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[Thomas_Merton]

It is very rare that threads on TV move into the subject of literature, although there have been exceptions.

TV member Bina in another thread in another area happened to mention the Thai poet Sunthorn Pu. I had never heard of the man, so I did a little research.

IMHO this man was a genius. If there is one poet who could be elected as TV’s “poet laureate”, then it must be Sunthorn.

I think this poem I quote here, captures the mood and attitude of many of TV’s members as expressed in their postings:

We may be drunk,
But we are also honey-drunk with love.
I cannot resist my heart.
And though we are drunk,
Tomorrow the sun will shine,
And that drunkenness will have passed.
But when night falls, love's honeyed drunkenness will return.

Can anyone else find a better poet for TV to adopt as our own?

[ProfessorFart]

Me!

There was a young fellow named perkin
Who was always jerkin his gherkin
His father said perkin
Stop jerkin your gherkin
Your gherkins fer ferkin not jerkin

[OldAsiaHand]

ProfessorFart, on 2005-04-28 06:39:49, said:

Me!

There was a young fellow named perkin
Who was always jerkin his gherkin
His father said perkin
Stop jerkin your gherkin
Your gherkins fer ferkin not jerkin

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Speaking of jerks....

Some guy offers an interesting post worth a little thought and this is the kind of comment he gets in return. Lord help us.

[Gazza]

Roses are red, violets are blue
Please spare a penny, for a starving poet.

[meadish_sweetball]

Thomas_Merton, on 2005-04-27 23:10:55, said:

It is very rare that threads on TV move into the subject of literature, although there have been exceptions.

TV member Bina in another thread in another area happened to mention the Thai poet Sunthorn Pu. I had never heard of the man, so I did a little research.

IMHO this man was a genius. If there is one poet who could be elected as TV’s “poet laureate”, then it must be Sunthorn.

I think this poem I quote here, captures the mood and attitude of many of TV’s members as expressed in their postings:

We may be drunk,
But we are also honey-drunk with love.
I cannot resist my heart.
And though we are drunk,
Tomorrow the sun will shine,
And that drunkenness will have passed.
But when night falls, love's honeyed drunkenness will return.

Can anyone else find a better poet for TV to adopt as our own?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Sunthorn was a poetic genius, no doubt about that. His life was interesting, too.

Translated poetry is always a bit dodgy - it often says more about the translator's writing abilities than the original author. This feels like reading Shakespeare in Swedish - it somehow doesn't quite cut it.

[Thomas_Merton]

ProfessorFart, on 2005-04-28 00:39:49, said:

Me!

There was a young fellow named perkin
Who was always jerkin his gherkin
His father said perkin
Stop jerkin your gherkin
Your gherkins fer ferkin not jerkin

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Profound erudition from someone who frequently demonstrates his developing maturity in the uninhibited manner in which he regularly accuses others of being trolls.

[ProfessorFart]

Humour bypasses anyone?

[Thomas_Merton]

ProfessorFart, on 2005-04-28 10:18:32, said:

Humour bypasses anyone?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

…and if wit was sh*t, you would only, Professor, fart.

[Jai Dee]

Thomas_Merton, on 2005-04-28 16:32:57, said:

ProfessorFart, on 2005-04-28 10:18:32, said:

Humour bypasses anyone?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

…and if wit was sh*t, you would only, Professor, fart.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Classic comeback!

However, Farty is only taking the piss!!!
He does that a lot...  

[ProfessorFart]

Quote

Translated poetry is always a bit dodgy - it often says more about the translator's writing abilities than the original author. This feels like reading Shakespeare in Swedish - it somehow doesn't quite cut it.

Indeed. Despite some valiant efforts, Sunthorn Phu just doesn't work in translation.

Better to wade through it in Thai or try this one;


Llewellyn from Wrexham, a Druid,
Had sex with old Bronwen of Clwyd
     But Bronwen had pox
     And her over-used box
Was awash with old seminal fluid.

Edited by ProfessorFart, 2005-04-28 18:58:35.

[alex100]

After an anti grafiti crackdown at work !!!

Alice the cleaner has scrubbed in vain,
the sh*thouse poet has struck again.

[Thomas_Merton]

alex100, on 2005-04-28 13:18:18, said:

After an anti grafiti crackdown at work !!!

Alice the cleaner has scrubbed in vain,
the sh*thouse poet has struck again.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Did she miss this one?

Here he sits broken hearted,
Prof. paid a penny and only farted.

[bino]

Sunthorn Pu was indeed a genius. His most famous work is a much loved classic Thai children's story about a flute player, a mermaid and a sea monster.

Phu spent many years in exile from the Royal Court in the area of Rayong, mostly on Ko Samet. On Sai Kaew Beach there are statues of the mermaid and the sea monster at one end of the beach (One TV Member has a picture of himself standing between them as his avatar) and a picture of the flute player at the other end of the beach. Anyone who has been to Sai Kaew Beach is certain to have seen them.

The same effigies were under construction at the Big Buddha in Ko Samui last time I visited there.

There is a nice Sunthorn Pu Memorial Park in Ban Kram, Rayong Province which is worth a short visit if you are ever in the area.

[The_Eye_Of_Sauron]

Quote

Indeed. Despite some valiant efforts, Sunthorn Phu just doesn't work in translation.

Better to wade through it in Thai or try this one;

This is our cue to express admiration for his ability and interest in reading poetry in its original Thai.

[meom]

Here's another one:

Here's to the bee-the busy soul;
He has no time for birth control.
That's why it is, in times like these,
We have so many sons of bees!

[Thomas_Merton]

How many of us are attracted to Thailand because Thai culture is greatly influenced by such works as this:

How to be a good Thai Wife (Supasit Sorn Ying) written by Sunthorn Phu. This translation was written by Denis Segaller in his excellent "More Thai Ways" book

"If your husband loves you, don't be stubborn; honour him every day; do not
be wilful. When it gets dark, you should not stray away but light the lamp, go
and see to the bedroom, make and clean the bed, sweep away dust. And every night
when he retires to bed crouch at his feet and pay him homage. Never forget! If
he is stiff with aches and cramps, ease them with soothing massage. When you go
to sleep, be decorous; don't let your hands and feet stray over him while you
are asleep. If you sleep thus your goodness will shine forth.

"Don't go on sleeping till sun is high; you should get up before your
husband, and prepare water for him to wash his face. Then do the cooking and
prepare the tray of dishes to give a beautiful effect, along with the spittoon,
polished and shining. Make sure no dust is in the drinking water.

"And if you know he has to go somewhere but find that he has not yet woken
up, then gently get him up without delay to eat his food. Sit near him while he
eats, in case anything lacks; don't give him cause to shout for it. Pay careful
heed until he's finished eating. Then you yourself may eat. Don't eat before he
does; it is not seemly, and he won't like it.

"If your husband is in the Royal service and must go in and out the Royal
Palace, then you must prepare his carrying-case with betel and tobacco. Always
try to wait on him, serve him, as a friend would do. If you thus serve your
husband without fail, then you will prosper and rise in others' esteem. A
true-born lady always shows her nature; don't throw your good behaviour to the
winds. It is not good to be half-man, half-woman, and no one will admire you for
that.

"And if your husband should rise up in anger, you should abase yourself to
quench his wrath. Do not allow yourself to raise your voice and answer back. If
he is fire, you should be as water sprinkled on him. If both of you are aflame,
the fire will spread - anger which then can never be suppressed. Your private
conjugal feelings will escape, to become known to all the world outside. What
neighbours didn't know, thay now will know. So therefore, don't indulge in your
own wrath.

"Be pleasing to your husband; he will love you dearly. Never fail to do the
household chores. And if he should fall ill, do not disturb him but smile,
console, be pleasing as before; talk to him only when he's well again; tend to
his needs and pander to his mood. Whatever he doesn't like, you shouldn't do.
Guard your own counsel, don't show your feelings outside.

"All the bad things forbidden by your husband you should avoid; your manners
should be thus. Do not be stubborn and neglectful; speak only with
sweetness.

"But if you have a quarrel with your husband, don't spread tales of the
quarrel behind his back. Always suppress your own emotion and keep it to
yourself; don't let the quarrel linger on; banish its shadow. Then you will be
called one who uses her brains and knows how to conceal all evil things
.
"Do this, and those who know you will admire you and think you clever. And
your husband will be pleased."

[bannork]

Thomas_Merton, on 2005-04-28 06:10:55, said:

It is very rare that threads on TV move into the subject of literature, although there have been exceptions.

TV member Bina in another thread in another area happened to mention the Thai poet Sunthorn Pu. I had never heard of the man, so I did a little research.

IMHO this man was a genius. If there is one poet who could be elected as TV’s “poet laureate”, then it must be Sunthorn.

I think this poem I quote here, captures the mood and attitude of many of TV’s members as expressed in their postings:

We may be drunk,
But we are also honey-drunk with love.
I cannot resist my heart.
And though we are drunk,
Tomorrow the sun will shine,
And that drunkenness will have passed.
But when night falls, love's honeyed drunkenness will return.

Can anyone else find a better poet for TV to adopt as our own?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Here is Sunthorn Pu:

  ไม่เมาเหล้าเเล้วเเต่เรายังเมารัก                 สุดจะหักห้ามจิตคิดไฉน
    ถึงเมาเหล้าเช้าสายก้หายไป                        เเต่เมาใจนี้ประจำทุกค่ำคืน
   mai mao lao laeow\ dtae rao yang mao rak    sud ja hak haam jit khit chanai
   teung mao lao chao sai gor hai pai                dtae mao jai nee bprajam tuk kham kheun  
That's the romantic one, but how about this one for when things are bitter:
  เเล้วสอนว่าอย่าไว้ใจมนุษย์        มันเเสนสุดลึกล้ำเหลือกำหนด
    ถึงเถาวัลย์พันเกี่ยวที่เลี้ยวลด     ก็ไม่คดเหมือนหนึ่งในน้ำใจคน
    laeow son wa ya why jai manut    man sairn sud leuk lam leua gamnot
   teung taowan pan keow tee leow lod    gor mai khod meuan neung nai jai khon
  Don't trust people, their hearts are deep and fathomless,
  The twisting,turning vine cannot compare to the deviousness of the heart of man.
The moderators should start a section for aspiring poets in the joke section, the mods could select a topic every week or two and then the winner could receive a Tshirt with his\her poem printed and TV's logo splashed across their chest. For instance this week's topic could be Songkran, May's could be rain or the upcoming toilet convention in Bangkok, whatever, there's always plenty of subjects in 'Amazing Thailand'.
bannork

[The Gentleman Scamp]

'This Danish dame she likes the same comedians as me
We love each ohers company and more to some degree
My given name is Scampy and her name is Dear Marie
But when the phone inside her ribcage rings it's not for me.'

[The_Eye_Of_Sauron]

Merton

Can we have that wife's poem in Thai please. I have to show it to someone.

[Thomas_Merton]

The Gentleman Scamp, on 2005-04-29 12:15:08, said:

'This Danish dame she likes the same comedians as me
We love each ohers company and more to some degree
My given name is Scampy and her name is Dear Marie
But when the phone inside her ribcage rings it's not for me.'

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Sacampy’s Scandinavian succubus
Certainly stimulates his syllabus.
But Thomas says beware
These Danes sometimes don’t care
Causing pain akin to thrombus.

[alex100]

I have just made this up can someone complete the last line:

I came to Thailand to get dead rich,
All I got was a grabbing bitch,
Now I'm at home in she's in heaven,


------------------------------------------

Edited by alex100, 2005-04-29 19:00:31.

[bannork]

alex100, on 2005-04-29 19:00:00, said:

I have just made this up can someone complete the last line:

I came to Thailand to get dead rich,
All I got was a grabbing bitch,
Now I'm at home in she's in heaven,

----------------------------------------

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

For on her remit list, I'm number seven.

[Thomas_Merton]

alex100, on 2005-04-29 13:00:00, said:

I have just made this up can someone complete the last line:

I came to Thailand to get dead rich,
All I got was a grabbing bitch,
Now I'm at home in she's in heaven,


------------------------------------------

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

With only the girl from the 7 11

[alex100]

Thomas_Merton, on 2005-04-29 20:35:40, said:

alex100, on 2005-04-29 13:00:00, said:

I have just made this up can someone complete the last line:

I came to Thailand to get dead rich,
All I got was a grabbing bitch,
Now I'm at home in she's in heaven,


------------------------------------------

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

With only the girl from the 7 11

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

How the ###### did you know that - I only went to buy a mouldy sandwich.

[bannork]

alex100, on 2005-04-29 19:00:00, said:

I have just made this up can someone complete the last line:

I came to Thailand to get dead rich,
All I got was a grabbing bitch,
Now I'm at home in she's in heaven,


------------------------------------------

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Orbiting star Costner, first name Kevin.