Ovi

The following description and examples are reposted with permission from Poetry Magnum Opus, with thanks to Judi Van Gorder for years of work on that fine resource.

Indian Verse

Ovi is commonly known as 12th century folk-songs of the Maranthi Region of India which expressed love, social irony and heroic events.

Tukaram, a 17th Century Maranthi Poet wrote:

Because I could not lie
I named my dog “God”.
Startled at first,
Soon he was smiling
Then dancing!
Now he won’t even bite.
Do you suppose this might work
On people, too?

The elements of the Ovi are:

  1. stanzaic, written in any number of 4 line stanzas.
  2. syllabic, 8-8-8-(less than 8 ) syllables
  3. rhymed, with L1, L2, L3 mono-rhymed L4 unrhymed. aaax, x being unrhymed

    Roly Poly by Judi Van Gorder

    The big toothed tot with golden hair
    picked up a bug on Sister’s dare,
    it rolled into a ball right there
    and won her springtime heart.

My Example

Form: Ovi

Trucker’s Life

Poppa longed for the open road
not just because the bank was owed;
always contented when he rode,
he had a land to see.

There is no state that he’d not seen!
East-coast to west, and in between,
there’s nothing like that rolling scene
to make one ‘preciate.

The Pennsylvania rolling hills,
the Gary Indiana mills,
the Alcan Highway winter thrills
all were a joy to see.

He loved Montana’s open sky
and Kansas when the corn was high
the Rockies when the roads are dry,
and then he met my mom.

He needs time with his wife and son
so now his gallivanting’s done
but our vacations sure are fun,
he knows just where to go!

© Lawrencealot – February 15, 2015

Visual template

This one for a stanza with a 6 syllable short line.

Abhanga Poetry Form

Abhanga
There are not many verse forms whose names begin with the letter A.  The abhanga is a Marathi form, Marathi being one of the major languages of India. It is the official language of Maharashtra, and is also spoken in several neighbouring states in the west of the country, including Goa and Karnataka. 
The form is simply described: four lines, with syllable counts of 6, 6, 6, 4, and lines 2 and 3 rhyming.
Thanks to Bob Newman for this wonderful resource.
 
Abhanga, “the completion” is a stanzaic form commonly used for devotional poetic composition although it has also been used for cynicism, satire and reflective moods. It was popular from the 13th thru 17th centuries Marathi Region of India and is described as complex and classic.
The Abhanga is:
  • stanzaic, written in any number of quatrains (4 line stanzas).
  • syllabic, 6/6/6/4 syllables each
  • rhymed L2 and L3 rhyme. Often internal rhyme is employed. End rhyme scheme x a a x , x being unrhymed.
Thanks to Judi Van Gorder for this wonderful resource.
Rhyme pattern: xaax
 
Example Poem
 
Nurturer     (Abhanga)
When life it brought into
our world with woman’s pain
before the child’s refrain
sends it away
the nurturing begins
with boys and girls, and yes,
with men we must confess.
The woman builds.
When this small fact is found
to be untrue, then what?
Then you’ve defined a slut,
female, that’s all.
The care and love rendered
describe a woman’s ilk.
Their touch is soft as silk
but strong as glue.
As aging wrinkles up
my face, I’m satisfied
a woman’s by my side
and she has cared.
© Lawrencealot – November 26, 2013

 
 
Visual Template