Vivekodayam

''Vivekodayam'' ('Dawn of wisdom') is a Malayalam literary journal established in 1904 to serve as a voice of the underprivileged communities in the Indian state of Kerala. It was founded by Kumaran Asan, a prominent poet of malayalam literature, social reformer, disciple of Narayana Guru and founder-secretary of the associated SNDP Yogam, who was inspired by the teachings of Swami Vivekananda (The journal name was a tribute to him.).

History

Prominent poet, Kumaran Asan served as the founding editor of ''Vivekodayam'', which published its first monthly issue in April, 1904 and it soon became the leading literary journal in Kerala. Under Asan's editorship, ''Vivekodayam'' primarily served as a voice for the social reform message of SNDP Yogam. At the same time, it covered the literary, political, and social themes and published original literary works, literary criticism, informative writings, and inspirational essays. Its fierce advocacy of the interests of the Ezhava community led to it being popularly referred to as the ''Ezhava Gazette''. Asan continued as the editor of Vivekodayam till 1919, when he resigned shortly after his marriage.

After several years of dormancy, the journal was revived by C.R. Kesavan Vaidyar. ''Vivekodayam'' is currently published quarterly by the Kumaran Asan National Institute of Culture (KANIC), which was founded in 1958 to preserve the writings and memory of Kumaran Asan.

Notable articles

Editorials written by Asan in ''Vivekodayam'' attracted widespread attention, and covered current affairs, criticism of the Government, and championed the cause of education and employment opportunities for the Ezhavas.

''Vivekodayam'' published Asan's starkly critical reviews of three contemporary Malayali ''Mahakavyam's'' (epic poems): ''Chitrayogam'' by Vallathol, ''Umakeralam'' by Ulloor and ''Rugmangadacharitam'' by Pandalam Kerala Varma. Asan criticized these works for being conservative in form and for blindly following the norms of Sanskrit epics. His criticism caused a stir in the literary community and engendered responses from the authors, and fans, of those works followed by replies by Asan himself.

Besides original essays and criticism ''Vivekodayam'' included translations of works from other languages, such as James Allen's ''As a Man Thinketh,'' (translated by Asan; published as ''Manampole Mangalyam'') and Swami Vivekananda's Bengali poem '' Nachuk Tahate Shyama'' (translated by Asan; published in two issues in 1904).

References

Bibliography

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{{Swami Vivekananda

Monthly magazines published in India
Ezhava
Magazines established in 1904
Malayalam-language magazines
Quarterly magazines published in India
Literary magazines published in India
Mass media in Kerala