By Amitabh Ranjan
Free, fabulously free… free from three trifles… pounder, pounding bowl and my wicked lord… free from endless births and deaths… the chains that fettered me down are suddenly no more
Penned in the 6th century BCE by Mutta, a Buddhist nun, it is the first poem in The Book of Bihari Literature edited by Abhay K. The contemporaneousness of the theme is a refreshing surprise when you realise the antiquity of the composition.
Literature does not merely chronicle a people’s history and culture. The ink that recounts a tale, one of evolution, emancipation, beauty, ugliness, courage, frailty or passion, also breathes life into characters and their surroundings. The word picture thus created brings you up close and personal with your bygone, or the present.
That’s exactly what the book achieves. An anthology of English translation of poems and short stories written over centuries, it mirrors the aspiration of the Bihari society, its contradictions, its reformist zeal, its perseverance in coming to terms with the changing times down the ages. By selecting works from a range of languages—from the ancient Pali, Prakrit and Sanskrit to Hindi, Maithili, Bhojpuri, Magahi and lesser known Bajjika and Angika—the book has managed to capture between its covers a kind of literary legacy that is not commonly found.
In the range of themes, too, Abhay K has been impressive. So, while Mutta writes about women’s emancipation, Vidyapati sings an ode to the woman’s body in his inimitable style. While Kautilya offers you some worldly wisdom, Vatsyayana guides you in the art of love-making. An excerpt from Ramdhari Singh Dinkar’s ‘mahakavya’ Rashmirathi will leave you wanting for more. A short story ‘Through the Prism of Time’ by his namesake Ramdhari Singh Diwakar makes you aware about a changing social equation.
Jankavi Nagarjun’s poem Famine and After comprises just eight lines. Written during a phase in his life when his theme shifted from lyrical romanticism to rebellion, it’s about famine, hunger, anguish and government apathy. The translation of Chalni ke Chalal Dulha, a poem composed by Bhikhari Thakur, who earned the sobriquet Shakespeare of Bhojpuri, is about how a bridegroom is welcomed when he reaches the bride’s home.
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Fish by Rajkamal Chaudhary comes with the message that love has the power to bridge cultural chasm. Mithilesh’s Chilled to the Bone is a heart-rending account of an old destitute couple in mortal combat with biting cold on a winter night. The following morning only one wakes up.
The book ends with the editor’s twin Nalanda Poems—one of despair arising out of the loss of a priceless heritage, the other of hope and determination of rising from the ashes phoenix-like.
These are just a glimpse of a very rich fare that awaits you in case you decide to partake of this delectable potpourri.
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It is well-neigh impossible to capture within a span of 350-odd pages the literary accomplishments of a land as ancient and as diverse as that of Bihar. Some may miss names like Gopal Singh Nepali (Hindi), Harimohan Jha and Upendranath Jha (Maithili) and Dharikshan Mishra (Bhojpuri) among others. The book nevertheless has done a commendable job of bringing together the works of authors and poets, many of whom remain unknown and, therefore, unsung. It has also shown light on quite a few figures from Bihar who can claim a seat in the country’s literary pantheon with equal ease. An addition to this volume would be an idea worth undertaking.
If you are literary inclined and a proud Bihari, this is a kaleidoscope you can’t afford to miss.
The Book of Bihari Literature
Abhay K
HarperCollins
Pp 408, Rs 699
A former journalist, Amitabh Ranjan teaches at Patna Women’s College
