DR. NARAYAN PRASAD ADHIKARI: A prolific author and translator of merit
A dedicated academician and the master of Nepali linguistics, Dr. Narayan Pd. Adhikari has made his mark in the domain of Nepali education and literature. His contribution to upholding Nepali education by writing several Nepali linguistic books for schools, colleges, and universities has simply put him in the highest stature of recognition.
Dr. Narayan Pd. Adhikari received his master’s degree in Nepali literature. He did also obtain yet another master’s degree in Eastern Philosophy from Agra University, India. Finally, he received a PhD in Buddhist Philosophy from Lumbini Buddhist University, Nepal.
“Ever since my childhood, I was deeply inclined to read books. Throughout my teaching and writing career, I was known for my wit, erudition, and dedication to academia. Now I am a retired professor from active teaching, but that does not mean I am retired from literary activities. After the retirement from the active teaching, I have now become even more prolific than before,” said Dr. Adhikari.
Dr. Adhikari began reading and writing poetry during his school years, a testament to the influence of upcoming events. He had even won many prizes and accolades on several occasions. His teachers always supported him to write outstanding poetry, and under the guidance of some teachers, he honed his writing skills.
“My association with poetry and writing is a lifelong love affair. Even at this age, my passion to scale the heights of literary merits has not subsided at all. I constantly look around to find a subject, and whatever inspires me, I pen it almost instantly. This was my habit when I was a young schoolboy, and I still carry the same spirit to this date.”
After obtaining a master’s degree in Nepali Literature, Dr. Adhikari took a deep interest in Nepali Linguistics. In the meantime, he went to Agra University and completed yet another master’s degree in philosophy.
“After the completion of my master’s degree in Nepali Literature, I took serious interest in linguistics. I realized that linguistics is a highly technical subject, and not many scholars take an interest in linguistics. I wanted to take a plunge into the ocean of linguistics and find some linguistic pearls for the benefit of students, teachers, and researchers. In the meantime, I realized that the study of philosophy would certainly broaden my understanding of linguistics. Then I decided to study philosophy, and I obtained a master’s degree in philosophy from Agra University, India.”
Dr. Adhikari opines that in recent times, Nepali literature has come under the influence of foreign literatures such as Hindi literature, Russian literature, Chinese literature, Urdu literature, and Arabic literature.
Dr. Adhikari vociferously appreciates the hard work of many Nepali writers who brilliantly translated several famous literatures into the Nepali language. Translations of Maxim Gorky, William Shakespeare, Charles Dickens, George Bernard Shaw, William Becket, Leo Tolstoy, Anton Chekhov, Kafka, Prem Chand, Rabindranath Tagore, and so on. Nowadays, most of the famous works of these writers have already been translated into the Nepali language, and they are available for Nepali readers.
“I took a serious interest in the translation of famous literature from Hindi and English to the Nepali language. I stayed in Kathmandu and translated over 12 books in the Nepali language, including some world bestselling books, one like Supreme Personality of Godhead written by A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada. I did also translate Bhagwatam as it is by A.C. Bhativedanta Swami Prabhupada. My deep attachment to Buddhism finally made me study Buddhist literature. Thus, after spending some years studying Buddhism, I completed my PhD in Buddhist philosophy. I was the 3rd person from the first batch of the Lumbini Buddhist University, Nepal, to complete the PhD.”
Dr. Adhikari’s first book, ‘Himkamal,’ was published in 1996. It was an anthology of 37 short poems. The beauty of this poetry book is that it contains all kinds of poems. The book begins with some serious poetry like Mero Basti, Mera Purkha, Anshunai Geet Banchhan, Yuba, Bidhawa and Shahid. The book does also include some romantic poems like Meri Maya, Naya Dulahi, and Aaja rati Sapanima. In the meantime, the book has some poems to inspire the youths of the country.
After 1996, Dr. Adhikari did not look back and kept on writing more books. He published Bichar Ra Bibechana (1996), Bhakti Jiwan (2002), Swami Devchaitanya (biography 2003), Hamra Sorah Sanskar (2019), Bhasa Bigyan (textbook 2009), Bhasa Bigyanka Pramukh Sidhanta haru (textbook 2019), Aama (memoir 2016), Srikanta Adhikari: Jiwani, Byaktitwa ra kavitwa (critical analysis 2020), and Gautam Budha ra unko Dahmpad (2019).
When asked about the future of printed books, Dr. Adhikari looked pensive and said, “I foresee a bleak future for printed books in the days to come. But I don’t see it as unexpected and a huge surprise because time always changes, and it does not remain stationary. These are necessary changes, and this is the law of nature. Nature evolves every moment. It cannot remain idle even for a moment. Thus, change is the essence of life. We have to change ourselves according to the latest situations. This is a fact that many people prefer to read books on electronic gadgets, as it is much more comfortable. But this does not mean that nobody likes to read physical books. This is not the case. In fact, many people still prefer reading physical books over eBooks or on-screen”.
Speaking about literature and the truth is that literature is dying. More specifically, it is on its deathbed. More and more people are going away from reading books. There is a plethora of entertainment available for the people, and most of it is highly toxic by nature. Social media, video games, YouTube, and pornography. All these subjects provide instant sensual gratification to youths that they hardly get by reading books.
“This is true that nowadays many book readers find reading eBooks on their tablets, laptops, or desktops much more convenient. Because they can increase or decrease the sizes of fonts suitable for reading. They can also adjust brightness and contrast as per requirement. Such things are not possible with physical books. I think that slowly but steadily most people will find reading books on electronic gadgets more comfortable than carrying books with them,” opined Dr. Adhikari.
“Due to a small number of poetry book readers, publishers show no interest in publishing poetry books. In most cases, the poet himself/herself has to publish the book. After then he/she has to give away the books free as no one wants to buy those poetry books. This is a bitter reality. The publishers look for celebrities. They are ever ready to publish anything produced by them. Such literature is sold outright, and publishers make some quick bucks. This does not happen with poetry books, and this is the reason they distance themselves from poetry books.”
At the end of the conversation, Dr. Adhikari said that whether the government will help litterateurs or not, those who love literature will continuously push their pens under all weather conditions.
“The nature of a snake is to bite, and the snake cannot cast off its nature to bite. Similarly, those people who are devoted to the service of literature will never cease to write under any circumstances. Actually, literature runs throughout their veins. A litterateur and literature cannot be separated. They always live together as a body and a soul”.
At present, Dr. Adhikari is busy translating the Shiva Purana, a sacred Hindu text, into simple Nepali so that everyone can grasp the gist of the Holy Scripture. He is also contemplating translating all four Vedas into simple Nepali language in the days to come.
I am one of the staunchest followers of your blog. Anyone who wants to read literature must read this blog.
ReplyDeleteDipak Basnet, teacher
Kathmandu, Nepal
Thanks Dipak sir for this comment .
DeleteGlad to know about the dedication of Dr. Adhikari. You are one of the dedicated scholars of Nepal.
ReplyDeletePraful Agrawal, writer
Kolkata, India
Your translation is worth mentioning indeed.
ReplyDeleteLaxmi Shrestha
Kathmandu, Nepal