‘Numbawa Pamanak Soyami’ (Searching only for you) - an anthology composed by Digesi Pabasara Amarasinghe will be launched at the Mahaweli Centre Auditorium, Ananda Coomaraswamy Mawatha, Colombo 7, at 3.00 pm on March 22.
The panel of speakers will be Mahinda Kumara Dalupotha, Senior Lecturer, University of the Visual and Performing Arts, Nimesh Niranjan, former Assistant Lecturer, Department of Philosophy, University of Peradeniya and Journalist, Madushantha Bandara Ambilipitiya. Dilki Balasuriya of the University of Visual and Performing Arts will be the compere. Poetry is primarily an art that is nurtured with a rare rapture. Her anthology is driven by her integrated vision of life that is also one of the central traits of a poet. The anthology showcases the fact that the poet is conversant with the issues that arise in life where apt and applicable remedies are offered through poetry.
It is generally known that poetry deals with effulgent realities and nauseating realisations. Digesi’s poetry may also be of the same breed. It is predominantly believed that the realistic values demonstrated through the medium of poetry are presented by the conflict and polarity of life.
Digesi goes by this predominant belief and the same is invested in her anthology. While being occupied with the process of poetry writing, any poet apparently encounters difficulties in the process: Digesi is also not an exception, and the same reason gives rise to a revelation of an art that is raised to the level of hegemony in account of its vast notability.
Every poem included in the anthology produces the desired effect which has the potential of eliciting the reader’s conviction. A few of her poems titled ‘Mawaka Wannata’ (To be a Mother), ‘Barawena Dosthara’ (The doctor who makes vows), ‘Apprakashitha’ (unpublished) that this writer went through are rather rich in terms of the proper application of the literary devices that make an appealing and significant impact on the reader. The poet meanwhile grows cognizant with her intentions and by which she presents her poetry as an instrument of action. The poems are conspicuously and prominently bracing and invigorating.
A certain critic stated, “The poet should render his poetry strikingly stimulating. The poems penned with specific objectives are indications of the poet’s perspective towards life. The poet should prepare a plan of action for the realization of his goals in a short period of time. It should cover themes that capture the imagination of all lovers of poetry, the levels of vocabulary to be maintained, the imagery to be employed in abundance and the use of concrete expressions for enrichment”.
It is crystal clear that as a poet Digesi has also deliberately and significantly made herself enriched with such remarkable characteristics that eventually make a prolific poet.
Owing to the poverty of vocabulary, a mediocre poet may encounter a lot of issues with regard to the richness of the language used. In contrast, it is rather interesting to note that Digesi possesses a wealth of vocabulary in her selected medium of expression which is able to maintain a consistent readership. It is widely accepted that the greatness of any poet depends on the choice of words: Degesi’s words are rich and remarkable in context.
She shares her insights on the myriad of experiences that have shaped her. Digesi dexterously outlines a singular situation in multiple ways. She exercises her command over vocabulary and therefore, is able to be influential in many respects.
The power that she retains over the words of her poems makes her poetry more powerful in many respects. She pays close attention to themes of different aspects that repress human existence. She is at ease in dealing with various situations: the flavour of poetry is enhanced by various situations.
She basically sets on popular themes such as love, happiness and peace among many which fascinate and captivate the reader. She is prepared to exercise freedom in order to select such popular themes for poetic treatment. With the use of various situations, she enlivens the reader’s enthusiasm.
Her carefully selected situations play a considerable role in writing poetry. The selected situations give credibility to her poems which are able to influence the reader beyond any measure of time.
Her poetry is rich in imagery and that can add glamour into the poetry of any genre. A paramount significance is occupied by the images drawn from nature. The native images that she employs are also able to go beyond nationality and eventually acquire international prominence.
With the fruitful employment of imagery, Digesi makes sure that her poetry is entirely different from that of prose. In that context, it is certain that her poetry is embellished with illustrious imagery.
She often uses apt images for expression. It is popularly said that a piece of art that deals with all the intricacies of life becomes a masterpiece. Digesi endows her poetry with grace and elegance. A rich poem is also like a rich painting.
Its vitality depends on its closeness to real life. It is absolutely not the wealth of words which makes a poet remarkable and supreme but certainly the aptness of words in the context given. She contextualises the use of poetic expressions. She expresses that a poet should be a master craftsman who is able to utilise words exceptionally well in different situations.
She gives appropriate expressions to all her illustrious ideas in every situation without fail. When a poem is endowed with all the essentials, poetry gains perfection and the poems of such calibre are rather exceptional in every respect: Digesi’s anthology is a classic example that justifies the above.
Another critic mentioned, “writing poetry is not simply an ability that is able to be achieved with just a mere effort, but certainly a manipulative and artistic skill calling for certain requisites for the expected effect. It is an astounding talent, acquiring fruition through execution. Poetry is changing. It is not just the spoken word and instapoets who are changing it: at long last, it is evident that a vast number of experiences and diverse voices are receiving a proper hearing. New work in every genre is coming into the limelight”.
Digesi’s writing contains a kind of velocity which can apparently burst open the traditional idea of poetry that is pinned and mounted on the page. Her ideas are alive with sensory experience. These specific seeming paradoxes are able to create outstanding resonance as well as that of a kind of sense of an urgency which can transcend poetry itself. ‘Nubawa Pamanak Soyami’ is an anthology to gulp down at one sitting.
Digesi who holds a B.Sc. Degree from the University of Sri Jayewardenepura, is pursuing a Postgraduate Diploma in psychology. Digesi is married to Malinga Senanayaka, a pilot in the Sri Lanka Air Force. The couple has two daughters.