This page features a video of the poem “Vocation”, prescribed under the Karnataka State Syllabus for 5th Standard English Santoor. Along with its summary in three languages and transliterated songs. It serves as a valuable learning resource for students and parents, with each song accompanied by its respective lyrics for easy sing-along. The synchronized lyrics help learners follow and recite the song as it progresses, making memorization and learning by heart easier, more effective, and enjoyable.
Lyrics
English
When the gong sounds ten in the morning and
I walk to school by our lane,
Every day I meet the hawker crying, “Bangles,
crystal bangles!”
There is nothing to hurry him on, there is no
road he must take, no place he must go to, no
time when he must come home.
I wish I were a hawker, spending my day in
the road, crying, “Bangles, crystal bangles!”
When at four in the afternoon I come
back from the school.
I can see through the gate of that
house the gardener digging the ground.
He does what he likes with his spade,
he soils his clothes with dust, nobody
takes him to task if he gets baked in the
sun or gets wet.
I wish I were a gardener digging away
at the garden with nobody to stop me
from digging.
Just as it gets dark in the evening and my
mother sends me to bed,
I can see through my open window the
watchman walking up and down.
The lane is dark and lonely, and the
street-lamp stands like a giant with one red eye
in its head.
The watchman swings his lantern and walks
with his shadow at his side, and never once goes
to bed in his life.
I wish I were a watchman walking the streets
all night, chasing the shadows with my lantern.
I walk to school by our lane,
Every day I meet the hawker crying, “Bangles,
crystal bangles!”
There is nothing to hurry him on, there is no
road he must take, no place he must go to, no
time when he must come home.
I wish I were a hawker, spending my day in
the road, crying, “Bangles, crystal bangles!”
When at four in the afternoon I come
back from the school.
I can see through the gate of that
house the gardener digging the ground.
He does what he likes with his spade,
he soils his clothes with dust, nobody
takes him to task if he gets baked in the
sun or gets wet.
I wish I were a gardener digging away
at the garden with nobody to stop me
from digging.
Just as it gets dark in the evening and my
mother sends me to bed,
I can see through my open window the
watchman walking up and down.
The lane is dark and lonely, and the
street-lamp stands like a giant with one red eye
in its head.
The watchman swings his lantern and walks
with his shadow at his side, and never once goes
to bed in his life.
I wish I were a watchman walking the streets
all night, chasing the shadows with my lantern.
Summary
The poem describes a child who wishes to live the free lives of three
working people. The child admires the bangle seller because he has no
fixed destination or schedule. The child admires the gardener because
nobody stops him from digging, even in heat or rain. At night the child
watches the watchman walking through the lonely street with his lantern.
The poem shows a child’s imagination and desire for freedom,
independence, and adventure.
working people. The child admires the bangle seller because he has no
fixed destination or schedule. The child admires the gardener because
nobody stops him from digging, even in heat or rain. At night the child
watches the watchman walking through the lonely street with his lantern.
The poem shows a child’s imagination and desire for freedom,
independence, and adventure.
Author