Braj literature
Braj literature is literature in Braj Bhasha, one of the Western Hindi languages developed as a literary language before the introduction of Hindustani/Urdu. It is often mystical in nature, related to the spiritual union of people with God, because almost all of Braj poets were considered God-realised saints and their words are thus considered as emanating from a divine source. Much of the traditional Northern Indian literature shares this trait. It literary tradition is a celebration of Lord Krishna.[1][2] The Braj region has a rich legacy and the medium was mainly the literary vehicle for the poets viz. Surdas, Tulsidas, Acharya Ram Chandra Shukla, Raskhan, Amir Khusrau among others.[3]
History
Braj Bhasha gained wider literary acceptance after Mughal emperor, Akbar, accepted it as one of the royal court's language and liked to use it to compose poems.
The form
Another peculiar feature of Northern Indian literature is that the literature is mostly written from a female point of view, even by male poets. This is because the saints were in a state of transcendental, spiritual love, where they were metaphorically women reuniting with their beloved. (In its inversion of the conventional genders of worshipper and worshippee, Maulana Da’ud's Chandayan departs from this tradition.)
Literary works in Braj Bhasha
Some major literary works in Braj Bhasha are:
- Yugala Shataka by Swami Sri Sribhatta Devacarya; known as the first 'Vani' book in Vraja Bhasha composed in the 14th Century AD as a part of Nimbarka Sampradaya tradition of Radha Krishna worship.
- Vinaya Patrika by Tulsidas
- Sur Sagar by Surdas[4]
- Buddha Charit by Acharya Ram Chandra Shukla
- Sufi poetry by Amir Khusro
- Eulogies by Kavi Bhushan
- Vrind Satsai by Vrind (1643 - 1723), court poet of ruler of Kishangarh[5]
See also
References
- IANS (13 December 2013). "Tagore focus of Taj literature fest". Firstpost. Retrieved 7 April 2019.
- No memorial for Ghalib at his birthplace, Agra-India News - IBNLive Mobile
- "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2 March 2014. Retrieved 4 February 2014.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
- Hindi Literature
- Sujit Mukherjee (1998). A Dictionary of Indian Literature: Beginnings-1850. Orient Blackswan. pp. 425–. ISBN 978-81-250-1453-9.
Further reading
- Snell, Rupert (1991). The Hindi Classical Tradition: A Braj Bhāṣā Reader. London: SOAS. ISBN 0728601753. Retrieved 28 May 2018.