"In the Boat," a poem by Maung Sein Win (Padigon)

Illustration for the poem "Hlay Paw Hmar," by Kenneth Wong

A graduate of the Rangoon Institute of Technology (RIT, later renamed Yangon Technological University), Maung Sein Win (Padigon) is an unlikely poet. He was born in 1950, in Pegu (Bago) District, Pyay Division, Padigon town, whose name later become an inseparable part of his pen name.

Unrequited love and secret longing are the regular themes in Maung Sein Win's poetry. While his contemporaries explore and mimic modern western poetry to reinvent Burmese poetry, Maung Sein Win embraces the classic Burmese poetic structures, especially the four-syllable rhyme scheme. His verses are cited -- and infrequently misappropriated without proper credit -- by schoolboys penning love notes to win favor from the young women they admire.

A remarkable music-poetry partnership began when Maung Sein Win met singer and songwriter Khin Maung Toe (1950-2012). The late musician penned a number of songs inspired by Maung Sein Win's verses. The legacy of this collaboration includes "Myet Thwe (Tear Necklace)" and "Hninsee Pan Thu (Rose Maiden)."

In addition to his prodigious poetry output, Maung Sein Win also penned a large number of novels. His published poetry collections include Thawka Chiyar (Footprints of Anxiety), Nay Se Sin, La Min Se Su (Ten Suns, Ten Moons), and Chit Thu Phat Po Yay Dae Sar (A Letter for My Lover's Reading).

In "Hlay Paw Hmar (In the Boat)," the poet goes beyond romance and dips into socio-political commentary. It begins with an affectionate portrayal of a lover who regularly performs religious rites to enlist the spirit world's help to keep him and his loved one together (a fairly common tactic among the superstitious Burmese population). By the end, the poem makes it clear even the supernatural forces are powerless to counter the heartbreaking effects of economic instability.

The audio recital below is by a friend of mine, a young woman from Burma who also happens to be a fan of Maung Sein Win (Padigon). She says she prefers to be known as Jane Eyre.

In the Boat 

By Maung Sein Win (Patigon)
Translated from Burmese by Kenneth Wong

I fed the little birds
And paid for amulets and incantations
To keep us together forever.

Many a birthday I spent in holy places,
Measuring out my age in water cups,
Burning candles, offering flowers,
Praying to never have to miss you.

Along came the month of Tabaung,
And soon passed the month of Tagu,
But no marriage vows for you and me.
One year led to the next,
Our romance stretched on,
Each worrying for the other,
And a home for the two of us
Never did come to pass.

Would my salary alone
Or ours together
Be enough to buy us peace?
Could it keep us fed and clothed
Or measure up to the cost of living?
How would we swim across
The rising tide of prices?
These cowardly, anxious thoughts
Marked the year we parted.