Dr. ShuddhanandaBharati

Poet Nightingale

SubramaniyaBharathiyar

Life story of Bharathiyar

ASSAEditions

Editor’s Notes

Subramaniya Bharathiyar was born on 11th

December 1882 in Ettayapuram, which isnow part of Thoothukudi District. He diedon 11th September 1921.

Bharathiar was educated at a local highschool where his talents as a poet wererecognized even at the age of 11. He had avoracious appetite for learning ancientand contemporary Tamil literature andhad a gifted intellect to derive astonishingtruths from ancient poems.

He was also one of the prominent leadersof the Indian independence movement.His national integration songs earned himthe title “Desiya Kavi” (National Poet).

His patriotic songs emphasize national-ism, unity of India, equality of men andthe greatness of the Tamil language.

It is a real and great pleasure for me topresent this nice treatise on Poet Nightin-gale Bharathiyar to you. Thank you,Dr. Shuddhananda Bharati for having

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transmitted Poet Nightingale Bharathiyar tous. The first edition of this book is dated1955 in Tamil.

Christian Piaget

Poet Nightingale Bharathiyar

Song of Unity

Unite. Unite, Unite, Oh SoulsUnite and play your rolesUnite in mind, unite in heartUnite in whole, unite in partLike words and tunes and sense in songLet East and West unite and live longTrees are many; the grove is oneBranches are many: tree is oneShores are many; sea is oneLimbs are many; body is oneBodies are many; self is oneStars are many; sky is oneFlowers are many; honey is onePages are many; book is oneThoughts are many; thinker is oneTastes are many; taster is oneActors are many; the drama is oneNations are many; the world is oneReligions are many; Truth is oneThe wise are many; Wisdom is oneBeings are many; breath is oneClasses are many; college is oneFind out this One behind the manyThen life shall enjoy peaceful harmony

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Peace Anthem

Peace for all, peace for allFor all the countries peaceJoy for all, joy for allFor all the nations joyA rosy morning peaceA smiling summer joy (Peace for all)

All for each and each for allThis is the golden ruleLife and Light and Love for allFor all that live our love (Peace for all)

Work and food and clothes for allEqual status for allHealth and home and school for allA happy world for all (Peace for all)

Peace for plants and birds and beastsFor hills and streams and woodsPeace in Home - land and air and seaDynamic peace we see

Peace for all, peace for all

Immortal Peace for All

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Presentation ofDr. Shuddhananda Bharati

11th May 1897 – 7th March 1990

The wise one to the cosmic ageAlthough more than 90 years old, in hisschool in the south of India, Kavi YogiMaharishi (great divine visionary, wisepoet), Dr. Shuddhananda Bharati workedlike a young man of twenty. When he wasasked his age, he answered: “My age isCourage!”

The Yogi wrote several hundred works inEnglish, French, Tamil, Hindi, Telugu andSanskrit; five thousand songs, and fifteenhundred poems in French. The magnumopus of the man conscious of the presenceof God in him, Bharata Shakti, (in 50,000verses) described his ideal: only OneHumanity living in communion with onlyOne God in a transformed world! BharataShakti is a monumental and unique work.The Yogi depicts the essence of all the reli-gions, of all the prophets and saints, all theapproaches of Yoga and all the cultures on

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an allegorical fabric. It is a book for anyage which all spiritual researchers and allnations should read and meditate on.

His commitment is summarized in hisbook celebrating his life, Pilgrim Soul.

The two poems mentioned in the openingexpress perfectly his ideal.

His mantra, Aum Shuddha Shakti Aum,nourishes our souls and guides our stepstoward the inner joy Ananda. It means: thelight of Grace and power of the puresupreme Almighty bless us with peace,happiness and prosperity!

Let the beauty and greatness of soul of Dr.Bharati Shuddhananda bloom and scentthe entire Earth with its divine messageand spiritual and unifying benefactor!

Editions ASSA

Poet NightingaleBharathiyar

I. Verses on Bharathiyar

A. Bharathi Panchakam(Five verses on Bharathiyar)

1. Hail her victory, blow the conchswhite,Sing the glory of the Motherland,in the songs of Bharathi, andDance with the banners of the Motherall around.

2. To the defunct life of the erstwhileflourishing Tamils,Regenerating charge of lightning hashe been,Emerged he to give us a rejuvenatedlife,That we may pray for the welfare of allalike!

3. Driving away fear, breaking the bondsof servitude,

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Rooting out ignoble thoughts raisedthe nation,That it may reach lofty heights in theworld,The immortal poet who conqueredTime!

4. “All are one caste” proclaimed he,Defiling discriminations driving away,Arrived the immortal poet – the cas-cade of words,And a flame burst of fiery heroism!

5. We’ll praise Bharathi in his own pow-erful words,And dance – men and women alltogether,We’ll establish his unfettered divineart,And spread his glory in all the eightdirections.

B. Appearance of Bharathi

a. Slim, golden-creeper-like body had he.Spirited, blazing bright eyes had he.Stirred by emotional words jumpedhe.Jumping and dancing singer was he.

b. “Fright has no place!” said he.Sharp, sword-like moustache had he.Contemptible, bonded life despisedhe.“Ignoble, Ignoble” – feelingly cried he!

c. “Castes there are none”, voiced he.Drums of equality boldly beat he.In the streets singing, strolled abouthe.In a lordly gait strutted about he.

d. The Tamil of the scholars – in the land,Brought into the reach of laymen he.For all women to walk erect in confi-dence,Boldly enunciated laws of equality he.

e. Man of valour, exponent of knowl-edge,Harbinger of novelty, gifted poet,

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Personification of heroic patriotism ishe.Thus shall we extol his glory.

f. To the lack-lustre Tamil -Rendered the vigour of renaissance he.May the fine Tamil he fostered, livelong!And may the fame of Bharathi soarinto the skies!

Poet NightingaleBharathiyar

II. Life Story

1. Poet Nightingale

We celebrated ‘Bharathi Day’ for the firsttime in 1924 in Tamil Gurukulam. Wewent round the town doing bhajan (chant-ing hymns) early in the morning. Therewas a public meeting at 6 o’clock in theevening. Iyer presided. I spoke on thetheme ‘Renaissance Poet Bharathiyar’ fortwo hours. The speech was punctuated bythe melodious rendering of Bharathiyar’ssongs. The elaboration of that speechappeared as ‘Bharathi, an Elucidation’.There was once again bhajan in the night.We sang in great ecstasy Bharathiyar’scompositions along with accompani-ments.

Soon after the singing was over, Iyer gavea short speech on Bharathi, the ‘GiftedPoet’ of Tamil Nadu. Then I continued to

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speak saying, “There have been manygreat poets in the world and many havealready been given titles such as ‘GreatPoet’, ‘Gifted Poet’. We should awardBharathiyar the most suitable title.” All thepeople assembled there were well-versedin the compositions of Bharathiyar. Iyersought the opinion of the gathering. Myfriends came out with a number of titleslike ‘Nationalistic Poet’, ‘Great Poet’, ‘PoetPatriot’, ‘Extempore Poet’, ‘Modern Poet’,‘Regent of Renaissance’, ‘Lord of the Mod-ern Tamil Poetry’ and so on.

Bharathiyar is a Renaissance poet; he hasbreathed a new life into Tamil; it isbecause of him the barren land of Tami-lagam has turned into a grove in spring.He is himself the nightingale of thatgrove. In his Kuyil Pattu (Songs of theNightingale), the poet wants himselftransformed into a nightingale.

Bharathiyar not only composed songs,but sang them himself. One should haveactually heard Bharathi singing his owncompositions. When he sang, Jayabherigai

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Kottada (Beat the drums of Victory) wefelt the drums of victory thundering inour ears. His singing of Engal Muthu-mariyamma (Our Goddess Mariamma)brought forth our Motherland as Muthu-mariyamma to our view. And when hesang Chuttri Nillade Po, Pagaye! Thullivarugudu vel – (Don’t surround us, youEnemy! Go away, the spear of the Lordcomes darting towards you!) in his pow-erful voice and sprang forward, it seemedthat the ‘vel’ (the spear) itself was dartingtowards one.

His devotional rendering of ‘Muruga,Muruga!’ created the vision of MurugaHimself coming on His peacock mountand dancing before us. Bharathiyar’s stir-ring song Bharatha Samudayam (The Soci-ety of Bharath) roused the national spiritamong one and all.

“Thus Bharathiyar was not just a greatpoet, but a nightingale singing melodi-ously with a great depth of feeling. Hence‘Poet Nightingale’ is a befitting title forhim,” said I.

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Then Iyer also said, “Bharathi oftenregarded himself to be a nightingale. InPondicherry, he enjoyed greatly roamingaround in the groves where the nightin-gales were always singing.

Poet Nightingale Bharathiyar

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