Position of Manipuri literature in National and international fora
Thounaojam Utam *
Literature is not exactly an account of a cup of beverage. Love and care for literature is diversified. ln the real sense it is an imprint of the socio, political, economic, religious and cultural aspects of a country.
For example, the influence of literature in the Indian freedom struggle wherein many Nationalist leaders were enlightened with the help of books. lt will be desperately wrong if it thinks that literature is only about reading and writing of poems and stories.
To promote the position of Manipuri literature on a wider spectrum the first and foremost step is the translation of our literature (both ancient and modern literature) into English. But translation becomes worthless without publication in the National and international journals, magazines, etc.
We have our own unique literary products in different literary genres. For eg : Khamba Thoibi Shei-reng, 1940 (39,000 lines) a classical epic poem in Manipuri Literature by Hijam Anganghal Singh like the epic poems of Dante Alighieri’s Divine Comedy (14,233 lines) and Aurobindo Ghosh’s Savitri : A legend and a symbol, 1947 (24,000 lines).
Language is the most essential factor in recognising the Manipuri literature. We should always keep in mind that there is still the image of linguistic colonialism. This slows down the race of gaining any opportunities related to the field of literature in National and interna- tional arena.
Numerous students who opt for English literature should have to focus more on this matter rather than getting highest marks in semester examination. We have to put questions on UGC NTA that 50 percent of syllabus of NET exam in English literature should be based on Indian literature.
Except Rabindranath Tagore, an Indian poet, who got Nobel prize in 1913, there is no other news of achieving Nobel in literature by an Indian till now.
Like the British used “Divide and Rule Policy” as their means of weapons to make their position supreme over the whole of lndia, we also try to manufacture the good products of our own literature to the national and international standards.
Some of the prestigious literary awards include Jnanpith Award, Sahitya Akademi Award, Yuva Puraskar, Crossword Book Award, etc. There are also some Indian literary awards like Saraswati Sammam ,which is awarded to only written in selected Indian languages.This is a sign of understanding of the importance of regional literature.
For the sustainable development of Manipuri literature, the core policy is to do more research on the existing Manipuri literature, translation, extraction and publication is a must for enhancing the enlightenment of our literature to the great extent.
The Govt of Manipur in consultation with the central government should keep an eye of interest in this matter (as education is under concurrent list). If the government has the opportunity to provide scholarships or incentives to those who do research based on the themes of upgrading the position of Manipuri literature to national and international standards.
Finally,to the students of literature l would like to have your focus more on Northeast literature in pursuing research.
Research , Translation and Publication are the souls of transforming our literature to the highest position.
* Thounaojam Utam wrote this article for The Sangai Express
This article was webcasted on April 14 2023.
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