A taste of Bihar

This valuable anthology makes some of Bihar’s astounding literary output accessible via translation.

Cover of The Book of Bihari Literature  | Photo Credit: Special arrangement

Bihar’s literary legacy goes back by more than 2,000 years. Therigatha (Hymns of the Elder Nuns), an anthology of poems in Pali, was composed between the sixth and third century BCE. One of the oldest examples of women’s writing, it offers rare insight into the lives of women in ancient India. Subsequently, in addition to Pali, which was the language of Buddhist treatises, Prakrit and Sanskrit were also used as the languages of religious and literary texts during the first millennium.

The Book of Bihari Literature

Edited by Abhay K.

HarperCollins

Pages: 408

Price: Rs.699

Later, Bihar had literary luminaries who wrote not only in Urdu, Hindi, English, and Persian, the lingua francas of their time, but also in local languages such as Bhojpuri, Magahi, Maithili, Bajjika, and Angika.

Unfortunately, very few people outside Bihar are aware of the literary heritage of the State as most of the materials are not available in translation. The Book of Bihari Literature goes a long way in bridging this gap. Poet, translator, and diplomat Abhay K. must be congratulated for bringing together this distinguished collection. He has not only edited this volume but also translated many of the featured poems, from his mother tongue Magahi as well as from Sanskrit, Pali, Maithili, and so on.

In the Editor’s Note, Abhay writes about Bihar’s culture, languages, and literary traditions. He links it to his personal journey to discover his true linguistic identity and in the process gives a mini masterclass on the linguistic traditions of Bihar.

Mustard fields of Biswak village in Nalanda district, Bihar. The renowned mahavihara of Magadh, considered to be the world’s first residential university and among the greatest centres of learning in the ancient world, is located in this district. | Photo Credit: RANJEET KUMAR

Two poems by Mutta and Sumangalmata, Buddhist nuns from the sixth century BCE, open the collection. The verses are beautiful and melodic and still relevant, considering they speak about women’s lib. Here is the poem by Mutta:

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.

“Peace at last” by Sumangalmata echoes the sentiment. Translated by Abhay and Gabriel Rosenstock, these verses could have been by a modern-day feminist poet.

When it comes to Sanskrit, two popular writers from Pataliputra (as Patna was once known as), Kautilya and Vatsyayana, are selected. In the excerpt from Chanakya Niti, a collection of aphorisms, Kautilya reflects on friendship and familial bonds while Vatsyayana teaches the art of kissing and love bites with poetic fervour in an excerpt from Kamasutra.

Authentic ring

It might surprise many to know that the first Indian to write a book in English was not from West Bengal or Kerala but from Patna. Sheikh Deen Mohammad or Sake Dean Mahomet published his first book, The Travels of Dean Mahomet, in 1794 in England. Born in Patna in 1759, he worked for the East India Company before migrating to Ireland and settling down in England with his Irish wife. Written in epistolary form, the book describes his travels in 1770- 1775 as part of the Bengal regiment as it moved in the northern and eastern parts of India. The excerpt from the book makes for an interesting read.

Like Deen Mohammad, Tabish Khair, a contemporary fiction writer and poet, has migrated to Europe now, but his novels are rooted in Indian culture. The featured fictional piece here called “The Scam” is about an alleged caste atrocity in Bihar. Born and brought up in Gaya, Khair is familiar with the workings of caste dynamics in Bihar, and this gives his story an authentic ring.

The best part of this anthology is the fact that the editor gives literature in Bihar’s five native languages ample space, thus making a pointed statement against the branding of languages like Bhojpuri and Magahi as inferior dialects. The poems of two Bhojpuri stalwarts, Bhikhari Thakur and Mahendar Misir, offer a real taste of Bihar. Another Bhojpuri poem that stands out is “The untouchable’s complaint” (“Acchut kee Shiqayat”) by Heera Dom, who is probably India’s first Dalit poet. Born in Danapur near Patna, Heera Dom published the poem in the well-respected Saraswati magazine in 1914, a big feat for him in those days.

There are short stories in Maithili besides love poems by the legendary Vidyapati. I wish Abhay had included some of Vidyapati’s devotional verses and barahmasas (sad songs of separation) to give readers a fair idea of the greatness of this 15th century poet who was known as Maithil Kavi Kokil (the poet cuckoo of Maithili).

Astute studies

The Magahi language is represented by eight pieces of poetry and prose, out of which a story, “Chilled to bone” by Mithilesh, and two poems, “The night of full moon” by Surendra Prasad Tarun and “Bereavement” by R. Ishari Arshad, stand out. Abhay and Asif Jalal have translated them superbly, effectively capturing Bihari idioms and nuances of local culture. I especially loved the way they have left some Magahi words untranslated: for example, using borsi in place of “firepot”.

Sadly, there are not many literary works in Bajjika and Angika compared to those in other Bihari languages. So, we have just one story each from these languages.

Since Hindi is the official language of Bihar, it gets the lion’s share in this anthology with 20 pieces. Master poets like Ramdhari Singh “Dinkar” (presented here is a selection from the third canto of Rashmirathi, an epic centred on Karna from the Mahabharata) and Baba Nagaarjun (his famous poem “Famine and After” is included in its entirety) rub shoulders with contemporary voices like Anamika (“Amrapali”), Arun Kamal (“The city of Gaya”), and Alok Dhanwa (“Girls on rooftops”). When it comes to fiction, we have popular names like Rambriksh Benipuri, Acharya Shivpujan Sahay, Usha Kiran Khan, and Ratneshwar.

And we have Phanishwar Nath Renu with his story “The messenger”, an astute study of rural Bihar with multi-layered characters and a surprising climax. Renu’s style can be compared to those of Chekhov and O. Henry. Given the way Renu has made extensive use of regional dialects, the excellent translation by Rakshanda Jalil is a feat. However, it might have been better if instead of “The messenger”, the editor had included Renu’s most loved stories like “Maare gaye gulfam”, which was adapted into a 1966 film, Teesri Kasam, or “Panchlight”. To pique the interest of readers who have not read Renu so far, his best stories should have been offered.

Urdu is the second official language of Bihar and is taught in many government schools and colleges. But the literary output in Urdu is less than that in Hindi, perhaps because Urdu is no longer a language of employment. Only one poet and four fiction writers in Urdu are included here. Of them, Shamoil Ahmad’s Kafkaesque story, “The dressing table”, is the most interesting. During a riot, Brijmohan, the protagonist, loots a dressing table from a prostitute, Naseem Jaan, and brings it home. The dressing table seems to have magical powers, which transform his daughters and wife into courtesans and Brijmohan into a pimp. Reading the story is like watching a movie, so deftly are the characters and situations sketched.

The only Urdu poet who finds a space is Bedil Azimabadi, with three of his couplets. I was surprised that two towering personalities of Urdu poetry from Bihar, Shad Azimabadi and Jameel Mazhari, did not make it to this anthology.

I hope there is a sequel where the authors and poets who could not be included in this volume find a place.

Abdullah Khan is a Mumbai-based novelist, screenwriter, literary critic, and banker. His novel Patna Blues has been translated into 10 languages.

The Crux

• Bihar has a rich literary legacy but since most of it is in the regional languages, it is inaccessible to English readers.
• This anthology makes a sizeable body of literature from Bihar available in translation.
• The first Indian to write a book in English was from Patna - Sheikh Deen Mohammad or Sake Dean Mahomet.
• The best part of this anthology is the fact that the editor gives literature in Bihar’s five native languages ample space, thus making a pointed statement against the branding of languages like Bhojpuri and Magahi as inferior dialects.
• Since Hindi is the official language of Bihar, it gets the lion’s share in this anthology.
• There should be a sequel where the authors and poets who could not be included in this volume find a place.