Opening Remarks
The moment has arrived when Satyavan must die. The prophecy must fulfil itself.
Something had come
Something had come there conscious, vast and dire.
Death had arrived, conscious and vast and dire.
Immense shade
Near her she felt a silent shade immense
Chilling the noon with darkness for its back.
Savitri felt near her a silent immense shade chilling the noon with darkness trailing behind it.
Awful hush
An awful hush had fallen upon the place:
There was no cry of birds, no voice of beasts.
An awful hush had fallen over the place. The cry of birds and the voice of beasts had suddenly fallen silent sensing the presence of Death.
Imitation of eternity
A terror and an anguish filled the world,
As if annihilation’s mystery
Had taken a sensible form. A cosmic mind
Looked out on all from formidable eyes
Contemning all with its unbearable gaze
And with immortal lids and a vast brow
It saw in its immense destroying thought
All things and beings as a pitiful dream,
Rejecting with calm disdain Nature’s delight,
The wordless meaning of its deep regard
Voicing the unreality of things
And life that would be for ever but never was
And its brief and vain recurrence without cease,
As if from a Silence without form or name
The Shadow of a remote uncaring god
Doomed to his Nought the illusory universe,
Cancelling its show of idea and act in Time
And its imitation of eternity.
The presence of Death had filled the world with terror and anguish as if the power of annihilation had taken a sensible form. His formidable cosmic mind looked upon all with the unbearable contemning gaze. His immortal lids and vast brow looked down upon all things and beings with a destroying thought as a pitiful dream. It rejected the delight of Nature with calm disdain. Wordlessly his deep regard filled all things with sense of unreality. He voiced the brevity and transience of life tied forever to its unchanging mechanical rounds. It seemed as if the shadow of a remote uncaring god had emerged from a formless, nameless Silence only to condemn the illusory universe to a Nought. He imitated eternity cancelling the manifestation of the idea and its play in Time.
Visible Death
She knew that visible Death was standing there
And Satyavan had passed from her embrace.
Death had arrived and was visibly standing there. Satyavan was no more in her embrace.
Closing Remarks
Satyavan had passed away from Savitri’s embrace into the arms of Death.
Closing Remarks for the Canto Three
Satyavan comes to the forest on the fated day. Savitri requests that she accompanies him to the forest. Everyone joyously agrees not knowing the real reason for Savitri’s request. They walk together and yet in two different worlds. Satyavan is happy to show her all the beauty of the forest among which he has grown. Savitri meanwhile keeps a silent vigil over him. The moment of destiny arrives when Death enters the scene and a chill hush falls upon everything. Satyavan is suddenly torn by severe pain as he falls to the ground crying out to Savitri. Savitri had silently prepared herself for this moment. Keeping her inner calm and strong within her soul she holds the head of Satyavan to her bosom even as he passes away.
About Savitri | B1C1-20 Transition from the Sleep to Waking (p.9)