by: Purna Bandhan, Copenhagen

In present scenario, Nepal became gradually popular worldwide due to several reasons, such as Mt. Everest, Lord Buddha, travel and tours, rafting and adventures, etc. At present, also known as land of Rhino and “Elephant Beauty Pageant (the contest attracted thousands of both local residents and tourists gathered at Chitwan National Park organize several polo games by riding over the Elephant)”, are additionally making popular. During the travelers’ excursion to such a remote place like Mt. Everest, how it invented? It was a wonderful imagination of someone, who must have tried to identity taller than tallest mountains are in Nepal. People from the different part of the world had seen such a beautiful natural phenomena’s including river rafting as well as land of rhino, all are extremely remarkable to be visited. Now thousands of thousands people do visit Nepal for the purpose of tours and pilgrim.
In the meantime, visitors from all over the world also are attracted to Nepalese Culture and Art, too. People love to see different dress, use ornaments & costumes, eat traditional foods and living in their cottages, etc. In such a process and practice of tourist/pilgrims/adventurers’ people have started learning Nepalese culture and art in a significant way. At present scenario, one can understand that Nepalese tour, culture and arts are being famous day to day globally. Due to the media and internet facilities, it is easier to spread out messages and pictures related to Nepalese tour, culture and art. But there is one part, which is eventually gone to the shadow, i.e. Nepalese Literature. One cannot take the picture of literature, one cannot make the posters and put a literature book or epics as a room decorating Thanka type expensive art over the walls. So it has gone to the shadow.

But now the time has come. Those, who understand the value of literature, they play very interesting logic that people, those who are in hang over, in a big pressure of seating in front of computer, machine, Robert are really missing their joy of life. Due to tremendous development of electronic and cyber technology, they need refreshment, which must be away from these things. Study literature as a refresher of mind, as a relaxation of mind, most technically busy people to take bunch of joy. In such a means of relaxation tool, modern technologically skill experts are looking such valuable literatures from the part to part of the world. In such circumstances, as long as other literature has good worth, Nepalese literatures do have worth, too.
Nepal do have local very famous poet, are also internationally worthy enough. Called Adikavi (beginner poet) Bhanubhakta Acharya, Motiram Bhatta, Lekhnatha Paudyal, Laxmi Prashad Devkota, Bhim Nidhi Tiwari, Balkrishna Sama, Siddhicharan Shrestha and many more are not alive yet. But these poet & writers are still alive in the heart of every Nepalese, even a child of even 7-8 years. Logic is simple, they have text books with full of their poems, stories and songs as well.
Now it’s time to begin, to invent international popularity of Nepalese literature can be done. This time one should not worry to print in a book safe, carry all over the way, no, no. Just easy make a digital copy of those creations. Translate in a digital data and keep into the websites. Even easier to promote, just give a simple link to the Facebook and Twitter, how simple? The value and worth of Nepalese literature is not less than India poet Tulsidas, Kabir Das, Rabindranath and Balmiki. It does not mean that those are less and these are more. In the scene of value and worth of literature, they have similarities, of course. The only weakness happened is: Nepalese literature is still gone to the shadow. Let’s explore it now through the age of digital books and epics.
Here are some lines of Bhanubhakta’s compose, translated version, a very famous one, called Ghanshiko Kuwa (Grass-cutter and his water-well):
He gives his life to cutting grass and earns little money,

he hopes to make a well for his people

so he will be remembered after death,

this high thinking grass cutter lives in poverty,


I have achieved nothing though I have much wealthy.
I have neither made rest houses nor a well,

all my riches are inside my house.

This grass cutter has opened my eyes today,

my life is worthless if the memory of my existence fades away.
(Story behind this poem was: once poet saw a poor grass cutter man cutting grass under the shadow of tree, where the poet was also in rest. Poet asked to the grass cutter, for what he were doing such a hard work? And the grass-cutter answered him that he has a dream to dig a water-well under that tree. Being a busy path, many people walk through, but there was no source of drinking water. Poet kept thinking, being such a poor and illiterate man, has such a dream to make his history, why not the poet should, too? He was more than enough capable to make some history doing by some job as he was already literate person of Sanskrit. With that inspiration, Bhanubhakta decided to translate Balmiki Ramayana from Sanskrit to Nepali. That is the cause; he became a first poet of Nepali language.)
Poem source: by Pallav Ranjan, includes the early years of Nepalese literature through Google search.