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No land on earth has such a long
cultural continuity as India. The cultural quality and temper of a nation can
be best gauged to a great extent by its literature. We have at least 22
literatures, which are held by a common thread.
In India, the stage was set by two
great literatures, namely Sanskrit and Tamil. Indian culture has an organic
unity and Sanskrit language and its literature have been mainly responsible
for building up and maintaining this unity. The great works of Ramayana
and the Mahabharata have moulded the life and literature of India and
constitute the greatest literary heritage of the country. The cultural unity
of India, ancient, medieval and modern has been primarily nurtured through them.
The other great literary works of
India include, works like Uttararama Charita by Bhavabhuti, Marghadutam
and Sakuntalam by Kalidasa, Gita Govinda
by Jeyadeva, Katha Sarit Sagaram by Somadeva Bhatta, Rajatarangini by Kalhana
and Swapna Vasavadatta by Bhasa. These works have inspired many literary writers
of many modern Indian languages in the present millennium.
Sanskrit literature is at least
3000 years old and its role in maintaining the unity and culture of India can
be seen from the various periods of literature including the Vedas and the classicals.
Among the major Dravidian languages,
only Tamil claims at least 2100 years of literary history. Sanskrit influenced
the Sangam literature and the early Grammar "Tulkappiam" though
they have their own identity.
If language is a plant, literature
is its flower. The color and flavor of a language find best expression
in its literature because it has an aesthetic appeal. We have great literary
contributors like Sankara Deva in Assamese, Chandi Das in Bengali, Narasimha
Mehta in Gujarathi, Mirabai in Braja hasa, Namder and Tukaram in Marathi, Vidyapatiin
Maithili, Saraladas in Orissa, Potana and Tyagaraja in Telugu, Ezhuthachan in
MalayalamTulsidas in Hindi, Manikkavasagar and Kambar in Tamil and Basawevara
in Kannada. We also have Kabir
in a mixed form of Urdu and Bhojpuri
and also Guru Nanak in Punjabi who developed their own brand of devotional poetry.
The 19th and the 20th centuries are
very important in the literary history India as massive changes took place.
The interaction with the British culture produced a Renaissance in literature.
The West revitalized our poetry and revealed the potential of our prose. Indian
literature is richer today in volume, range and variety. It is sure to progress
in the same direction in the present millennium too.
Assamese
Literature
Though the language is comparatively
old, Assamese sprouted into literature only in the 13th century. Rudra
Kandalis' translation of Drona Pava of Mahabharatha and
Mandhava Kandalis' rendering of the Ramayana are the two works of classical
eminence in the early period. But the new Vaishnavite movement of the 15th century
is the most notable in the early period and lovers of Assamese literature remember
that even today.
In 1813, the complete Bible was
translated into Assamese. The leaders of the Assamese renaissance in literature
are Chandrakumar Agarwala (1858-1938) and then Lakshminath
Bezbarua (1867-1938) and Hemachandra Goswamy
(1872-1928). They founded the famous monthly Janaki. The most important contemporary
fiction writers are Syed Abdul Malik, Jogesh Das and Birendra Kumar Bhattacharya.
Bhattacharya's novel Mritunjaya received the Jnanpith Award. He was also President
of the Sahitya Akademi.
Bengali
Literature
Among the many literatures of India,
Bengali has a pre-eminent position. It was the first to absorb the impact of
European influence. The establishment of Fort William College in 1800, and the
contributions of William Carey and others in the field of Bengali
grammar and dictionary were developments of seminal importance. Their translation
of the Bible into modern, simple Bengali prose gave a fillip to prose writing
of the early 19th century.
Tagore
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Meghanadodh Kavya, the first
epic poem was composed by Micheal Madhu Sudan Dutt (1824-73). Bankim
Chandra (1838-94) wrote the first romantic novel "Durgesha Nandini"
that thrilled the Bengali readers. He was hailed as a pioneer novelist
in India.
Thousands of poems and songs,
about a dozen novels, three dozen plays and several volumes of short stories
flowed from the pen of the Great Rabindranth Tagore, a Bengali.
His translation of the Gitanjali into English brought him
the Nobel Prize in 1913 for literature. His Gora is considered as an outstanding
achievement.
The post-Tagore period in Bengali
literature is also very rich. Tarashankar, Manik and Bibhutibhushan are outstanding
novelists of the 20th century. Then we have Jidananda Das and Bishu De in poetry,
Dianbandhu Mitra and Dwijendralal Roy in the field of drama. Bibhuti Bhushan's
Aranyak and Pather Panchali and Tara Shankar's Gana Devata and Arogya Niketan
are well-known novels translated into many Indian languages.
Oriyan
Literature
Oriya is a younger sister of Bengali.
Sarala Das of the 14th century is the Vyasa of Orissa. His real name
was Sidheswar Panda and he adapted the Mahabharatha into simple Oriya. His Vilanka
Ramayana and Chandi Purana are also well known. Poets like Baladeva Rath, Devi
Krishna Das and bhaktha Charan Das made significant contributions in the field
of poetry.
Prose in Oriya was really born in
the British period. It developed rapidly through a steady flow of novels and
short stories. An outstanding name is Fakir Mohan Senapathi (1843-1918).
He was a poet, novelist, businessman and social reformer all rolled into one.
He translated the Ramayana and the Mahabharata into Oriya though he had only
four years of formal education. In the contemporary period, we have Sitakant
Mohapatra, an IAS officer whose poetry has won him the famed Jnanpith Award.
Hindi
Literature
The history of Hindi literature begins
around 1000 A.D. The main trendsetters in the early period till the 14th century
were the Siddhas, the Jain poets, the Antha Panthis and the Heroic poets. They
represented certain religious ideologies. The next four centuries saw the rise
of the Bhakthi Kavyas are devotional poetry under two main schools, namely the
Nirguna and the Saguna.
Kabir was the most
important poet of the Nirguna period. He preached the Universal religion of
man, transcending Hindu and Muslim orthodoxy. The great Champion of Rama poetry
is Tulsidas (1543- 1623) whose Ramacharitha Manas is still accepted
as an immortal classic by all Hindi literature lovers. He was an expert in narration,
epic and logical form.
The modern period of Hindi literature
commences with the second half of the 19th century with Bharatendu Harischandra
(1850- 84) as the pioneer.
In the field of fiction, the great
stalwart is of course Prem Chand. His Godan is translated into
almost all of the major Indian languages. Prem Chand raised Hindi Literature
from entertainment to realism.
Other important fiction writers
of the contemporary period are Jainendra Kumar, Phaniswar Nath Renu, and Satchidananda
Vatsyayan. New trends in the 50's and 60' s elevated the Hindi short story scene
to a very high level. Literary criticism also revived and Dr. Nagendra and Dr.
Namwar Singh need special mention in this field.
Gujarathi
Literature
Developing from one of the dialects
of standard Gurjara Apabhramsa and coming under strong Jain influence in the
early period is the Gujarathi language. The epics and the puranas flowed into
the Gujarathi language during the 15th to the 17th century. The great poets
of this period are Narasimha and Mirabai. Narasimha Mehta (1404-1480)
is considered to be the father of Gujarati Poetry. His Govind Gamana and Sudama
Charita are well known. Mirabai (1499-1547) is the most celebrated woman poet
of medieval India claimed by both Hindi and Rajasthani. Her bridal devotion
to Lord Krishna is a fine example of sublimation of the sex element.
During 1855-1907, Govardhanram Tripathi
penned the celebrated novel Saraswathi Chandra. This great work of modern India
is a love story with social and spiritual relevance. A towering figure of the
modern period is none other than K.M.Munshi (1887- 1971), the founder of the
Bharatiya Vidhya Bhavan and a great promoter of Indian culture. Munshi entered
Gujarati literature with a bang and continued to dominate it for along time.
His first novel was Varulata. Four of his historical novels were instant successes.
Though Mahatma is not a Gujarathi
writer, his influence on Gujarati literature is beyond question. So the period
between 1925- 1950 is called the Gandhian period. Some modern poets include
Sundaram, Umashankar, and D.B. Kalelkar and in drama, Jayanthi Lal needs special
mentioning.
Punjabi
Literature
The rise of modern Punjabi with Gurumukhi
script is the result of the bhakthi songs of the sacred gurus. Its literature
dates back to the 13th century when narrative poems, dramas and stories were
created. Baba Farid composed his sloks and hymns in Punjabi.
Great warriors and kings were praised
by a kind of verse called Vars. Amir Khusrou(1253-1325) composed
an outstanding Var on Tughlaksha.
The Golden period of Punjabi literature
is undoubtedly the period of the Sikh gurus beginning with Guru Nanak and continuing
till the passing away of the Guru Gobind Singh. Most of the religious and often
mystic poetry of the period has been preserved in the Adi Granth, which is a
great anthology of Bhakthi poems. It is the scripture of the Sikhs, but it is
also a literature of high quality.
During 1600-1800, the Ramayana, the
Mahabharata, Bhagavad Gita and the Upanishads were created in Punjabi.
In 1850, the Ludhiana Chrisitan mission
was formed and they brought out a Punjabi translation of the Bible in 1852 and
a Punjabi dictionary in 1854. A very important personality of the time was Bhai
Vir Singh (18720 1957), who wrote religious epics, lyrics and nature
poetry. Great writers like Gurumukh Singh Musafir, Hira Singh Dard, Mohan Singh
and Amritha Pritam inspired the nationalist movements.
Amrita Pritam is well
known throughout India as a great poetess, novelist and winner of the Jnanpith
Award. Some famous fiction writers include Guruakash Singh Preet Lari, Harcharan
singh, Sant Singh Sekhon and Gurudial Singh, etc.
Marathi
Literature
Viveka Sindhu (sea of philosophy)
by Mukunda Raj, a yogi of "Natha Panth" is considered as the first major work
in Marathi. Marathi prose originated during the Yadava period and the credit
goes to the religious sect called Mahanabhavas. Jnanadeva wrote the Jnaneswari
a valuable commentary on the Bhagavad Gita in Marathi.
The contribution of Christian Missionaries
took place during the17th and the 18 th centuries. Christapurana on the model
of Jnanaeswari was composed by Father Stephens and was accepted as a masterpiece
in Marathi language. Then came Tukaram (1608- 49), the greatest
saint poet of the language. Devotional poetry flowed from his pen. He wrote
3000 abhangas. Krishna Dayarnava and Sridhar were the leading poets during the
18 th century. Kesava Sut, the father of modern Marathi poetry published his
first work in 1885.
Vijay Tendulkar and C.T. Dhanolkar
have written plays that have won recognition beyond the borders of Maharastra.
It can be said that Marathi has a contemporary literature that is flowing.
Urdu
Literature
The vocabulary, idioms and literary
tradition of Urdu depend largely on central Asian, Turkish and Persian sources.
Urdu Literature therefore has a flavor of its own. Muslim saints made Urdu as
a vehicle for the propagation of their concepts of brotherhood. Hindu saints
of the Bhakthi movement used it to propagate the unity of religions.
Two writers who popularized early
writing in Urdu known as Deccani Urdu were Sahik Ganjalim and Kwaja Bendas Nawaz
(1320-1422). Mulla Wajhi was a great literary figure of the 17th century. His
"masnavi" and prose compositions are rated among the best of their kind.
Ghazal had many devoted practitioners.
Amir Khusrou and Qutab Shah gave it a new dimension. The Lucknow school of poets
led by Syed Ahmed Khan also made significant contributions.
Sarshar, Nazir Ahmed and Sharar
are great novelists of Urdu though the greatest and most celebrated work of
this genre is "Umrao Jan Ada" (1899) by Ruswa. Premchand wrote not only in Hindi
but in Urdu as well.
Modern Urdu literature has different
phases, romanticism, progressivism and various kinds of post-modernism. Imtias
Hussain is a real force in modern fiction. Qurrantulain Haidra, winner of the
Jnanpith Award is known for her magnum opus "Aga Ka Darya" that deals with the
horrors of partition.
Kashmiri
Literature
Kashmiri literature may be divided
into two phases: the ancient and the modern. Ancient Kashmiri writings are closely
linked with Sanskrit. Early Kashmiri poetry is an extension of the Saiva texts
in Sanskrit.
Kashmiri prose is very recent. Actually
fiction originated with the Progressive Movement in the forties. Important writers
like Aktar Mohi-Ud-din, Mohamed Amin Kamil and Ali Muhammad Lone are men who
switched over form Urdu to Kashmiri.
Tamil
Literature
Tamil literature has a history of
about 2100 years behind it. An example of the distinctiveness of Tamil in the
second millennium is Kambaramayanam of the 12th century. Though Kambar
based his work on the Ramayan of Valmiki, his rendering showed that he was a
supremely original poet.
Subramania
Bharathi
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Tamil is rich in devotional
literature. The Nayanmars are the exponents of Saivism and Alwars the
celebrants of Vaishnavism. There is also a great number of Jain and Buddhist
works in Tamil. Between the 13th and the 18 th centuries, Muslim and Christian
influences began to make an impact. Scholars of Tamil remember Umaippulavar's
long poem of 5000 verses on Prophet Muhammed.
The Christian influence began
with the Portuguese and continued with the Danes, the Dutch and then with
the French and the British. Berchi composed Tembavani (the insatiable
beauty) on the life of Joseph, the father of Jesus Christ. Vedanayagam
Pillai and Krishna Pillai were really Christian poets.
The 20 th century has seen an explosion
of talent. The greatest of them all was of course Subramania Bharathi.
His patritiotic songs inspired thousands of Tamilians. Kuyilpattu, Kannanpattu
and Panchali Sapatham are notable among them.
Kannada
Literature
Kannada has been highly influenced
by Sanskrit. It s early literature dates back to the 5th century A.D. Works
based on the Ramayana and the Mahabharata form the earliest literature of Karnataka.
The three important names of early Kannada poetry are Pampa, Panna and
Ponna all born in the 10th century. They introduced Sanskrit Epics into
Kannada.
The first standard grammar on Kannada
language, Sabdamani Darpana was written by Kesi Raja. The great literary milestone
of the time was Basaveswara of the 12 th century whose Vachana style of writing
has no equal in any other language. With vachana, Basaveswara caused a social
revolution.
The modern period has many important
writes like B.M.Srikantiah, K.V.Puttapa and D.R.Bendre. Outstanding among the
fictionists are Masti Venkatesh Iyengar and Shivarama Karanth. Karanth's Chomana
Dudi and Marali Mannige have been translated into almost all of modern Indian
languages. T.P.Kailasam and Adya Rangacharya are well known names in Kannada
drama.
Telugu
Literature
In the early periods of Telugu, the
Bhakthi poets dominated the scene with the translations of the Mahabharatha
by Tikkana (13th century) and Yerrana (14th century). The Ramayana poets started
with Ranganatha Ramayana. Other great religious poets include Potana, Jakkana
and Gurona.
The Golden period of Telugu literature
was during the 15 th century and 16 th century with writers like Krishna Deva
Raya and Reddanna. Then followed the western influenced Renaissance. All branches
of literature; the novel, short stories, prose, drama, essay and literary criticism
all flourished during this period.
The father of common deluge literature
is Veerasalingam Pantulu (1848- 1919) who wrote Rajasekhara Chaitramu
inspired by the Vicar of Wakefield. To him literature was an instrument to fight
social evils. A wonderful team of Rayaprolu Subba Rao, Gurupada appa Rao, Viswanatha
Satyanarayana, followed him.
Telugu is also known for its experiments
in the field of poetry and drama. Digambara Kavita is only one example of such
an experiment.
Malayalam
Literature
Historians agree that Malayalam literature
commenced from the 12 th century. In the Tamil stream the most important work
is Rama Charitham composed in a mixture of Tamil and Malayalam in the 12 th
century. The Sanskrit stream consists of Manipravala Kavyas under the categories
Sandesha Kavyas and Champas.
The 15 th century saw the rise of
the big name in Malayalam literature- Cherrusseri Namboodiri with
his famous poem Krishna Gatha. Then came the greatest figure of them all, Thunchathu
Ezhuthachan in the 16 th century. His Adhyatma Ramayanam, Bharatham and Bhagawatam
are the greatest classics in Malayalam.
Attakatha is the literary script
for Kathakali and Unnayi Varier excelled in it. Malayalam can claim a fairly
long history of prose writings from Arthasastra in the 13 th century to Varthamanapustakam,
a travelogue by Paremekkal thoma Kathanar. In the 19th century lexicographers
and grammarians like Baily Gundert and Rajaraja Varma produced seminal works.
Two great novelists, Chandu Menon and C.V. Raman Pillai also produced classics
during this period. The 20 th century saw the reign of a triumvirate- Kumaran
Asan, Ulloor Parameswara Iyer and Vallathol Narayan Menon. They were outstanding
poets and Ulloor being an outstanding historian of literature.
English
Literature
English is the pride
of our country but it is not an official language. It maintains the unity of
the sub-continent though it is a borrowed language. Indian English writers are
today in the front ranks of world literature. The tradition began with Toru
Dutt who died at the young age of 21.
Tagore, Sorojini Naidu, Jawaharlal
Nehru and Mahatma Gandhi were all great English writers. A handful of
Indians today dominate the scene as the most successful writers in English.
The average standard of writing in
English is higher than the average standard of writing in an other Indian language.
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