Summary
After completing the lesson, students will be able to:
- Read and understand texts.
- Ask and answer questions.
- Read aloud with proper pronunciation, stress, and intonation.
A "bard" is someone who writes poems and songs, while a "mystic" seeks truth and strives for unity with God through prayer and meditation. The lesson focuses on three renowned mystic bards of Bangladesh: Lalon Shah, Hason Raja, and Shah Abdul Karim, who expressed deep thoughts about God, life, and love through their works.
Hason Raja, born in 1854 in a wealthy family in Sylhet, had a life of luxury but later found material possessions meaningless. He gave away his wealth and began exploring profound questions about existence. He authored around a thousand songs, with a notable publication titled Hason Udash in 1906, which included 206 songs. Known as 'Crazy Hason Raja,' his works gained popularity throughout Bangladesh. Students are encouraged to learn more about Hason Raja by reading and listening to his music.
Questions for review:
- When was Hason Raja born?
- Where was he from?
- What was his youth like?
- Why did Hason Raja leave his life of comfort and pleasure?
- What was the other name by which Hason Raja was known?
Students should practice reading the passage aloud with attention to pronunciation, pauses, and intonation. They should also learn the meanings of the following words: comfort, luxury, pleasure, volume, crazy, contain, beyond, eminent.
After completing the lesson students will be able to
- read and understand texts
- ask and answer questions
- read aloud with proper pronunciation, stress and intonation
A. Look at the pictures below. Do you know who they are or anything about them?
A "bard" is one who writes poems and songs. A "mystic" is one who seeks truth and strives to become united with God through prayer and meditation.
The pictures above are of three renowned mystic bards of Bangladesh: Lalon Shah, Hason Raja, and Shah Abdul Karim. They all wrote beautiful poems and songs to express their deep thoughts and feelings about God, life, and love for humankind.
B. Let us know more about the mystic poet Hason Raja. Read the following text.
Hason Raja was born in 1854, into a wealthy landlord family in Sylhet. He did not receive much formal education as a child. In his youth, he lived a life of luxury. He had everything- money, comfort, and pleasure.
However, at one point in his life, he began to feel that these material possessions were meaningless. He gave away all his properties, and started to think deeply about the creator, life, death, and humankind. He wrote about a thousand songs which reflected his thoughts. In 1906, he published a book called Hason Udash. The book had 206 songs in it. In his songs, he called himself 'Crazy Hason Raja', or 'Pagla Hason Raja'.
Another volume called Hason Raja Samagra (Complete Works of Hason Raja) was also published, which contained 500 poems and songs. Hason Raja's songs had always been popular in Sylhet, but very soon they spread all over Bangladesh and beyond. As you grow older, try to learn more about this great mystic poet through reading and listening to his songs.
B1 Answer the following questions.
a. When was Hason Raja born?
b. Where was he from?
c. What was his youth like?
d. Why did Hason Raja leave his life of comfort and pleasure?
e. What was the other name by which Hason Raja was known?
B2 Practise reading the passage loudly giving proper attention to pronunciation, pause and intonation.
B3 Learn the meanings of the words:
comfort, luxury, pleasure, volume, crazy, contain, beyond, eminent
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