descends, they touch the earth and write ordinary stuff.
** quoted on Goodreads
* Trust isn't solely about keeping faith in others' promises; it's also about being dependable in the promises we've made to others.
** quoted on Goodreads
* Merely holding the desire to walk together with someone is not enough if one does not possess the art and aptitude of walking together.
** quoted on Goodreads
* A heart can hold a heart-full of anything.
** quoted on Goodreads
* Silence is the best language to speak in when you have lots of things to say.
** quoted on Goodreads
* I am stark sane, but my mind is erratically crazy.
** quoted on Goodreads
* I am playful in words but sincere in action.
** quoted on Goodreads
* No matter how happy you are; start assuming, suspecting and doubting; and make yourself the most unhappy person on the universe.
** quoted on Goodreads
* Keep yourself busy until you feel sleepy.
** quoted on Goodreads
* Silence is polite, but not always.
** quoted on Goodreads
* Love is the cruelest event.
** quoted on Goodreads
* Sometimes, silence works more intensely than a bayonet to slay a tender heart.
** quoted on Goodreads
* Some people are so stiff-necked that they cannot think any other way than their own preconceived ideas.
** quoted on Goodreads
* If you are working in a team, do not expect an outcome of your excellence.
** quoted on Goodreads
* Together; we would create some ecstatic memories, but you are either busy or sleepy.
** quoted on Goodreads
* I exist no more, every moment a new being lives inside me.
** quoted on Goodreads
* They called it that, I mean ‘democracy’.
** quoted on Goodreads

## External links

* Suman Pokhrel at Goodreads
* Suman Pokhrel at Spillwords
* Suman Pokhrel at Poem Hunter
* Suman Pokhrel at All Poetry
* Official site

## References

* ↑ K. Satchidanandan & Ajeet Cour, ed. (21 October 2011), The Songs We Share, Foundation of SAARC Wirters and Literature, pp. 88, 179, 255, ISBN 978-8188703210
* ↑ Ghimire, Madhav (26 May 2018). फ्रान्सेली पाखुरामा नेपाली कविता. kantipurdaily.com.
* 1 2 (February 2024)"सुमन पोखरेल - कृतित्वका विस्तारित आयाम". Aalekha 6 (6): 25–38. ISSN 2645-8659.
* ↑ Hindustan Times, New Delhi, Saturday, February 14, 2015
* ↑ Five writers honored at SAARC Literature Festival (in en). Hindustan Times (2013-03-11).
* ↑ "Translator’s Note" (in English & Nepali (Bilingual)) (Paperback), Bhatat Shashwat Aawaz, Kathmandu: Nepali Kala Sahitya Dat Kam, April 11, 2018, pp. 257, ISBN 9789937053914
* ↑ Pokhrel, Suman. Interview with Dagmara K. "Interview Q&A With Suman Pokhrel." July 18, 2023.
* ↑ Pokhrel, Suman. Interview with Romain Molina. "I Dread to Think of a Society Devoid of Love, Compassion and Humanity." May 05, 2019.
* ↑ Suman Pokhrel Quotes. Goodreads.