Keeping constant vigil over his left breast-pocket Alas! The man lost track of this world as well as the next. Yet If his hand had travelled a wee bit lower He could have discovered, Like Aladdin’s wonderful lamp, His heart -- The man simply never found out. His money tree brought him ample harvest The Goddess of Wealth arrived On stilts. The walls stood guard Disallowing entry To the slightest draught of plebian air. Then One day, while he was guzzling and gorging, Through his fingers slipped, One knows not when, His Life -- The man simply never found out.
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Translation of a Bengali poem লোকটা জানলই না (lokta janloi na — The Man Simply Never Found Out) by Subhash Mukhopadhyay. The poem was first published in his collection যত দূরেই যাই (joto durei jai — However Far I May Go) in April, 1962.
