If – BY RUDYARD KIPLING

If you can make one heap of all your winnings

যদি তুমি তোমার জয় লব্ধ সম্পদ এক করে

    And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,

ভাগ্যের এক খেলায় বাজি ধরতে পারো

And lose, and start again at your beginnings

আর হেরে গিয়েও আবার গোড়া থেকে শুরু করো

    And never breathe a word about your loss;

আবার ক্ষতি ক্ষতি করে একটাও কথা বলো না

If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew

যদি দেহ, মন, প্রাণ এক করে শক্তি ধরো

    To serve your turn long after they are gone,

যদি কিছু নিঃশেষিত জেনেও তোমার কাজ করে যাও

And so hold on when there is nothing in you

শুধু এইটুকু আছে জেনে যা তোমার ইচ্ছা শক্তি

    Except the Will which says to them: ‘Hold on!’

যা তোমাকে বলে, “লেগে থাকো, হাল ছেড়ো না।”

Many people consider ‘If—’ to be one of the most inspirational poems ever written. It is certainly a poem that has garnered a great deal of attention in popular culture. The poem “If” by Rudyard Kipling is a bundle of suggestions from father to his son. In the poem, the poet tells his son how to cope with different situations in the life ahead. The poem is divided into four stanzas having eight lines each. The rhyme scheme of the poem is ABAB.

Summary: 

The poet says that one should make one heap of all the achievements one has made and then take big risks. In other words, one should never be afraid of doing things that can either make one successful or ruin everything (pitch-and-toss). If one fails after taking big risks, he should start again from the beginning without thinking or saying anything about the loss to others. One should try again and again until one succeeds.

In the fifth line, the poet says that one should use his heart and nerve and sinew i.e. courage when one becomes tired or fails. When nothing is left in life, one should have strong will power which may encourage one to “Hold on!”

3.4 Read the poem again and match the following words with their meanings in the next column. Then,

Word	বাংলা	Meaning	Sentence
a. Heap	গাদা/ ষ্তুপ	4. To put things on top of each other	Your room looks very untidy when you lay your clothes in a heap in the floor
b. Risk	ঝুঁকি	3.To do something that might be dangerous	You should take a risk to achieve success
c. Pitch-and- toss	পিচ-এন্ড-টস	9. A game in which the player who pitches a coin nearest to mark has the first chance to toss all the coins, winning those that land heads up.	We feel risk it on one turn of pitch-and- toss
d. Beginning	শুরু	1. The start of something	The beginning of the game was exciting
e. Breathe a word	একটি শব্দ নিঃশ্বাস নিন	8. Don’t say/breathe a word about this to anyone	she went on, “I haven’t dared breathe a word to your sister.
f. Sinew	পেশীতন্তু	7. a part of the body that connects a muscle to a bone	He had plenty of bone and sinew as well as courage
g. Serve	সেবা করা	5. Perform duties	We should try to serve for humanity
h. Except	ছাড়া	2. Not including	You can not be successful except hardworking
i. Will	ইচ্ছাশক্তি	6. To want to do something	I have a will to serve the nation

Matching words and making sentences

3.4 Read the poem again and match the following words with their meanings in the next column. Then, use the words in your sentences. One is done for you.

a) Heap
Meaning: To put things on top of each other
My sentences: Your room looks very untidy when you lay your clothes in a heap on the floor.

b) Risk
Meaning: To do something that might be dangerous
My sentences: We must take risk to be success in life

c) Pitch-and-toss
Meaning: A game in which the player who pitches a coin nearest to a mark has the first chance to toss all the coins, winning those that land heads up.
My sentences: Bangladesh team decided to bat first after winning the Pitch-and-toss.

d) Beginning
Meaning: The start of something
My sentences: At the beginning of the match, we lost our hope to win.

e) Breathe a word
Meaning: Don’t say a word about something to anyone
My sentences: After losing her son, she didn’t breathe a word.

f) Sinew
Meaning: a part of the body that connects a muscle to a bone
My sentences: He had a pain in his sinew before the operation.

g) Serve
Meaning: Perform duties
My sentences: An army always ready to serve his life to the country.

h) Except
Meaning: Not including
My sentences: I like all the seasons except summer.

i) Will
Meaning: To want to do something
My sentences: I’m willing to make cake.

Complete the sentences with words

3.5 Read the poem again in pairs and complete the sentences with words or phrases from the box to make it a meaningful sentence. One is done for you.

i. The name of the poem is _____.
ii. Rudyard Kipling is a ________.
iii. Sometimes in life if you fail, you can_______.
iv. It’s wise not to give importance on ________.
v. On bad days we must not give up, rather we will____.
vi. ‘If’ is a poem because it has ______.
vii. The rhyming word of ‘toss’ is_____
viii. The poem has ____ stanza.

Ans. i. If; ii. poet; iii. start again a new beginning; iv. your failures; v. hold on to the will to do something good; vi. stanza and rhyming; vii. loss; viii. one

Central theme of the poem If

3.6 Read the following note on the “Central theme” of a poem. Then, in groups write the central theme of the poem “If”. Then, share it with the whole class.

Central theme of the poem ‘If’

In the poem, the poet tells us, how to live and act with integrity and the correct values such that one becomes the ideal human. Each of the lines deals with different life situations and the best way to act during them. Some of the important words of the poem are loss, lose, heap, pitch-and-toss, breathe a word, sinew, and hold on etc. However, after reading the poem, I can visualize a scene in which a father speaks to his son and gives him the most valuable life lesson on becoming a complete man.

বাংলায় অনুবাদ: কবিতায় কবি আমাদের বলেছেন, কীভাবে সততার সঙ্গে বাঁচতে হয়, আচরণ করতে হয় এবং সঠিক মূল্যবোধ যে আদর্শ মানুষ হয়। কবিতার প্রতিটি লাইন জীবনের বিভিন্ন পরিস্থিতি এবং সেগুলো মোকাবিলার সর্বোত্তম উপায় নিয়ে আলোচনা করেছে। কবিতার কিছু গুরুত্বপূর্ণ শব্দ হল loss, lose, heap, pitch-and-toss, breathe a word, sinew এবং hold ইত্যাদি। যাই হোক, কবিতাটি পড়ার পরে, আমি একটি দৃশ্য কল্পনা করতে পারি, যেখানে একজন বাবা তার ছেলেকে একজন পূর্ণ মানুষ হওয়ার সবচেয়ে মূল্যবান জীবনের পাঠ দিচ্ছেন।