Laxmi Prasad Devkota
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| Born: | 1909 Kathmandu, Nepal |
|---|---|
| Died: | 1959 Nepal |
| Occupation: | Poet |
| Nationality: | Nepalese |
Laxmi Prasad Devkota (b. 1909 in Kathmandu, d. 1959), was a Nepali poet. He is best known for the poem "Muna Madan."
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[edit] Early life
Devkota was the third son of Pandit Tila Madhav and Amar Rajya Laxmi Devi. He was born in Thatunati (now Dhobidhara), Kathmandu on the day of the Festival of Lights, which is a celebration of the Goddess of Wisdom and Learning.
He showed poetic genius from a very tender age. When he was ten years old, he wrote the following couplet:
| “ | Brother, this world's a great sea of tribulations.
We all have to die. Be not arrogant. |
” |
Although this was in keeping with the Hindu way of thinking, the young poet surprised his family and relatives with this outburst. Later, he was to introduce Romanticism into Nepali literature and influence a whole generation of Nepali writers. He would continue developing as a modern poet with a powerful voice of his own and claim a literary stature in Nepal that many seek to emulate.
He preached charity and forgiveness, succor and compassion. One day, as he was walking back home from work, a beggar approached him for some money. Seeing him shiver in the cold, Devkota took off the coat he was wearing and gave it to the beggar.
When Devkota was born in 1909, the country was ruled by the Rana oligarchy. The Rana administration was against mass education, but after many trials, his family enrolled him at Durbar School, the only school in the Kathmandu Valley. Devkota wrote his first poem at this school, and it is said that he used to recite his poems before his friends and teachers. Many times his friends did not believe he had written such excellent poems, but all his teachers were greatly impressed with the young prodigy.
In 1925, Devkota enrolled in the science program at Tri-Chandra College. After completing his Intermediate of Science degree, he switched to arts. He received his bachelor's degree in arts in 1929 and went to Patna, India, in 1931 on a scholarship hoping to study English for his Master's degree. Since there were no seats available in the English program, he studied law.
[edit] Family life
After he received his bachelor's of law, he returned home and endured a series of personal crises. His mother, father, and two-month old daughter died within two years. Those tragic events shattered him and he became a chain smoker. In later years, with the premature death of his two young sons, Prakash Devkota and Krishna Devkota, he broke down completely. He spent some time in a mental institution.
To add further misery, by 1958, Devkota was diagnosed with cancer and three inches of cancerous colon was removed in India, but he knew death was approaching him, so he stayed up late into the night to continue his writing. One year later, he died.
He wrote to a friend while he was in Santa Bhawan Hospital, "Death stands before me. I search for constellations in the sky but can find none. I cannot give peace to myself. If I could rise, I would kill myself and my children."
Throughout his life, Laxmi Prasad Devkota denounced God, until he was on his death bed, when he recited, "Aakhir ma shree Krishna rahecha ek", which meant, " in the end, lord Krishna is but one".
[edit] Career
Devkota was a versatile and prolific writer, who left no branch of literature untouched in the course of his brief career. He has written numerous epics, long narrative poems, essays, stories, plays, novels, songs, and criticisms. His essays read like poetry and are much admired for both content and style. Devkota was the first to begin writing epics in Nepali literature and his magnum opus "Muna-Madan" remains a best seller even five decades after his death. He also served as Nepal's Education Minister, and was a professor at Tri-Chandra College.
Devkota had the ability to write poems very quickly -- he wrote the Shakuntal in three months, the Sulochana epic in 10 days and Kunjini in a single day. Nepali poetry soared to new heights with Devkota's groundbreaking poetry. "Muna-Madan," a long narrative poem in popular folk metre, begins the end of the Sanskrit tradition in Nepali literature. "Pagal" ["Mad"] is another of his ground-breaking works.
