Bihar Board Class 12th English 100 Marks
Fire-Hymn
Keki N Daruwalla
Short Questions & Answers
1. Where do you think is the ghat located?
The ghat is located near the bank of a river.
2. What does the speaker see/observe in the morning at the ghat?
He saw embers losing their redness, and the grey ash had covered the half burnt limbs.
3. Why does he say that the redness of the fire is cruel?
He says that the redness of the fire is cruel because it stings and burns. It spares nothing.
4. In what sense does the fire forget its dead?
The fire is supposed to burn the dead completely. But sometimes it does not do its duty. It leaves some limbs half-burnt.
5. What did the fire-hymn say to him?
The fire-hymn forgave him for not observing the ritual of the dead according to Zoroastrian religion.
6. Why did he consign his first born to the flames?
The speaker consigned his first born to the flames under compulsion. The tower of Silence, where he should have disposed of the dead body, was a thousand miles away.
7. Why does the speaker reveal his religious identity?
The speaker is a Zoroastrian. They do not burn their dead. They leave their dead on the Tower of Silence. He reveals his religious identity to make this point clear.
8. Which event does the expression ‘ the burning ghat’ refer to?
It refers to an occasion when the speaker and his father were passing by a burning ghat. They saw that the fire had died out but some limbs of a body were still half-burnt.
9. How did the passer-by get frightened?
The passer-by got frightened by the phosphorescence and wandering ghost lights in the burning ghat at night.
10. How does the ghat appear to the common people?
Ghat appears to be haunted by ghosts. It is a very scary place.
Explain the following lines
1. It never forgot, and twenty years since as I consigned my first born to the flames the nearest tower of silence was a thousand miles. The fire hymn said to me, “You stand forgiven.”
Ans. The poet says that he will never forget this fire. He further adds that he had not seen this fire in last twenty years i.e., when he consigned his first born child to flames because the tower of silence was thousand miles away. He says that he might have committed so me mistakes for which he apologises.
