The ramayan has fascinated minds in India and worldwide for millennia, for the beauty of its literary composition, for its fascinating story content as well as for faith and reverence.  It is not surprising then that the Ramayan has been translated not only into all major languages, but also into unexpected ones like Polish, Norwegian and Swedish.  What is surprising is that there are more than twice as many poetic translations/trans-compositions of the ramayan in urdu as there are of the qur’aan and that the ramayan was translated into urdu even before the qur’aan was.

A book “urdu meN hindu dharm” (Hindu Religion in Urdu), Ajai Malviya,  written in Urdu, catalogues in detail urdu translations of the vedas (66), ramayan (103), mahabharat (38), bhagwad gita (83), puranas (44), manu smriti (4), biography of vashisht (14) and miscellaneous other religious compositions (472) spanning about 200 years of publications.

Why has this significant piece of literature been relegated to a neglected and ignored heap of disdain?  This needs to be corrected.  The sheer number and the high poetic and linguistic quality of this literature surprised me as I worked to string together representative parts of urdu nazm/poems of ramayan by different poets, like pearls strung in a necklace, into a near complete story.

A close reading of urdu ramayan translations offers some fascinating lessons about mingling of cultures in India, the origins and “ownership” of Urdu language, the power of the pen across languages and cultures and the universality of basic human emotions.  One is struck deeply by the acceptance and seamless adoption of multiple religious traditions as indicated by the observation that many ramayan renderings (even some by hindu poets) start with “bismillah ir-rahman ir-rahim” and a “hamd” (an ode and/or expression of gratitude to god).  Since god, like language, has no religion, these odes/hamd/vandana are entirely secular/universal.

It is highly contentious to say that urdu is a muslim language (as if a language has religion) or even to say that urdu is a language of muslims.  There are large numbers of muslims (Bengal, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka) who do not know/speak urdu.  One of the important reasons that East Pakistan separated and declared baNgladesh was that it did not want urdu to be imposed on it in preference to its own language, beNgali.

Of the 100 or so translations/re-compositions of the ramayan in urdu more than 80 were written/composed by hindu writers/poets.  In most, if not all cases the poets were orthodox, believing, practicing hindus.  Why were they writing the ramayan in urdu?  I speculate that there must have been a large section of literate hindu population who considered Urdu their primary language, not because of political favours but because it was naturally their language.  Some of the poets who re-composed tulsidas’ ramcharitmanas suggest that because it was written in “bhaaka or bhaasha” and not easily available to everyone.  Therefore, they translated/re-composed it in urdu, perhaps implying that this is more comprehensible than “bhaaka/bhaasha”.  Apparently by the 1800s neither avadhi nor braj bhaasha were considered a common language.  To show the role urdu played in devotional traditions of north Indian hindus, I paraphrase from a book by bishweshwar parshad munavvar, himself a poet and son of dwaarka parshad ufaq (another poet of renown, who composed a full urdu ramayan).  He writes that, because of the effort of munshi jagannath Khushtar (1809-1864) and munshi shankar dayal farhat (1843-1904) in translating hindu religious texts into urdu, the teachings of the ramayan saved the hindu religion from further decline.  Before we run away with the image of an alien force coming down to “save” hinduism, it might be useful put this quote in perspective.  We have to make an effort to understand that what he might have meant is that there was a substantial community of hindus to whom religious texts were not comprehensible because they were written either in sanskrit or avadhi while their primary language of learning was urdu.  Thus, these translations made religious texts available to them.

Surely these poets, most of whom were believing and observant hindus must have had an audience/readership of similarly devout believers, who revered the composition itself and must have had the linguistic finesse to enjoy its literary excellence.  It draws a picture of a large section of literate hindu population who considered urdu their primary language, not because of political favours but because it was naturally their language.  We do not have any data taken by ‘pollsters’ to show that this was the case.  But we can make some speculative estimates by numbers of publications and the content of those publications.  I am unable to compile a scholarly accounting of such magazines and the numerous contributions of urdu writers.  Suffice it to present to you names of some daily, weekly or monthly publications, “sanaatan dharm pracharak”, “tej”, “aarya veer”, “veer India”, “arya Gazette”, “bande maataram”, “jain sansaar”, “sher-e hind”, “raajput Gazette” and even “agarwal hiteshi” that were published in urdu, some as late as the 1940s.  All had editors and contributors who were hindu (at least by name).

The compositions and publications of urdu ramayan cover roughly 1825-1980.  These poets also wrote secular/romantic Ghazal, nazm as well as other devotional pieces to krishn, lakshmi and many others.  The question needs to be asked, but remains unanswered because of lack of documentary evidence, whether these poets, steeped in urdu poetic culture, also recited parts of the ramayan in the mushaa’era that they participated in.  What was the composition of the audience?  They also composed bhajans in urdu.  Were these bhajans sung in religious gatherings.  We know that bhajans composed by syed ibrahim ras Khan (1548-1628) in braj bhaasha, proto-urdu, are sung to this day in prayer meetings.  There is every reason to believe that urdu compositions of ramayan were also recited, heard and enjoyed in public gatherings whether they may be called mushaa’era or not.

Well over twenty samples from urdu ramayan composed by different poets over nearly two centuries have been selected in story sequence and strung together like the beads of a tasbiih/jap-mala.  This study of the urdu ramayan shows the versatility, beauty and power of urdu, its ownership by a wide range of communities of India, and the easy and seamless acceptance, adoption and cross pollination of one another’s traditions by all faith systems.  Alas, somewhere along the way, we have lost this unique syncretic tradition.  It is my fervent hope that such studies will contribute a little to its revival.

Click here for background and on any passage for word meanings and explanatory discussion. jogeshwar naath betaab barelavi, BA, LLB, composed ramayan in urdu and entitled it ‘amar kahaani’ as memorial to his young son amar who died when he was only 8 years old. The book was published in 1949. This segment is the story of how dasrath killed shravan by mistake and was cursed by his old, blind parents to similarly suffer the sorrow of separation from his son.

shravan kumar came to the river to fetch water, dasrath was hunting and mistakenly killed him.  His blind parents curse him that he would die of sorrow of separation from his son.

1
jii saer¹ ho chuka tha Gham-e rozgaar² se
the be-niyaaz³ gardish⁴-e lail⁵ o nehaar⁶ se
lagti thi tan meN aag havaa-e bahaar se
milta tha kuchh qaraar⁷ to sayr o shikaar se
aaNkheN safed thiiN ruKh⁸-e farzand⁹ ke liye
laale paRe the jaan ke dilband¹⁰ ke liye     1.fulfilled, satisfied 2.daily life 3.unconcerned, unmindful 4.movement, passing 5.night 6.day 7.comfort 8.face 9.son 10.progeny, son
His (dasrath’s) heart was tired of the concerns of daily life. He grew unmindful of the passing of nights and days. Even comfortable spring winds set his body of fire. If he could get any comfort, it was in adventure and hunting. His eyes had lost their lustre looking for the face of a son. His life was turned topsy turvy for a son.
2
tanha¹ the ek roz mahaban² meN jalva-gar³
raNgne ko haath Khoon meN baandhe hue kamar
uriyaaN⁴ rida-e-aab⁵ meN maujeN thiiN sar-ba-sar⁶
ya jhaaRiyoN ke jhunD⁷ the darya ke ghaaT par
Khalwat⁸ ki dil meN chaah thi, fikr-e-shikaar⁹ bhi
paani ki justaju¹⁰ meN that sharvan kumaar bhi    1.alone 2.big forest 3.manifest, seen 4.naked 5.shawl/veil over water 6.head to head, one after the other 7.grove 8.seclusion, hiding 9.eagerness to hunt 10.search
dasrath was by himself in the big jungle in all his glory. Girding his loins (determined) to dip his hands in blood (hunt). The picture is of river/water with a veil over which. In spite of the veil the waves were ‘naked’ i.e. waves were so high, could be seen. Thick groves to trees on the shore. He wanted to remain hidden and was eager to hunt. shravan kumaar was out looking for water (to take to his parents).
3
Khum¹ tha miyaan²-e aab³ ke thi kishti-e-sharaab⁴
maujoN meN khulbuli thi ke utra hai maahtaab⁵
chehre⁶ pe tha vo noor⁷ ke hota tha aab-aab⁸
Khursheed⁹-e laala-raNg¹⁰ pas¹¹-e parda-e sahaab¹²
chhaagal¹³ se muNh mila ke taraNgeN nikal gaiiN
qul-qul¹⁴ ka raag sun ke umaNgeN machal gaiiN    1.pot 2.middle 3.water 4.flask of wine 5.full moon 6.face 7.glow 8.ashamed 9.sun 10.tulip coloured, red 11.behind 12.cloud 13.water bag 14.gurgling sound
The pot of water was in the middle of the river like a boat/flask of wine. sharvan kumaar was handsome like the moon. His face glowed and waves were all eager when they thought that the moon had descended to the water. The red sun was shame-faced, hiding behind a cloud (because shravan kumaar was more glorious than him). When the mouth of the water bag reached water it burst into song. The sound of gurgling was a source of joy/pleasure.
4
faryaad-e-tishnagi¹ pe tha tiir-e-ajal² ravaaN³
larza⁴ chaRha zamin ko, thharraaya aasmaN
aate hi rut⁵ bahaar ki bhaRki rag-e-KhizaaN⁶
andhoN ke qaafile⁷ pe giri barq⁸-e KhooN-fashaaN⁹
sahra¹⁰ meN gul-khila¹¹ tha junoon-e-shikaar¹² ka
naqsha¹³ khincha hua tha dil-e be-qaraar¹⁴ ka     1.cry of thirst 2.arrow of death 3.go/fly towards 4.shivering 5.season 6.vein of drought 7.traveling group 8.lightning 9.blood spattering 10.wilderness 11.expression meaning make mischief, cause trouble 12.madness of hunt 13.picture 14.restlessness
The arrow of death flew towards the cry of thirst (the gurgling sound). Because dasrath was hiding, there was a grove of trees and he could not see, he shot his arrow at the sound. The earth shivered and the sky trembled. Drought came to life (throbbing vein) as soon as spring arrived i.e. sharvan kumaar died as soon as he came of age. Blood spattering lightning struck the group of blind travelers (shravan kumaar’s parents were blind). He was the very picture of his restless/sorrowful heart (he had left his parents behind to fetch water).
5
dil par laga jo tiir to pathhra gaii nazar
sharvan taRap ke loT gaya farsh-e-Khaak¹ par
laikin m’aal-e-kaar² se dashrath the be-Khabar³
phaiNka jidhar tha tiir chale aap bhi udhar
kholi sambhal ke kushta⁴-e be-daad⁵ ne zabaaN
daaNtoN se daab daab li sayyaad⁶ ne zabaaN    1.floor of dirt, bare earth 2.consequence of deed 3.unaware 4.killed, victim 5.cruelty 6.hunter
The arrow pierced the heart and his eyes lost their lustre. shravan rolled on earth in pain. But dasrath was unaware of the consequences of his deed. He went towards where the arrow was shot. The victim recovered enough to speak. The hunter bit his lip is distress.
6
maata, pita! qubool¹ ho sharvan ki raam-raam²
pani pilaauN kya, ke hua kaam hi tamaam
chhaagal³ se pahle bhar diya umr-e-ravaaN⁴ ne jaam⁵
qaatil⁶ ke haath bhej raha huN yahi payaam⁷
mahroom⁸-e chashm⁹ o gosh¹⁰ haiN baaliiN¹¹ pe aayeN kya
noor-e-nazar¹² ki laash¹³ pe aaNsu bahaa’eN kya     1.accept 2.good bye 3.water bag 4.passing life 5.cup 6.killer 7.message 8.deprived 9.eyes 10.ears 11.head/beside of a prone/dying person 12.light of eyes, beloved child 13.corpse
O, father, mother, accept the farewell message of shravan. How can I give you water, that I am dying. Even before I could fill the water bag, the cup of life was filled. I am sending you this message through the killer. You have now eyes, how can you come to my death bed. How can you attend to the corpse of your beloved child.
7
maare hue haiN pyaas ke paani pilaaiiye

andhoN ki Doobti hui kishti bachaaiiye

ghabra na jaayeN dasht¹ meN tanha² haiN jaaiiye

takte haiN raah der se chhaagal³ uThaaiiye

kahiyega fart⁴-e Gham se ye binti⁵ na Taal deN

charnoN⁶ ki apne dhool mere sar pe Daal deN    1.wilderness 2.alone 3.water bag 4.excess 5.appeal, request 6.feet

The dying shravan kumaar is concerned about his blind parents and asks dasrath to take water to them because they are very thirsty. Save the sinking boat of these blind people, he asks him. They are alone in this wilderness and might get scared. They have been looking intently at the path i.e. waiting eagerly (not literally looking – they are blind), take this water bag. Tell them not to ignore my appeal in the excess of grief. Ask them to sprinkle the dust of their feet on my head (as a blessing).
8
larzaN¹ ba-raNg²-e bayd³ chale bekasauN⁴ ke paas

baiThe the bad’havaas⁵ mujassam⁶ umeed⁷ o yaas⁸

aahaT pe dil ke kaan lagaaye hue udaas

chaaha ke baRh ke haath meN paani ka deN gilaas

‘sharvan’ – sati⁹ ne pyaar se aahaT pe dii sada¹⁰

‘paani’ – phiri javaab meN Doobi¹¹ hui sada     1.tremblind 2.similar to 3.slender cane/bamboo 4.helpless 5.confused, lost 6.embodiment 7.hope 8.yearning 9.used here to mean shravan kumaar’s mother, although her name was gyaneshwari 10.call 11.sinking, low

Trembling like a thin bamboo cane dasrath came near the helpless ones. They sat, lost in thought, the embodiment of hope and yearning. They looked sad, their ears, with all their heart, intent upon every sound. He wanted to offer them a glass of water. Upon hearing the sound of his footstep the mother called out lovingly, “sharvan”. “Water”, dasrath replied in a sinking voice.
9
sharvan qaza¹ ke tiir ki naagaah² zad³ pe aaye

patthar ki thi lakiir jo honi thi haye haye

dasrath hai bahr⁴-e ufv⁵ ye qadmoN⁶ pe sar jhukaaye

seene pe haath maar ke naashaad⁷ baRbaRaaye⁸

qaatil⁹ hai narpishaach¹⁰, chaTora¹¹ hai Khoon ka

paani, nahiN nahiN, ye kaTora hai Khoon ka    1.death 2.suddenly, unintended 3.domain, target 4.for the sake of 5.forgiveness 6.feet 7.sorrowful 8.mumbled 9.killer 10.beastly 11.licking, thirsty

sharvan became the unintended target of the arrow of death. This fate was carved in stone and had to happen. dasrath comes to you asking for forgiveness, bowing at you feet, he beat his chest and mumbled. This killer is beastly, thirsty for blood. Water, no! no! this is a bowl of blood.
10
dil meN hai taab-e-zabt¹ na yaara² umeed³ ka
chhooTa hai zindagi se sahaara umeed ka
sahra⁴ meN TooTta hai sitaara umeed ka
marna hai putr-shok⁵ meN pyaase mareNge hum
kal tu bharega aaj kiye ko bhareNge hum    1.ability to bear 2.friendship 3.hope 4.wilderness, jungle 5.sorrow for son
dasrath conveys the message. The blind parents refuse the offer of water … our hearts cannot bear this, we have no hope. We have lost the only support we had. In this jungle our shooting star (bad omen) has fallen. We have to die grieving for our son. We will die thirsty. We are bearing separation from a son today, tomorrow, you will suffer too.