The truth about Bangalore II

Gelezen in The White Tiger (2008) van Aravind Adiga:

Ergens tegen het eind van de roman ‘The White Tiger’ onthult hoofdpersoon Balwan het geheim van poëzie en de ware betekenis ervan. Het was een Moslim-verkoper van tweedehandsboeken die hem het geheim verklapte. "He read me another poem, and another one – and he explained the true history of poetry, which is a kind of secret, a magic known only to wise men." En, zoals in al zijn brieven zich richtend tot de premier van China: "Mr. Premier, I won’t be saying anything new if I say that the history of the world is the history of a ten-thousand-year war of brains between the rich and the poor. Each side is eternally trying to hookwind the other side: and it has been this way since the start of time. The poor win a few battles (the peeing in the potted plants, the kicking of the pet dogs, etc.) but of course the rich have won the war for ten thousand years. That’s why, one day, some wise men, out of compassion for the poor, left them signs and symbols in poems, which appear to be about roses and pretty girls and things like that, but when understood correctly spill out secrets that allow the poorest man on earth to conclude the ten-thousand-year-old-brain-war on terms favourable to himself."

Welke dichtregels helpen Balwan zich te bevrijden? Ze komen uit het Urdu. "You were looking for the key for years/but the door was always open." Hierbij een portret van een groot dichter-filosoof-politicus, een van de heldendichters van Balwan: Mohammad Iqbal.