Usha Thakur
Known to Nepali literary world as ‘Yugkavi’, the great poet Siddhicharan Shrestha gives voice to patriotic feelings, makes sharp satirical observation against social decadence, and articulates a revolutionary consciousness through rebellion and conscientious understanding of the present time. Ever alert and conscious to the responsibility of an author, the poetry of Poet Shrestha has become an inspirational touchstone of literature for us. According to him, a constant tussle with a living darkness in order to procure a glorious sun is the true essence of human life. In this wrangling and wrestling, literature provides the drive to move forward. The social decadence and dissolution that take place almost every day, can lend subjects of immortal literature, if expressed in artistically beautiful language.
In reality, good literature is an outcome of timeless and seamless truths of life. It is for this very reason that works like, Ramayana, Mahabharata and Ramcharitasmanas have become perennial sources of inspiration and guidance for the unparallel contribution they have made in favour of human welfare.
Hindi poet Sumitra Nandan Panta writes:
Kavirmanishi ka kartavya sanatan
Jeevan mangal ka karna sukha sarjan
(The prime obligation of poets and seers is to ensure the welfare of the humankind through their creation.)
Giving emotional articulation to universal pain, and weaving pictorial reflection of national problems, appealing countrymen to wake and rise, Poet Shrestha has voiced the temperament of time, standing on the base of global society. In 1940 itself, Shestha – a poet in favour of the mass concern – expressed his internal desire in the following way:
Absolved in the sea of pleasure,
let by beauty life be decked
a divine longing of heart it is—
a poet within; a warrior in fact.
The poet’s iron determination to make life beautiful, happy and well-off has ever been praiseworthy.
The poet experiences valour and courage to usher spring season into the society and for this welcome arrival, he voices the need to wipe away social evils and all other dilapidated and putrefied establishments. He feels that for the queen of seasons to arrive, old leaves are doomed to fall:
Will the king of seasons come,
unless to ground the old leaves plunge?
Every poet seems excited to uproot inequality and oppression prevalent in the society. He or she always considers it a moral obligation to act for liberating a society from the scorching heat of summer, for pacifying the tempest and dust-storm battering the society, for catering new life to the dry rivers and ponds, for articulating new hopes to hopeless people by supplying life as rain, and for ensuring happiness to all. In fact, Siddhicharan took inspiration for human welfare and struggle from Mother Nature herself:
Because in days, scorched by the sun
mother Nature, to adorn the world,
struggles with anvil, extremely hard
and showers the rain of joys at first
A renowned talent in Nepali literature, poet Siddhicharan Shrestha launched his poetic pursuit with verses of aesthetic romanticism but later, the pain and sorrow of the laity dragged him towards the awareness of contemporaneity, and led the poet towards socio-political subjects. Concerns of Nepali lifestyle and social realities gradually instilled awareness and intellectuality in the poet, and as a result, spirits of revolution and rebellion started sprouting in him. Particularly instrumental for this development was his imprisonment – originally sentenced for 18 years, starting from 1942, along with confiscation of the entire property. But the sentence lasted only for five years. This incident instilled in him a high degree of socio-political consciousness, and aroused a revolutionary spirit in him. Following this event, this natural muse of Okhaldhunga started writing poetry of fervent patriotism and started erupting everywhere as volcano.
With hurdles lain on the way
who is set to bar our path?
We are surging flood-water
tumultuous and rocking hard!
His rage against the social, economic, and political disparities, discordances and decadences apparent in day-to-day public life has been expressed in his poetry in the following ways:
I am the rain, set out today, to mould the world afresh
destroying the smouldered flags of summer – hot and baked
to the world I am all set to bring a golden age
expressing my dissent with all of sun’s embrace!
The spirit of revolution in the poet appears to be gaining fervency because of his stiff opposition and resistance of the autocratic Rana rule. Even at the cost of his own life, he ever chose to present himself as a brilliant revolutionary poet in Nepali literature, airing dissent against—and advocating to end—injustice and oppression forever. A sample of this spirit is manifest in the following verses:
With rest, people in vain make themselves weak and frail
eating, drinking making longer life that meekly trails
let us forgo eating, drinking – just a day in protest,
how will nature apply its law, let us come and test!
A staunch supporter of the claim ‘Poetry for Life’, poet Shrestha raises voices in favour of national awakening, and articulates his pride in being a Nepali:
A Nepali I am, gifted to mount scary mountain tops,
compassionate to the needy, even to the foes.
Always ready to drink afresh, blood of foes so hot
beware! This is khukri mine, sharp of might and blows
His readiness to annihilate himself for the cause of universal defence, and his outright preparedness to make sacrifices – both of material and of life – unveils a liberal philanthropic spirit highly inspiring to the entire humanity:
To all a talisman this is mine – think to save the world
let us think of others’ good, to our latest pulse
let us kindle flames and deter death away from all
I will aim the head of a brute – if one lives in world.
Many of his poems are still unpublished. Yet, his contribution to Nepali literature is outstanding. Through his works, he pervasively advocated for social awakening by giving a voice to social difficulties and contemporary spirit. He particularly inspired the youth to rise, and catered perennial inspiration to the society with his appeal for revolution and the spirit of equality. His contributions have conferred to him a position of an ‘epochal personality’. The apt description of the nation’s deplorable state and the lively presentation he made of the social disparity can be rarely detected elsewhere. It appears that the poet got hold of the people’s heart to give expression to the voice of his time and to the heartbeat of the people.
His poems like ‘Parichaya’ are celebrations of Nepali esteem and bravery – marked by a high spirit of patriotism. ‘Chamka Yuvak’ addresses the valour of the youths, appealing them to commit to the cause of the nation. In some other poems, he launches a philanthropic mission, making a potential roar for humanity and securing himself esteem worthy of the title ‘Towering Personality’. His short epic Mangalman can be termed a successful attempt, dissipating mass awareness for human welfare. The epic reflects socio-political realities, and makes appeal against injustice and atrocities prevalent in the society, and gives a potent expression in favour of human rights. His poem ‘Chyamini’ launches an assault against social inequality, and presents stiff polemics against the unequal treatment foisted by untouchability. Giving an expression to humane feelings, his poem ‘Achhut’ – meaning ‘the untouchable’ categorically states:
If you want a real worship, make him stand ahead
he the one whose rights you took, age after age!
As untouchable on him you tagged stigma and shame
hold his feet and to my temple, come to rinse thy sin.
The poem ‘Mero Pratibimba’ is an articulation of the entire Nepali public life and contemporary scenario, and is a satirical expression against social disparity.
The poet’s categorical and ideal stand about women deserves high praise. A woman—full of love and inspiration— has been honoured as ‘Sarvamangala’, or benevolent to all, in his epic. Women, who give shelter and happiness to others at the cost of their own suffering, are icons of high ideal. They are sources of shelter and peace in this world, and they make reformative attempts in the other world. Making a description of the myriad greatness of women, the poet writes:
Treading around with load of life
to the travellers, a shelter you make
a retreat full of love is granted
to those who bear life’s weight!
Advocating for universal humanism, he holds the opinion that all people are progenies of the same God, and hence all are brothers and sisters. Meting out injustice in the name of race, caste, and religion expresses the narrowness of our mentalities. In the poem titled ‘Abhed’, the poet poignantly asserts his feeling of equality among the people:
Same is the air, water or sun; same is the food we all chomp
to the same earth, our mother, we are daughters and sons
we have no difference at all,
you are mine, and I am yours!
In his verses, we can detect serious appeals for patriotism and national unity, measures to ensure equality, and appeals for national development. With it, he has given a potent articulation to great humanist feelings. His mind is impatiently anxious to see the collective welfare of the entire humanity. We can also discern that the degree of his concern for the laity increases in fervency with time. The feeling that people’s welfare should be primarily ensured in the world appears to be foregrounding as one of his all-time priorities. The immortal messages of humanity, full of love and peace, has become the highest mark of his poetic excellence.
Fly o human, take up flight, to lands far and wide
shower words that in all places, humans are alike
days to live in tears should be soon driven afar
behold the east brightens bringing days of joy and mirth!
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Rise higher than the clouds, mounting air-back
whiter than peaks, o bird divine, carry peace message
we will make the world so bright, down with every war
we will live in love together, ardent peace lovers!
Siddhicharan’s poetry of patriotism does not confine itself within the limits of caste, religion or region. Rather, it transcends the boundaries of religion, caste, race, gender, region etc. and pertains to a more comprehensive plane that celebrates the nation’s integrity in this way:
Aryans, others, Buddhists, Hindus
mix in bosoms vast!
The feeling of humanity appears at the centre of his poesy. According to the poet, for all of us, nothing is as great as the feeling of general welfare and service in favour of the human race:
Philanthropy the arm in hand, march you forth o man so brave
let the darkness of the world, be put to end, be put to end!
Frauds are many cheats too are, many in the world so what?
Do good to all and rinse the blots; clean again the world afresh.
The narrow domestic walls of age-old creeds, frail traditions, and evils have been challenging our mutual love. Often, it becomes the poets’ responsibility to destroy these deep-rooted creeds that create impediments to the human development. The poet feels the need to substitute them with feelings of peace and benevolent establishment. With an ambition to ending violence, dissatisfaction, hatred, and disparity in the mass, poet Shrestha appears active in the movements for human welfare. In fact, much of his poetry is written for the welfare of the people:
Upon bull of heavy weight
that was barring my route ahead
I pounded a club and shooed it far
then on poetry I did embark!
The poet is fully confident that his attempts in favour of general welfare will not go in vain and that in the days to come we can reach our beautiful goal as a result of our hard work and dedication:
Rows and rifts that exist within shall all recede o friends of mine
upon an age alert, awake; we have set our feet aright!
Struggle for life has always given the poet a new strength. The in-route impediments never deter him. Rather, he derives inspiration to move ahead in literature with more momentous dynamism and dedication. To the general readers as well, he has given the talisman to face joys and sorrows of life with valour, and to move ahead in the path of responsibility with hard work and dedication:
Time has come now, rise and wake
o youths of the land!
Let us unleash all together
every source of strength!
To wipe injustice, atrocities and inequality prevalent in the nation, he ever remained committed during his life time. A serious study of his poetry reveals that with time, his commitment to the welfare of humanity gained fervency. We can detect a gradual consolidation of his concern for universal human welfare. In fact, his devout desire to see the dissolution of ‘I’ into ‘We’ and evolution of a disparity-free world certifies a poetic craftsmanship par excellence, that deserves high degree of praise. The main thematic centrality of his poetry is the vision of an egalitarian world:
To shame, hated, oppression and injustice wrought so long,
I wage assault, to end them all with fiery thoughts I hold!
Serving literature for more than six decades, he made significant contribution to the dissipation of social awareness, and played an active role in spreading humanistic feeling. His contribution, therefore, needs a befitting recognition. He has a heart-felt desire:
Write poets; spread peace
arouse love in every being!
With messages of love and peace, Siddhicharan represented Nepal many times in countries abroad, and made significant contribution in increasing the esteem and glory of Nepal in the world, consolidating international fraternity and good-will.
[Usha Thakur , PhD, is a Siddhicharan scholar, and Head of the Department of Translation, Nepal Academy. Prof. Thakur retired from the Department of Hindi at Tribhuvan University.]