Over 2000 years of Bihari literature comprise literary works produced in various languages spoken in Bihari. These include Magahi, Bhojpuri, Maithili, Angika, Bajika, Hindi, Urdu, Persian (Persian), English, and classical languages such as Sanskrit and Pali.
Bihar has a long history dating back to the founding of the Mahajanapada (great kingdom) in Magadha, south of Bihar, with its capital first at Rajgriha (now Rajgir) and later at Pataliputra.
modern Patna. Over the centuries, several dynasties ruled Magadha, giving rise to his two great empires in India, the Maurya Empire and the Gupta Empire.Both of these empires have witnessed great things
It has seen advances in mathematics, astronomy, literature, philosophy, science, state technology, and the emergence of new religions such as Buddhism and Jainism.
Over 2000 years of Bihari literature comprise literary works produced in various languages spoken in Bihari. These include Magahi, Bhojpuri, Maithili, Angika, Bajika, Hindi, Urdu, Persian (Persian), English, and classical languages such as Sanskrit and Pali.
The Magahi language is derived from the ancient Magadi Prakrit spoken in the ancient Magadha Kingdom, whose center was the region south of the Ganges and east of the Song.is believed to be
These are the words spoken by Gautama Buddha to preach.
It was also the official language of the Mauryan and Gupta dynasties and the language in which Ashoka’s edicts were drafted. Pali is also equated with Magadi Prakrit.written in Brahmi
Writing, it was the sacred language of Buddhism. Bhojpuri is spoken mainly in western Bihar. The language is also spoken in Fiji, Guyana, Mauritius, South Africa, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago.
Maithili is spoken in the states of Bihar and Jharkhand and is one of the 22 languages listed in the Indian Constitution. It is also spoken in the Eastern Terai region and is the second most spoken language.
Nepalese language. Tirhuta used to be the main script for writing Maithili.
Angika is mainly spoken in the Anga region, which includes the Munger, Bhagalpur and Banka districts of Bihar and the Santhal Pargana district of Jharkhand. Bajika is a language spoken in eastern India and Nepal, mainly in the northwestern part of Bihar and neighboring areas of Nepal.
Persian was the court language of the Mughal Empire. Hindi and Urdu are spoken in the state. English newspapers are printed and read daily in Patna, the capital, and distributed in the metropolitan areas of Bihar.
I recently edited a book on Bihari Literature, the first attempt to offer a glimpse into the rich world of Bihari Literature, with English translations drawn from the many languages spoken in Bihari. contains translations from languages such as Sanskrit, Pali, Magahi, Bhojpuri, Maithili, Bajika, Angika, Hindi, Urdu and Persian. Many of these works have been translated for the first time and made accessible to the English-speaking public.
The book also brings to the fore lesser-known Bihari literature, such as Magahi, Angika and Bajika, making it available to national and international readers.
Enrich Indian and world literature. It also focuses on the original English writings of Bihari diaspora writers such as Amitava Kumar and Tabish Kea.
The Bihari diaspora is widespread throughout the world. Countries such as Mauritius, Seychelles, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, Fiji, Netherlands, United States of America, United Kingdom, Australia, Canada and New Zealand have a significant number of Biharis who continue to speak and read in various languages of Bihari. There is I hope that this book will serve as a bridge connecting their roots.
Editing this book has been quite a journey. I was born in Nalanda district of Bihar. My mother spoke to me in Magahi and my father in Hindi. I remember finding a copy of her Rashmirathi in Ramdhari
When I was in class 3 or 4, I was reading Singh Dinkar at home. I started reading and fell in love with the sound of the words. Since then, I have not stopped reading and reciting Rashmirati.was an introduction to
Bihari Literature.
When I came to study at Delhi University, people asked me if I speak Bihari. So far, besides Hindi, Urdu, Persian, Pali and Sanskrit, I have only heard Bhojpuri, Maithili and Magahi.here people asked
It was strange because I don’t speak Bihari. Most people think of Bhojpuri as a Bihari language.
In fact, there were many Hindi stories and poems in the school syllabus. Even English was a compulsory subject in high school.
There was “The Stage” and William Wordsworth’s “Daffodils”, but sadly there was no mention of stories or poems in Magahi, Bhojpuri, Maithili, Anjika, or Bajika. I learned the language and learned about ancient Indian literature, but I didn’t know about my native language Magahi or other Bihari literary treasures.
The idea to compile The Book of Bihari Literature came to me when I was trying to learn more about the work of Bihari writers. Despite being from the state, I had little knowledge of the literature in the various languages spoken in Bihar. In fact, my ignorance was so profound that he had never seen a single book written in the Magahi language, so he thought that there was no written literature in the Magahi language.
My ignorance was quickly dispelled when people found out that Magahi has a wealth of literature.
It took me almost a year to embark on my journey to find Magahi folktales, short stories and novels. The treasures I found fascinated me.
In speaking with various Magahi writers and poets, I was surprised to learn that no Magahi literary works have ever been translated into English. Soon, I started collecting and translating poems.
Short stories from Magahi to English. I also came across the first Magahi short story ‘The Fool Bahadur’, first published in 1924 and based in the town of Bihar Sharif in the Nalanda district of Bihar. I was fascinated by the depiction of the life of colonial bureaucrats and immediately began translating it into English.
Likewise, I came across never-before-read inspiring poems and short stories written in Bhojpuri, Maithili, Angika, Bajika, Urdu, Persian and English.Sake Dean Mahomed, the first Indian
Avadh Behari Lall, a prominent poet of the late 19th century who was born in Patna and wrote in English, was from Gaya to publish a book in English titled The Travels of Dean Mahomed.his poem
Worth reading is The Right Homble Alfred Tennyson, Poet Laureate, Letters to England, which provides insight into the impact of Indian colonization on its literature.one of the best persian he
Poet Abdul Qadir Bedil, whose poetry is still revered in Afghanistan and Central Asian countries, was born in Anisabad, Patna.
The book begins with Mutta’s poem, which dates back to 600 BC.
free, ridiculously free,
Freed from three little things—
Doki doki doki doki and my evil lord—
Freed from infinite birth and death,
the chains that bound me
suddenly gone. [Free, Fabulously Free by Mutta]
Works of major figures in Bihari literature from ancient to modern times such as Sumangarmatha, Kautilya, Vatsuyaina, Sarhapa, Vidyapati, Abdul Kadir Bedir, Dean Mahomed, Mahendar Misir, Bikari Thakur, Raghuveer Narayan and Heera. is mapping. Dom, Acharya Shivpujan Sahay, Rambriksh Benipuri, Bedil Azimabadi, Ramdhari Singh Dinkar, Nagarjun, Phanishwar Nath Renu, Surendra Mohan Prasad, Rameshwar Singh Kashyap, Mathura Prasad Naveen, Surendra Prasad Tarun, Rajkamal Chaudhary, Kalam Haidari, Lalit, Ravindra Kumar, R Ishari Arshad, Harishchandra Priyadarshi, Pandey Surendra, Mithilesh, Chandramohan Pradhan, Mridula Sinha, Shamoil Ahmad, Ramdhari Singh Diwakar, Usha Kiran Khan, Alok Dhanwa, Subhash Chandra Yadav, Hussain Ul Haque, Shaiwal, Aniruddha Prasad Vimal, Abdus Samad, Prem Kumar Mani, Ashok, Nagendra Sharma Bandhu, Arun Kamal, Narayanji, Avdhesh Preet, Vibha Rani, Anamika, Savita Singh, Ashwani Kumar, Amitava Kumar, Dhananjay Shrotriya, Arun Harliwal, Tab ish Khair, Kumar Mukul, Ratneshwar, Kiran Kumari Sharma, Kavita, Pankhuri Sinha.
It concludes with a poem about Nalanda Mahavihar/University, the world’s first resident Buddhist monastery/college, which symbolizes Bihar in so many ways and tells the story of its rise and fall.
Poetry of Nalanda
Nalanda massacre day
Bhaktiyar and his men
Playing Buzkashi 180 in the back alley today
Monks were burned alive,
Those who try to escape will be beheaded
Dharma Gunji – Nine-Story Library
burst into flames
Smoke and ash from burning books
turned day into night
The sun disappeared from the sky again today
and even my bricks bleed
The hymn that once consecrated Magadha
turned into the cries of a failed humanity.
The light of the world is disappearing today as well
Alone to face the ravages of time
abandoned, despised, forgotten
Or you may be reincarnated into many Nalandas.
Rise of Nalanda
lonely under the red earth
buried for centuries
I stand up like a phoenix again today
800 years later
From the ashes of my burnt book.
I spread my arms and embrace you again today
anyone, anywhere
come and enter the crease of my enlightenment
As Buddha and Mahavira once did
looking for shelter in my orchard
I remember Hiuen Tsang and Faxian—
Saint Seekers from the East
I hear the footsteps of Aryabhata and Charaka
In my ancient compound today,
Please come too. Come when I rise again
While compiling this book, I came across a rich literary world of the different languages spoken in Bihar. However, due to space and time constraints and the lack of quality translations, only a small portion could be included. increase. Please enjoy the delicious potpourri of Bihar literature.
