Explanation and analysis of the ‘What a Bird’ Poem published in Class 6 NCERT textbook ‘Poorvi’. Click here for notes on the poem ‘What a Bird Thought’.
Explanation: ‘What a Bird Thought’
The poem ‘What a Bird Thought’ is here explained stanza-wise with vocabulary notes.
Stanza 1:
I lived first in a little house,
And lived there very well,
I thought the world was small and round,
And made of pale, blue shell.
Explanation: The bird tells us that it first lived in a small, cozy house, like an eggshell. It felt happy and safe there. The bird believed that the whole world was tiny, round, and had the colour of the pale, blue shell it lived in.
Analysis: In this stanza, the bird only knows the world inside its egg. It thinks that the shell is its whole world because it has not seen anything beyond it yet.
Vocabulary Notes:
- Small and round
- English: Tiny and circular in shape. Refers to the bird thinking its world (the egg) is small and round.
- Hindi: छोटा और गोल – आकार में छोटा और गोल। पक्षी सोचता है कि उसका संसार (अंडा) छोटा और गोल है।
- Pale
- English: Light in colour. Describes the shell’s soft, light colour.
- Hindi: फीका – हल्के रंग का। खोल के हल्के रंग को बताता है।
- Blue shell
- English: A hard covering with a blue color. Refers to the bird’s egg having a pale blue shell.
- Hindi: नीला खोल – एक सख्त बाहरी हिस्सा जो नीले रंग का है। पक्षी के अंडे का नीला खोल।
Stanza 2:
I lived next in a little nest,
Nor needed any other,
I thought the world was made of straw,
And nestled by my mother.
Explanation: After the egg, the bird moved into a nest. The bird stayed close to its mother and felt that it didn’t need anything else. Now, the bird thought that the whole world was made of straw, just like the nest.
Analysis: Now that the bird is out of its egg, it thinks the nest is the whole world. It hasn’t seen anything else and feels safe with its mother.
Vocabulary Notes:
- Straw
- English: Dried grass or stems used to make the nest. The bird thinks the nest is its world.
- Hindi: तिनका – सूखी घास या डंठल जिससे घोंसला बनता है। पक्षी सोचता है कि घोंसला ही उसका संसार है।
- Nestled
- English: Cuddled close for warmth and comfort, especially with the bird’s mother.
- Hindi: दुबकना – गर्मी और आराम के लिए पास में रहना, खासकर अपनी माँ के साथ।
Stanza 3:
One day, I fluttered from my nest,
To see what I could find,
I said the world is made of leaves,
I have been very blind.
Explanation: One day, the bird decided to leave the nest and explore. It looked around and saw that the world was made of leaves. The bird realized that it had been wrong about the world before.
Analysis: The bird starts to see more of the world outside its nest. It realizes that there’s much more to the world than it thought—like trees, leaves, and other things.
Vocabulary Notes:
- Fluttered
- English: Flew lightly or with little effort. Describes the bird leaving the nest.
- Hindi: फड़फड़ाया – हल्के से उड़ना। पक्षी के घोंसला छोड़ने को बताता है।
- Blind
- English: Not able to see or understand something clearly. The bird realizes it was wrong about the world.
- Hindi: अंधा – कुछ स्पष्ट रूप से देखने या समझने में असमर्थ। पक्षी महसूस करता है कि वह दुनिया के बारे में गलत था।
Stanza 4:
At length I flew beyond the tree,
Quite fit for grown-up labours,
I don’t know how the world is made,
And neither do my neighbours.
Explanation: As the bird grew older, it flew beyond the trees and began to do “grown-up” things. But now, it admits that it still doesn’t know what the world is truly made of, and neither do the other birds.
Analysis: In this stanza, the bird has matured and explored more of the world. However, it realizes that the world is so big and complex that no one fully understands it. Even the other birds don’t know everything.
Vocabulary Notes:
- At length
- English: After some time or eventually. Refers to the bird growing older and leaving the tree.
- Hindi: अंततः – कुछ समय बाद। पक्षी के बड़ा होकर पेड़ से बाहर उड़ने का संदर्भ।
- Beyond
- English: Further than something, like past the trees. The bird flies beyond the tree.
- Hindi: परे – किसी चीज़ से आगे, जैसे पेड़ों से आगे। पक्षी पेड़ों से परे उड़ता है।
- Quite
- English: Fully or completely. The bird is now fully grown and ready for adult tasks.
- Hindi: पूरी तरह – पूरी तरह से या पूरी तरह सक्षम। अब पक्षी वयस्क कार्यों के लिए तैयार है।
- Grown-up labours
- English: The hard work or tasks of an adult bird. Refers to the bird being ready for mature responsibilities.
- Hindi: वयस्क कार्य – एक वयस्क पक्षी का कठिन काम। पक्षी अब जिम्मेदारियों के लिए तैयार है।
This poem shows how the bird’s understanding of the world changes as it grows and explores more. Just like the bird, we also learn new things as we grow, and we realize that there’s always more to discover
