An Anthology of Modern Hindi Poetry

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An Anthology of Modern Hindi Poetry

Hindi, since its inception has been the language of revolt. It emerged as a powerful tool of expression around AD 750 when Sarahapa, a Buddhist monk during his stay at the Nalanda University , composed couplets (dohas) denouncing traditional beliefs prevalent among the masses. Similarly Gorakhnath, a poet reformer, through his mystic writings propagated the idea of a classless society through self-discipline. The writings of Sarhapa, Gorakhnath and Kabir are essentailly sectarian and underline the importance of universal oneness.

From then, up to independence, Hindi poetry has crossed many bridges. Nirala, the propounder of nai kavita,(new poetry),not only lived an unusual life but also experimented with various poetic techniques which have inspired several generations of poets.

This anthology brings together five generations of Hindi poets, whose talents have been acknowledged through several awards and citations. Whatever the shortfalls, whey are the constraints inherent to an anthology of this range and scope.

Dr. Kailash Vajpeyi (b.1936)began his career by designing the magazine Sarika for The Times of India. In 1972 he was appointed director of the Indian Cultural Centre, Georgetown. He has held several academic posts during his career, and is presently associate professor of Hindi, Delhi University. Dr. Vajpayi has been invited the world over to present papers and recite poetry. He has also been New York 1997.He has several collections of poems to his credit which have been included in German, Russian, Danish, and Swedish anthologies. He has also been advisor to the ministry of environment and has eleven films to his credit. Apart from sixteen volumes in Hindi and English, two of his books have also been published from Mexico in Spanish.

Contents

Introduction																																											ix
Suryakant Tripathi 'Nirala' (b. 1896-1962)																																											1
Shamsher Bahadur Singh (b. 1911-94)																																											9
Vaidyanath Mishra 'Nagarjun' (b. 1911-98)																																											18
Sacchidanand Hiranand Vatsyayan'Ajneya' (b. 1911-86																																											25
Vasudev Singh 'Trilochan'																																											35
Muktibodh (b. 1917-64)																																											39
Vijay Dev Narain Sahi (b.1924-82)																																											48
Kunwar Narain																																											64
Sarveshwar Dayal Saxena (b. 1927-83)																																											73
Raghuvir Sahay (b. 1929-90)																																											79
Champa Vaid																																											88
Srikant Verma (b. 1931-86)																																											97
Kedarnath Singh																																											109
Kailash Vajpeyi (b. 1936)																																											122
Kumar Vikal (b. 1935-97)																																											140
Rajee Seth																																											149
Indu Jain																																											155
Chandrakant Devtale																																											160
Ramesh Chandra Shah																																											165
Vinod Kumar Shukla																																											175
Kamlesh																																											181
Soumitra Mohan																																											189
Prayag Shukla																																											197
Vishnu Khare																																											205
Ashok Vajpeyi																																											209
Sunita Jain																																											218
Leeladhar Jagudi																																											225
Girdhar Rathi																																											236
Vinod Bhardwaj																																											244
Manglesh Dabral																																											255
Kuber Dutt																																											264
Vishnu Nagar																																											270
Dhruv Shukla																																											276
Arun Kamal																																											281
Mukta																																											287
Teji Grover																																											292
Gagan Gill																																											302
Anamika																																											314

Back Of Book
This book is a commendable effort that it compiles a wide range of poetry from over five generations of poets whose talents have been acknowledged through several awards. The scope is awesome and the results praiseworthy.
FIRST CITY

Kailash Vajpeyi's third attempt in the last almost three decades to bring forth the best of Hindi poetry to a worldwide readership transcends narrow self aggrandising considerations.
THE HINDU

The editor has done a good job by bringing out such a superb collection of poems written in Hindi by a galaxy of poets.
SUNDAY TRIBUNE

The task of compiling an anthology of modern Hindi poetry in English is a daunting affair. Kailash Vajpeyi, a reputed poet himself, acknowledges this difficulty. He says that in a book like ours a poem's translatability 'is as crucial a parameter as other factors in determining its selection.'
THE PIONEER