Post News Network
Bhubaneswar, July 25: Sacred Kannada texts belonging to the 12th century are all set to be released for the first time in Oriya for the people of the state. ‘Vachanas’, the form of literature on which the works are based, evolved in Karnataka in the 12th century and comprise verses relating to social life and problems.
According to experts, compilation of these verses in the form of a book emanated out of a unique congregation called ‘Anubhava Mandapa’, comprising people from all walks of life irrespective of caste, creed and gender. The mandapa is said to be the first parliament in the world where 770 men and women from different professions assembled and discussed social issues and resolved the issues in a spiritual way.
These resolutions of the problems were recorded in verses which is neither prose nor poetry. This unique form of literature conveys social issues in one part and spiritual solutions in the other. The verses have been recorded in around 23 Indian languages including Oriya. The same is likely to be published soon as the works relating to the painstaking translation of the texts have been completed by two Oriya writers Surya Mishra and Pravasini Mahakud in a span of two years.
The translators meanwhile said the work was full of challenges. “The verses of the book look simple but many of them have very deep-rooted meanings. It is relevant even in today’s work. We have used Hindi, English and Bengali to interpret the correct meaning of the verses,” said Surya Mishra, one of the translators of the book.
Meanwhile, the other translator Pravasini Mahkhud said, “The verses of the book are relevant to people of all age groups. The language used in these verses is simple to understand. I enjoyed working for the book. I expect a large number of people will enjoy reading the texts which pertain to society and social realities.”
The verses in the book have been written by around 174 writers and the whole work was spearheaded by the famous philosopher and poet of Karnataka Basavanna.
Many people are involved in the mega project of translation of the works in 23 Indian languages. “We aimed to propagate the values preached in the book throughout India. So we have translated it in so many languages which is also the largest ever literary venture in Karnataka. We are also planning to translate into other foreign languages,” said Aravind Jatti, president of Basava Samiti, Bangalore who is behind the mega plan.
The books were released in 10 languages in 2013 by Vice-President Hamid Ansari and will be released by the president this time. Talks relating to the launch are in the pipeline.
