''Kamayani'' (Hindi : कामायनी) (1936) is a

Hindi Hindi (Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been ...

epic poem An epic poem, or simply an epic, is a lengthy narrative poem typically about the extraordinary deeds of extraordinary characters who, in dealings with gods or other superhuman forces, gave shape to the mortal universe for their descendants. ...

(

Mahakavya Mahākāvya (lit. great kāvya, court epic), also known as ''sargabandha'', is a genre of Indian epic poetry in Classical Sanskrit. The genre is characterised by ornate and elaborate descriptions of scenery, love, battles and so on — in short, eve ...

) by Jaishankar Prasad (1889–1937). It is considered one of the greatest literary works written in modern times in

Hindi literature Hindi literature ( hi, हिन्दी साहित्य, translit=hindī sāhitya) includes literature in the various Hindi language which have writing systems. Earliest forms of Hindi literature are attested in poetry of Apabhraṃś ...

. It also signifies the epitome of Chhayavadi school of Hindi poetry which gained popularity in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

Theme

Kamayani depicts the interplay of human emotions, thoughts, and actions by taking mythological metaphors. Kamayani has personalities like

Manu Manu may refer to: Geography * Manú Province, a province of Peru, in the Madre de Dios Region **Manú National Park, Peru ** Manú River, in southeastern Peru * Manu River (Tripura), which originates in India and flows into Bangladesh *Manu Tem ...

, Ida and

Śraddhā Śraddhā ( sa, श्रद्धा) is often glossed in English as ''faith''. ''Āsthā'' is used for faith, religious beliefs and God. The term figures importantly in the literature, teachings, and discourse of Hinduism, Jainism, and Buddhism ...

who are found in the

Vedas upright=1.2, The Vedas are ancient Sanskrit texts of Hinduism. Above: A page from the '' Atharvaveda''. The Vedas (, , ) are a large body of religious texts originating in ancient India. Composed in Vedic Sanskrit, the texts constitute th ...

. The

great deluge A flood myth or a deluge myth is a myth in which a great flood, usually sent by a deity or deities, destroys civilization, often in an act of divine retribution. Parallels are often drawn between the flood waters of these myths and the primaeval ...

described in the poem has its origin in

Satapatha Brahmana The Shatapatha Brahmana ( sa, शतपथब्राह्मणम् , Śatapatha Brāhmaṇam, meaning 'Brāhmaṇa of one hundred paths', abbreviated to 'SB') is a commentary on the Śukla (white) Yajurveda. It is attributed to the Vedic ...

. Explaining his metaphorical presentation of Vedic characters, the poet said:

''Ida was the sister of the gods, giving consciousness to the entire mankind. For this reason, there is an Ida Karma in the
Yagna Yajna ( sa, यज्ञ, yajña, translit-std=IAST, sacrifice, devotion, worship, offering) refers in Hinduism to any ritual done in front of a sacred fire, often with mantras.SG Nigal (1986), Axiological Approach to the Vedas, Northern Book ...
s. This erudition of Ida created a rift between Shraddha and Manu. Then with the progressive intelligence searching for unbridled pleasures, the impasse was inevitable. This story is so very ancient that metaphor has wonderfully mingled with history. Therefore Manu, Shraddha, and Ida while maintaining their historical importance may also express the symbolic import. Manu represents the mind with its faculties of the head and heart and these are again symbolized as Faith (Shraddha) and Intelligence (Ida) respectively. On this data is based the story of Kamayani.''

Structure

The plot is based on the Vedic story where

, the man surviving after the deluge (

Pralaya Pralaya ( sa, प्रलय, , Apocalypse or the Annihilation of the Universe, translit=Pralaya) is a concept in Hindu eschatology. Generally referring to four different phenomena, it is most commonly used to indicate the event of the diss ...

), is emotionless (Bhavanasunya). Manu starts getting involved in various emotions, thoughts, and actions. These are sequentially portrayed with Shraddha, Ida, Kilaat, and other characters playing their part, contributing in them. The chapters are named after these emotions, thoughts, or actions. Some people consider that the sequence of chapters denotes the change of personality in a man's life with age. Following is the sequence:

Adaptations

*Tumul kolahal kalah me, an excerpt from the 12th canto 'Nirved' (निर्वेद) was set to tune by the music composer

Jaidev Jaidev (3 August 1918 – 6 January 1987; born Jaidev Verma) was a music composer in Hindi films, most known for his work in films: '' Hum Dono'' (1961), '' Reshma Aur Shera'' (1971), ''Prem Parbat'' (1973), ''Gharaonda'' (1977) and '' Gaman ...

and sung by

Asha Bhosle Asha Bhosle (; Mangeshkar; born 8 September 1933) is an Indian playback singer, entrepreneur and occasional actress and television personality who predominantly works in Indian Cinema. Known for her versatility, she has been described in th ...

. It was released by

The Gramophone Company of India Saregama India Ltd. (Saregama refers to the first four notes of the Indian musical scale); formerly known as The Gramophone Company Of India Ltd. is India's oldest music label owned by the RP- Sanjiv Goenka Group of companies. The company i ...

in 1971 under the title 'An Unforgettable Treat Asha Bhosle'. *In 1999, the

Films Division The Films Division of India (FDI), commonly referred as Films Division, was established in 1948 following the independence of India. It was the first state film production and distribution unit, under the Ministry of Information and Broadcastin ...

produced a short biographical film on Jaishankar Prasad. The film depicted his literary works as a novelist, story writer, poet, and essay writer. A Kathak musical of some verses from Kamayani was the highlight of the film. It was choreographed by the famous exponent of Kathak

Uma Dogra Uma Dogra (born 23 April 1957) is an Indian exponent of Kathak, an Indian Classical Dance form. She is the senior most disciple of Pt. Durga Lal, the Kathak Maestro from Jaipur Gharana. She is a Kathak soloist, a choreographer and a teacher. Sh ...

, who also portrayed the role of Shraddha in it. *

Doordarshan Doordarshan (abbreviated as DD; Hindi: , ) is an Indian public service broadcaster founded by the Government of India, owned by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and one of Prasar Bharati's two divisions. One of India's largest b ...

, the national broadcaster of India produced a six-part musical on Kamayani. *Shakuntala Shukla and Vyomkesh Shukla adapted Kamayani into a musical play. It was produced under the banner of Roopvani, Varanasi.

Translations

Kamayani has been translated into various languages. There exists a number of English translations of the book. Other languages into which it has been translated include

Nepali Nepali or Nepalese may refer to : Concerning Nepal * Anything of, from, or related to Nepal * Nepali people, citizens of Nepal * Nepali language, an Indo-Aryan language found in Nepal, the current official national language and a language spoken ...

, Oriya,

Punjabi Punjabi, or Panjabi, most often refers to: * Something of, from, or related to Punjab, a region in India and Pakistan * Punjabi language * Punjabi people * Punjabi dialects and languages Punjabi may also refer to: * Punjabi (horse), a British Th ...

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural diffusion ...

, and

Tamil Tamil may refer to: * Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia ** Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils **Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia * Tamil language, na ...

. Some specific cantos of Kamayani have been translated into English and Russian as well.

References

External links

* * {{Google books, id=v6hjAAAAMAAJ (English translation)
''Kamayani''
at Kavita Kosh (in Hindi)