Shekhar: A Life

by सच्चिदानंद हीरानंद वात्स्यायन 'अज्ञेय', Sachchidananda Hirananda Vatsyayana 'Agyeya', Vasudha Dalmia (Translator)

On the night before he is to be hanged as a political prisoner, Shekhar finds himself drawn into a vortex of scattered memories--flashes of childhood angst and youthful love amidst days of high idealism and constant struggle against the British Raj. Enveloped by his past and wracked by a tumult of emotions, he muses on the philosophical questions that have consumed him and the ideological fervour that has led him to his inevitable fate. And as the appointed hour approaches, he must reconcile himself with who he has become and what he truly stands for.
Regarded as one of the most influential Hindi novels of all time, Shekhar powerfully reimagines the journey of an outspoken young underground revolutionary in pre-Independence India. This sparkling new translation brings to life the psychological acuity and literary richness of Agyeya's most profound work.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction, India

Kindle Edition

Published June 21, 2018

About the author

जन्म : ७ मार्च १९११ को उत्तर प्रदेश के देवरिया जिले के कुशीनगर नामक ऐतिहासिक स्थान में।

शिक्षा : प्रारंभिक शिक्षा–दीक्षा पिता की देख–रेख में घर पर ही संस्कृत‚ फारसी‚ अंग्रेजी और बँगला भाषा व साहित्य के अध्ययन के साथ। १९२५ में पंजाब से एंट्रेंस की परीक्षा पास की और उसके बाद मद्रास क्रिश्चियन कॉलेज में दाखिल हुए।वहाँ से विज्ञान में इंटर की पढ़ाई पूरी कर १९२७ में वे बी .एस .सी .करने के लिए लाहौर के फॉरमन कॉलेज के छात्र बने।१९२९ में बी .एस .सी . करने के बाद एम .ए .में उन्होंने अंग्रेजी विषय रखा‚ पर क्रांतिकारी गतिविधियों में हिस्सा लेने के कारण पढ़ाई पूरी न हो सकी।

कार्यक्षेत्र : १९३० से १९३६ तक विभिन्न जेलों में कटे। १९३६–१९३७ में ‘सैनिक’ और ‘विशाल भारत’ नामक पत्रिकाओं का संपादन किया। १९४३ से १९४६ तक ब्रिटिश सेना में रहे‚ इसके बाद इलाहाबाद से ‘प्रतीक’ नामक पत्रिका निकाली और ऑल इंडिया रेडियो की नौकरी स्वीकार की। देश–विदेश की यात्राएं कीं। जिसमें उन्होंने कैलिफोर्निया विश्वविद्यालय से लेकर जोधपुर विश्वविद्यालय तक में अध्यापन का काम किया। दिल्ली लौटे और ‘दिनमान’ साप्ताहिक, ‘नवभारत टाइम्स’, अंग्रेजी पत्र ‘वाक्’ और ‘एवरीमैंस’ जैसी प्रसिद्ध पत्र पत्रिकाओं का संपादन किया। १९८० में उन्होंने ‘वत्सलनिधि’ नामक एक न्यास की स्थापना की‚ जिसका उद्देश्य साहित्य और संस्कृति के क्षेत्र में कार्य करना था। दिल्ली में ही ४ अप्रैल १९८७ में उनकी मृत्यु हुई।

१९६४ में ‘आँगन के पार द्वार’ पर उन्हें साहित्य अकादेमी का पुरस्कार प्राप्त हुआ और १९७९ में ‘कितनी नावों में कितनी बार’ पर भारतीय ज्ञानपीठ पुरस्कार।

प्रमुख कृतियाँ –
कविता संग्रह : भग्नदूत, इत्यलम,हरी घास पर क्षण भर, बावरा अहेरी, इंद्र धनु रौंदे हुए ये, अरी ओ करूणा प्रभामय, आँगन के पार द्वार, कितनी नावों में कितनी बार, क्योंकि मैं उसे जानता हूँ, सागर–मुद्रा‚ पहले मैं सन्नाटा बुनता हूँ‚ महावृक्ष के नीचे‚ नदी की बाँक पर छाया और ऐसा कोई घर आपने देखा है।
कहानी–संग्रह :विपथगा, परंपरा, कोठरी की बात, शरणार्थी, जयदोल, ये तेरे प्रतिरूप।
उपन्यास – शेखरः एक जीवनी, नदी के द्वीप, अपने अपने अजनबी।
यात्रा वृत्तांत – अरे यायावर रहेगा याद, एक बूंद सहसा उछली।
निबंधों संग्रह : सबरंग, त्रिशंकु, आत्मानेपद, आधुनिक साहित्यः एक आधुनिक परिदृश्य, आलवाल,
संस्मरण :स्मृति लेखा
डायरियां : भवंती‚ अंतरा और शाश्वती।

उनका लगभग समग्र काव्य ‘सदानीरा’ ह्यदो खंडहृ नाम से संकलित हुआ है तथा अन्यान्य विषयों पर लिखे गए सारे निबंध ‘केंद्र और परिधि’ नामक ग्रंथ में संकलित हुए हैं।

विभिन्न पत्र–पत्रिकाओं के संपादन के साथ–साथ ‘अज्ञेय’ ने ‘तार सप्तक’‚ ‘दूसरा सप्तक’‚ और ‘तीसरा सप्तक’ – जैसे युगांतरकारी काव्य–संकलनों का भी संपादन किया तथा ‘पुष्करिणी’ और ‘रूपांबरा’ जैसे काव्य–संकलनों का भी।

वे वत्सलनिधि से प्रकाशित आधा दर्जन निबंध–संग्रहों के भी संपादक हैं। निस्संदेह वे आधुनिक साहित्य के एक शलाका–पुरूष थे‚ जिसने हिंदी साहित्य में भारतेंदु के बाद एक दूसरे आधुनिक युग का प्रवर्तन किया।

Sachchidananda Hirananda Vatsyayana 'Agyeya' (सच्‍चिदानन्‍द हीरानन्‍द वात्‍स्‍यायन 'अज्ञेय'), popularly known by his pen-name Ajneya ("Beyond comprehension"), was a pioneer of modern trends not only in the realm of Hindi poetry, but also fiction, criticism and journalism. He was one of the most prominent exponents of the Nayi Kavita (New Poetry) and Prayog (Experiments) in Modern Hindi literature, edited the 'Saptaks', a literary series, and started Hindi newsweekly, Dinaman.

Agyeya also translated some of his own works, as well as works of some other Indian authors to English. A few books of world literature he translated into Hindi also.

Wikipedia entry

कविता कोश पता

Reviews

[Harsh Gopal · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is my first ever book in Hindi (though this is the English translated version). I bought this on an impulse while I was trying to add a book to my cart to fill the offer criteria on Flipkart. Best decision ever.
This is a story of Shekhar who is a prisoner and about to be executed. The story is his haunting memories. S.H. Vatsyayan(Agyeya) was arrested and in prison when he wrote this book. Though the book is divided into three parts, we will never be able to read the third as the manuscript it is yet not found. I believe it is best left at Volume-II.

The book pulls you into the life of Shekhar, the protagonist from his birth. His childhood, teenage and youth. It whole-heartedly shows you all of Shekhar's relationships with everyone around and how each of them influences his life. His father and mother, his sister Saraswati, Sharda and most importantly Shashi, who is a wonderfully strong character.

Shekhar is a rebel who wants to prove his viewpoints to the pre-independence society but that, obviously, isn't an easy task. That is how the story progresses.

I'm glad that I bought this on impulse and regret not having read this till date. The writing is brilliant and it is unfortunate that most people do not know about this gem of a book. It is a must-read by everybody and definitely requires a re-read.

This undoubtedly is one of the best books in Indian literature.

[David - marigold_bookshelf · Rating 3 out of 5]

Shekar: A Life was originally printed in Hindi by Agyeya (“unknowable”, real name Sachchidananda Vatsyayan 1911-1987) as Shekhar: Ek Jivani, in two parts. The author acknowledged the existence of a third part which was never released. Here the two volumes are published together, translated wonderfully into English by Snehal Shingavi and Vasudha Dalmia.

Agyeya is widely referred to as one of the most important writers in Hindi literature and Shekhar, a semi-autobiographical novel, was his most influential work. At the time of publication it was considered to be a groundbreaking experimental work, the first psychoanalytical novel in the Hindi language.

Part one begins in pre-independence India with Shekhar, a 21-year-old Brahmin born revolutionary, looking back on his life as he waits in jail the night before he is due to be hanged. His present thoughts are mixed with flashbacks in the third person, recounting his childhood, his first romantic attachments, the development of his rebellious temperament, and his rejection of the caste system.

In the second volume Shekhar is studying in Lahore, where he rejects his fellow students for embracing British mannerisms. He joins the Congress Party, ends up in jail, and rekindles a relationship with Shashi, a girl he knew from childhood. After Shashi is thrown out by her husband, she moves with Shekhar to Delhi where his revolutionary views get him increasingly involved with the independence movement through an armed insurgency group.

It was an interesting and rewarding read from both historical and literary perspectives. However, I couldn’t help feeling that if it had been pure fiction, or at least a bit more fictional, there were some tremendously interesting characters that could have been developed and integrated further into the story. Recommended for any reader interested in non-English Indian fiction.

[Bhavya · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Perhaps the knowledge of death and the desire for life are the same thing. One often heard it said that only those who know what it means to die know what it means to live. You never hear it said that those who know what it means to die love life more than the rest of us. But this is an eternal truth. People think that those who love life fear death. Totally wrong. Those who fear death are incapable of loving life because they don't experience even a moment's peace in life. The real test of whether one loves life or not is if you can give it up without regret; because the best kinds of love can only be silent; those who can speak their love, love emptily"

"But was it necessary in love for any two people to be sold by one another's own hands and become each other's slave? Was there no love without servitude?
And if so, why was there this condition that love had to exist between two individuals? Was it necessary that one had to have someone to love - was it impossible to separate the feeling of love from some crude, isolated object? Was it necessary that the sentence 'I am in love' was unerringly followed by the question 'With whom?' and did that 'whom' have to be only one? Couldn't all humanity be loved, all love be loved?"

[Manan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book,originally in Hindi, is a very interesting Historic fiction based against the pre-independence India under the British Raj. The protagonist, Shekhar, before being executed, reflects back on his childhood and early years, his relation with his family and friends, how it influenced him, and his struggles to share his viewpoints to the society. This work is based on the memories of the author, a political prisoner, who wrote the book in prison.
Having grandparents who were freedom fighters, pre-independence history and the struggles during the independence war has always been fascinating. This impulsive purchase is one of the few discovered works written in regional language and later translated in English. Unfortunately, like several such translated works and those written in regional languages, this amazingly written book has not yet been known to a large audience.

[Peyton · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Life’s most profound occurrences always happen in unacknowledged moments."

7/10