Poet. He is recognized as a 20th century Georgian poet, who has been labeled "The King of Poets" by generations of poets as well as the general public in Georgia. Born in Vani Municipality's village of Chkvishi, in western Georgia, his father died unexpectedly eight months before his birth, thus his mother cared for him in impoverish conditions. He was sent to Kutaisi to be educated before entering the Tbilisi Theological Academy in 1910. During this time, he published in a magazine the poem "The Light." He was a student of the well-known Georgian writer Vazha-Pshavela. He left school to become a rural school teacher. In 1912 in Kutaisi, he met his future wife, Olga Okujava. And from a far, he was infatuated with the beautiful Mary Shervashidze, a Coco Chanel fashion model. For a time, she was the inspiration for his writings, but by 1915, he wrote a farewell poem dedicated to Mary. In 1914 he published a collection of poems, which was greatly influenced by the symbolist movement, which was a freer, more flowing verse, emphasizing dreams and ideals. In 1918, he traveled to Moscow and attended the 6-month courses of theater lovers. In 1919 he published another collection, "Artistic Flowers," which elevated his work to be one of the major voices in Georgian poetry. After being the editor-in-chief of a magazine, he started his own publication. In February of 1921, the Soviet Russian Army invaded the sovereign country of Georgia, taking command of the government, and nothing was the same. Though most of the copies were destroyed by the government, he published in his periodical the poem "The Memories of the Days When Lightning Struck," in recognition of the occupation of Georgia by Soviet Russian army. He was arrested for writing and publishing the poem and sentenced to serve time in jail. When many artists and writers were being executed, he survived Joseph Stalin's Great Purge of the 1930s, but the stress of this led him to a deep, dark depression with alcoholism. In 1933 he was granted the prestigious title of the People's Poet of Georgia. The 25th anniversary of his literary activities was celebrated at the Tbilisi Opera House the same year. In 1936, he was awarded the Order of Lenin. His career reaching new heights, yet his life was suffering from the Communist agenda. His cousin was arrested and executed for the poems he wrote. His wife's family was involved with anti-Soviet activities. For this reason, his wife was arrested in 1937, released, arrested again and eventually, sentenced to life in a work camp in the harsh landscape of Siberia. His wife died there in 1944. After a relationship with another woman, he met Nino Kvirikadze, a widow with two children, and he married for the second time. Besides limiting his freedom to write what he felt, the Communist Iron Curtain isolated him and his writings from the rest of the world. Many of his poems were translated into the Russian language by 1958 Nobel Prize in Literature recipient Boris Pasternak. Considered one of the most gifted poets in the 20th century, Communism crushed his ability to write. He wrote about subjects such as grief and personal loss, Georgian folklore, many regrets, and the bitter struggle of his life under Communist rule. The struggle became too hard, there was no more time, therefore he committed suicide while a patient in a mental hospital. Had he actually survived the Great Purge? A few of his other classic poems are "Villanelle," "The Moon of Mtatsminda," "Blue Horses," and "What Time Is It." Lines from "What Time Is It?" that have been translated to English: "Despair has settled for the night in my heart, tortured once more by bitter regret—What time is it? What time is it?'