Night of the Scorpion Summary, Explanation, Theme | Maharashtra State Board Class 10 English Poem

by | Jul 5, 2024 | General | 1 comment

Cl-10-Chp-3.1- Night of the Scorpion-Summary

 

Maharashtra State Board Class 10 English Poem Night of the Scorpion Summary, Line by Line Explanation, Theme, Poetic Devices along with difficult word meanings from English Kumarbharati Book

 

Night of the Scorpion – Are you looking for the summary, theme and poem explanation for Maharashtra State Board Class 10 Poem Night of the Scorpion from English Kumarbharati Book. Get poem summary, theme, explanation, poetic devices along with difficult word meanings.

 

Night of the Scorpion Maharashtra State Board Class 10 English

By Nissim Ezekiel

 

Night of the Scorpion Introduction

The poem “Night of the Scorpion” by Nissim Ezekiel is a vivid portrayal of a night when the speaker’s mother is stung by a scorpion.

 

Theme / Central Idea of the Poem Night of the Scorpion

The poem “Night of the Scorpion” explores several themes:

  • Faith and Superstition: The villagers’ response to the crisis highlights the clash between faith and superstition. They chant prayers and believe the mother’s suffering is linked to past sins, showcasing a blend of religious belief and traditional explanations.
  • Science vs. Tradition: The poem presents a contrast between the father’s scientific approach (using remedies) and the villagers’ traditional beliefs (prayers and rituals).
  • Love and Sacrifice: The poem powerfully portrays the mother’s love for her children. Even in her pain, her first thought is their well-being.

 

Night of the Scorpion Summary 

The poet remembers a night when his mother was stung by a scorpion that hid in their sack of rice due to the continuous rain. It injected the poison into the poet’s mother and then went outside whereas earlier, it had felt inconvenient to stay out due to the rain. Villagers arrive, buzzing prayers to neutralize the poisonous insect bite and searching for the scorpion. They carried candles and lanterns while searching for it. It made noises by hitting the tongue to the top of the mouth to show their disapproval of the scorpio’s act. Their shadows were like huge scorios and they could be seen on the mud walls of the village. With every step of the scorpio, that is with the passage of every second, the poison was travelling further inside his mother’s body. The villagers believe that the mother’s suffering is linked to past life sins and that her pain can somehow lessen the evil in the world. Then they sat around her body, in a circle and prayed that the poison of the scorpio would cleanse her soul of any pending ambitions and her body of any pending desires. The number of neighbours who carried candles and lanterns to search the scorpio kept on increasing. The poet’s father did not confirm to set norms and traditions. They kept on trying various alternative treatments like powders, herbs, and mixtures as his mother twisted and writhed in pain. The poet’s father tries various remedies despite his disbelief. He even applied paraffin wax on the toe where the scorpio had bitten her and set it on fire. A saint chanted holy rhymes to get rid of the poison in the mother’s body. Finally, after a long night, the poison subsided, and the mother expressed relief that she was stung instead of her children.

Night of the Scorpion Summary in Hindi

कवि को एक रात याद है जब उनकी माँ को एक बिच्छू ने डंक मारा था जो लगातार बारिश के कारण चावल की बोरी में छिपा हुआ था। बिच्छू ने कवि की माँ को जहर का इंजेक्शन दिया और फिर बाहर चला गया जबकि पहले बारिश के कारण बाहर रहना असुविधाजनक लग रहा था। गाँव के लोग बिच्छू की तलाश में आए और जहरीले कीड़े के काटने से बचने के लिए प्रार्थना करने लगे। बिच्छू की तलाश करते समय वे मोमबत्तियाँ और लालटेन लेकर आए। बिच्छू ने बिच्छू के कृत्य के प्रति अपनी असहमति दिखाने के लिए जीभ को मुँह के ऊपर से मारकर आवाज़ निकाली। उनकी परछाइयाँ बड़े बिच्छुओं की तरह थीं और उन्हें गाँव की मिट्टी की दीवारों पर देखा जा सकता था। बिच्छू के हर कदम के साथ, यानी हर सेकंड के बीतने के साथ, ज़हर उसकी माँ के शरीर के अंदर और आगे बढ़ रहा था। गाँव वालों का मानना ​​है कि माँ की पीड़ा पिछले जन्म के पापों से जुड़ी हुई है और उनका दर्द किसी तरह दुनिया में बुराई को कम कर सकता है। फिर वे उसके शरीर के चारों ओर एक घेरा बनाकर बैठ गए और प्रार्थना की कि बिच्छू का जहर उसकी आत्मा को सभी लंबित महत्वाकांक्षाओं और उसके शरीर को सभी लंबित इच्छाओं से शुद्ध कर दे। बिच्छू को खोजने के लिए मोमबत्तियाँ और लालटेन लेकर आने वाले पड़ोसियों की संख्या बढ़ती रही। कवि के पिता ने स्थापित मानदंडों और परंपराओं की पुष्टि नहीं की। वे पाउडर, जड़ी-बूटियों और मिश्रण जैसे विभिन्न वैकल्पिक उपचारों को आजमाते रहे क्योंकि उनकी मां दर्द से मरोड़ती और तड़पती रही। कवि के पिता अपने अविश्वास के बावजूद विभिन्न उपचारों को आजमाते हैं। उन्होंने उस पैर के अंगूठे पर पैराफिन मोम भी लगाया जहां बिच्छू ने उसे काटा था और उसे आग लगा दी। एक संत ने मां के शरीर से जहर को खत्म करने के लिए पवित्र कविताओं का जाप किया। अंत में, एक लंबी रात के बाद, जहर कम हो गया

Night of the Scorpion Poem Explanation

 

Poem: I remember the night my mother
was stung by a scorpion. Ten hours
of steady rain had driven him
to crawl beneath a sack of rice.
Word Meanings
Steady: Rain that falls continuously.
Crawl: To move slowly on hands and knees or by dragging the body close to the ground.
Explanation: The poet recalls the night his mother was bitten by a scorpion. There had been heavy rains which had caused a scorpion to hide in a sack of rice at the poet’s house.

Poem: Parting with his poison – flash
of diabolic tail in the dark room –
he risked the rain again.
Word Meanings
Parting with: This means giving up something or letting go of it.
Diabolic: This means devilish or evil.
Explanation: These lines describe the scorpion delivering its sting, releasing its venom into the poet’s mother. After biting the poet’s mother, the scorpion chose to return outside despite the earlier discomfort caused to it by the rain.

Poem: The peasants came like swarms of flies
and buzzed the name of God a hundred times
to paralyse the Evil One.
Word Meanings
Peasants: People of low social status who work in agriculture, typically as tenant farmers.
Swarms: Large numbers of flying insects moving together in a dense cloud.
Buzzed: Made a low, continuous humming sound, like a bee.
Paralyze: Make someone or something unable to move or function.
Explanation: The villagers came to help the poet’s mother. They came in a group and the poet compares them to a swarm (group) of flies because they also made a buzzing sound like the flies. They chanted prayers repetitively, emphasizing their faith. They believed the scorpion was evil and their prayers aimed to disable its venomous effect.

Poem: With candles and with lanterns
throwing giant scorpion shadows
on the mud-baked walls
they searched for him: he was not found.
They clicked their tongues.
With every movement that the scorpion made his poison
moved in Mother’s blood, they said.
Word Meanings
Lanterns: Portable lights, often enclosed in glass or metal, that use candles or oil.
Mud-baked walls: Walls made from a mixture of mud and straw, then dried in the sun. They are common in traditional buildings.
Clicked their tongues: A sound made by rapidly clicking the tongue against the roof of the mouth, often expressing disapproval or disappointment.
Explanation: The villagers search for the scorpion with their candles and lanterns but fail to find it. They click their tongues, a gesture of disapproval. The villagers connect the scorpion’s movements (even if unseen) to the intensifying effects of the poison in the mother’s blood.

Poem: May he sit still, they said
May the sins of your previous birth
be burned away tonight, they said.
May your suffering decrease
the misfortunes of your next birth, they said.
May the sum of all evil
balanced in this unreal world
against the sum of good
become diminished by your pain.
Word Meanings
Misfortunes: These are unlucky events or hardships.
Diminished: This means reduced or lessened.
Explanation: The villagers express a series of hopeful wishes (“May he sit still”). They believe the mother’s suffering is linked to sins of her past life reflecting a belief in karma where past actions have consequences in the present life. The villagers believe her suffering can somehow diminish the overall evil in the world, suggesting a cosmic balance between good and evil. The villagers refer to the world as unreal, which could be interpreted in a few ways. Perhaps they see this life as temporary or illusory, making karma and the next life more significant.

Poem: May the poison purify your flesh
of desire, and your spirit of ambition,
they said, and they sat around
on the floor with my mother in the centre,
the peace of understanding on each face.
Word Meanings
Purify: To cleanse something of impurities or sin, to make it pure.
Flesh: The physical body as opposed to the spirit.
Desire: A strong feeling of wanting to have or do something.
Ambition: A strong desire to achieve something, especially something difficult.
Explanation: They believe the scorpion’s poison, though painful, can have a purifying effect. This purification targets two things: the physical desires and urges and the drive for worldly success and achievement. Despite the mother’s suffering, there’s a sense of peace on the villagers’ faces. This suggests they believe the pain serves a purpose and is ultimately beneficial.

Poem: More candles, more lanterns, more neighbours,
more insects, and the endless rain.
My mother twisted through and through,
groaning on a mat.
My father, sceptic, rationalist,
trying every curse and blessing,
powder, mixture, herb and hybrid.
Word Meanings
Groaning: This is a deep, prolonged sound expressing pain or suffering.
Sceptic: A person who doubts the truth of claims, especially one who doubts the claims of religion or traditional medicine.
Rationalist: A person who believes that reason is the primary source of knowledge.
Curse: A a statement wishing harm on someone.
Blessing: A statement wishing someone good fortune or protection.
Hybrid: Something that is a combination of two different things.
Explanation: More candles and lanterns suggest an effort to illuminate the situation and possibly chase away the scorpion in the night. More neighbors imply a growing crowd, perhaps offering help or simply witnessing the event.
The poet’s mother was suffering intensely. The poet’s father, described as a open-minded and rationalist, was trying everything he could to help his wife. He was desperate to find a cure, even resorting to a mixture of various unconventional methods of treatment like cursing the Scorpion, blessing it, using various medicinal powders, trying different mixtures of herbs. 

Poem: He even poured a little paraffin
upon the bitten toe and put a match to it.
I watched the flame feeding on my mother.
I watched the holy man perform his rites to tame the
poison with an incantation.
After twenty hours
it lost its sting.
Word Meanings
Paraffin: A waxy, flammable substance obtained from petroleum.
Rites: Rituals or ceremonies performed for a religious or magical purpose.
Tame: To subdue or control something powerful or dangerous.
Incantation: A chant or formula used in magic or religious ceremonies, believed to have a magical effect.
Explanation: The poet’s father, despite being a rational man, resorted to a harsh and possibly dangerous remedy by burning the bitten toe with paraffin, showcasing the coexistence of traditional and potentially harmful methods of treating the poison. The poet watched the mother as she was in great pain and suffering.
The line “After twenty hours” signifies a long and painful ordeal. Finally, the relief comes not necessarily from any specific action, but with the passage of time and the body overcoming the effect of the poison.

Poem: My mother only said
Thank God the scorpion picked on me
And spared my children.
Word Meanings
Spared: This means “avoided harming” or “left unharmed” in this context.
Explanation: As the effect of the poison from the scorpion’s bite subsided, the mother thanked God that it was she who was bitten and not her children.
Throughout the poem, the focus is on the mother’s suffering and the villagers’ rituals. In the last lines of the poem, the focus shifts to her children’s safety, showcasing what truly matters to her. The mother’s first instinct, even after a painful ordeal, is gratitude that her children were spared. This selfless act highlights her immense love for them.

 

Figures of Speech and Rhyme Scheme

Rhyme Scheme- No rhyme scheme

Imagery – Imagery refers to language that evokes one or more of the five senses: sight, touch, taste, smell, and hearing.
The poem is rich with visual imagery, allowing the reader to imagine the scene. 

For example,

  •  “flash of diabolic tail in the dark room,”
  •  “throwing giant scorpion shadows on the mud-baked walls,”
  •  “My mother twisted through and through, groaning on a mat.”

 

Simile- A simile is a comparison between two things that uses “like” or “as” to connect them.
For example,

  • “The peasants came like swarms of flies” 

The poet compares the group of villagers to a swarm of flies.

 

Metaphor- A metaphor is a figure of speech that directly compares two things without using words like “like” or “as.” 

For example, The scorpion is referred to as the “Evil One,” creating a metaphor that emphasizes the villagers’ fear and perception of the creature.

 

Personification – Personification gives human qualities to non-human things.

For example, “the flame feeding on my mother” 

This an example of personification, giving a human quality to the flame.

 

Alliteration– Alliteration is the repetition of the same consonant sound at the beginning of words close together.

For example,

  •  “Parting with his poison”
  • May the poison purify your flesh
  • I watched the flame feeding on my mother.

 

Onomatopoeia

A word which resembles the sound it represents.

For example, 

  • “buzzed the name of God”

It describes the way the peasants spoke the name, which is in a low, continuous, and repetitive way, similar to a buzzing sound.

 

Related LInks

English Lesson Summary and Explanation

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1 Comment

  1. Neeraj
    Neeraj on March 20, 2025 at 8:18 am

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