Writing poetry is not teachable and nobody can be persuaded to read poems. The farmer decides what crops he will raise in his garden. The buyers, however, expect healthy crop. A poetry magazine can also direct young poets to create a healthy social environment.

In the essay ‘The Study of Poetry’, Matthew Arnold said, “without poetry, our science will appear incomplete, and most of what now passes with us for religion and philosophy will be replaced by poetry.” Some critics have pointed out that Arnold did not think of poetry replacing true Christian religion as such, but he was thinking of poetry replacing ‘the sham religion of dogmatic assertion. His kingdom of God does not exist in another world. This is an ideal society of the future. In Culture and Anarchy, he defined culture as a scientific passion to see things as they really are and a social and a moral obligation of doing good. Arnold’s poetry is a substitute of religion in so far as it helps in making prevail the will of God. The kingdom of God is within us. He called poetry the criticism of life and application of profound ideas to life. Arnold also said that for poetry the idea is everything and the idea is the fact. As poetry is idea, it can instruct and console readers. It can be deduced from such observation that poetry can make us keenly aware of life by communicating ideas. Whatever may be his laws of poetic beauty and poetic truth, the fact remain that poetry teaches and makes us aware of life. Interpreted that way, Arnold’s attitude to poetry and culture might come close to the contemporary ecocritic’s attitude to environment. The Kingdom of God within has to be realized. If the function of poetry and culture is to make prevail the will of God, one cannot be indiscriminately destructive of environment. Poetry creates an awareness and awareness makes a difference.

With this issue, PWF has entered its second year and so far readers’ response has enthused and energized us. The magazine has received responses from readers in different parts of India and abroad. We can legitimately hope that readers will increase in the days to come.

Writing poetry is not teachable and nobody can be persuaded to read poems. The farmer decides what crops he will raise in his garden. The buyers, however, expect healthy crop. But when one shares the yield of the crop with others, it is expected that the product is healthy. A poetry magazine may also perhaps suggest how the product may be healthy. A poetry magazine can also direct young poets to create a healthy social environment. It can create an awareness in the readers PWF is trying it. It aims at taking poetry to the people. Articles on poetry and poets have been regularly published. Interviews of cross-section of people regarding their views on poetry have also been published. We believe that PWF will make a colourful journey into the future with combined efforts of poets, writers and readers.