My Native Land
He asked me, the old man by the street – Blind, lonely and poorer than me,
“Tell me what my land is like.”
“Breathe Koka,” I said, “breathe deep!
The warm air that reminds you of your childhood friends
Is what your land is like.
The cool breeze on your face this morn
After last night’s endless thunder and rain
Is the peaceful breath of your land.
The contented gurgling of that little baby ‘Tied to her mother’s sturdy back
Is the soil of which your land is made .
The chorus of the cuckoo and sparrows
As they play around the treetops near
Is what shapes your native land.
The distant roll of the bihu dhol
The pepa and gogona my neighbours play The heady aroma of the pitha and laroo
The chant of the evening prayer
In the namghor, masjid, church
These makes the soul of your beloved land.
My Native Land – Assamese Explanation
My Native Land
- Read the poem and answer the following question:(a) What does the old man ask the poet?
Answer (a): The old man asks the poet what his land looks like.
(b) Why does the old man ask the question to the poet?
Answer(b): The old man asks the question to the poet because he is blind.
(c) How does the poet address the old man? What does that form of address mean?
Answer(c): The poet addresses the old man as “Koka”. “Koka” is an Assamese term which means grandfather.
(d) Why does the poet ask the old man to breathe deep?
Answer(d): The poet asks the old man to breathe deep so that he can feel the warm air that will remind him of his childhood friends.
(e) With what does the poet compare the cool breeze on the old man’s face?
Answer(e): The poet compares the cool breeze on the old man’s face with the peaceful breath of his land.
(f) With what does the poet compare the contented gurgling of the little baby?
Answer(f): The poet compares the contented gurgling of the little baby with the soil of the old man’s native land.
(g) What does the chorus of the cuckoo and the sparrows do?
Answer(g): The chorus of the cuckoo and the sparrow shapes the native land of the old man.
(h) What are the things that create the saul of the poets beloved country?
Answer(h): The things that create the soul of the poet’s beloved country are the rolling sounds of bihu dhol, pepa and gogona, the aroma of pitha and laroo, and the chant of evening prayer in Namghor, Masjid and Church.
- Here are some words from the poem. Match the words in column A with their meaning in column B.
Answer : (1) Thunder – The loud explosive sound that follows lightning in the cloud.
(2) Morn – Morning
(3) Contented – Satisfied
2(4) Gurgling – The happy sound made by babbies
(5) Chorus – Singing or speaking at the same time .
(6) Aroma – Strong Pleasant smell
(7) Sturdy – Strong and firm
Now make sentences of your own using the words.
(a) Thunder – Ram is afraid of thunder.
(b) Morn – Sita wake up early in the morn
(c) Contended – I felt contended
(d) Gurgling – The man requested me to listen to the gurgling
of that little baby.
(e) Chorus – We sang a Chorus in our school
(f) Aroma – I love the aroma of pitha.
(g) Sturdy – That chair looks very sturdy.
- Write a letter to your friend inviting him/her to your house
during the Rongali Bihu holiday. Include in your letter what
special food items will be made, what rituals will be
followed, and so on.
Answer:
My dear Ram
Narayanpur, Assam
Date: 05/04/2021
How are you? I am fine by the grace of God. I hope you are also well. I am writing this letter to you to invite you and your family to our house on the occasion of Rongali Bihu.
As you know that we are going to celebrate Rongali Bihu from the 13th of April this year. We have several rituals to observe the Rongali Bihu. My mother is already busy in preparing Bihu pitha like Tilpitha, Narikal Pitha, Narikal Ladu, Tekeli Pitha, and many more delicious recipes.
I hope you will join us this Bihu along with your family. Please convey my regards to your parents and family members.
Guwahati, Assam
PIN – 784168 (Write your name)
8.(a)
The Jonbeel Mela is a three-day community fair held by the Tiwa community in Dayang Belguri at jonbeel in Morigaon district over the weekend of the Magh Bihu. It is a fair in Morigaon, Assam organized by the Tiwa community. The American tourist Jim Gordon was delighted to know about Assam. He had heard of Kaziranga and the rhinoceros. He wanted to visit the river island Majuli. He was in time to celebrate Magh Bihu.
(a) What was the name of the American Tourist?
Answer: Jim Gordon.
(b) Where did the author meet him?
Answer: Park Hotel in Kolkata.
(c) What was the name of the author’s travel agency?
Answer: Garuda Travel agency.
(d) Which places in Assam was the tourist keen to visit?
Answer: Kaziranga.
(e) In which month was the tourist in Kolkata?
Answer: January.
- Rewrite the sentences below in indirect speech in
the same way as the sentence above.
(a) The poet said to the old man, “feel the cool breeze on your face.”
Answer: The poet told the old man to feel the cool breeze on his face.
(b) The man said to me, “Listen to the gurgling of that little baby.”
Answer: The man requested me to listen to the gurgling of that little baby.
(c) The teacher said to us, “Enjoy your holidays.”
Answer: The teacher advised us to enjoy our holidays.
(d) She said to me, “Tell me your mobile phone number.”
Answer: She asked me to tell her my mobile phone number.
(e) My mother tells me, “Always obey your teachers.”
Answer: My mother advised me to always obey my teachers.
(f) I said to him, “Come to our house tomorrow.”
Answer: I requested him to come to my house the next day.
(g) She said to me, “Get me a glass of water, please.”
Answer: She requested me to give her a glass of water.
(h) The man said to me, “Please close the gate.”
Answer: The man asked me to close the gate.
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