Mahadevi Varma ( , March 26, 1907 September 11 1987) best known as outstanding Hindi poet, was also a freedom fighter, woman's activist and educationist. She is widely regarded as the "modern Meera" . She was a major poet of the Chhayavaad generation, a period of romanticism in Modern Hindi poetry ranging from 1914-1938. With passage of time, her limited but outstanding prose has also being recognised as unique in Hindi Literature.

She was the Principal, and then the Vice Chancellor of Prayag Mahila Vidyapeeth, a woman's residential college in Allahabad. She was awarded, India's highest literary award, for lifetime achievement, the Sahitya Akademi Fellowship in 1979, followed by the Jnanpith award in 1982.

Life

Mahadevi was born in Farrukhabad, United Provinces in a family of lawyers. She was educated at Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh. She was the eldest child of Govindprasad and Hemrani and had two brothers and a sister, Shyama. She was married in 1914 with Dr Swarup Narain Varma in Indore at a tender age of 9. She stayed with her parents while her husband studied in Lucknow to complete his education, during which time, she received her higher education at the Allahabad University and passed her B.A. examination in 1929 and completed her M.A. in Sanskrit in 1933. She later joined her husband in the princely state of Tamkoi around 1920 and later moved to Allahabad to pursue her interest in poetry with agreement from her husband, as she refused to accept her marriage with him in childhood. Mahadevi Varma and her husband mostly lived separately pursuing their respective interests and use to meet occasionally.

After the death of her husband in 1966, she moved permanently to Allahabad and lived there until she died. Mahadevi Varma was deeply affected by Buddhism and also contributed to the Indian freedom movement. She even tried to become a Buddhist bhikshuni.

Mahadevi was appointed as the first headmistress of Allahabad (Prayag) Mahila Vidyapeeth, which was started with a view to imparting cultural and literary education to girls through Hindi medium. Later, she became the chancellor of the institute.

She died on September 11, 1987 at 9:27 pm. Her bunglaw still stands at Ashok Nagar colony in Allahabad. It is under possession of descendants of her deceased secretary, Pt. Ganga Prasad Pandey. On her birth centenary year (2007), they have recreated a room dedicated to her memory.Mahadevi Verma (1907-87) : was educated in Allahabad, where she founded the 'Prayag Mahila Vidyapitha', promoting education for girls. An active freedom fighter, Mahadevi Verma is regarded as one of the four pillars of the great Romantic movement in modern Hindi poetry, Chayavada, the remaining three being Suryakant Tripathi 'Nirala', Jaishankar Prasad and Sumitranandan Pant. She is renowned for her book of memoirs, Atit Ke Chalchitra (The Moving Frames of the Past) and Smriti Ki Rekhayen (The Lines of Memory). Her poetic canvas boasts Dipshikha (The Flame of an Earthen Lamp, 1942), a book comprising fifty one lyrics, all of which carry maturity of expression and intense mystical quality. Some of her other famous publications are Nihar (1930), Rashmi (1932), Neerja (1934), and Sandhya Geet (1936). Of her four prose works, Shrinkhala ki Kadiyan deals with the plight of Indian women. Her reflections on art and literature included in Sahityakaar ki Astha, evince a highly cultivated aesthetic sensibility, firmly rooted in the permanent values of life.

In 1935, She was appointed Honorary Editor of the famous Hindi monthly magazine Chand. She was honoured with the Padma Bhushan by the President of India. She died on 14 September 1987.

Poetic themes

The principal theme of Mahadevi Varma's poetry is pain, the pain of separation from the beloved Supreme Being. Many critics compare her to Meerabai, the 16th century Saint Poet. Like Meera, Mahadevi also decided at an early age of fifteen to turn her back on the traditional married life and devote herself to writing. In spite of these two overwhelming similarities, there are striking differences between these two poets. Mahadevi moved Chhayavaad movement one step further by introducing the elements of mysticism in her poetry. This mysticism sets her apart from Meera. Mahadevi's poem Main Neerbhari dukh ki badli (I am a nimbus cloud of sorrow) best describes her poetic identity:

Tujko peeda mein dhundhungi, (तुझको पीड़ा में ढूंढूंगी)

Tujme dhundhungi peeda (तुझमें ढूंढूंगी पीड़ा)

(I'll search you in pain,

I'll search pain in you)

In her poems she believed in a lover who is unique and far away (often critics link it with God). Her poems were waiting for an eternal lover, whom she was intimate with. Her priyatam (lover), however, remained always quiet. Her language was nourished with Tatsam and Tadbhav words. By writing in Dipshikhak, which contained 51 peculiar lyrics, She ushered a new era in Hindi Literature - Rahasyavaad. She is often compared with Meera Bai. She however had a different outlook about the lord of the universe.

Mahadevi's prose works show no signs of this painstricken personality. She was a social reformer, a women's advocate, a cultural and political leader. Her prose reflects her strength in all these areas. The original editor of Mahadevi Sahitya Samagra, Omkar Sharad remarks about her in the introduction: "...being close to Mahadevi, I have also seen the images of Lakshmibai and Meerabai together in one form." Lakshmibai was the eighteenth century queen of Jhansi, who is well known for her fierce fighting spirit, who struggled against British to save her empire. This dual personality is the key to the meld of mysticism and optimism in her poetry. This becomes evident as we follow her poetic journey. Having rebelled against the tradition and having devoted her life to the quest for learning, eventually this quest became a form of abstract worship for her.

Feminism

Mahadevi Varma was also a fervent woman activist, but not 'antagonistically feminist'. In fact, her writings and essays mark the beginning of "feminist" writing in Hindi. Her classic work Srinkhalaa kee kadiyaan is still rated as one of the best collections of concise and pointed thoughts about the condition of Indian women, the cause of their pathetic condition and the possible "Indian" solution to this problem, not a forced or copied solution.

Going a step beyond that, she herself lived a life that exemplified that solution. She renounced her child marriage. Refusing the proposals to remarry etc., she continued to pursue her spiritual quest alone. She wandered amongst Himalayas long with her servant-maid, Bhaktin. Her poems convey her deep longing for the supreme soul, God; and her literature is a treasure house of deepest of truths unfolded by Indian Philosophy

Works

Mahadevi is considered to be one of the four major poets of the Chhayavaadi school of the Hindi literature, others being Suryakant Tripathi 'Nirala', Jaishankar Prasad and Sumitranandan Pant. She was also a noted painter. She drew a number of illustrations for her poetic works like Deepshikha and Yama.

Poetry

Her poems have been published under a number of other titles as well, but they contain the poems from these collections only. They include:

• Neehar (1930)
• Agnirekha (1990, published after her death)

Prose

• Ateet Ke chalchitra (1941)
• Shrinkhla ki kadiya (1942)
• Smriti Ki Rekhayen (1943)
• Path ke Saathi (1956)
• Kshanada (1956)
• Sahityakaar ki Asatha tatha anya nibandha (1960)
• Sankalpita (1967)
• Mera Parivaar (1972)
• Sambhashan (1975)
• Neelkanth

Anthologies (संकलन)

• Yama (1936)
• Sandhini (1964)
• Geetparva (1970)
• Parikrama (1974)
• Smarika (1971)
• Smritichitra (1973)
• Mahadevi sahitya (1970)
• Meri Priya Kavitaayen
• Deepgeet
• Aatmika
• Neelambaraa
• Himalaya (A collection of poems by many poets edited by her) (1963)

Awards and honours

Mahadevi Varma's creative talents and sharp intellect soon earned her a prominent place in Hindi Literary world. She is considered among the four pillars of the Chaayavad movement. In 1934, she received Sekseriya Purashkar from the Hindi Sahitya Sammelan for her work, Niraja. Her poetry collection (Yama, यामा-1936) received the Jnanpith Award, one of the highest Indian literary award.

In 1956, Government of India bestowed her with the award of Padma Bhushan. She was the first woman to be awarded the Sahitya Akademi Fellowship, in 1979. In 1988, Indian Government bestowed her with the title of Padma Vibhushan.

References

1. Fellowships Sahitya Akademi Official website.
2. Padma Vibhshan

Further reading

• Gupta, Indra India's 50 Most Illustrious Women ISBN 81-88086-19-3
• Schomer, Karine (1998). Mahadevi Varma and the Chhayavad Age of Modern Hindi Poetry, New Delhi: Oxford University Press, ISBN 0 19 564450 6.

External links

• Mahadevi Verma at Kavita Kosh (Hindi)
• Mahadevi Verma at Indohistory
• Mahadevi Varma at Anubhuti
• Some poems of Mahadevi Varma (in Devanagari script)