Bhanu Jayanti

Bhanu Jayanti. Bhanu Jayanti is the birth anniversary of the great poet Bhanu Bhakta Acharya and is celebrated on the 29th of Ashad. He was born in a village called Ramgha (Chundi Ramgh) in Tanahun district of Nepal in 1871 B.S. Every year, Bhanu Jayanti is celebrated with grandeur by Nepalese people scattered all over the world including Nepal and places like Darjeeling in India.

Bhanubhakta was born to his father Dhananjaya Acharya and his mother Dharmavati Devi. Bhanubhakta’s birth anniversary is celebrated as a cultural festival, a tradition among Nepalese worldwide to commemorate him and his famous literary works. Acharya was born in a Brahmin family and received his early education at home. Later, he was sent to Banaras for a proper education in Sanskrit (the language of that time). 

Bhanubhakta Acharya – His Life and Contributions

When Bhanubhakta was receiving higher education in Banaras, North India, Sanskrit was the spoken language in Nepal and was considered the language of scholars. Because of this, all the poets and writers used to write and read in the Sanskrit language. But, in reality, common people did not know how to speak or read Sanskrit. Similarly, learning Sanskrit as a language was also difficult. However, most texts were written in Sanskrit, which was impossible for common people to read or understand. 

Hence, the compositions and texts of poets, and writers were limited to a small group of people who knew Sanskrit. Because of this, Bhanubhakta Acharya initiated a change and started writing in the Nepali language creating a situation where even people without Sanskrit knowledge could read. Bhanubhakta was the first writer to translate the Ramayan from Sanskrit into Nepali. This popularized the Nepali language and Nepali literature.

Other contemporary poets in Nepal at that time were Lakshmi Prasad Devkota, Lekhnath Paudyal, Motiram Bhatt, etc., but, Bhanubhakta was revered and honored with the title of Adikavi (the First Poet in Nepali). Poet Bhanubhakta Acharya is the first person who wrote the first poem in Nepali language. Although, at that time, other Nepali poets and writers were contributing to Nepali literature, Bhanubhakta was the first poet to become popular. He earned fame in Nepali literature by translating Balmiki Ramayana into Nepali. Some other short poems and pieces of literature of Bhanubhakta include compositions like “Ramgita”, “Vadhushiksha”, “Prashnottar”, and “Bhakta Mala”.

After translating the Ramayan from Sanskrit to Nepali, Bhanubhakta popularized the Nepali language and literature, and the main reason for this was that even the common people could now read the Ramayan. He was unfamiliar with foreign and Western literature as he did not receive a Western education, but this fact helped, him to continue the original work in Nepali.

Bhanubhakta and the Grass-Cutter (Ghansi)

Bhanubhakta belonged to a wealthy family. Due to this, he did not face any financial problems. One day he met a Ghansi (grasscutter) who wanted to give something back to the society. After hearing what the grasscutter had said, Bhanubhakta was also motivated to do something to leave some mark on society.

Bhanubhakta Acharya’s died in 1925 B.S. During his lifetime, his works were overshadowed by other great writers and poets. He received no credit for his compositions and literary works, but, after his death, poet Motiram Bhatt discovered his manuscripts and was honored. Motiram Bhatt published Bhanubhakta’s works and compositions.

Motiram Bhatt collected and published the manuscripts of countless works such as Ramayan.  Later Bhanubhakta became popular in the Nepali literary world and was honored. Motiram Bhatta did an incomparable work by collecting and publishing manuscripts including works such as Bhaktamala, Badhushiksha to name a few. The idea of Bhanubhakta without Motiram and each other does not even exist.

 Since 2034 B. S, Bhanu Jayanti has been celebrated every year on the 29th of Ashadh as a grand event with a literary symposium. Nepali writers, poets, novelists, and other literary personalities are present in the program that takes place this day. On this day, Bhanu Jayanti is celebrated by people of various ages, professions, etc., who gather at the statue of Bhanu Bhakta in front of Rani Pokhari in Kathmandu. On this day, Bhanu Jayanti is celebrated grandly in Nepal, India (Darjeeling, Sikkim, etc.) and other countries.