In his poem Poothappattu (Song About the Pootham - "Pootham" is a folklore idol) he has woven a myth to creatively interpret the folklore dancer who makes appearance on every courtyard after the harvest season dancing to the accompaniments of drum and cymbal. In "Poothappattu" as also in the later poem "Kavile Pattu", Edasseri has illustrated the power of motherhood that turns a ferocious blood-thirsty deity into one of love and peace. He has also written a number of poems on Lord Krishna in a perspective that is totally different from the collective mind.

A poet of new humanism

Edasseri dealt with an awe-inspiring variety of subjects in his poems, plays and essays. His subjects range from the mythical to the social psyche on the one hand and from socio-political to environmental concerns on the other. Thus the oracle in "Kavileppattu" (The Song of the Divine Grove) bleeds his forehead with a sickle shaped sword during the temple festivals. The ritual - the self infliction of pain - is spiritually similar to the Christian sense of sacrifice, carrying the cross for others' sins so as to appeal to their conscience. In his poem written during the pre-land reform days, the downtrodden farmer pays a heavy price for his inability to keep the commitment to his landlord because of crop failure. The landlord attaches his crop pushing him to misery and hunger. The poem concludes with the farmer's realization that political empowerment is the sine qua non for his liberation. At a time when pro-labour laws were non-existent he sung empathizing with the poor women labourers who languished in the coir factories, about the workers who were driven to poverty and death consequent to lock-outs in factories. His poems, along with those of other progressive writers, heralded the legal reforms in the Kerala labour scene and indeed resonated the social upheavals taking place at that time. Clearly Edasseri became the fountainhead of new humanism in Kerala.

A farsighted environmentalist Edasseri is the first poet in Kerala to air concern about the damage to eco system, in two of his poems "Kuttippuram Bridge"(1954) and "The Mango Tree Felled" (1963), when ecology was still not a subject of human concern at least in this part of the world. New poets have evoked such keen interest as Edasseri in the new-era writers, so much so about twenty five poets have written poems eulogizing him. A collection of their poems on Edasseri has been published by Mathrubhumi Books, Kozhikode. The title of the collection is Edasseri Ninavil Varumbol.

Edasseri Ninavil Varumbol - A Tribute To Edasseri A collection of poems on Edasseri written by eminent as well as upcoming poets of Malayalam. The collection include poems by P. Kunhiraman Nair, Vailoppilli, M. Govindan, Mahakavi Akkitham, Kadavanad Kuttikrishnan, Punaloor Rajan, Usaf Ali Kecheri, Pulakkat Ravindran, Vishnunarayan Namboothiri, K. Sachidanandan, K.V. Ramakrishnan, N.K. Desam, etc. The collection also includes an article by Edasseri on P. Poem Premapournami, and a preface by Prof. K.P. Sankaran.

For the Malayalam site on Edasseri please visit http://www.oocities.org/edasserigovindannair [A few poems and essays by Edasseri, over 30 essays on Edasseri by eminent writers, photo gallery, books, sample manuscripts]

Complete collection of Edasseri's Dramas and one act Plays now available:

Contact:   Current Books, Round West Thrissur 680 001 Phone: (0487) 2335660, 2335527. E-mail: cosmoboo@md3.vsnl.net.in Fax: (0487) 2335642 The third edition of the complete poetic works of Edasseri will be published by Mathrubhumi Books, Kozhikode. The book will be released in June 2006, the centenary year. To get a view of the centenary celebrations pl. click here.