Today, we are going to learn about the poem ‘Wind’ by Subramania Bharati from Class 9 NCERT English Beehive. In this post, we will cover everything you need to know about this poem, starting with About the Poem, About the poet, the Theme, a Short & Detailed Summary, the Central Idea, Poetic Devices used in the poem, stanza wise explanation, and finally, a Mind Map drawing to recall this chapter before the exam. Let’s begin!
About the Poem: Wind
The poem “Wind” is written by Subramania Bharati and translated into English by A.K. Ramanujan. It talks about the power and might of the wind, portraying it as a powerful force of nature that can destroy weak things but cannot harm the strong. The poet uses wind as a metaphor for the challenges and hardships of life, encouraging readers to face difficulties with strength and determination.
About the Poet: Subramania Bharati
Subramania Bharati (1882–1921) was a renowned Tamil poet, writer, and freedom fighter. He is considered one of the greatest poets in Tamil literature and was known for his patriotic and reformist writings. Bharati strongly advocated for social equality, women’s empowerment, and independence from British rule. His works combine lyrical beauty with deep philosophical thoughts.
Wind Poem Theme
The central theme of the poem is strength and resilience in the face of challenges. The wind symbolizes hardships, obstacles, and difficulties in life. It teaches that weak people or things get destroyed, while the strong stand firm. Therefore, one must build strength and determination to withstand adversities.
Short Summary of Wind Poem
The poem describes the wind as a destructive force that breaks shutters, scatters papers, tears books, and brings down weak structures. The poet criticizes the wind for its destructive nature but later conveys a deeper message: the wind destroys only the weak things, while strong and steadfast objects remain safe. Similarly, life’s hardships test people. The weak get crushed, but the strong endure and grow stronger. The poet urges us to be like the strong, firm, determined, and resilient.
Wind Poem Summary
The poem “Wind” by Subramania Bharati is a symbolic and thought-provoking piece that personifies the wind as a powerful natural force. It begins by describing the destructive nature of the wind, which blows forcefully, shattering shutters, scattering papers, and tearing the pages of books. The poet mentions that the wind mocks the weak, breaking fragile structures like houses, doors, rafters, and even lives that lack strength.
However, this destructive force is not portrayed as purely negative. The poet uses the wind as a metaphor for life’s adversities, difficulties, and challenges. Through this metaphor, he conveys a moral lesson: life is full of struggles, and only those who are strong and prepared can overcome them. Just as the wind destroys the weak but leaves the strong unshaken, hardships in life crush those who are weak in character or spirit, while strong individuals stand firm and grow stronger.
The poet advises us not to complain about the wind’s destructive nature but instead to make ourselves resilient. He encourages people to build strong bodies, firm hearts, and determined minds, so that adversities cannot harm them. In the end, the poet suggests befriending the wind, which means accepting challenges with courage and learning to live with difficulties rather than avoiding them.
The poem concludes with a hopeful message: if we become strong like the wind, no difficulty will defeat us. Strength and resilience are the keys to survival and success in a world full of uncertainties and struggles.
Wind Poem Central Idea
The poem conveys that adversities are an inevitable part of life, and only those who are mentally and physically strong can survive and succeed. Just as the wind spares strong structures but destroys the weak, life’s difficulties eliminate weakness and favor strength.
Wind Poem Poetic Devices
The poem uses several literary devices:
- Personification – The wind is treated as a person with emotions and actions (e.g., “He makes fun of weaklings”).
- Repetition – Words like “crumbling” are repeated for emphasis.
- Metaphor – Wind symbolizes challenges and hardships in life.
- Alliteration – Repetition of consonant sounds (e.g., “crumbling houses, crumbling doors”).
- Imagery – Descriptions like “tearing the pages of books” create vivid pictures.
- Symbolism – Wind represents difficulties and struggles.
Wind Poem Explanation
Below is the Reference to Context (RTC) explanation for each stanza with difficult word meanings and explanation for the poem “Wind”:
Stanza 1
Lines:
Wind, come softly.
Don’t break the shutters of the windows.
Don’t scatter the papers.
Don’t throw down the books on the shelf.
There, look what you did — you threw them all down.
You tore the pages of the books.
You brought rain again.
You’re very clever at poking fun at weaklings.
Difficult Word Meanings:
- Scatter – to spread things in different directions
- Poking fun – making fun of or teasing
- Weaklings – weak people or things
Explanation with Reference to Context:
The poet requests the wind to blow gently and not cause destruction. He asks it not to break the shutters, scatter papers, or throw books from shelves. The poet complains that the wind has already thrown the books down, torn their pages, and brought rain along with it. He accuses the wind of being mischievous and mocking weak people and things. Through these lines, the poet indirectly refers to how troubles in life often attack the weak and unprepared.
Stanza 2
Lines:
Frail crumbling houses, crumbling doors, crumbling rafters,
crumbling wood, crumbling bodies, crumbling lives,
crumbling hearts —
the wind god winnows and crushes them all.
Difficult Word Meanings:
- Frail – weak or delicate
- Crumbling – breaking into small pieces
- Rafters – beams supporting a roof
- Winnows – separates or removes the weaker parts
Explanation with Reference to Context:
The poet lists things that the wind destroys: weak houses, doors, wooden beams, and even fragile human bodies and hearts. Here, the wind god is shown as a powerful force that crushes everything that is weak. The word winnows means that the wind separates and removes weak things, similar to how grain is winnowed to remove husk. This suggests that adversities eliminate the weak and favour the strong.
Stanza 3
Lines:
He won’t do what you tell him.
So, come, let’s build strong homes,
Let’s joint the doors firmly.
Practise to firm the body.
Make the heart steadfast.
Difficult Word Meanings:
- Joint – fix or join together
- Firm – strong and solid
- Steadfast – firm and determined
Explanation with Reference to Context:
The poet states that the wind cannot be controlled by requests or commands. Instead of pleading, the poet advises people to prepare themselves to withstand difficulties. He suggests building strong houses, fixing doors properly, making the body strong, and keeping the heart firm. These symbolize mental and physical strength to face life’s challenges. The message is clear: don’t ask for an easier life, prepare for a tougher one.
Stanza 4
Lines:
Do this, and the wind will be friends with us.
The wind blows out weak fires.
He makes strong fires roar and flourish.
His friendship is good.
We praise him every day.
Difficult Word Meanings:
- Roar – make a loud noise, burn strongly
- Flourish – grow or develop successfully
Explanation with Reference to Context:
If we become strong and steadfast, the wind (symbolizing hardships) will no longer harm us. Instead, it will support us. The wind blows out weak fires (weak people or efforts) but makes strong fires (strong individuals or efforts) burn brightly and succeed. The poet concludes that strength and resilience help us win against challenges. We should appreciate these struggles because they make us stronger.
