Padma Shri Padma Shri (IAST: ''padma śrī''), also spelled Padma Shree, is the fourth-highest Indian honours system, civilian award of the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan. Instituted on 2 January 1954, ...

Ram Nath Shastri, known as the "Father of Dogri" for his pivotal role in the revival and resurgence of the Dogri language, was born on 15 April 1914. In 2001, he was awarded the

Sahitya Akademi Fellowship The Sahitya Akademi Fellowship is a literary honour in India bestowed by the Sahitya Akademi, India's National Academy of Letters.Quote: "In his acceptance speech when India's National Academy of Letters (Sahitya Akademi) in 1997 conferred its h ...

, awarded by the

Sahitya Akademi The Sahitya Akademi, India's National Academy of Letters, is an organisation dedicated to the promotion of literature in the languages of India. Founded on 12 March 1954, it is supported by, though independent of, the Indian government. Its of ...

, India's National Academy of Letters, the highest literary honour conferred by the Government of India.

Early life and career

Prof. Shastri's father, Vaid Gauri Shankar, was an

Ayurvedic Ayurveda () is an alternative medicine system with historical roots in the Indian subcontinent. The theory and practice of Ayurveda is pseudoscientific. Ayurveda is heavily practiced in India and Nepal, where around 80% of the population rep ...

doctor and originally belonged to a small village Marhi in

Reasi Reasi is a town and a notified area committee and tehsil in Reasi district of the Indian States and union territories of India, union territory of Jammu and Kashmir (union territory), Jammu and Kashmir. Situated at the bank of River Chenab, It ...

tehsil A tehsil (, also known as tahsil, taluka, or taluk) is a local unit of administrative division in some countries of South Asia. It is a subdistrict of the area within a district including the designated populated place that serves as its administr ...

Udhampur district Udhampur is a district in the Indian Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. Covering an area of in the Himalayan mountains, the district has its headquarters in the town of Udhampur. The Northern Command headquarters of the Indian Army is lo ...

(now

Reasi district Reasi district is a district of the Indian union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. The Reasi district is bordered by Udhampur district and Ramban district in the east, Jammu district in the south, Rajouri district in the west and by Kulgam distri ...

). For better prospects, he moved to

Jammu Jammu is the winter capital of the Indian union territory of Jammu and Kashmir (union territory), Jammu and Kashmir. It is the headquarters and the largest city in Jammu district of the union territory. Lying on the banks of the river Tawi Ri ...

. Initially, he wanted Ram Nath to adopt the same profession and instructed him to learn Sanskrit. All ancient scriptures being in Sanskrit, it would be immensely helpful as an Ayurvedic doctor. He joined Ranbir Sanskrit Pathshala at the Ranbir High School. After which, he did post graduation in Sanskrit and Prabhakar in Hindi. He started his career as a high school Sanskrit teacher for 5 years and later he became a college lecturer. In 1944, on the day of Basant Panchami, along with a few friends, he established the Dogri Sanstha. Every upcoming writer in the Dogri language would first enroll himself in the Sanstha. He also edited the Dogri literary periodical ''Nami Chetna'' of the Sanstha. In 1970, on the occasion of the Silver Jubilee Celebration of Dogri Sanstha, he edited the RAJAT JAYANTI GRANTH in which research oriented articles on Dogra life, art, culture, literature and history were put together. In 1970, he retired as a professor in the J&K State Education Department. From 1970 to 1975 he has been a Senior Fellow of Dogri in the University of Jammu. From 1977 to 1985, as Chief Editor in J&K Cultural Academy he edited the 'Dogri – Dogri Dictionary′. He died on 8 March 2009, in Jemmu.

Books

* ''Dharti Da Rin'' * ''Badnami Di Chhan'' (1976) * ''Talkhiyan'' * ''Kalamkaar Charan Singh'' * ''Naman Gran- Dogri Play'' (with co-authors Dinu Bhai Pant and Ram Kumar Abrol) * ''Bawa Jitto'' * ''Jhakdian Kiran'' * ''Duggar De Lok Nayak''

Translations

* Six Upanishads * Bhartrharis's NEETI SHATAK * Shudraka's Mricchakatikam (1989) * Four short plays of BHASA * Rabindranath Tagore's Gitanjali, Balidan, Malini and Dakghar * Mahatama Gandhi's autobiography –My experiments with Truth * Vinoda Bhave's Gita Pravachan * C.Rajagopalachari's Ramayana * Dharamveer Bharati's ''Andha Yug'' * Gorki's Lower Depths

Honors and awards

* 2001—59th

-highest literary honour conferred by the Government of India for his contribution to Dogri Language * 1990—

Award, India's fourth highest civilian honour for Literature & Education * 1994—

D.Litt. Doctor of Letters (D.Litt., Litt.D., Latin: ' or ') is a terminal degree in the humanities that, depending on the country, is a higher doctorate after the Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degree or equivalent to a higher doctorate, such as the Doctor ...

(Honoris Causa) from University of Jammu * 1977—

Sahitya Akademi Award The Sahitya Akademi Award is a literary honour in India, which the Sahitya Akademi, India's National Academy of Letters, annually confers on writers of the most outstanding books of literary merit published in any of the 22 languages of the ...

for his short story collection – ''Badnami Di Chaan'' * 1991—State Akademi Award for the collection of Dogri gazals – TALKHIYAN * 1989—

Translation Prize in 1989 for the Dogri Translation of the Sanskrit Drama, '' Mrichakatika'' as ''Mitti Di Gaddi''. * 1981—State Academy Award for his Dogri prose work – ''Duggar De Lok Nayak''.

References

External links

seminar on life of Prof. Ram Nath Shastri commences, December 9, 2010Two decades of Dogri literature --- Shivanath
{{DEFAULTSORT:Shastri, Ramnath 1914 births 2009 deaths Dogri language Indian male short story writers Recipients of the Sahitya Akademi Award in Dogri Recipients of the Sahitya Akademi Fellowship Recipients of the Padma Shri in literature & education Translators from Sanskrit People from Reasi district 20th-century Indian poets 20th-century Indian translators 20th-century Indian short story writers Poets from Jammu and Kashmir Indian male poets 20th-century Indian dramatists and playwrights Indian male dramatists and playwrights Dramatists and playwrights from Jammu and Kashmir 20th-century Indian male writers University of Jammu faculty Recipients of the Sahitya Akademi Prize for Translation