[Reader-list] condemning ban on Charandas Chor

[anupam chakravartty]

dear vidya,

Very kind of you to use such words. It shows your knowledge. Rishi Valmiki
was a dacoit called Ratnakar or Valia Koli. This is from a children's site (
http://www.bolokids.com/2008/0542.htm) (I am quoting from a children's
website because i think you are not matured enough to converse in this
forum)

*Dear children,

I am sure you enjoy reading the biographies of the great visionaries of the
world. The bed-time stories which your parents or grand parents tell you,
must have some or other reference to the Ramayana, the great epic of India.
Do you know the name of the author of this great piece of writing? In this
update I shall tell you about that legendary, eminent personality of our
country, Valmiki. *

Valmiki, universally accepted and applauded as adikavi, the first among the
poets – in India and particularly in Sanskrit – was the foremost to
ascertain a metrical expression of epic dimension. He had the apparition to
match the emotional ecstasy of an elevated soul endowed with compassion and
concern for all living beings. It was in such a state of identification of
the human being with the universal that his immortal epic, the Ramayana,
originated from his heart.

Valmiki born as 'Ratnakar' is a legendary Hindu sage . He was the tenth
child of Pracheta. There is a religion based on Valmiki's teachings and it
is called Balmikism. The Ramayana consists of 24,001 verses in seven cantos
(kandas) and tells the story of Rama and Sita. Valmiki Ramayana is dated
variously from 500 BC to 100 BC.

Maharishi Valmiki is accepted by many Indian communities as the author of
the Yoga Vasistha, this particular piece of work was taught to Rama when he
was disillusioned with the world in large. The Yoga Vasistha is an
incredible piece of text which discusses a wide array of philosphical
issues. Moreover, it appears to have been written over 5000 years ago. At
his hermitage he taught both males and females. He gave Sita shelter after
her banishment from Ayodhya.

The great Valmiki, originally named Ratnakar, was from a Kirata Bhil
community. Valmiki Muni was from a backward caste community and his name
before he became the Adi-Kavi (prime poet) who recorded the Ramayana, was
Vailya. He was trained by the Narada Muni, who is thought to be a devotee of
Vishnu or *Narayana. In another legend that goes, Valmiki, originally Valia
Koli, was a dacoit and a robber who would rob people passing through woods
and dense forests. He would not only rob out of their possessions but also
cut their ears and wear them in the form of a chain. One fine day, Narada
Muni was passing through this forest and Valia Koli happened to confront
him. Narada Muni asked Valia if he knows what he is doing. Valia replied
saying that it is this which runs his family and the family is aware about
it.* Then Narada Muni asked Valia if his family members would share a part
of a burden of his sins? Valia was so moved with this, he ran back to his
home and asked every member of his family if they will share if the
situation demands. No member of the family, neither his wife nor his sons
replied in assertive. His wife said that the sins Valia is doing everyday
are part of his life and it is his duty to feed his family and it is only he
who is responsible for the sins he has been committing. Hearing this, Valia
changed himself completely, from a dacoit to a Sage. He returned to Narada
Muni and requested him to help enlighten himself, after which he became Sage
Valmiki by penance.

Once Valmiki was taking a stroll on the bank of the river Tamasa along with
his disciple Bharadwaja. The river-water attracted his concentration. The
pleasing and composed movement of the waves seemed to remind the prophet of
the mature and the reticent qualities of his hero. He visualized the purest
spark and tranquil of a pious man’s mind reflected in the flowing stream.
But the very next moment he saw a upsetting panorama of a female bird
suddenly separated from her partner who was mercilessly shot by a malicious
hunter. He could not bear the contrast he perceived between the crystal
clear water reflecting a placid heart and the work of a heartless huntsman
who shot at the pair of naïve, guiltless birds absorbed in the valid
gratification of life for no fault of theirs and to no benefit for him
moreover. These two incidents had an impression on his mind and his creative
art, which led to his composition of the greatest epic on earth, the
Ramayana.

It is unfortunate that men of letters know very little about this fêted poet
worldwide repute except about his epic composition, the Ramayana. The poet
did not say much about himself in his work nor could history keep any
documentation and authentic account of his life – not even of the time he
lived in. The word Valmika literally means an ant-hill that stands for deep
meditation in a poised state of penance. Valmiki, the poet, is a product of
this penance. Kalidasa, a great admirer of Valmiki, glorifies this aspect in
his famous line in Meghasandesa.The revelation and the influence of Valmiki
are seen at their best while portraying the character of Sita as an ideal
woman – a sculpt for reticence, a pictogram of sophisticated simplicity, an
incarnation of elegance and dignity, an austere observer of moral code of
behavior, an exceptional paradigm of ultimate love and a singular
amalgamation of valor and kindness. There are three important characters in
the Ramayana who made significant contribution to the advancement of the
march of Rama from Ayodhya to Mithila, Kishkindha and Lanka. They are
Vishwamitra, Lakshmana and Hanuman—and these characters were created by
Valmiki with utmost care.

The Ramayana, as envisaged by Valmiki, is a stride in search of man – a man
whose humanity stands out spirituality by the asset of its translucent
transitoriness. Rama, the central figure of this march of cult presents a
rare amalgamation of individual decorum and celestial ignite. He kept the
sparkle to himself and within himself and widen the bouquet of complete
love, warmth, concern, restoration and healing to the planet around him.
These are the vital human values and virtues more accomplished than
sermonized by Rama, the man of Valmiki’s vision. These traits of the main
character by their instinctive penchant dominated almost all the other
characters in the Ramayana. Good and bad are only virtual terms for a great
soul like Rama. They do not have any unconditional meaning for him from a
comprehensive point of view. They can be changed, altered and converted if
the human advance is maintained with valor, obligation and kindness. The
effect of this policy and the values of life finds abundant design
throughout the Ramayana.

The creative distinction of Valmiki lies in his genuineness in experience
and ease in expression. There is tenderness in his words, equilibrium in his
emotions and innate glibness in his commentary. He speaks less and makes his
characters articulate for themselves. He has an inherent approach into the
soul and a spectacular expertise in restraining the movements and the
historic actions of his characters. The secret of his success as an epic
poet of predictive vision lies in his all-absorbing penance or tapasya and
unassuming firmness.

The intermediary and the communication are equally imperative for the epic
poet and Valmiki has accomplished both. He never thought that his sincere
concern for the pair of birds divided by a cruel shot would result in the
magnum oeuvre campaigning the basic human qualities like adoration and
compassion. It assumed the form of a world classic with a message for each
era to come and for the entire living beings. Valmiki is revered as the
first poet, and the Ramayana, the first kavya.

ENDS

It is a fact that there are several versions of Ramayana written in several
languages. Infact, the Prime Minister in waiting L.K. Advani has written
about Valmiki: http://lkadvani.in/forum/viewtopic.php?f=37&t=5792
My point here is not to cite Ramayana or the mythological stories around its
creation. My problem lies with the fact, how a play is being banned
selectively by the Chattisgarh government by making tribals as the
scapegoat. Just like how many other opportunists operate in that area
and cash in on that tribal sentiment.

-with regards
anupam

On 8/4/09, Vidya <joshvidya at gmail.com> wrote:
>
> He was just one of the writers of ramayana. and when he wrote it he was not
> a dacoit you ignonramus ass hole. That he was a dacoit is also not proved by
> any reliable sources.
>
>
> ----- Original Message ----- From: "anupam chakravartty" <
> c.anupam at gmail.com>
> To: "sarai list" <reader-list at sarai.net>
> Sent: Tuesday, August 04, 2009 2:01 AM
> Subject: Re: [Reader-list] condemning ban on Charandas Chor
>
>
> The Chattisgarh government perhaps doesnt realise that mythological epic,
>> Ramayana was written by a dacoit.
>>
>> On 8/4/09, prakash ray <pkray11 at gmail.com> wrote:
>>
>>>
>>> Press Release condemning ban on Charandas Chor:
>>> We are shocked to learn from press reports that the BJP government of
>>> Chhattisgarh has banned Charandas Chor, a classic of the modern Indian
>>> theatre, written and produced by Habib Tanvir. The play was first done in
>>> the 1970s, and is originally based on an oral folk tale from Rajasthan.
>>> Habib Tanvir worked on this tale, introducing into it elements of the art
>>> and beliefs of the Satnami community. Satnami singers and dancers have
>>> performed in this play, and it has been seen by members of the community
>>> several times. In Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh, there are several
>>> rural
>>> troupes who are today performing some version of this play.
>>>
>>> The play itself is the story of a thief who, under the influence of a
>>> guru,
>>> pledges never to tell a lie. He sticks to his pledge, even at the cost of
>>> his life. This superb tragic-comedy, in a thoroughly entertaining and
>>> artistic manner, brings into focus the moral and ethical degeneration of
>>> our
>>> society, in which, paradoxically, it is a thief who ends up being more
>>> honest than those who supposed to be the custodians of our morality.
>>>
>>> Charandas Chor remains Habib Tanvir’s best-known play, and has been
>>> performed literally hundreds of times by his world-renowned Naya Theatre
>>> troupe all over India and in several countries across the world. It was
>>> made
>>> into a film by Shyam Benegal, with Smita Patil in the lead, in 1975, and
>>> was
>>> the first Indian play to win the prestigious Fringe First award at the
>>> Edinburgh Theatre Festival in 1982. It then did a successful run on the
>>> London stage.
>>>
>>> We demand that the Chhattisgarh government immediately revoke this absurd
>>> ban.
>>>
>>> Arvind Gaur
>>> Brijesh
>>> Govind Deshpande
>>> Javed Malick
>>> Madangopal Singh
>>> M.K. Raina
>>> Moloyashree Hashmi
>>> N.K. Sharma
>>> Shahid Anwar
>>> Sudhanva Deshpande
>>> Vivan Sundaram
>>> Wamiq Abbasi
>>> Act One Theatre Group
>>> Asmita Theatre Group
>>> Bahroop Art Group
>>> Jana Natya Manch
>>> Jan Sanskriti
>>> Janvadi Lekhak Sangh
>>> Sahmat
>>> _________________________________________
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>
>