Fagu

Last updated

Fagu, also spelled Phagu, is a genre of poetry in Old Gujarati language popular during early period of Gujarati literature.

Contents

Etymology

Fagu is derived from Sanskrit word Falgu. As an adjective, it means beautiful, handsome, fine, etc. As a noun, it became synonyms of the Spring season. Falguna (also spelled Phalguna ), a spring season month according to Hindu calendar, is origin of this word. [1] [2]

Form

Fagu is a lyrical form depicting beauty of nature during spring. It also portrays joys and pleasures of love, fears and hopes separation and union of lovers. This form was popular among Jain poets who were mostly monks, so many of these Fagu starts with erotic sentiments and ends with renunciation or self restraints. [1] [3] [4]

History

An oldest known Fagu is Jinachandra Suri Fagu (about 1225) by Jinapadma Suri. It has 25 verses with 6 to 20 verses missing. [2] The first complete Fagu is Sthulibhadra Fagu composed between 1234 and 1244 [2] or in 1344 [1] or 1334. [3] It describes rainy season instead of spring. [2] The separation of Rajula and Jain Tirthankara Neminatha was a popular theme among Jain poets. Some examples are Neminatha Fagu (1344) by Rajshekhar, Neminatha Fagu (1375) by Jayashekhar and Rangasagara Neminatha Fagu (1400) by Somsundar. A poem Neminatha Chatushpadika (1269) by Vinaychandra depicted the same story. There are twelve known Fagus of these period and majority of them are written by Jain monks. Only two Fagus, Vasanta Vilas Fagu and Narayana Fagu, written by unknown authors are of non-Jain poets. Vasanta Vilas Fagu written in the fourteenth century by unknown author is beautiful Fagu without any religious sentiments. Narayana Fagu (1441) is about Krishna. [1] [3] [2] [4] [5]

Further reading

Related Research Articles

Kannada literature

Kannada literature is the corpus of written forms of the Kannada language, a member of the Dravidian family spoken mainly in the Indian state of Karnataka and written in the Kannada script.

The history of Gujarati literature may be traced to 1000 AD, and this literature has flourished since then to the present. It is unique in having almost no patronage from a ruling dynasty, other than its composers.

Ponna (c. 945) was a noted Kannada poet in the court of Rashtrakuta Dynasty king Krishna III (r.939–968 CE). The emperor honoured Ponna with the title "emperor among poets" (Kavichakravarthi) for his domination of the Kannada literary circles of the time, and the title "imperial poet of two languages" for his command over Sanskrit as well. Ponna is often considered one among the "three gems of Kannada literature" for ushering it in full panoply. According to the scholar R. Narasimhacharya, Ponna is known to have claimed superiority over all the poets of the time. According to scholars Nilakanta Shastri and E.P. Rice, Ponna belonged to Vengibisaya in Kammanadu, of present day Punganuru, Chittoor District of modern Andhra Pradesh, but later migrated to Manyakheta, the Rashtrakuta capital, after his conversion to the Jainism.

Neminatha 22nd Jain Tirthankara

Neminatha, also known as Nemi and Arishtanemi, is the twenty-second tirthankara (ford-maker) in Jainism. Along with Mahavira, Parshvanatha and Rishabhanatha, Neminatha is one of the twenty four tirthankaras who attract the most devotional worship among the Jains.

Hoysala literature Literature in the Kannada and Sanskrit languages produced by the Hoysala Empire (1025–1343)

Hoysala literature is the large body of literature in the Kannada and Sanskrit languages produced by the Hoysala Empire (1025–1343) in what is now southern India. The empire was established by Nripa Kama II, came into political prominence during the rule of King Vishnuvardhana (1108–1152), and declined gradually after its defeat by the Khalji dynasty invaders in 1311.

Western Chalukya literature in Kannada Historic Kannada literature from South India

A large body of Western Chalukya literature in the Kannada language was produced during the reign of the Western Chalukya Empire in what is now southern India. This dynasty, which ruled most of the western Deccan in South India, is sometimes called the Kalyani Chalukya Dynasty after its royal capital at Kalyani, and sometimes called the Later Chalukya Dynasty for its theoretical relationship to the 6th-century Chalukya dynasty of Badami. For a brief period (1162–1183), the Kalachuris of Kalyani, a dynasty of kings who had earlier migrated to the Karnataka region from central India and served as vassals for several generations, exploited the growing weakness of their overlords and annexed the Kalyani. Around 1183, the last Chalukya scion, Someshvara IV, overthrew the Kalachuris to regain control of the royal city. But his efforts were in vain, as other prominent Chalukya vassals in the Deccan, the Hoysalas, the Kakatiyas and the Seunas destroyed the remnants of the Chalukya power.

Nanalal Dalpatram Kavi

Nanalal Dalpatram Kavi was an Indian writer and poet in Gujarati language. of Gujarati literature. His name is sometimes spelled as Nhanalal.

Mysore literature in Kannada

Mysore literature in Kannada is a body of literature composed in the Kannada language in the historical Kingdom of Mysore in Southern India and written in the Kannada script. The writings date from the Kingdom of Mysore, which existed from around 1600 CE until the establishment of modern India in 1947. Many of the works of this literature written on religious themes are labeled Veerashaiva or Vaishnava in acknowledgment of the two faiths that gave form to the literature and fostered it until the advent of the modern era. Despite a gradual decline in the popularity of Jainism, authors devoted to the faith produced some works of merit. Secular themes dealing with a wide range of subjects were also written on. Kannada literature flourished for a short while in the court of the neighbouring kingdom of the Nayakas of Keladi whose territory was annexed by Mysore in 1763.

Vijayanagara literature in Kannada 14th–16th century body of literature composed in the Kannada language

Vijayanagara literature in Kannada is the body of literature composed in the Kannada language of South India during the ascendancy of the Vijayanagara Empire which lasted from the 14th through the 16th century. The Vijayanagara empire was established in 1336 by Harihara I and his brother Bukka Raya I. Although it lasted until 1664, its power declined after a major military defeat by the Shahi Sultanates in the battle of Talikota in 1565. The empire is named after its capital city Vijayanagara, whose ruins surround modern Hampi, now a World Heritage Site in Karnataka.

Ratnakaravarni was a 16th-century Kannada poet and writer. He is considered to be one of the trailblazers in the native shatpadi and sangatya metric tradition that was popularised in Kannada literature during the rule of the Vijayanagara empire in modern Karnataka. His most famous writing is the story of the Jain prince Bharata and is called the Bharatesha Vaibhava. Known to be a troubled and restless person, tradition has it that Ratnakaravarni converted from his religion Jainism to Veerashaivism when a less-meritorious poet superseded him. During this brief time, he wrote the Basavapurana, a biography of the 12th century social reformer Basavanna. Later, he returned to the Jain religion and penned classics in the shataka metre. His contributions to Kannada literature are considered trend setting.

Sukhlal Sanghvi

Sukhlal Sanghvi, also known as Pandit Sukhlalji, was a Jain scholar and philosopher. He belonged to the Sthanakvasi sect of Jainism. Pandit Sukhlal lost his eyesight at the age of sixteen on account of smallpox. However, he overcame this handicap and became profoundly versed in Jain logic and rose to become a professor at Banaras Hindu University. Paul Dundas calls him one of the most incisive modern interpreters of Jain philosophy. Dundas notes that Sanghavi represents what now seems to be a virtually lost scholarly and intellectual world. He was a mentor for famous Jain scholar Padmanabh Jaini. During his lifetime he won such awards as the Sahitya Akademi Award and won recognition from the Government of India by getting Padma Bhushan award. Sukhlalji was also known as Pragnachaksu because he was so vastly learned despite being visually challenged.

Chandravadan Mehta

Chandravadan Chimanlal Mehta, popularly known as C. C. Mehta or Chan. Chi. Mehta, was a Gujarati playwright, theatre critic, bibliographer, poet, story writer, autobiographer, travel writer and broadcaster from Vadodara, Gujarat, India.

Jainism in Tamil Nadu

Jainism has an extensive history in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, although practiced by a minority of Tamils in contemporary times. According to the 2011 India Census, Jains represent 0.12% of the total population of Tamil Nadu, and are of the Digambara sect. Tamil Jains are primarily concentrated in northern Tamil Nadu, in the districts of Madurai, Viluppuram, Kanchipuram, Vellore, Tiruvannamalai, Cuddalore and Thanjavur.

Anandghan

Anandghan was a 17th-century Jain monk, mystical poet and hymnist. Though very little is known about his life, his collection of hymns about philosophy, devotion and spirituality in vernacular languages are popular and still sung in Jain temples.

Old Gujarati

Old Gujarātī, the ancestor of modern Gujarati and Rajasthani, was spoken by the Gurjars, who were residing and ruling in Gujarat, Punjab, Rajputana and central India. The language was used as literary language as early as the 12th century. Texts of this era display characteristic Gujarati features such as direct/oblique noun forms, postpositions, and auxiliary verbs. It had three genders, as Gujarati does today, and by around the time of 1300 CE, a fairly standardized form of this language emerged. While generally known as Old Gujarati, some scholars prefer the name of Old Western Rajasthani, based on the argument that Gujarati and Rajasthani were not yet distinct. Factoring into this preference was the belief that modern Rajasthani sporadically expressed a neuter gender, based on the incorrect conclusion that the [ũ] that came to be pronounced in some areas for masculine [o] after a nasal consonant was analogous to Gujarati's neuter [ũ]. A formal grammar, Prakrita Vyakarana, of the precursor to this language, Gurjar Apabhraṃśa, was written by Jain monk and eminent scholar Acharya Hemachandra Suri in the reign of Chaulukya king Jayasimha Siddharaja of Anhilwara (Patan).

Jinadattasuri was a Jain Apabhramsa poet.

Rasa or Raso is a certain didactic literary form in Apabhramsa. It is a genre of poetry in Old Gujarati language popular during early period of Gujarati literature. Sometimes the term is used interchangeably with Prabandha of medieval literature.

<i>Vasantavilas</i>

Vasantavilas is a fagu poem by unknown author written in old Gujarati language, believed to be written in first half of the 14th-century. Its theme is the depiction of Shringara, an erotic sentiments. The poem has a significant historical value as it provides linguistic evidence of Old Gujarati.

Vastupāla was a prime minister of the Vāghelā king Vīradhavala and his successor Vīsaladeva, who ruled in present-day Gujarat region of India, in the early 13th century. Although he served in an administrative and military capacity, he was also a patron of art, literature and public works. He, together with his brother Tejapāla, assisted in the restoration of peace in the kingdom, and served in a number of campaigns against Lāṭa, Godraha, Kutch and the Delhi Sultanate. The brothers were instrumental in the construction of the Luniga-vasahi temple on Mount Abu and the Vastupala-vihara on Girnar.

R. Narayana Panickar was an Indian essayist, playwright, translator, lexicographer, novelist and historian of Malayalam. He was credited with over 100 books but the best known among them are the six-volume work, Kerala Bhasha Sahithya Charthram, a comprehensive history of Malayalam literature up to 1954 and Navayuga Bhasha Nighantu, a lexicon. He also wrote a number of novels and translated several classics of Tamil literature including Purananuru, Akanaṉūṟu and Silappatikaram. Sahitya Akademi honoured him with their annual award in 1955.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Amaresh Datta (1988). Encyclopaedia of Indian Literature. Sahitya Akademi. p. 1258. ISBN   978-81-260-1194-0.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Shastree, K. K. (2002). Gujarat Darsana: The Literary History. Darshan Trust, Ahmedabad. pp. 56–57.
  3. 1 2 3 Nagendra (1988). Indian Literature. Prabhat Prakashan. pp. 282–283.
  4. 1 2 Jhaveri, Mansukhlal (1978). History of Gujarati Literature. New Delhi: Sahitya Akademi. pp. 14, 242–243. Archived from the original on 2016-12-20. Retrieved 2016-12-03.
  5. Shah, Parul (31 August 1983). "5". The rasa dance of Gujarata (Ph.D.). 1. Department of Dance, Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda. pp. 134–156. hdl:10603/59446.