मेरी ज़िन्दगी 

करवट बदल रही है अब मेरी ज़िन्दगी 

सपनों में जैसे चल रही है मेरी ज़िन्दगी।

ले के उबासी दिन कोई ज्यूँ शाम से कहे 

आँखें क्यूँ अपनी मल रही है मेरी ज़िन्दगी।

सबकुछ लुटा पर आसरा जीने का यूँ लिए 

क्यूँ ख़ाक पर मचल रही है मेरी ज़िन्दगी।

आज भी गुज़र गया फिर उनकी राह में 

हर कल पर टल रही है अब मेरी ज़िन्दगी।

करके उन्हें रोशन न जाने कितनी रातों को 

ख़ुद मोम सी पिघल रही है मेरी ज़िन्दगी।

जागे हुए तो हमको कुछ भी नहीं मिला 

सोते हुए अब कट रही है मेरी ज़िन्दगी।

                                   - (मृत्युंजय) -

                                    

Today is 'Bhasa-Diwas' for all Bengalis of West Bengal and Bangladesh. Here is some thought to ponder about our Mother Tongue with a soulful poem of Miloz (a Polish Poet) on the theme:

Inheritance of a varied climatic zone, successive foreign incursions of various races of whom some made India their permanent home, rules and rulers of different flocks who were not only alien in their habits of heart but were also different in their physical appearances and behavioural disposition, make India an unique case of the great Digital Divide. 5 groups of languages (Austro-Asiatic – 14 languages with a total population of 1.13%, Indo-European – 19 languages of Indo-Aryan group with a total population of 75.28% and Germanic 1 language with a total population of 0.02%, Semito-Harmitic 1 language with a total population of 0.01% and Tibeto-Burman 62 languages with a total population of 0.97%) and rich development of regional literature and customs like Tamil, Telegu, Malayalam, Kannada, Marathi, Gujarati, Braja, Avadhi, Bhojpuri, Bengali, Punjabi and Khadi Boli (Hindi) continuously nourished the roots of regional affinities and its various social manifestations. The Independent India with its tampered scripture-based education system and mauled social structure grew even more regionally sensitive than that of pre-independence India which witnessed a good interaction and mingling of languages and cultures across the nation amidst the Freedom Movement led by leaders of various regional colours.

Modern India, as per the 1971 count, has more than 1650 mother tongues. They are rationalized into 216 mother tongues and grouped under 114 languages by the 1991 census. According to an assessment, there were 51 languages with a population of 1 million or more speakers.

Although, much is being done to incorporate, protect, preserve and develop the resources available with the Scheduled 18 languages, a world of it still remains discriminated and endangered.

                                                    My Faithful Mother Tongue!

  Poem written by Miloz, a Polish poet in which I visualize both the complexity of the problem and the resolve to find a solution. The poem reads as follows:

Faithful mother tongue,
I have been serving you.
Every night, I used to set before you little bowls of colors
so you could have your birch, your cricket, your finch
as preserved in my memory.

This lasted many years.
You were my native land; I lacked any other.
I believed that you would also be a messenger
between me and some good people
even if they were few, twenty, ten
or not born, as yet.

Now, I confess my doubt.
There are moments when it seems to me I have squandered my life.
For you are a tongue of the debased,
of the unreasonable, hating themselves
even more than they hate other nations,
a tongue of informers,
a tongue of the confused,
ill with their own innocence.

But without you, who am I?
Only a scholar in a distant country,
a success, without fears and humiliations.
Yes, who am I without you?
Just a philosopher, like everyone else.
I understand, this is meant as my education:
the glory of individuality is taken away;
Fortune spreads a red carpet
before the sinner in a morality play
while on the linen backdrop a magic lantern throws
images of human and divine torture.

Faithful mother tongue,
perhaps after all it's I who must try to save you.
So I will continue to set before you little bowls of colors
bright and pure if possible,
for what is needed in misfortune is a little order and beauty.

The aforesaid poem radiates a mosaic of emotions and feeling ranging from gratitude and love to language and homeland, the feeling of isolation, hopelessness, resignation, aversion and protest to the pride of assuming the role of the moral order and mother tongue defender. It aptly justifies the views of Skutnab-Kangas that instruction through a language that learners do not speak is analogous to holding learners under water without teaching them how to swim. She calls it “submersion”.

Inheritance of a varied climatic zone, successive foreign incursions of various races of whom some made India their permanent home, rules and rulers of different flocks who were not only alien in their habits of heart but were also different in their physical appearances and behavioural disposition, make India an unique case of the great Digital Divide. 5 groups of languages (Austro-Asiatic – 14 languages with a total population of 1.13%, Indo-European – 19 languages of Indo-Aryan group with a total population of 75.28% and Germanic 1 language with a total population of 0.02%, Semito-Harmitic 1 language with a total population of 0.01% and Tibeto-Burman 62 languages with a total population of 0.97%) and rich development of regional literature and customs like Tamil, Telegu, Malayalam, Kannada, Marathi, Gujarati, Braja, Avadhi, Bhojpuri, Bengali, Punjabi and Khadi Boli (Hindi) continuously nourished the roots of regional affinities and its various social manifestations. The Independent India with its tampered scripture-based education system and mauled social structure grew even more regionally sensitive than that of pre-independence India which witnessed a good interaction and mingling of languages and cultures across the nation amidst the Freedom Movement led by leaders of various regional colours.

The linguists have described India as a “sociolinguistic giant”. It represents languages and cultures of diverse linguistic and ethnic groups on the one hand, and a “linguistic area” on the other, where languages of different families have fused with each other to make it an integrated linguistic whole.

Linguistic diversity is apparent on a variety of levels. Major regional languages have stylized literary forms, often with an extensive body of literature, which may date back from a few centuries to two millennia ago. These literary languages differ markedly from the spoken forms and village dialects that co-exist with a plethora of cast idioms and regional lingua franca. Part of the reason for such linguistic diversity lies in the complex social realities of South Asia. India’s languages reflect the intricate levels of social hierarchy. Individuals have in their speech repertoire variety of styles and dialects appropriate to various social situations. Speech is adapted in countless ways to reflect the specific special contacts and the relative standing of the speakers.

Determining what should we call a language or a dialect is more a political than a linguistic question. Sometimes the word language is applied to a standardized and prestigious form recognized over a large geographic area, whereas the word dialect is used for the various forms of speech that lack prestige or that are restricted to certain regions or casts but are still regarded as forms of the same language. Sometimes mutual intelligibility is the criterion: if the speakers can understand each other, even though with some difficulty, they are speaking the same language, although they may speak different dialects. However, the speakers of Hindi, Urdu and Punjabi can often understand each other, yet they are regarded as a speaker of different languages. Whether or not one thinks Konkani (spoken in Goa, Karnataka and the Konkan region of Maharashtra) is a distinct language or a dialect of Marathi has tended to be linked with whether or not one thinks Goa ought to be merged with Maharashtra. The question has been settled from the central government’s point of view by making Goa a state and Konkani a Schedule Language. Moreover, the fact that the Latin script is predominantly used for Konkani separate it further from Marathi, which uses Devanagri script. However, Konkani is also sometimes written in Devanagri and Kannada scripts.

Modern India, as per the 1971 count, has more than 1650 mother tongues. They are rationalized into 216 mother tongues and grouped under 114 languages by the 1991 census. According to an assessment, there were 51 languages with a population of 1 million or more speakers. 

(Mrityunjay)

देवियाँ

तड़के भोर 
पूरा नहीं हुआ था अंजोर।
काली के मंदिर की घंटी 
घन-घना-घन बजती। 
चारों ओर चीख-पुकार, 
फूलों की माला, खनकती रेज़गारी
उछालते भीखमंगों की कतार,
वस्त्र पहने सिंदूरी 
आस्थावान भक्तों की भरमार ।
वहीं पास ही के पुल पर 
उनींदी, अलसाई 
सजे-धजे अंगों के झाँकते स्तर 
लिए कदाचित देर से आई,
खड़ी प्रतीक्षारत 
थकी मुस्कान मोहक-सी 
भुरभुरी माटी-सी सेहत 
टटोलती दृष्टि इच्छुक एक ग्राहक की।
दोनों ओर लगा था आस्था का बाज़ार -
एक निर्जीव,एक जीवित 
एक आहत , एक सेवित 
एक धर्म, एक वासना,
एक कुकर्म, एक उपासना।
अपने प्रेमियों के प्रति आशीष का 
पात्र अक्षय भरा था दोनों ही शीश का-
देवियाँ - एक निर्जीव, एक जीवित!

-मृत्युंजय-
12.02.2013

(Tuesdays are special days for Kaali-Puja, esp. in Kolkata which is the abode of famous 'Kaali kalkatte wali'. I happen to go to that area today very early morning. As usual the whole place was abuzz with religious activities. Incidentally, there's an age-old flesh bazaar too which flourishes in the shadow of all that is religious and spiritual in the area. Irony was too glaring for my poet to digest. Hence, this poem!)

‘Shrilal Shukla’s contribution to the modern Hindi Literature:

On 30^th January, 2013 I had the privilege to coordinate a discussion on ‘Shri Lal Shukla’s contribution to contemporary Hindi literature’ with two renowned authors: Ms. Gillian Wright and Mr. Amitabh Bagchi (of ‘An Average Boy’ and ‘The Householder’ fame). While Gillian Wright has translated Shrilal Shukla’s awarded creation ‘Raag Darbari’ in English, Amitabh Bagchi acknowledges Shrilal Shukla’s influence on him. The discussion was of an hour and despite being extremely involving and productive, it did not allow us to touch upon the diverse canvas of Shrilal Shukla due to time constraint. I felt I must share some of the discussed points along with my views on Shrilal ji’s world of concern.

 ‘Raag Darbari’ – in its totality sounds like a cry of a disillusioned heart – reminds me of Cardinal Newman’s expression ‘amidst the encircling gloom’, but Sri lal Shukl neither prays to the divine for leading him through this gloom as Newman does, nor does he smirk at the hard facts and realities that he had to face along with his countrymen collectively.

In his comical portrayal of decaying values and endemic growth of rascality in the post-independence Indian society, he makes a much hyped village (remember, all plans & programmes of Independent India are for villages – the beholder of India’s soul – they say) the protagonist of Indian model of development and people like ‘Ramdas’ of ‘Sooni ghati ka Sooraj’, ‘Langad’ of ‘Raag Darbari’, ‘Jasoda and Satte’ of ‘Pahla Padao’– the immensely patient and resolute laughing stock, symbol of the common man. In all his writings there is a loud uproar of conflict between the ‘haves’ and ‘have-nots’, the ‘able’ and the ‘unable’ giving it a spontaneous shape of a critique for all that was being done and is being done in the garb of development. At places, his ‘have-nots’ stand like the ‘Common Man’ of R.K.Laxman’s cartoons who acts bewildered at the frequent appearance of his name in the corridors of power. Narayan of ‘Makan’ makes it painfully candid by saying: "वे मुझे मेरा स्वर्ग नहीं दे सकते तो कम से कम अपने जिस निजी नरक में मैं रहना चाहता हूँ उसी में चुपचाप पड़ा रहने दें। ....." Gillian Wright rightly observes that language of satire, oblique remarks full of wit, humour and pun is a shield for Sri Laal ji to evade the abrasive face of cynicism emerging out of the frustration, dejection and helplessness he wants to reflect on. However, the Thinker running parallel to the Novelist becomes agitated like Ram Vriksha Benipuri in his novel ‘Raat-Din’ when he cries: "...आदमी, तू आदमी की क्या गति करता है आदमी?...." I hear similar moans of concern when Sri Laal Shukl says in ‘Sooni Ghati ka sooraj’: “सहमा हुआ, सिसकता हुआ, मुरझाता हुआ जीवन। शिकार सदैव वही रहता, शिकारी ही बदलते। ...." or, remember that dalit boy Basant of ‘Agyaatvaas’ saying: "....आपने जेठ की तपन में झुलसता हुआ ईख का खेत देखा है कभी? उसी के सहारे एक पूरे परिवार का साल कटता है। और यही फसल जल गयी। .....ये मंगरू, लालू,लोटन, इनके घर दो-दो दिन के बाद चूल्हा जलता है। आप यह भी नहीं जानतीं। सिर्फ आपको ये गीत अच्छे लगते हैं? आप हमारा रोना नहीं सुन सकतीं। गाना ही क्यूँ सुनना चाहती हैं?..."

Yet another heart-wrenching excerpt from ‘Pahla Padao’: "तुम ट्रेजेडी का अर्थ नहीं समझती, तभी ऐसा कह रही हो। ट्रेजेडी एक भयावह चीज़ है।किसी से प्रेम हो और उससे शादी न हो पाए - यह ट्रेजेडी नहीं है। आज की सामाजिक व्यवस्था में ज़िन्दगी के हज़ार क्लेशों में यह एक क्लेश भर है, ज्यादा से ज्यादा कुछ लम्बे दौर का न्यूसेंस है। ...ठीक इसी वक़्त इसी देश में न जाने कितनों की हत्या हो रही होगी, कितनी मासूम बच्चियों को कोड़े मार कर वेश्या बनाया जा रहा होगा, न जाने कितने बलात्कार हो रहे होंगे, कितने बच्चों के हाथ-पाँव तोड़ कर उन्हें अपाहिज बना कर भीख मांगने के लिए मजबूर किया जा रहा होगा .....I "

"ट्रेजेडी को लेकर अब मुझसे कभी ऐसी हलकी बात मत करना।"

Once we know that Gillian has co-authored “Slow Motion in India” – a collection of essays and stories covering diverse topics like farmer suicides in Maharashtra to child labour in the north, we can assess her natural attraction towards tales like the one is carried in ‘Raag Darbari’.  Essays and stories of ‘Slow Motion in India’ reflect her deep understanding of evolution of the warped Indian socio-political milieu which is a sad portrayal of a pretentious, feudal and colonial mindset. The public service here is considered to be the vehicle of being served by the public instead of being in the service of the public. That reminds me of the opening episode of Pavan Verma’s ‘Being an Indian’ where he has hilariously described the feudal and sick behavior of a Parliamentarian who enters an airport with his cronies steamrolling all the security procedures and norms laid for the safety and security of people at large.

Gillian rightly observed that ‘Raag Darbari’ is not seen to be discussed in the social circles of Delhi, and I am sure many of them would find it boringly descriptive too as most of them would not understand the use of native and colloquial phrases and expressions of Awadhi and thereby, the pun which brings out the best of humour, and even black humour, out of a common place transaction between characters and circumstances.   I remember from one of the biographies of Suryakant Tripathi ‘Nirala’, the icon Hindi poet of both romanticism and experimentalism asking Pandit Nehru, way back in 1939, as to why did he call Hindi poets to be Darbaari implying that it is bereft of original imagination and modern thinking. He informed him that it was an insult to Premchand, Jayashankar Prasad & Ramchandra Shukl who were present there in that ill fated gathering and were courteous enough not to retort as the function was to facilitate Pandit Nehru. It left Pandit Nehru dumb stuck and visibly angry because he could not have feigned ignorance of Hindi language being a person from Allahabad himself – the Mecca of Hindi literature those days. I see similar indications in Gillian’s somewhat circumspect observation about the Delhi social circles having high intellectual pretensions.

While reading ‘Raag Darbaari’ I clearly hear Gajanan Madhav Muktibodh imploring:

ऐ मेरे आदर्शवादी मन, 

ऐ मेरे सिद्धांतवादी मन,

अब तक क्या किया?

जीवन क्या जिया !

उदरम्भरि बन अनात्म बन गए 

भूतों की शादी में कनात-से बन गए,

किसी व्यभिचारी के बन गए बिस्तर!

दुखों के दागों को तमगों-सा पहना 

अपने ही खयालों में दिन-रात रहना,

असंग बुद्धि व अकेले में सहना,

ज़िन्दगी निष्क्रिय बन गयी तलघर,

अब तक क्या किया,

जीवन क्या जिया! !

.......बहुत-बहुत ज़्यादा लिया 

दिया बहुत-बहुत कम,

मर गया देश

अरे, जीवित रह गए तुम!!

....भावना के कर्त्तव्य त्याग दिए 

ह्रदय के मंतव्य - मार डाले!

बुद्धि का भाल ही फोड़ दिया,

तर्कों के हाथ उखाड़ दिए,

जम गए, जाम हुए, फँस गए,

अपने ही कीचड़ में धँस गये !!

विवेक बघार डाला स्वार्थों के तेल में 

आदर्श खा गए!

अब तक क्या किया?

जीवन क्या जिया!....."

He seemed to me as a person involved with continuous experiment terms of both – the subject and style of writing. While Sri Laal Shukl appears to be a light hearted satirist in ‘Angad ke Paon’ he becomes a serious novelist with issues of grave concern in ‘Sooni Ghati ka Sooraj’ (his 1^st novel). Stark absence of woman and woman related issue in ‘Raag Darbari’(1968) gets prominently visible in ‘Pahla Padao’(1987) and opens into the intricacies of man-woman relationship in ‘Bisrampur ka Sant’(1998).

‘Kuchh Zameen par Kuchh Hawa Mein’ – he has gone a step further to even mock and ridicule his own ‘self’ and people of his ilk – reminds me of Gajanan Madhav Muktibodh again:

"....हमने बताई तो 

दण्ड हमीं को मिला,

बाग़ी क़रार दिए गये,

चाँटा हमीं को पड़ा;

बंद तहखानों में - कुओं में फेंके गए,

हमीं लोग!!

क्योंकि हमें ज्ञान था 

ज्ञान अपराध बना। ...."

(एक भूतपूर्व विद्रोही का आत्म - कथन) 

In ‘Makaan’ he takes an interesting dig on Pandit Nehru’s letters written to his daughter (Indira Gandhi) when he mentions about the ‘Vishwa ka Bhugol’.

       I recently read Amitabh Bagchi's 'The Householder' and I could gather some distinct influences of Shri Lal Shukla's literature in the novel. I find Naresh Kumar’s reaction of running away from the family and the whole affairs of Household and the world around him very similar to Rangnath’s situation in ‘Raag Darbari’ or Kunwar Jayanti Singh of ‘Bisrampur ka Sant’ taking refuge in Sundari’s ashram and finally committing suicide. However, Naresh Kumar’s return to his Household reminds me of the Son described in Shukl ji’s  story ‘Ye Ghar Mera Nahin’ (written in 1962) who shows similar dejection to his house, of course, in much different situation, and informs his family through a letter that he’s leaving forever and would be dead by the time they receive this letter. Later, he is found sleeping on a bench in a nearby garden in the midnight. I don’t really know whether the author, Mr. Amitabha Bagchi, our co-panelist, agrees to this striking correlation or, considers it to be a mere coincidence.