Kashmir in Ancient Sanskrit Literature
by Dr. B. N. Kalla
ACCORDING to the Nilmat Purana, the land of Kashmir was occupied by a
vast lake called “Satisara”. Modern geological observations have
supported this legendary view. On the basis of this fact, the word
“Kashmir” is derived from Sanskrit “Kashyapa + Mira” which means the sea
lake or the mountain of sage Kashyapa. Kashyapa was the originator of
Kashmir. In Kashmiri, it is called “Kasheer” and “Kashmir” in the Indian
languages. Phonetically, “m” is eroded here as we find erosion in the
word “Samudra” (ocean). “Samudra” changes into the form of “Sadur”
(derived from Sanskrit Samudra in the Kashmiri language and “Samandra”
in the Indian languages. “M” is retained in Hindi, Urdu, etc. but not in
Kashmiri. Thus “Kashyapa + Mira” = Kashmir in the Indian languages
other than Kashmiri and “Kasheer” in Kashmiri. Mir in English means the
sea as Mariner in Latin Marinus (more- sea).
The name of Kashmir does not occur in the Vedic literature. In the
“Nadi Sukta” of Rig Veda, there is a hymn which mentions the name of
Vitasta (in Kashmiri Veth and modern Jhelum).
Great Grammarians
Among the grammarians, the earliest referenee to Kashmir is found in
Panini’s (500 B.C.) “Ashtadhayi” and in Patanjali’s great commentary on
it. There the term “Kashmir” and its derivation “Kashmira” are stated as
the name of the country and its inhabitants, respectively.
Among the epics, we find the name of “Kashmir” in the Ramayana and
the Mahabharata. The Mahabharata refers in several passages to “Kashmir”
and their king, but in a way which merely indicates that the valley was
situated in the hilly regions to the north of India. Similarly, some of
the Puranas refer to Kashmir in the list of northern nations. The
earliest Sanskrit literature of the valley so far known is the Nilmat
Purana. According to the opinion of Dr.Johann Georg Bühler , a famous
German Indologist: “It is a real mine of information regarding the
sacred places of Kashmir and their legends”. Besides, the reference to
worships prescribed by “Nila” and observed by the people, the work
dilates upon such various topics as the Principal Nagas or sacred
springs of Kashmir, the origin of the “Mahapadamsara” (present Wular
Lake), places dedicated to Shiva and Vishnu, the sacred river
confluences and lakes, the chief pilgrimages of the land and in the end
upon the sanctity of the Vitasta.
Varahmihra (C.A.D. 500), in his Brahtsamhita, includes the Kashmiras
in the north-eastern division of the other tribes who lived in this
region. He mentions the Abhisaras, Daradas, Darvas, Khashas, Kiras,
etc., the tribes which are known from other sources to have inhabited
Kashmir and its neighbouring regions in historical periods. Harasha, a
famous poet (7th Century A.D.), in his “Ratnavali” (drama), refers to
the saffron of the Kashmira country, which was best of all types of
saffrons, both in colour and in scent.
Very useful information
The Nilmat Purana describes the tribes as Nagas, Pishachas, Darvas,
Abhisaras, Gandharas, Shakas, Khashas, Mundavas, Madaras, Yavanas, etc.
In the Atharvasamhita, we find mention of some northern tribes like the
Bahlikas, Mahavarshas, Gandharis and Mujavats. The Brahmnas and the
Upnishdas refer to some of the tribes who lived in the north-west, such
as the Gandharas, Kekyas, Madaras and Ambashthas.
Kshemendra, the polyhister, in his work, namely “Samyamatrika”,
furnishes us with some useful information about the topographical
details of his country. His heroine, Kankali travels through the length
and breadth of Kashmir. To the poet we owe the first reference to
“Pirpanchal” route (Panchadhara). After Kshemendra, Somdeva, the author
of the Kathasaritsagar, describes Kashmir as a region in the south of
the Himalayas by the waters of the Vitasta. He mentions some of the holy
sites of the valley, such as Vijayakshetra, Nandikshetra, Varahkshetra
and Uttarmansa and the town of Hiranypura.
The temple of Shivavijayesha or Vijayeshwara, since ancient times one
of the most famous shrines of the valley, has given its name to the
town in which it was situated, Vijayeshwara, the modern Vijabror 75¡9′
long, 33¡48′ lat. “Bror” in Kashmiri means God, a derivative of Sanskrit
Bhattaraka, corresponding to Ishvara.
The name, Nandikshetra, is given by the Nilmata, the Nandikshetra and
Harmukta Mahatmyas to a high alpine valley at the foot of the east
glaciers of the Harmukh peaks which contains the sacred Kalodakalake,
popularly known as Nundkol. The Nanikshetra includes the ncighbouring
site of Bhuteshwara or Buthsher, in the Kankanai valley below Nandkol.
Varahkshetra is modern Baramulla.
Ganga Lake
Uttarmansa is meant the sacred Ganga lake situated below the eastern glaciers of Mount Harmukh and popularly known as Gangabal.
Hiranypura, the town founded by Hranyaksha at Ranyal, a village
situated circ. 74¡52 long. 34¡12 lat. close to the high road which leads
from Srinagar to Ganderbal and the Sindh Valley.
Bilhana, the contemporary of Kalhana, lived during the reigns of King
Kalsha and Harsha. He also left an account of his native valley. In his
Vikramandekadeva Charita, he gives us a vivid picture of the Kashmirian
capital and the village of Khonomusha (present Khonmoh) where he took
birth. His account, apart from its poetic beauties, is full of local
details. In addition to it, he has given the description of the language
of his time. As per his version, Sanskrit and hakrit were in use like
their mother-tongue.
Historical document
For the history, as well as for the early geography of the valley,
Kalhana’s Rajtarangini is a very important historical document. In the
first Taranga of his work, he gives us an account of the legends
relating to the creation of Kashmir and its sacred river, the Vitasta,
and refers, besides, to the most famous of the many Tirthas in which
Kashmir was abundant. For the historical geography of Kashmir is the
mass of incidental references of topographical interest scattered
throughout his work.
Ancient Kashmir was really rich in holy places and the objects of
pilgrimages were planted throughout the valley. According to the
Rajtarangini, Kashmir was a country where there was not a space as large
as a grain of sesamum without a Tirtha. The springs (Naag in Kashmiri),
which had their tutelary deities in the form of Nagas, the streams and
the rivers, in particular sacred legends attached to each of them,
innumerable places connected with the worship of various gods and
goddesses – all these and many more have been frequently mentioned by
Kalhana. They have some topographical importance as they enable us to
trace with more or less certainty the early history of most of the
popular places of pilgrims visited up to present day. The marvellous
accuracy of Kalhana’s topographical knowledge about some of the Tirthas
tends to show that he visited them personally.
A number of feferences made by Kalhana regarding the origin of towns,
cities, villages, estates and shrines are also of topographical
importance. His knowledge about the birth of these towns and shrines
seems to have been gathered from the inscriptions, recording the
consecration of temples and grants of land by former kings.
Accurate description
The system of nomenclature followed in ancient Kashmir preserved a
genuine tradition regarding their founder. In the cases of towns and
cities, the appellation “Pura” is attached to the name of the founder.
In the cases of religious structures, terms indicating the deity or the
object to which the building was dedicated follow.
The notices for the foundations of the towns, etc. made by Kalhana,
are sometimes accompanied by accurate description of the sites chosen
and of structures connected with them. Mention may be made in this
connection about his descriptions of the towns of Pravarapura,
Parihaspura and Jayapura Dwarvati. It is Kalhana’s accurate dcscription
which alone has helped future scholars to idenlify some of the ruined
sites of present times with the famed cities of the past. The seventh
and eighth Tarangas of Rajtarangini are full and elaborate with detailed
topographical intormation. Kalhana, incidentally, tells us so much
about the various localities connected with those events – we can
clearly trace them from the map. His topographical exactness is
strikingly revealed from such accounts as the regulation of the waters
of the Vitasta by Suyya, the sieges of Shrinagar under Sussala, the
battle on the Gopadari hill in the same period, the blockade of Lohara
and the siege of the Shirahshila castle.
Description of Kashmir
The poet, Mankha, was a contemporary of Kalhana. In the third canto
of his work – Shrikanthacharita – he gives an account of Pravarpura, the
capital of Kashmir.
Among other texts of topographical interest, mention may be made of
Haracharitachintamani of Jayadratha. Jayadratha belonged to the end of
the 12th century AD or the beginning of the 13th century AD. In his 32
cantos, he deals with a number of legends connected with Shiva and his
Avatars Of these, eight legends are centred round well-known Kashmirian
Tirthas and afford the author an opportunity of describing various
sacred sites of Kashmir, connected directly or indirectly with them.
Jayadratha’s detailed description shows the gradual development of
legends connected with different places of pilgrimage since the days of
Kalhana.
The numerous Mahatmyas of Kashmir are also interesting sources for
early historical geography. Thus the fole of Mahatmyas in describing the
topography of the valley cannot be ruled out. They give us a good
intormation regarding the ancient nomenclature of Kashmir. Among the 51
Mahatmyas, the Vitasta Mahatmya is a big one which is divided into 35
Patalas. They generally set forth the different legends connected with
various places of pilgrimage, the merit to be appeared by their visits
and the rites to be performed in each of the sites. They contain many
early materials and local traditions and are thus vaiuahle for a
systemalic study of the old topography of the valley.
References
1. The Nilamat Purana Vol I; Dr. Ved Kumari
2. Early History and Culture of Kashmir: Dr Sunil Chandra Ray
3. Panini’s Ashtadhyayi (Ganapatha)
4. Rajtarangini’s English (translation): M. A. Stein.
5. Kashir Dictionary. vol IV, published hy Jammu & Kashmir Academy of Art, Culture & Languages.
The author has given an etymology of 40,000 words of Kashmiri
language up to the last volume – Vol VII of Kashmiri Dictionary
published by Jammu and Kashmir Cultural Academy, Srinagar.
6. Webster’s Encyclopaedia Dictionary of the English Language.
A Sanskrit scholar and linguist, Dr. Kala is presently with the Department of Sanskrit, Delhi University.
By Arthur A. MacDonell
Of Corpus Chris
Publ. 1900
Kashmiri Language Culture and Linguistics
1. Introduction
2. Genealogical Classification and Dialect Survey
3. Phonetics and Phonology
4. Grammars and Grammatical Studies
5. Sociolinguistics
6. Lexicography
7. Socio-cultural and Historical Studies
8. Folklore
9. Literature
References
Index
1. Introduction
An annotated bibliography of the available source materials in a
language is an important aid for a researcher. in recent years,
there has been an increasing interest in preparation of different
types of bibliographies in languages. No detailed bibliography
was available for Kashmiri for a long period of time. Schmidt
and Koul (1983) have compiled Kohitani to Kashmiri: An
Annotated Bibliography of Dardic languages which includes
bibliographical references of the available source materials in
Shina, Kashmiri and other languages. Since it is developed to
different languages of Dardic Group of languages, it has limited
references related to Kashmiri. It is out of print now.
This annotated bibliography contains bibliographical
references of all prominent works on Kashmiri language,
linguistics, culture and literature which are available from the
19th century onwards. Serious research work on Kashmiri
language, and linguistics commenced around the end of
nineteenth century. A number of European as well as Indian
scholars have worked on Kashmiri at different linguistic levels:
phonetics and phonology, morphology and syntax, semantics,
lexicon etc. Research work has been done in the areas of history,
culture, folklore and literature as well. With an increasing
interest in the teaching and learning of Kashmiri as a second/
foreign language, various language teaching courses have also
been produced.
The bibliography is classified into eight major subjects. A
review of the available materials is presented in the beginning of
each chapter. Following are the subject heads:
1. Genealogical Classification and Dialects Survey
2. Phonetics and Phonology
3. Grammar and Grammatical Studies
4. Sociolinguistics
5. Lexicography
6. Socio-culture and Historical Studies
7. Folklore
8. Literature
All the entries start with author’s name followed by year of
publication, title, name, place of publication and name of
publishers. In case of journals the name of the journal, volume
and issue numbers are given. The information about articles
written in Kashmiri, Urdu, Hindi have been collected from
different journals and edited books. The titles of Kashmiri,
Hindi-Urdu articles and books have been translated into English
and given in parentheses. All Kashmiri, Hindi and Urdu entries
have been transcribed into Roman. Each major entry is followed
by annotation. The annotation provides general information on
the subject of the title. Wherever exact dates of publication are
not available, information regarding the dates has been left out. I
have also incorporated some unpublished dissertations which
have come to my notice.
I have listed each entry in full with its annotation, if any,
under its primary subject heading. Other subjects treated in the
work are also indicated. I have left those articles un-annotated
whose content is apparent from the title itself.
The bibliography has been compiled keeping in view the
need of students, researchers, teachers and librarians. This will
be useful especially for those researchers who need information
regarding such resource materials pertinent to their research. The
listing of articles, books and dissertations under different
classified subjects may be helpful to obtain up to date
information of the studies related to different aspects of
Kashmiri language, linguistics, culture and literature. The
bibliographical reference may help in avoiding duplication of
work by the researchers. The bibliographical reference will be
useful to the librarians for collecting the source materials on
different subjects. The librarians and supervisors can provide
necessary information to researchers to secure data on specific
subjects.
1. Genealogical Classification and Dialect
Survey
The Kashmiri language is primarily spoken in the Kashmiri
valley of the state of Jammu and Kashmir in India. It is called
..
k:shur or kshir zaba:n by its native speakers and the valley is
called kshi:r. As per the census figures of 1981 there were
30,76,398 native speakers of the language. No census was
conducted in 1991.
The issue related to the origin or genealogical classification
of Kashmiri has been discussed at length. Grierson has placed
Kashmiri under the Dardic group of languages. He has classified
Dardic languages under three major groups: 1. The Kafir Group,
2. The Khowar or Chitrali Group, and 3. The Dard Group.
According to his classification, the Dard Group includes Shina,
Kashmiri, Kashtawari, Poguli, Siraji, Rambai, and Kohistani –
the last comprising Garwi, Torwali and Maiya.
Grierson considers the Dardic languages to be sub-family of
the Aryan languages “neither of Indian nor of Iranian origin, but
(forming) a third branch of Aryan stock, which separated from
the parent stem after the branching forth of original of the Indian
languages, but before the Iranian languages had developed all
their peculiar characteristics” (1906:4). He has further observed
that ‘Dardic’ is only a geographical convention. Morgenstierne
(1961) has placed Kashmiri under the Dardic Group of Indo-
Aryan languages along with Kashtawari and other dialects which
are strongly influenced by Dogri. Fussman (1972) has based his
work on that Morgenstierne’s classification. He has also
emphasized that the Dardic is a geographical and not a linguistic
expression. It is not in the absence of reliable comparative data
about Dardic languages, a geographic or ethnographic label
‘Dardic’ is frequently used to identity a group of languages or
dialects.
According to Chaterjee (1963:256) Kashmiri has developed
like other Indo-Aryan languages out of the Indo-European family
of languages and is to be considered as a branch of Indo-Aryan
like Hindi, Punjabi etc. This option is held by other scholars as
well. well.
The classification of Dardic languages has been reviewed in
some works (Kachru 1969, Strand 1973, Koul and Schmidt
1984) with different purposes in mind. Kachru points out
linguistic characteristics of Kashmiri. Strand presents his
observations on Kafir languages. Koul and Schmidt have
reviewed the literature on the classification of Dardic languages
and have investigated the linguistic characteristics or features of
the languages with special reference to Kashmiri and Shina.
There has been little linguistically oriented dialect research
on Kashmiri so far. There are two types of dialects: (a) Regional
dialects, and (b) Social dialects. Regional Dialects are of two
types: (1) those regional dialects or variations which are spoken
within the valley of Kashmiri, and those which are spoken in the
regions outside the valley of Kashmiri.
Kashmiri speaking areas in the valley of Kashmir is divided
into three regions: (1) Maraz (southern and south eastern region),
(2) Kamraz (northern and north-west region, and (3) Srinagar
and its neighboring areas. There are some minor linguistic
variations in Kashmiri spoken in these areas. The main variations
being phonological, and in the use of certain vocabulary items.
Some of the main characteristics of those speech variations are
as follows:
1.
Kashmiri spoken in Maraz area retain the flap/r,/ which
is replaced by /r/ in Kashmiri spoken in Srinagar.
2.
The progressive or Indefinite aspect suffix -an is added
to the verb roots in Kashmiri spoken in Maraz, which is
replaced by -a:n in another two varieties.
3.
Kashmiri spoken in Kamraz distinguishes itself from the
variety spoken in Maraz as well as Srinagar mainly use
of intonation and stress.
4.
A number of vocabulary items are different in Kashmiri
spoken in the above three regions.
All the above linguistics variations are not very significant.
Kashmiri spoken in the three regions is not only mutually
intelligible, but quite homogeneous. These dialectical variations
can be termed as different styles of the same speech. Since
Kashmiri spoken in Srinagar has gained some social prestige,
very frequently style switching takes place from Marazi or
Kamrazi styles to the style of speech spoken in Srinagar. The
phenomenon of ‘style switching’ is very common among the
educated speakers of Kashmir. Kashmiri spoken in Srinagar and
surrounding areas continues to hold the prestige of being the
standard variety which is used in education, mass-media and
literature.
Kashmiri spoken in Srinagar has gained some social prestige,
very frequently style switching takes place from Marazi or
Kamrazi styles to the style of speech spoken in Srinagar. The
phenomenon of ‘style switching’ is very common among the
educated speakers of Kashmir. Kashmiri spoken in Srinagar and
surrounding areas continues to hold the prestige of being the
standard variety which is used in education, mass-media and
literature.
In the literature available in Kashmiri (Grierson 1919,
Kachru 1969) including the census reports, following regional
dialects of Kashmiri spoken outside the valley of the Kashmir
have been listed: Kashtawari, Poguli, Rambani and Siraji do not
share any of the typical linguistic characteristics with Kashmiri.
Rambani and Siraji are closely related dialects which share some
features such as the semantic dimensions of the pronominal
system, some morphology and a substantial portion of their
vocabulary (mostly borrowed from common source) with
Kashmiri. The term Kohistani has no precise linguistic
significance. It cannot be therefore recognize as a dialect of
Kashmiri. This leaves out Kashtawari and Poguli probably the
only two regional dialects of Kashmiri spoken outside the valley
of Kashmir.
Poguli is spoken in Pogul and Paristan valleys bordered in
the east by Kashtawari, on the south by Rambani and Siraji, and
on the west by mixed dialects of Lahanda and Pahari. The
speakers of Poguli are found mainly to the south, south-east and
south-west of Banihal. Poguli shares many linguistic features
including 70% vocabulary with Kashmiri. Literate Poguli
speakers of Pogul and Paristan valleys speak the standard
Kashmiri as well.
Kashtawari is spoken in Kashtawar valley, lying to the
south-east of Kashmir. It is bordered on the south by
Bhadarwahi, on the west by Chibbali and Punchi, and on the east
by the Tibetan speaking region of Zanskar. According to
Grierson (1919:233), Kashtawari is one true dialect of Kashmiri.
It shares most linguistic features of standard Kashmiri, but
retains some archaic features which have disappeared from the
latter. It shares about 80% vocabulary with Kashmiri (Koul and
Schmidt 1984). Schmidt 1984).
No detailed sociolinguistic research work has been
conducted to study speech variations of Kashmiri spoken by
different communities and speakers who belong to different
professions and occupations. In some earlier works beginning
with Grierson (1919:233) distinction has been pointed out in
speech variations of Hindus and Muslims-two major
communities who speak Kashmiri natively. Kachru (1969) has
used the term Sanskritized Kashmiri and Persianized Kashmiri
to denote the two style difference on the grounds of some
variation in pronunciation, morphology and vocabulary used by
Hindus and Muslims respectively. It is true that most of the
distinct vocabulary used by Hindus is derived from Sanskrit, and
that used by Muslims is derived from Perso-Arabic sources. On
considering phonological and morphological variations (besides
vocabulary) between these two dialects, the terms used by
Kachru do not appear to be adequate enough to represent the two
socio-dialectical variations of style and speech. The dichotomy
of these social dialects is not always clear-cut. One can notice a
process of style switching between the speakers of these two
communities. The style switching depends on different situations
and periods of contact between the participants of the two
communities at various social, educational and other levels.
Bibliographical references and annotations of the prominent
works are given below.
Afaq Aziz 1994. dard kha:nda:ncan mukhtapliph zaba:nan
kha:skar k:shur, shina: tkohist:n’ hund akh taqa:bali:
.
muta:l ( A comparative study of various languages of Dard
group with special reference to Kashmiri, Kohistani and
Shina). University of Kashmir Ph.D. dissertation
(unpublished). Provides data from different dialects related
too Dardic group of languages.
Banihali, Marghub 1997. Poguli-k:shiri zab:n’ h nz akh
ham
bu:l’ [Kashmiri] (Poguli – an important dialect of Kashmiri).
Anhar, vol. 1, no. 1, pp. 33-48. Demarcates the Poguli speaking
area and points out regional varieties of the dialect. It also
mentions some linguistic characteristic of Poguli.
nhar, vol. 1, no. 1, pp. 33-48. Demarcates the Poguli speaking
area and points out regional varieties of the dialect. It also
mentions some linguistic characteristic of Poguli.
Ganju, Triloki Nath 1975. Kashmiri bha:sha: ka: udbhav aur
vika:s tatha: anya bha:ha:õ se uska: sambandh (Origin and
development of Kashmiri and its relationship with other
languages). Doctoral dissertation, The University of
Kashmir (unpublished). Traces the history and the
development of the Kashmiri language. Attempts to show its
genetic relationship with Sanskrit and Apbhramsha. Most of
the rules postulated for justifying the arguments, however,
are not convincing and deserve a serious revision.
Ganju, Triloki Nath 1977. k
:shiri zab
:n’ mutalakh akh nov
so• :c (A new thought on the Kashmiri language). Anhar,
vol.1, no.1, pp. 6-35. Reviews Grieson’s classification of
Kashmir with Shina in the Dardic group of languages, and
argues against it.
Grierson, George A. 1906. The Pisaca languages of north-
Western India. London: The royal Asiatic Society. Reprinted
Delhi: Munshiram Manoharlal, 1969, pp. vii +192. This
work outlines Grierson’s classification of ‘Modern Pisaca’
languages, and is the basis for his vol. 8 of the LSI. Although
the classification has been superseded, it is still a useful
work which bristles with phonological detail, derivations and
sound correspondences.
Grierson, George A. 1915. The Linguistic Classification of
Kashmiri. Indian Antiquary, vol. 44, pp. 257-270.
Presents a brief account of his classification of the Dardic
speeches under the designation of Pisaca languages.
Grierson, George A. 1910. Indo-Aryan Family, North Western
group: Specimens of the Dardic or Pisaca languages
(including Kashmiri). Linguistic survey of India, vol. 8, Part
2. Calcutta, Reprinted Delhi : Motital Banarasidas, 1968.
567p., Folding maps. Vols. 1, 8, Parts 1, and 2, 9, Part 1, and
10 also reprinted Lahore: Accurate Printers, 1982. It is a
compilation of vocabularies, skeleton grammars and texts of
three “Kafir and Dardic” languages. Grierson was one of the
first scholars to address the problem of classifying these
languages, and while his classification in no longer generally
accepted, it continues to provide a point of departure for
debate and reclassification.
compilation of vocabularies, skeleton grammars and texts of
three “Kafir and Dardic” languages. Grierson was one of the
first scholars to address the problem of classifying these
languages, and while his classification in no longer generally
accepted, it continues to provide a point of departure for
debate and reclassification.
Jalali, J. L. K. 1979. kshi:r, k:shi:r’ t
k:shir z’av [Kashmir,
the Kashmiris and the Kashmiri language]. Anhar, vol. 3,
no. 1, pp. 67-71. Presents a brief description of Kashmiri,
Kashmiri people and the Kashmiri language. Attempts to
provide some examples for demonstrating the proximity of
Kashmiri and Vedic Sanskrit.
Kachru, Braj B. 1969. Kashmiri and other Dardic languages.
Sebeok, Thomas A. (ED), Current trends in linguistic, vol.
5, pp. 284-306. The Hague: Mounton. Reviews the earlier
classification of Kashmiri and other Dardic languages made
by Grierson and Morgenstierne, and mentions some
linguistic characteristics of Kashmiri.
Kalla, Badri Nath 1977. k:shiri zab:n’ manz ve:dik zab :n’
hund unsur (Vedic elements in the Kashmiri language).
Anha:r, vol. 1, no. 1, pp. 49-62. Attempts to illustrate
similarities between the Vedic Sanskrit and Kashmiri at the
lexical and some grammatical levels, with the aid of
examples.
Koul, Omkar N.1984. Kashmiri. George, K. M. (Ed)
Comparative Indian Literature vol. 1. Trivandrum : Kerala
Sahitya Akademi and Macmillan. Discusses linguistic
characteristics of Kashmiri very briefly.
Koul, Omkar N. (Forthcoming). Dardic Languages. In Prakasam,
V. (ed.) An Encyclopedic Dictionary of Linguistic and
Sciences. New Delhi: Allied Publishers. Reviews the
classification of Dardic languages very briefly with special
reference to Kashmiri.
Koul, Omkar N. (Forthcoming). The Kashmiri language. In
Handbook of Indian Languages, Mysore: Central Institute
of Indian Languages. Presents a brief description of the
Kashmiri language.
language. In
Handbook of Indian Languages, Mysore: Central Institute
of Indian Languages. Presents a brief description of the
Kashmiri language.
Koul, Omkar N. and Ruth Laila Schmidt 1984. Dardistan
revised: An examination of relationship between Kashmiri
and Shina. In Koul, Omkar N. and Peter E. Hook (eds.) ,
Aspects of Kashmiri linguistics. New Delhi: Bahri
Publications, pp. 1-26. Reviews previous classification and
presents a comparison of four Kashmiri and four Shina
dialects, based on an analysis of typological features,
survival of archaism, and shared vocabulary.
Mahafooz Jan 1992. kshi:r tk:shir zaba:n: akh lis:niy:ti:
j:yz(Kashmir and the Kashmiri language: A linguistic
study). Srinagar: Bavath publications. A collection of articles
related to mother tongue education, language, society and
community.
Masica, Colin P. 1991. The Indo-Aryan languages. Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press. Discuss certain linguistic
characteristics of Kashmiri.
Mujoo, Ramesh 1982. Position of languages in State of Jammu
and Kashmir. Bose, Kshanika and R.C. Shrivastava (eds.)
Reading in Language Studies, pp. 193-210. New Delhi:
Metropolitan. Presents a review of the use of language in
Jammu and Kashmir. Suggest an outline for the use of
languages in the state’s language curriculum.
Prem Singh (forthcoming). Position of Kashmiri: Rethinking
about Grierson’s theory in C. Ramarao Felicitation
Volume.Osmania University.
Schmidt, Ruth Laila 1981. Report on a survey of Dardic
languages of Kashmir. Indian Linguistics. vol.41.
A brief report on the projects which furnished the data base
for Koul and Schmidt 1984, “Dardistan revisited”. The
major points of that paper are summarized.
for Koul and Schmidt 1984, “Dardistan revisited”. The
major points of that paper are summarized.
Schmidt, Ruth Laila and Omkar N. Koul (Forthcoming). The
Kashmiri Language. In An Encyclopaedia of the Languages
of the Muslims World, Parsis: G.R.L.M. Presents a survey of
Kashmir language and literature elaborating on the influence
of the Muslim World.
Verma, Sidheshwar 1940. Notes on a linguistic tour of Kashmir.
Indian Linguistics vol. 8. pp. 478-483. Briefly illustrates
some linguistic characteristics of Khasi and some other
unexplored dialects in Riasi and in the Kashmir valley.
Zainagiri, A. K. Tak 1967. k:shir’uk ala:kva:d phe:rtk:shir
zaba:n (Regional Variations of Kashmir and Kashmiri
Language). Srinagar. 520 p. Lists lexical variation of some
Kashmiri vocabulary items in different regions of the
Kashmiri speaking areas.
Zakharyin, Boris A. 1984. Kashmiri and the Typology of South
Asian Languages. In Koul, Omkar N. and Peter Edwin Hook
(eds.) Aspects of Kashmiri Linguistics. New Delhi: Bahri
Publications. pp. 27-45. Presents quantitative typological
indexes of Kashmiri and eight other languages of South
Asia, and comments about their implications for early
contacts.
2. Phonetics and Phonology
Kashmiri has peculiar phonetic and phonological characteristics
which it does not share with other Indo-Aryan languages. These
peculiar characteristics have generated a lot of interest among
the foreign and native scholars. The phonemic inventory of
Kashmiri vowels and consonants is as follows:
(1) Vowels
Front Central Back
High i i: : u u:
Mid e e: : o o:
Low a a: .
(2)
Consonants
Bila. Den. Retro. Pala. Vel. Glo.
Stops:
vl. anas p. t tk
vl. asp ph th th kh
vd. unas b d d.
g
Affricates:
vl. unas ts c
vl. asp tsh ch
vd. unas j
Nasals: m n
Fricatives:
vl. s šh
vd. z
Lateral: l
Trill: r
Semivowels: v y
Abbreviations: Bila (Bilabial), Den (Dental), Retro (Retroflex)
Pala (Palatal, Vel (Velar), Glo (Glottal). Pala (Palatal, Vel (Velar), Glo (Glottal).
The length of the vowels is represented by the sign colon [:]
written after the vowel sign. All the vowels can be nasalized.
The nasalization is phonemic in Kashmiri. It is represented by
the nasal sign written above the vowel sign. Note that the vowel
/o:/ is diphthongised as /o:/ in the word-medical position of
words (bo:r ‘load’, bro:r ‘cat’, etc.). Other diphthongs /u / and
/u:/ also occur in a few words in the word-medical positions
only (shur ‘a female child’ as opposed to shur ‘a male child’,
tsur ‘a female thief’ as opposed to tsu:r ‘a male thief’). Grierson
has talked about ma:tra: vowels in Kashmiri. His description of
vowels has been reviewed in Koul (1987).
All the non-palatal consonants in Kashmiri can be
palatalized. Palatalization is phonemic. There is a contrast
between non-palatalized and palatalized consonants in the
language. The palatalization of the consonants is represented by
the sign apostrophe [’] written after the consonant sign.
Geminated consonants do not occur in Kashmiri. There is no
word accent or tone in Kashmiri. There are word-final,
sentences-medial and sentence-final junctures and sentence
accents.
Description of speech sounds is available in Kachru (1969,
1973), Handoo (1973), Koul (1977, 1985, and 1987), Bhat
(1987) Wali and Koul (1997,2004), etc. Kelkar and Trisal
(1964). Sar (1970, 1977) has described certain phonological
aspects of Kashmiri. No detailed phonetic and phonological
studies in Kashmir have been carried out so far.
Bibliographical references of important works on the
subjects are presented below:
Acharya, K. P. 1965. Phonology of Kashmiri with particular
reference to vowel system. M. A. thesis. Osmania University
(unpublished). Presents a very sketchy description of
Kashmiri vowels.
Bailey, T. Grahame 1937. The pronunciation of Kashmiri:
Kashmiri sounds: how to make them and how to transcribe
them. London: The Royal Asiatic Society. vi+70p.
Diagrams, Vocabulary. Presents a first detailed description
of speech sounds of Kashmiri. It is based on Grierson’s
work.
of speech sounds of Kashmiri. It is based on Grierson’s
work.
Firth, J. R. 1939. Kashmiri (Specimen). Le Mitre Phonetique, 3rd
series, no. 65, pp. 67-68. A short text (The North Wind and
the Sun) in phonetic transcription, with a tentative analysis
of vowels consonants. A useful companion to Bailey 1937
and Morgenstierne 1941.
Grierson, George A. 1904. On the modern Indo-Aryan alphabets
of north-western India. JRAS pp. 67-73. Contains a note of
the Sharda script, with plates showing the Gurmukhi,
Lahnda, Takri and Sharda scripts.
Handoo, Jawahar Lal 1973. Kashmiri phonetic reader. Mysore
Central Institute of Indian Languages. ix+109p. Provides a
brief description of the articulation of Kashmiri speech
sounds, and contains sections on phonetic drills and phonetic
contrasts. An appendix outlines methods of adapting the
Nastaliq and Devanagri writing systems to Kashmiri. Useful
for students for Kashmiri as a second as a second/foreign
language.
Joshi, S. S. 1979. Kashmiri phonology. Paper presented in the
seminar on Kashmiri. Patiala: NRLC. Mimeo, 10p.
Kelkar, Ashok, R. and Pran Nath Trisal 1964. Kashmiri word
phonology: A first sketch. Anthropological Linguistics, vol.
6, no. 1, pp. 13-22. Presents a brief introduction, inventory
of Kashmiri phonemes, their contrasts and phonetic
correlations, distributional limitations, along with
orthographic recommendations.
Koul, Omkar N. 1987. k:širi zab:n’ h nd’an buniy :d’
musvatan hnz nisha:ndihi: tGrierson (Grierson and the
demarcation of Kashmiri vowels). In Anha:r (Grierson
number), vol.10, no. 3.
Koul, Omkar N. (Forthcoming) The Kashmiri language. In
Encyclopedia of Dravidan Linguistics. Trivandrum:
Dravidan Linguistic society.
The Kashmiri language. In
Encyclopedia of Dravidan Linguistics. Trivandrum:
Dravidan Linguistic society.
Morgenstierne, George 1941. The phonology of Kashmiri. In
Acta Orientalia, vol. 1, pp. 79-99. Based on a comparison of
transcription systems used for Kashmiri vowels by Grierson,
Bailey, Fifth, Stein, Elmslie and Govind Kaul; the author
discusses the inventory of Kashmiri vowels.
Nazki, Rashid 1977. k :šur imla: mas :il t hal (The problems of
script in Kashmiri). In Anhar vol. 1, no. 2, pp. 21-46.
Points out certain problems in the use of Kashmiri script to
represent Kashmiri speech sounds, and suggests solutions.
Prem Singh (forthcoming). Introduction to Historical phonology
of Kashmiri. In South Asian Language Review.
Pushp, P. N. 1973. k :š r zab :n’ za:n (An introduction to
Kashmiri) So:n Adab Srinagar: J&K Academy of Art,
Culture and Languages. pp. 6-31. Presents a brief
introduction to Kashmiri phonology, morphology and
syntax, in the Kashmiri language.
Raina, S. N. 1979. A contrastive study of Kashmiri and Hindi
phonology. Paper presented in the seminar on Kashmiri.
Patiala: NRLC. Mimeo 15p.
Sar, Mohan Lal 1970. A study of some aspects of phonemics and
morphophonemics of Kashmiri. M. Litt, thesis. University of
Delhi: (unpublished).
Sar, Mohan Lal 1979. Vowel Harmony in Kashmiri. Paper
presented in the Seminar on Kashmiri. Patiala: NRL Mimeo,
18 p.
Toshkhani, S. K. 1977. k :šur rasmi khat : brõh t az. Anhar
vol. no. 2. Srinagar, pp. 5-20. Presents the problems in the
use of development of Sharda and Perso-Arabic scripts for
Kashmiri and offers suggestions for the standardization of
the Kashmiri Script. the Kashmiri Script.
Verma, Sidheshwar 1964. Syllabification in the Kashmiri
language. Abercrombe, David et. al., (eds.) In Honor of
Daniel Jones. Papers contributed on the occasion of his
eighteenth birthday. London: Longmans, Green and
Company. pp. 471-474.
Zakharyin, B.A. 1974. Problemy fonoligii jazika Kashmiri.
(Phonological problems in Kashmiri language). Moscow :
Academy of Sciences, pp. 162. The introduction compares
description of Kashmiri phonology by Grierson, Isvara
Kaula, Morgenstierne, Kelkar and Trisal. Chapter I deals
with acoustic features with Kashmiri sounds as analyzed in
the phonetic laboratories of Leningrad University, and pays
special attention to vowels. Chapter 2 deals with
paradigmatic and syntagmatic characteristics of Kashmiri
phonemes; and chapter 4 addresses prosodic structures and
morphophonemics. The book is written in Russian language.
3. Grammars and Grammatical Studies
Various attempts have been made to present grammars and
grammatical studies related to different aspects of Kashmiri,
from the early 19 century onwards. The grammatical literature of
Kashmiri comprises a variety of materials written in the form of
brief notes, articles, monographs, dissertations, independent
grammatical sketches, and grammars. A brief survey of some of
the prominent works will be presented below.
Some of the earlier works on the Kashmiri grammar are
important and deserve attention of scholars. They include
Edgeworth (1814) and Leech (1884). Leech (1884) is a first
complete sketch of Kashmiri grammar written by European
scholar from pedagogical point of view.
A first serious attempt was made by Ishwara Kaul to present
a complete grammatical description of Kashmiri in his Kashmira
Shabdamritan (Grammar of Kashmiri Language) written in
Sanskrit in 1979. This grammar was edited by George A.
Grierson and published by the Asiatic Society of Bengal in 1889.
Grierson describes this work as ‘an excellent grammar of
Kashmiri.’ This book is now available in a new edition with
Hindi translation by Ananta Ram Shastri (Delhi, 1985).
Grierson has contributed to Kashmiri by his numerous
works. He wrote articles entitled ‘On pronominal suffixes in the
Kashmiri language’, ( JASB, vol. 64, no.1), and ‘On secondary
suffixes in Kashmiri’ ( JASB, vol. 64, no.1), based on the work of
Ishwara Kaul. Grierson has also written Standard manual of the
Kashmiri language (2 volumes) comprising grammar, English-
Kashmiri sentences and Kashmiri-English vocabulary. This was
originally published in Oxford 1911 and reprinted by Light and
Life Publishers, Rohtak in 1973. It presents a brief grammatical
sketch of Kashmiri. He has provided a brief grammatical sketch
of Kashmiri in his Linguistic Survey of India (originally
published in 1919), vol. 8, Part 2.
Burkhard (1887-1889) has written on different grammatical
aspects of Kashmiri in German. Some of his works have been
translated into English by Grierson. Grierson’s articles on
different aspects of Kashmiri linguistics published earlier were
also published in a book form under the title Essays on Kashmiri
Language in 1899 in Calcutta.
-1889) has written on different grammatical
aspects of Kashmiri in German. Some of his works have been
translated into English by Grierson. Grierson’s articles on
different aspects of Kashmiri linguistics published earlier were
also published in a book form under the title Essays on Kashmiri
Language in 1899 in Calcutta.
It is only for the last four decades or so that some serious
work on grammatical studies in Kashmiri has been carried out.
This work is available in the form of research articles,
dissertations and independent grammatical sketches or
grammars.
Trisal’s doctoral dissertation (1964) provides a first
descriptive grammar of Kashmiri written in Hindi. It describes
Kashmiri phonology, morphology and syntax in the traditional
descriptive framework.
Kachru (1969) provides a grammatical description of
Kashmiri. This grammar contains an introduction and chapters
dealing with phonetics, phonology, word formation, word
clauses, the noun phrase, the verb phrase, the adverbial phrase,
and the sentence types. It is the first attempt at a comprehensive
treatment of Kashmiri. It is mimeographed and has a very
limited circulation. Kachru (1968) provides a description of
some syntactic and semantic aspects of copula verb in Kashmiri.
His ‘Kashmiri and other Dardic languages’ reviews earlier
classification of Kashmiri and other Dardic languages and
mentions some linguistic characteristics of Kashmiri. Another
important work of Kachru (1973) primarily contains lessons for
learning Kashmiri as a second or foreign language. It has
grammatical and cultural notes on Kashmiri. He has elaborated
the discussion of various grammatical aspects. This book also
has a limited circulation.
Koul (1977) provides a first detailed description of certain
morphological and syntactic aspects of Kashmiri. It has chapters
on noun phrase, the adjective phrase, auxiliary, the verb phrase,
questions, coordinate conjunctions, reduplication, kinship terms
and lexical borrowings. Koul (1985, 1987) provides description
of the basic grammatical structures of Kashmiri along with
lessons. These courses have been prepared and are being used
for teaching Kashmiri as a second language to in-service
teachers as Northern Regional Language Center, Patiala, and
also to civil service officers at the LBS National Academy of
Administration, Mussoorie.
also to civil service officers at the LBS National Academy of
Administration, Mussoorie.
Two grammars on Kashmiri have been written in Kashmiri
so far by Naji Munawar and Shafi Shauq (1976), and Nishant
Ansari (1976). Both these grammars provide a very brief
description of traditional grammatical terms in Kashmiri. Their
main contribution has been in introducing Kashmiri terms for
traditional grammatical terms used in Urdu.
A few doctoral dissertations submitted to various universities
are devoted to different grammatical aspects of Kashmiri. R. K.
Bhat’s doctoral dissertation (1980) no w published in book-form
(1986) describes phonology and morphology of Kashmiri in
detail. Mohan Lal Sar (1981) describes verbal inflections of
Kashmiri. Sushila Sar (1977) critically examines the description
of the Kashmiri language as made by Ishwar Kaul. Raj Nath
Bhat (1981) describes pragmatic aspects of Kashmiri. Maharaj
Krishen Koul’s dissertation (1982) now available in book form
(1986) provides description of certain grammatical aspects of
Kashmiri. Andrabi (1984) presents description of reference and
co-reference in Kashmiri. Dhar (1984) provides the discussion of
certain phonological and grammatical aspects of Kashmiri
spoken in the district of Baramulla in the Kashmir valley and
makes comparison of certain grammatical characteristics of
Kashmiri from sociolinguistic point of view. Vijay Kumar Koul
(1985) attempts to provide the description of compound verbs in
Kashmiri. Kantroo (1985) provides the contrastive study of
certain grammatical features with special reference to certain
minority languages of Kashmiri. Soom Nath Raina’s dissertation
(1985) now available in print form (1990) has discussed
pedagogical problems in the teaching of Kashmiri as a second
language. As may be seen from the titles and contents of these
dissertations, various grammatical aspects related to Kashmiri
have attracted the attention of research scholars. Most of these
dissertations are unpublished. The topics dealt by the researchers
have been pursued by others scholars as well.
Besides various dissertations completed on various aspects
of Kashmiri, the scholars have independently worked on various
grammatical aspects of Kashmiri following different theoretical
frameworks. Most of these works are published in different
journals or are compiled in certain volumes devoted to linguistic
studies of Kashmiri. These papers raise various significant issues
and seek solutions to various problems. Hook (1976) has argued
for V2 word order for Kashmiri. This paper has generated great
interest among various scholars who chose to discuss word order
in their works. Certain works have supported the argument. Koul
and Hook have co-edited a volume on Kashmiri (1984) which
includes research articles on different grammatical aspects of
Kashmiri.
journals or are compiled in certain volumes devoted to linguistic
studies of Kashmiri. These papers raise various significant issues
and seek solutions to various problems. Hook (1976) has argued
for V2 word order for Kashmiri. This paper has generated great
interest among various scholars who chose to discuss word order
in their works. Certain works have supported the argument. Koul
and Hook have co-edited a volume on Kashmiri (1984) which
includes research articles on different grammatical aspects of
Kashmiri.
Wali and Koul (1997) have provided a detailed description
of Kashmiri grammar covering syntax, morphology, phonology,
etc. Koul and Wali (forthcoming) have dealt with phonology,
morphology and syntax of Kashmiri from pedagogical point of
view. Hook and Koul (forthcoming) deal with various syntactic
aspects in Kashmiri in comparison with other Indo-Aryan
languages. Most of the earlier works on Kashmiri are out of print
and are not easily available; they need to be reprinted. There is
no comprehensive or pedagogical grammar of Kashmiri to cater
to the needs of the second language learners of the language.
Main grammatical characteristics of Kashmiri are indicated
below.
Nominals include nouns, pronouns, adjectives and pro-
adjectives. Nouns are declined for number, gender and case.
There are two numbers: singular and plural. All nouns are either
masculine or feminine. All animate objects follow the natural
gender. There are no hard and fast rules for assigning gender
distinction to initiate objects. They can be learnt only by
practice. There are six cases, a direct nominative case and five
oblique cases: dative, ergative, genitive, locative and ablative.
Different case suffixes are added to the nouns in oblique cases.
There are two types of postpositions governing dative and
ablative cases.
A noun phrase may consist of three constituents-determiner,
noun and number. Modifiers of nouns are derived from
underlying sentences and therefore a sentence may also be an
optional constituent of the noun phrase. The co-occurrence
restriction of nouns with number and that of nouns with verbs
form an important part of the study of Kashmiri.
Pronouns are also declined for person, number, gender and
case. There are separate first and second person personal
pronouns declined for number, person and case. Demonstrative
pronouns are used for the third person personal pronoun as well.
There is a three-term distinction in the demonstrative pronouns:
case. There are separate first and second person personal
pronouns declined for number, person and case. Demonstrative
pronouns are used for the third person personal pronoun as well.
There is a three-term distinction in the demonstrative pronouns:
(i) proximate (ii) remote (within sight) and (iii) remote (out of
sight) i.e., yi ‘this’, hu ‘that’ (within sight), su ‘that’ (out of
sight). The demonstrative, relative, interrogative and indefinite
pronouns also have three sets of forms referring to (a) masculine
animate beings, (b) feminine animate beings and (c) inanimate
things.
Pronominal suffixes are very frequently suffixed to finite
verbal forms to indicate personal pronouns. The usage of
pronominal suffixes is optional in the case of first and third
person but their use is obligatory in the second person. The
pronominal suffixes agree with the pronouns in person, number
and case.
There are two sets of adjectives: (i) adjectives which are
declined for number, gender and case (e.g., kruhun ‘black’, n’u:l
‘blue’, bod, ‘big’, etc.) and (ii) indeclinable adjectives (e.g.,
saphe:d ‘white’, ja:n ‘good’, etc.). Adjectives which are
declinable agree with their nouns in number, gender, and case.
All genitives in Kashmiri are declinable adjectives. Pro-
adjectives in Kashmiri are declinable adjectives. They are
declined for number, gender and case as other declinable
adjectives. Adjectives are main constituents of adjective phrases.
It is important to make a distinction between the base adjectives
and derived adjectives. Base adjectives are not derived from any
other grammatical category, and therefore do not contain any
derivational suffixes (e.g., ku:r cha th z ‘The girl is tall’, shur
chu v’ot h ‘The child is fat’) The derived adjectives on the other
hand are derivationally related to some other grammatical
category such as noun or verb.
Verbs are inflected for person, gender, number, and tense in
Kashmiri. All verbs are conjugated and can be classified in
different sets according to the sentence patterns. All but seven
verb stems end in consonants.
The infinite or verbal noun is formed by adding -un to the
verb stem. In the conjugation of the past tense, three distinctions
are made: (i) simple past, (ii) indefinite past and (iii) remote past.
Different past participles are used to form the three types of past
tenses. Different types of verbal structures are formed with or
without the help of auxiliary verb. The verb root, the present
participle and the past and perfect participle are used in the
formation of other parts of verb. Some verbs form their past
participles in irregular manner (e.g., marun, ‘to die’, d’un ‘to
give’, dazun ‘to burn’, etc.)
Different past participles are used to form the three types of past
tenses. Different types of verbal structures are formed with or
without the help of auxiliary verb. The verb root, the present
participle and the past and perfect participle are used in the
formation of other parts of verb. Some verbs form their past
participles in irregular manner (e.g., marun, ‘to die’, d’un ‘to
give’, dazun ‘to burn’, etc.)
Conjunct and compound verbs are very common in
Kashmiri. Conjunct verb is formed by combining a nominal and
verb (e.g., šra:n karun ‘to take a bath’, hisa:b d’un ‘to account
for’. The compound verb is a combination of two verbs, in which
one is the main verb and the other an explicator or operator.
The main verb is an obligatory element of a verb phrase.
Main verbs in Kashmiri are classified under copulative,
intransitive, transitive and causative verbs. The copula verb in
Kashmiri takes a nominal, adjectives and adverbial compliments.
Intransitive verbs (which do not take a noun phrase as
complement) are classified under three categories on the bases of
the chase markers the subject may take. The transitive verbs take
a noun phrase as a complement). A ditranstive verb takes two
objects. Verbs are causativized by adding causative suffixes to
the verb stem. Verb phrase complements may also include
embedded sentences such as (i) noun clause sentences, (ii)
question word second sentences and (iii) tenseless sentences.
In Kashmiri, the verb comes at second position in a sentence,
and the object, if any, comes at the (e.g., yi chu kalam ‘This is a
pen’; m’o:n do:s yiyi az ‘My friend will come today’). On the
basis of the word order, Kashmiri is classified as a V2 language.
The verb comes at the final position in phrases and question
word questions only. For example, in the sentence m’o:n do:s,
yus dili chu ro:za:n, yiyi az ‘My friend, who lives in Delhi will
come today’) the verb in the subordinate clause come in the final
position. Similarly, in the question word questions are like yi
k’a: chu ? ‘What is this?’ the verb comes at the end of the
sentence.
Bibliographical reference to the prominent works related to
grammars and grammatical studies are as follows:
Altha, Fayaz M. 1994. Kashmiri Causative Constructions and
the Antipassive analysis. In Indian Linguistics, vol 55, pp. 1the Antipassive analysis. In Indian Linguistics, vol 55, pp. 1
22.
Andrabi, S.M.I 1979. Verb phrase structure in Kashmiri. Paper
presented in the Seminar on Kashmiri. Northern Regional
Language Centre, Patiala. Mimeo 12 p.
Andrabi, S.M.I 1984. Reference and Co-reference in Kashmiri.
Doctoral dissertations, Poona University, Pune
(unpublished). rovides a detailed description of reference
and co-reference system of Kashmiri. It presents quite useful
and interesting data.
Bashar, Bashir 1981. k :širis manz tazkir!t :nis (Gender in
Kashmiri). Biru (Kashmir): Habib Publications, 136p.
Describes the structure of gender system in Kashmiri along
with examples. This is first book on the subject written in
Kashmiri.
Bashir, Elena 1987. Agreement in Kashmiri infinitive
compliments. Bashir, Elena et. al.(eds.). Select papers from
SALA –7 Bloomington: Indiana University Linguistics Club.
pp. 13-30
Bhat, Raj Nath 1982. Pragmatism in Kashmiri. Doctoral
dissertations. Kurukshetra University (unpublished).
Besides an introduction , it contains chapters on pragmatic
aspects of communication, illocutionary force,
presuppositions and implicature, deixis and conclusion.
Bhat, Raj N. and Ramesh C. Sharma 1979. Colour system in
Kashmiri: A study of some cognitive and semantic aspects.
Paper presented in the Seminar on Kashmiri. Northern
Regional Language Centre, Patiala. Mimeo, 13p.
Bhat, Roopkrishen 1979. Pronominal suffixes in Kashmiri.
Paper presented in the seminar on Kashmiri. Northern
Regional language Centre, Patiala. Mimeo, 13 p.
Bhat, Roopkrishen 1980. Phonology and Morphology of
Kashmiri. Doctoral dissertation. Kurukshetra University.
Presents a general description of main aspects of Kashmiri
phonology and morphology.
Phonology and Morphology of
Kashmiri. Doctoral dissertation. Kurukshetra University.
Presents a general description of main aspects of Kashmiri
phonology and morphology.
Bhat, Roopkrishen 1980. Case in Kashmiri. Indian Journal of
Linguistics. vol. 7, no. 2, pp. 44-59.
Bhat, Roopkrishen 1982. k":šir kita:b – I (State school reader in
Kashmiri Level I) Mysore: Central Institute of Indian
Languages. A textbook for teaching Kashmiri as a second
language in schools.
Bhat, Roopkrishen 1987. A descriptive study of Kashmiri. Delhi:
Amar Prakashan. It is a revised version of his doctoral
dissertations entitled Phonology and Morphology of
Kashmiri, submitted to Kurukshetra University in 1980. It
provides an introduction and chapters on phonology,
morphophonemics, and morphology. It provides a useful
introductory description of various aspects of phonology and
morphology of the language.
Bhatia, Tej K. 1995. Negation in South Asian Languages
Patiala: Indian Institute of Language Studies. It includes the
analysis of the negative constructions in Kashmiri.
Bhatt, Rajesh (forthcoming). Acquisition of a complementizer
and the loss of narrative inversion in Kashmiri.
Bhatt, Rajesh (forthcoming). Verb Movement in Kashmiri.
Bhatt, Rakesh M. 1993. Psyched Out – Analyzing Quirky
Constructions. in Papers from the 29th Regional Meetings of
the Chicago Linguistic Society, vol. 1, 77-88. Chicago CLS.
Bhatt, Rakesh M. 1994. World order and Case in Kashmiri. Ph.
D. dissertation, University of Illinois, Urbana.
Bhatt, Rakesh M. 1999. Verb movement and the Syntax of
Kashmiri. Dordrecht: Kluwar Academic Press.
Verb movement and the Syntax of
Kashmiri. Dordrecht: Kluwar Academic Press.
Bhatt, Rakesh M. 2001. Review of Kashmiri: A Cognitive-
Descriptive Grammar by Kashi Wali and Omkar N Koul. In
The Yearbook of South Asian Languages and Linguistics.
New Delhi: Sage.
Bhatt, Rakesh and J. Yoon 1992. On the composition of Comp
and Parameters of V2. D. Bates (edited) The Proceedings of
the Tenth West Coast Conference of Formal Linguistics, 4152,
Stanford: CSLI Publications.
Burkhard, Karl Friedrich 1887. Das Verbum der Kashmirisprache.
Sitzungsberichte der philosophisch –
philolagagichsen und historischen Classe der Bayerischen
Koniglichen Akademie det Wissenschaften zu Munchen, pp.
303-426.
Burkhard, Karl Friedrich 1888. Die Nomina der Kashmirisprache.
Sitzungsberichte der philosophisch –
philolagagichsen und historischen Classe der Bayerischen
Koniglichen Akademie det Wissenschaften zu Munchen, pp.
444-522.
Burkhard, Karl Friedrich 1889. Die Prepositionen ker Kashmirisprache.
Sitzungsberichte der philosophisch –
philolagagichsen und historischen Classe der Bayerischen
Koniglichen Akademie det Wissenschaften zu Munchen, pp.
375-468.
Burkhard, Karl Friedrich 1895. Essay on Kashmiri Grammar.
Translate and edited, with notes and additions, by G. A.
Grierson. The Indian Antiquary, vol. 24, 337-347.
Del Bon, Estella. 2002. Personal Inflexions and Order of Clitics
in Kashmiri. In Topics in Kashmiri Linguistics, eds. Omkar
N. Koul and Kashi Wali, 129-142. New Delhi: Creative.
Dhar, Nazir A. 1979. Kashmiri personal pronouns: A
sociolinguistic study. Paper presented in the Seminar on
Kashmir. Patiala: NRLC. Mimeo, 9p.
sociolinguistic study. Paper presented in the Seminar on
Kashmir. Patiala: NRLC. Mimeo, 9p.
Dulai, Narinder K. 1991. Review of Spoken Kashmiri: A
language course by Omkar N. Koul. In South Asian
Language Review, vol. 1, no.1.
Edelman, D.I. 1966. Dardskie jazyki (Dardic Languages).
Moscow: Academy of Sciences. Presents an outline of
grammatical characteristics of some Dardic language very
briefly.
Edgeworth, M. P. 1941. Grammar and vocabulary of the
Kashmiri language. JRASB, vol. 10, Part 2, pp. 1038-1064.
A skeleton grammar with a brief vocabulary, collected by
the author in Ludhiana during 1839.
Ganju, Triloki Nath 1979. k#:šur-hindi ri:d,ar (Kashmiri-Hindi
Reader). Srinagar: University of Kashmir. 238 p. Written in
Hindi for non-Kashmiri students of Kashmir. It provides a
brief description of Kashmiri speech sounds (vowels and
constants), a list of words and sentence in Kashmiri, both in
the Perso-Arabic and Devanagari scripts. It is of limited
usefulness for Hindi speaking who wish to learn Kashmiri.
Grierson, George A. 1895. On the pronominal suffixes in the
Kashmiri language. JRASB, vol. 64, no. 4, pp. 336-351.
Presents a brief description of pronominal suffixes in
Kashmiri, along with those of Sindhi and Western Punjabi.
The author discusses the origin of the suffixes and their
occurrence in other languages of the subcontinent.
Grierson, George A. 1898. On primary suffixes in Kashmiri.
JRASB, vol. 67, no.1, pp.193-220. A description of 37
primary suffixes as treated in the kradanta-prakriya of
Ishwara Kaula (1898) with examples.
Grierson, George A. 1898. On the secondary suffixes in
Kashmiri. JRASB, vol. 67, no. 1, pp. 221-225. An account of
secondary suffixes in Kashmiri based on the work of the
fourth part of Ishwara Kaula (1989). It provides example of
89 secondary suffixes used for expressing relationship and in
the formation of abstract nouns, diminutives, etc.
Kashmiri. JRASB, vol. 67, no. 1, pp. 221-225. An account of
secondary suffixes in Kashmiri based on the work of the
fourth part of Ishwara Kaula (1989). It provides example of
89 secondary suffixes used for expressing relationship and in
the formation of abstract nouns, diminutives, etc.
Grierson, George A. 1899. Essays on Kashmiri grammar.
Reprinted from the Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of
Bengal for 1896-1899. London: Luzac.
Grierson, George A. 1911. Standard manual of the Kashmiri
Language (2 volumes). Comprising grammar, phrase-book
and vocabularies. Oxford: Clarendon Press. Reprinted
Rohtak (India): Light and Life Publishers, 1973. Also
available Ann Arbor, Michigan: University Microfilms,
1970. Provides a very brief grammatical sketch of the
Kashmiri language, and also contains text and vocabulary.
Hook, Peter Edwin 1976. Is Kashmiri an SVO language? In
Indian Linguistics, vol. 37, pp. 133-142. Addresses the issue
of word order in Kashmiri, which is unique among Indian
Languages.
Hook, Peter Edwin 1984. Some further observations on Kashmiri
word order. In Koul, Omkar N. and Peter Edwin Hook (eds.)
Aspect of Kashmiri Linguistics Society. New Delhi: Bahri
Publications, pp. 145-53.
Hook, Peter Edwin 1984. Kashmirshabdamrita 8.3.3: An account
of the ergative in the Paninian Linguistic Tradition. In Indian
Linguistics, vol. 44, pp. 39-42.
Hook, Peter Edwin 1984. The Anti Absolutive in Kashmiri and
Summerian. In Papers from the Twentieth Regional Meeting
of the Chicago Linguistic Society. Chicago: CLS, 181-191.
Hook, Peter Edwin 1985. The Super Anti Absolutive in
Kashmiri, In Proceedings of the first annual meeting of the
Pacific Linguistics Conference edited by DeLancy, Scot and edited by DeLancy, Scot and
Russel Tomlin. Eugene: University of Oregon.
Hook, Peter Edwin 1986. Null Valents in the Expression of
Impersonal Acton in Kashmiri and Russian. In Papers from
22nd Annual Regional Meetings of the Chicago Linguistic
Society. Chicago: CLS, 179-194.
Hook, Peter Edwin and Ashok K Koul. 2002. Under the Surface
of the South Asian Linguistic Area: More on the Syntax of
Derived Transitives and Causatives in Kashmiri. In Topics in
Kashmiri Linguistics, eds. Omkar N. Koul and Kashi Wali,
103-12. New Delhi: Creative.
Hook, Peter Edwin and Omkar N. Koul 1984. On the grammar
derived transitives and causative in Kashmiri. In Koul and
Hook (eds.) Aspects of Kashmiri Linguistics. New Delhi:
Bahri Publications. pp. 90-122.
Hook, Peter Edwin and Omkar N. Koul 1984. Pronominal
suffixes are split ergativity in Kashmiri. In Koul and Hook
(eds.) 1984. pp. 123-35.
Hook, Peter Edwin and Omkar N. Koul 1984. Kashmiri casuals:
In the lexicon, the syntax of both? Paper presented in a
seminar at Delhi University.
Hook, Peter Edwin and Omkar N. Koul 1985. Modal verbs of
obligation in Kashmiri. In International Journal of
Dravidian Linguistics vol.14, no.2, 236-273.
Hook, Peter Edwin and Omkar N. Koul 1987. Subject versus
agent: A study of the Kashmiri phasal verb hye ‘begin to’. In
Select Papers from SALA-7. Bloomington: Indiana
University Linguistic Club. pp. 199-219. Also in Journal of
the Oriental Institute (Baroda), vol. 36, 1986-87. pp. 115
132.
Hook, Peter Edwin and Omkar N. Koul 1990. Reflexive
possessives in Kashmiri and Hindi-Urdu: Evidence for an
antecedency hierarchy. Paper presented in International
Seminar on Anaphora. University of Delhi. In South-Asian
Language Review 2.1.1992.
possessives in Kashmiri and Hindi-Urdu: Evidence for an
antecedency hierarchy. Paper presented in International
Seminar on Anaphora. University of Delhi. In South-Asian
Language Review 2.1.1992.
Hook, Peter Edwin and Omkar N. Koul 1991. Kashmiri casuals:
Evidence for a transformational approach. Paper presented in
the 13th South Asian Languages Analysis Roundtable.
University of Illinois at Urbana-Campaign.
Hook, Peter Edwin and Omkar N. Koul 1991. Morphological
conditioning of verbal-final order in V-2 languages:
Evidence from Kashmiri. Paper presented in International
symposium of Germanic languages and literatures. Ohio
State University, Columbus.
Hook, Peter Edwin and Omkar N. Koul 1992. On the compound
verb in Kashmiri. In International Journal of Dravidian
Linguistics 21.1: 1-16.
Hook, Peter Edwin and Omkar N. Koul 1998. Active-stative
marking of intransitive subjects in Kashmiri inceptives. In
va:gbha:rati: Proceedings of the 1997 International
Congress of South Asian linguists, eds. Liudmila Khokhlova
and Atul Sawani, 56-87. Moscow: Moscow State University.
Hook, Peter Edwin and Omkar N. Koul 2002. The verb laayun is
not an exception. In Topics in Kashmiri Linguistics,eds.
Omkar N. Koul and Kashi Wali, 143-52. New Delhi:
Creative.
Hook, Peter Edwin and Omkar N. Koul and Ashok Koul
1987.Differential S marking in Marathi, Hindi-Urdu and
Kashmiri. In papers from the Twenty-third Regional Meeting
of the Chicago Linguistic Society. University of Chicago.
148-165.
Hook, Peter Edwin and Omkar N. Koul (Forthcoming).
Concordant adverbs and discordant adjectives in Kashmiri. Concordant adverbs and discordant adjectives in Kashmiri.
Hook, Peter Edwin and Omkar N. Koul (Forthcoming).
Kashmiri: A study in comparative Indo-Aryan. Tokyo:
IAALC, Tokyo University of Foreign Studies. Includes new
and revised versions of some earlier papers related to the
structures of Kashmiri in comparison to other Indo-Aryan
languages.
Hook, Peter Edwin and Vijay Kumar Koul 1987. Case
alternation, transitionality and the adoption of the direct
objects in Kashmiri. Indian Linguistics, 48:52-69.
Hook, Peter Edwin and Alexis Manaster-Ramer1984. The Verb
Second Constraint in Kashmiri and Germanic: Towards a
Typology of V - 2 Languages. In Germanic Linguistics:
Papers from a Symposium at the University of Chicago.
Bloomington: IUCL.
Kachru, Braj B. 1968. Some notes on the copulative sentences in
Kashmiri. Verhaar, John W. M.. (ed.) The Verb ‘Be’ and its
synonyms. Philosophical and grammatical studies, vol. 3, pp.
20-43. Dordrecht-Holland: D. Reidel Publishing Company.
Provides a description of some syntactic and semantic
aspects of the copula verb in Kashmiri.
Kachru, Braj B. 1969. A Reference Grammar of Kashmiri.
Urbana: University of Illinois, Department of linguistics
(Mimeo), pp. xxv+416. Contains an introduction, chapters
dealing with phonetics, phonology, word formation, word
classes, the noun phrase, the verb phrase, the adverbial
phrase, sentence types: and appendices covering compound
verbs, a glossary, bibliography and index. It is the first
attempt at a comprehensive treatment of Kashmiri. It has a
limited distribution, and requires revision before it is printed.
Kachru, Braj B. 1973. An introduction to spoken Kashmiri.
Urbana: University of Illinois, 2 Vols., Illustrations, Map,
Part I, pp. xlv + 735; Part II, pp. viii+94. Part I contains an
introduction, a description of Kashmiri speech sounds, and
50 lessons (31 lessons presenting functional conversations,
14 lessons presenting narrative texts, and 5 lessons dealing
with Kashmir poetry). There are grammatical and cultural
notes plus exercises. Part II contains Kashmiri-English and
English-Kashmiri glossary. The course is useful as
supplementary instructional material for teaching Kashmiri
as a second language.
introduction, a description of Kashmiri speech sounds, and
50 lessons (31 lessons presenting functional conversations,
14 lessons presenting narrative texts, and 5 lessons dealing
with Kashmir poetry). There are grammatical and cultural
notes plus exercises. Part II contains Kashmiri-English and
English-Kashmiri glossary. The course is useful as
supplementary instructional material for teaching Kashmiri
as a second language.
Kachru, Yamuna, Braj B. and Tej K. Bhatia 1976. The Notion
‘Subject’: A note on Hindi -Urdu, Kashmiri and Punjabi. In
Verma, Manindra (ed.) The Notation of Subject in South
Asian Languages. Madison: University of Wisconsin.
Kaula, Pandit Ishwara 1897-98. Kashmirashabdamrtam (A
grammar of Kashmir written in Sanskrit) Edited with notes
and additions by George A. Grierson. Calcutta: The Asiatic
Society of Bengal. 379 p. Part I (1897): Declension. Part 2
(1898): (Declension. Part II (1898): Conjugation. Presents a
first detailed description of Kashmiri grammar in Sanskrit.
This book is out of point now.
Kelkar, Ashok R. 1984. Kashmiri: A descriptive sketch. In Koul
and Hook (eds.), Aspect of Kashmiri linguistics. New Delhi:
Bahri Publications. pp. 62-89. Presents a brief description of
Kashmiri phonology, grammar and vocabulary.
Koul, Maharaj K. and Ramesh C. Sharma 1988. Numeral
System in Kashmiri. In Indian Journal of Linguistics, vol.
15, no. 2, pp. 43-50.
Koul, Omkar N. 1975. Verbal Constructions in Kashmiri,
Papers presented in the Seminar on Verbal constructions in
Indo-Aryan. Kuruksetra University.
Koul, Omkar N. 1976. Noun phrase in Kashmiri. In Indian
Linguistics, vol. 37, no. 3, pp. 187-195.
Koul, Omkar N. 1976. A note on question in Kashmiri. In
Indian Journal of Linguistics, vol.3 no.1. Indian Journal of Linguistics, vol.3 no.1.
Koul, Omkar N. 1977. Linguistics Study in Kashmiri. New
Delhi: Bahri Publications. It contains chapters on the noun
phrase, the adjective phrase, the auxiliary, the verb phrase,
questions, coordinate conjunction, reduplication, kinship
terms, and lexical borrowings written from a pedagogical
point of view.
Koul, Omkar N. 1978. Verbal stems and syntactic structures in
Kashmiri. Paper presented in Seminar on Verbal Stems and
Syntactic Structures in Indo-Aryan. Kurukshetra University.
Koul, Omkar N. 1979. On relative clauses in Kashmiri. Paper
presented in the seminar on Kashmiri. Patiala: NRLC.
Koul, Omkar N. 1985. An Intensive Course in Kashmiri.
Mysore: CIIL. Useful for the teaching of Kashmiri as a
second language. Introduces graded grammatical structures
of Kashmiri in the form of dialogues, narration followed by
drills, exercise, vocabulary and notes on grammar. It is used
as textbook for teaching Kashmiri as a second language at
Northern Regional Language Centre, Patiala and other
institutions.
Koul, Omkar N. 1987. Spoken Kashmiri: A Language Course.
Patiala: Indian Institute of Language Studies. A handbook
for teaching and learning Kashmiri as a second or foreign
language. Each lesson contains text which is followed by
drills, exercises, and notes on grammar and vocabulary. It
uses Roman script for Kashmiri.
Koul, Omkar N. 1988. Grammars in Kashmiri. In Encyclopedia
of Indian Literature, vol. II. New Delhi: Sahitya Akadmi. pp.
22-25. Presents a brief survey of grammatical works on
Kashmiri.
Koul, Omkar N. 1995. An Intermediate Course in Kashmiri.
Mysore: CIIL. Introduces graded lessons in Kashmiri using
grammatical structures of intermediate level. Lessons
contain text followed by exercises and vocabulary.
An Intermediate Course in Kashmiri.
Mysore: CIIL. Introduces graded lessons in Kashmiri using
grammatical structures of intermediate level. Lessons
contain text followed by exercises and vocabulary.
Koul, Omkar N. (2003) Kashmiri. In Cardona, George and
Dhanesh Jain (eds.) The Indo-Aryan Languages. London:
Routledge. Presents a description on Kashmiri phonology,
morphology and syntax.
Koul, Omkar N. Kashmiri grammar. In Encyclopedia of
Dravidian linguistics. Trivandrum: Dravidian Linguistics
Society. Presents main characteristics of Kashmiri grammar.
Koul, Omkar N. and Peter Edwin Hook (eds.) 1984. Aspects of
Kashmiri linguistics. New Delhi: Bahri Publications.
Contains papers on ‘Dardistan revisited: An examination of
relationship between Kashmiri and Shina’ by Omkar N.
Koul and Ruth Laila Schmidt, ‘Kashmiri and the typology of
South Asian languages’ by Boris A. Zakharyin, ‘Kashmiri:
A descriptive Sketch’ by Ashok R. Kelkar, towards a
morphological classification of Kashmiri monosyllabic
nouns’ by C. Shackle, ‘On the grammar of derived
transitives and causatives in Kashmiri by Peter Edwin Hook
and Omkar N. Koul, ‘Pronominal Suffixes and split
ergativity in Kashmiri by Peter Edwin Hook and Omkar N.
Koul, ‘Word order in Kashmiri: Some further evidence’ by
K. V. Subbarao, ‘Further observations on Kashmiri word
order’ by Peter Edwin Hook, and ‘Modes of address in
Kashmiri by Omkar N. Koul.
Koul, Omkar N. and P. Umarani 2000. Computerization of
Kashmiri. In Vartavaha , 5.
Koul, Omkar N. and Kashi Wali (eds.) 2002. Topics in
Kashmiri linguistics. New Delhi: Creative Books. Contains
papers on various aspects of syntax of Kashmiri contributed
by Kashi Wali, Omkar N. Koul, Ashok K. Koul, Peter Edwin
Hook, Estella Delbon, and Achla M. Raina.
Koul, Omkar N and Kashi Wali (forthcoming) Modern Kashmiri
Grammar. Springfield: Dunwoody Press. Presents a
description of Kashmiri phonology, morphology and syntax
from pedagogical point of view. It has a chapter on lexicon
containing classified vocabulary of Kashmiri.
Modern Kashmiri
Grammar. Springfield: Dunwoody Press. Presents a
description of Kashmiri phonology, morphology and syntax
from pedagogical point of view. It has a chapter on lexicon
containing classified vocabulary of Kashmiri.
Leech, R.C.B. 1944. A grammar of Kashmiri language. JRASB,
vol. 13, Part I pp. 397-420, Part II, pp. 553-570.
Munnawar, Naji and Shafi Shouq 1976. k$:šur gr$:mar
(Kashmiri grammar). Kaprin, Kashmiri: Bazmi Adab.
A brief traditional grammatical sketch of Kashmir, in the
Kashmiri language. The authors have coined a number of
grammatical terms in Kashmiri, equivalent to ones used in
traditional grammars of other languages.
Nishat Ansari 1979. nov k$:šur gr$:mar (New Kashmiri
Grammar). Srinagar. 84 p. A very brief grammatical sketch
of Kahmiri in the Kashmiri language. It uses a number of
grammatical terms from Urdu with examples in Kashmiri.
Pandit, Bhushan Narain 1873. Gulzar-e-Kashmir (The Rose
Garden of Kashmir). Lahore. A grammar of Kashmiri
written in Urdu. It uses a traditional format.
Pushp, P.N. 1973. k$:širic zab$:n’ za:n (An introduction to
Kashmiri language). In Chaman vol. 6, Nos. 18-21.
Provides a brief introduction to Kashmiri.
Pushp, P. N. 1979. Non-agentive pronominal bound morphemes
in the Kashmiri verb system. Paper presented in the Seminar
on Kashmiri. Patiala: NRLC.
Raina, Achla Mirsi 1993. An S-selectional to Grammar: Some
issues in Kashmiri syntax. Doctoral dissertations, Indian
Institute of Tecnology, Kanpur (unpublished).
Raina, Achla Mirsi 1994. Dual and triple verbal agreement in
Kashmiri. In South Asian Language review., vol. iv, no. 1 Kashmiri. In South Asian Language review., vol. iv, no. 1
Raina, Achla Mirsi 1995. Verb second in Kashmiri: A PF level
constraint. In PJDS, vol. vi, no. 2 pp. 137-143.
Raina, Achla Mirsi 1996. Question Phrases in Kashmiri: A case
for movement to tense. South Asian Language Review, vol.
vi, no. 1.
Raina, Achla M. 2002. The Verb Second Phenomenon in
Kashmiri. In Topics in Kashmiri Linguistics, eds. Omkar N.
Koul and Kashi Wali, 113-128. New Delhi: Creative.
Raina, S.N. 1975. Negation in Kashmiri. Language Forum , vol.
1, Nos. 3-4 (1975-76), pp. 28-32.
Raina, S.N. 1980. Imperative in Kashmiri. In Indian Journal of
Linguistics.
Raina, S.N. 1990. Kashmiri for non-Kashmiris: Learning and
Teaching Problems. Patiala: Gopi Publications. pp. xi+206.
It is the revised version of the doctoral dissertation of the
author submitted to Kurukshetra University. This book is
divided into six chapters: 1. Introduction, 2. Phonetics and
Phonology, 3. morphology, 3. Syntax, 5. Lexicon, and 6.
Script. It attempts to provide an error analysis of the errors
committed by the native speakers of Hindi in learning
Kashmiri as a second language. It points out certain
contrastive features of Kashmiri and Hindi
Sar, Mohan Lal 1981. Verbal Morphology of Kashmiri. Doctoral
dissertations. University of Delhi (unpublished). Describes
mainly the verbal inflections of Kashmiri.
Sar, Susheela 1977. Kashmir shabdamrtamityasya
samalocnatmakan adhyayanam (A critical study of the
Kasmirasabdamrtam) Doctoral dissertations.
Sampoornanand Sanskrit University, varanasi (unpublished).
A critical study of Iswara Koul’s kasmirasabdamrtam in the
Sanskrit Language. The author explains the text of the
Kasmirasabdamrtam.
Sanskrit Language. The author explains the text of the
Kasmirasabdamrtam.
Shackle, Christopher, 1984. Towards a morphological
classification of Kashmiri monosyllabic nouns. Koul and
Hook (eds.) Aspects of Kashmiri Linguistics. New Delhi:
Bahri Publications. pp. 46-61.
Sharma, Ramesh C. and Maharaj K. Koul 1979. Numeral
system in Kashmiri. Paper presented in the Seminar on
Kashmiri. Patiala: NRLC.
Shauq, Shafi 1983. A Constrative Study of some Syntactic
Patterns of English and Kashmiri with special reference to
Complementation and Relativization. Ph.D dissertation,
University of Kashmir.
Syeed, Sayyid M. 1985. Morphological Causatives and the
problems of the Transformational Approach. Bloomington:
IUCL.
Subbarao, Karumuri V. 1984. Word order in Kashmiri: Some
further evidence. In Koul and Hook (eds.) Aspect of
Kashmiri Linguistics. New Delhi: Bahri Publications. pp.
136-44. Argues for underlying SOV word-order in Kashmiri.
Tickoo, Asha K. 1990. On Proposing and Word Order Rigidity.
Ph.D. dissertations, University of Pennsylvania.
Trisal, Pran Nath 1964. Kashmiri bhasah ka varnana: tmak
vya:karan ( A Descriptive grammar of the Kashmiri
language). Doctoral dissertations Agra University
(unpublished). It is first descriptive outline of Kashmiri
written in Hindi language. It contains chapters dealing with
the phonology, morphology and syntax.
Trisal, Pran Nath 1964. Kashmiri bhasha ka varnana: tmak
vya:karan. In Bharatiya Sahitya, vol. 9, no. 2, pp. 59-65.
A summary of his doctoral dissertations under the same title.
Wade, T. R. 1988. A grammar of the Kashmiri language as
spoken in the valley of Kashmir, North India, London.
Presents a brief grammatical sketch of Kashmiri with some
text in Kashmiri.
Wali, Kashi 1980. Oblique Causee and passive explanations. In
Linguistic Inquiry 11.1, pp. 258-260. It contains information
on Kashmiri causatives.
Wali, Kashi 1981. Cause, causer, and causee: A semantic
prespective. In Journal of Linguistics 17, pp. 289-308.
Contains information on Kashmiri Casusatives.
Wali, Kashi 1983. Clicts and Case: A Cross Language
Perspective. In davison, Alice (ed.) Proceedings of SALA
University of Iowa, pp. 394-408.
Wali, Kashi 1988. A note on WH questions in Marathi and
Kashmiri. In Cornell Working Papers in Linguistics. no. 8.
Fall 1988.
Wali, Kashi 2002. WH-Questions in Marathi and Kashmiri. In
Topics in Kashmiri Linguistics, eds. Omkar N. Koul and
Kashi Wali, 1-16. New Delhi: Creative.
Wali, Kashi and Ashok Kumar Koul 1992. Kashmiri Critics and
Ergative and Structure. Paper presented in SALA-14,
Stanford University.
Wali, Kashi and Ashok Kumar Koul 1994. Kashmiri Clitics and
Ergative Case. Indian Linguistics, vol. 55, pp. 77-95.
Wali, Kashi and Ashok Kumar Koul 1994. Kashmiri Clitics: the
role of cause and CASE. In Linguistics 32, pp. 969-994.
Wali, Kashi and Ashok Kumar Koul 1996. Subject and other
constituents in Kashmiri. South Asian Language Review vol.
vi, no.1.
constituents in Kashmiri. South Asian Language Review vol.
vi, no.1.
Wali, Kashi and Ashok K. Koul 2002. Kashmiri Clitics: The
role of Case and CASE. In Topics in Kashmiri Linguistics,
eds. Omkar N. Koul and Kashi Wali, 17-42. New Delhi:
Creative.
Wali, Kashi and Omkar N. Koul 1997. Kashmiri: A Congetive
Descriptive Grammar. London and New York: Routledge.
This book provides a description of Kashmiri syntax,
morphology, phonology, ideophones and interjections, and
lexicon. Syntax is dealt in detail. Some of the syntactic
aspects have been dealt for the first time. It will serve as a
useful reference for Kashmiri grammar.
Wali, Kashi and Omkar N. Koul 2003. Case doubling in
Kashmiri Possessive : Another look. Paper presented in the
ICOSAL-5, Moscow University, Moscow.
Wali, Kashi and Omkar N Koul 2002. Long shadows of
Ergativity in Kashmiri and Marathi. In Topics in Kashmiri
Linguistics, eds. Omkar N. Koul and Kashi Wali, 43-62.
New Delhi: Creative.
Wali, Kashi, Omkar N Koul and Ashok K Koul 2002. Multiple
Case Marking in Kashmiri Possessive: Tranditional and
Modern Perspective. In Topics in Kashmiri Linguistics, eds.
Omkar N. Koul and Kashi Wali, 63-86. New Delhi:
Creative.
Wali, Kashi, Omkar N Koul and Ashok K Koul 2002. The
Significance of Topic in a V2 Language: Evidence from
Kashmiri. In Topics in Kashmiri Linguistics, eds. Omkar N.
Koul and Kashi Wali, 87-102. New Delhi: Creative.
Wali, Kashi, O. N. Koul, P. E. Hook and A. K. Koul 2000.
Lexical anaphors and pronouns in Kashmiri. In Lexical
Anaphors and Pronouns in Selected South Asian Languages,
eds. Barbara C. Lust et al., 471-512. Berlin: Mouton de
Gruyter.
Zakharyin, Boris A. 1981. Stroj I tipologija jazyki Kashmiri
(The structure and the typology of the Kashmiri Language)
Moscow: Moscow State University, pp. 287. Contains a
preface in which the sociolinguistic status of Kashmiri is
reviewed and chapters dealing with phonology, grammatical
categories, and the main problem of Kashmiri syntax. The
concluding chapter discusses the place of Kashmiri among
other Central Asian Languages on the basis of typological
criteria.
Zakharyin, Boris A. 1984. Kashmiri and typology of South
Asian Languages. In Koul, Omkar N. and Peter Edwin Hook
(eds.) Aspect of Kashmiri Linguistics. New Delhi: Bahri
Publications.
Zakharyin, Boris A. 2002. Review of Topics in Kashmiri
Linguistics (eds.) Omkar N Koul and Kashi Wali.In South
Asian Language Review, vol. xii.
4. Sociolinguistics
Very limited sociolinguistic work has been conducted in
Kashmiri so far. Besides the regional dialects of Kashmiri there
are certain sociolinguistic variations in the speech of people
belonging to different religious communities and professional
groups. It is important to study the speech variations of different
communities and of the people of different professions and
occupations. There are marked differences in the use of certain
lexical items in the speech and writing of two main communities.
Hindus and Muslims – who speak the language natively.
Grierson (1911) and later Kachru (1969) have listed certain
linguistics characteristics of the speech of Hindus and Muslims.
Whereas Grierson uses the terms Hindu Kashmiri and Muslim
Kashmiri to distinguish these two varieties, Kachru prefers to use
the terms Sanskritized and Persianized Kashmiri for these two
varieties respectively. The so-called varieties, however, are not
exclusively Hindu and Muslim, but are important from the point
of view of registers and diglossia.
M. Koul (1986) has studied sociolinguistic variables of
Kashmiri spoken in Anantrang district of the state and that of the
Srinagar. His study primarily points out the phonological and
morphological variations in the speech of Hindus and Muslims
and between the people belonging to rural and urban areas.
Similarly, Dhar (1985) has pointed out the sociolinguistic
variations of Kashmiri spoken in Sopore (Baramulla). Kantroo
(1985) has studied variations of Kashmiri by certain minority
communities and occupational groups.
The first ever sociolinguistic survey of Kashmiri conducted
by Koul and Schmidt (1983) studies language use and language
preference of the native speakers of Kashmiri. Whereas
Kashmiri is widely used in its social domains of day-to-day life,
it is not used in administration. It has a limited use in education
and mass media. According to the survey, there is a strong desire
for its use in administration and education.
Koul (1998) has studied language maintenance and language
loss of the Kashmiri migrant children in Jammu and Delhi. The
study reveals the loss of Kashmiri in the formal domains, and its
maintenance is certain restricted social domains. As a part of the
survey of the language preferences in education in India, Koul
(2001) has presented the preferences in respect of the use of
languages in education by the native speakers of Kashmiri. No
any other kind of survey has been conducted so far. There is a
wide scope for both sociolinguistic research and surveys in
Kashmiri.
loss of the Kashmiri migrant children in Jammu and Delhi. The
study reveals the loss of Kashmiri in the formal domains, and its
maintenance is certain restricted social domains. As a part of the
survey of the language preferences in education in India, Koul
(2001) has presented the preferences in respect of the use of
languages in education by the native speakers of Kashmiri. No
any other kind of survey has been conducted so far. There is a
wide scope for both sociolinguistic research and surveys in
Kashmiri.
Bibliographic reference of main sociolinguistic works
related to Kashmiri are given below:
Bhat, Raj Nath 1990. Religion, Gender and Courtesy: Reflection
on Kashmiri Honour System. In Research Journal of
Kurukshtra University, no. XXIV, pp. 179-191.
Bhatt, Rakesh 1983. Language maintenance and Language
Shift: the case of Kashmiri in Kashmiri setting. M. Phil
dissertation, University of Delhi (unpublished).
Bhatt, Rakesh Mohan 1989. Language planning and language
conflict: the case of Kashmiri. In International Journal of
the Sociology of Language, 75.73-86.
Dhar, Nazir A. 1985. A sociolinguistic study of Kamarazi
dialect of Kashmiri. (Ph.D. dissertation) University of
Poona. It investigates some sociolinguistic variables which
distinguish the speech of Kashmiri spoken in Sopore
(Baramulla district) in the valley of Kashmiri. The speech of
Hindus and Muslims have been studied. The variations of
their speech have been distinguished from that of the speech
in Srinagar.
Fatima, Aziz 1987. Code switching in Kashmiri-Urdu bilingual
speech: A study of linguistic and social interaction. M. Phil
dissertation, Aligarh Muslim University (unpublished).
Presents some interesting examples of the code switching in
Kashmiri. The research is related to some recent theoretical
research conducted in this area.
examples of the code switching in
Kashmiri. The research is related to some recent theoretical
research conducted in this area.
Hasnain, S. Imtiaz 1985. Review of Kashmiri: A sociolinguistic
survey, by Omkar N. Koul and Ruth Laila Schmidt. IAAL,
vol. II, no. 1-2.
Kachru, Braj B. 1986. Naming in the Kashmiri Pandit
community: sociolinguistics and anthroponomy. In Fishman,
Joshua A. et. al. (eds.) The Feregusonian impact, vol. 2:
Socio-linguistics and the sociology of language. Berlin:
Mouton de Gruyter. pp. 141-154.
Kantroo, Gopi Krishen 1985. Minority languages in Kashmiri:
A sociolinguistic investigation. Doctoral dissertation,
Kurukshetra University (unpublished). Besides an
introduction, it contains chapters on linguistic minorities and
their social satisfaction, an overview of sociolinguistics,
sociolinguistic variable in minorities, bilingualism in
minorities, and the conclusion. It presents an interesting data
from the speech of linguistic minorities in Kashmiri.
Koul, Vijay Kr. 1993. Review of A Sociolinguistic Study of
Kashmiri by Maharaj Krishen Koul. In South Asian
Language Review, vol. iii, no.1.
Koul, Maharaj K. 1986. A sociolinguistic study of Kashmiri,
Patiala: Indian Institute of Language Studies.
A first attempt to correlate linguistic diversities and social
satisfaction of Kashmiri speech community and Srinagar and
Anantrang (two districts in the Kashmir Valley of the State
of Jammu and Kashmir). The book is divided in six chapters:
(1) Introduction, (2) Review of literature on sociolinguistics,
(3) Social satisfaction, (4) Sociolinguistic variables, (5) Style
switching and the use of speech and (6) Sociolinguistic
variation in the use lexical items. These chapters are
followed by conclusion and select bibliography.
Koul, Omkar N. and Ruth Laila Schmidt 1983. Kashmiri: A
sociolinguistic survey. Patiala: Indian Institute of Language
Studies. This is a first ever survey related to the use of
Kashmiri. It presents the analysis and results of a
sociolinguistic survey on the use of language and language
preference by the native speakers of Kashmiri in various
domains of day-to-day life.
. and Ruth Laila Schmidt 1983. Kashmiri: A
sociolinguistic survey. Patiala: Indian Institute of Language
Studies. This is a first ever survey related to the use of
Kashmiri. It presents the analysis and results of a
sociolinguistic survey on the use of language and language
preference by the native speakers of Kashmiri in various
domains of day-to-day life.
Koul, Omkar N. 1983. Kashmiri Hindi-urdu: a study in
bilingualism. In Towards greater heights, vol. II. Mysore:
Central Institute of Indian Languages. Presents the variations
of Hindi-Urdu spoken by native speakers of Kashmiri. The
deviations are analysed at different linguistic levels. It has
pedagogical implications for learning Hindi-Urdu as a
second language by the native speakers of Kashmiri.
Koul, Omkar N. 1984. Modes of address in Kashmiri. Koul and
Hook (eds.). Aspects of Kashmiri Linguistics pp. 154-172.
Describes different types (interjections, kinship terms,
second person pronouns) of modes of address and their use
in three dyadic (social, professional and familial) relations.
Koul, Omkar N. 1985. Personal names in Kashmiri. Paper
presented in the South Asian Languages Analysis
Conference at the university of Michigan, Ann Arbor.
Koul, Omkar N. 1994. Personal names in Kashmiri. In South
Asian Language Review, vol. iv, no. 1. pp. 53-74. Also in
Koul, Omkar N. (ed.) 1995. Sociolinguistics: South Asian
Perspectives. New Delhi: Creative Books.
Koul, Omkar N. 1995. Surnames and nicknames in Kashmiri. In
Mehrotra, R.R. (ed.) The Book of Indian Names. New Delhi:
Rupa & Co.
Koul, Omkar N. 1998. Language Maintenance and Language
Loss of Kashmiri Migrant children. Paper presented in
seminar on sociolinguistics at University of Delhi.
Koul, Omkar N. 2001. Language Preferences in Education in
India. In Daswani, C.J. (ed.) Language Education in
Multilingual India.New Delhi: UNESCO. Pp. 337-383. It
includes the study of languge preferences by the native
speakers of Kashmiri in the state of Jammu and Kashmir.
India. In Daswani, C.J. (ed.) Language Education in
Multilingual India.New Delhi: UNESCO. Pp. 337-383. It
includes the study of languge preferences by the native
speakers of Kashmiri in the state of Jammu and Kashmir.
Koul, Omkar N. 2004. The Kashmiri Language and Society. In
Kaw, M. K. (ed.) Kashmir and its People.New Delhi: APH
Publishing Corporation. Pp. 293-321.
Koul, Omkar N. (Forthcoming). Studies in Kashmiri. Delhi:
Indian Institute of Language Studies. It has chapters on
personal names, kinship terms, modes of greetings of
Kashmiri.
Mahapatra, B. P. et al. 1989. Kashmiri. Kloss, H. and G. D.
McConnell (eds.) The written languages of the world: A
survey of degree and modes of use,. 2. India, Book 1.
Constitutional languages. Registrar General and Census
Commissioner, India, pp. 247-273. Presents a survey of the
degree and modes of use of Kashmiri and its dialects. It also
points out linguistic characteristics and useful reference
framework of the language.
Mahfooz Jan 1993. k%:shiren h&nden ke:ntsan tabkan h&nz.
tabq%:ti: bbo:li (professional dialects of Kashmiri). Ph. D.
dissertations, University of Kashmir. It discusses different
registers of Kashmiri used by people belonging to different
professions.
5. Lexicography
Lexicographical work in Kashmiri is still in infancy. A limited
number of monolingual, bilingual and trilingual dictionaries have
been produced in Kashmiri so far. Kashmiri shares a bulk of
vocabulary items with other Dardic languages. It has also
borrowed with adaptation a large number of vocabulary items
from Sanskrit, Persian, and more recently from English.
There are regular rules for adaptation of borrowed lexical
items in Kashmiri. For instance, Kashmiri does not have voiced
aspirated constonants /bh, dh, d,h, gh, jh/, fricatives /x, G /, and
unvular stop /q/. These sounds in borrowed lexical items are
replaced by /b, d, d,, g, j, kh, g and k/ respectively (e.g., la:bh =
la:b ‘profit’, dhan = dan ‘wealth’, d,ho:l = d,o:'l ‘drum’, ghar =
gar(‘home’, jhand,a: = jand,(‘flag’, xa:s = kha:s ‘special’,
Gari:b = g)ri:b ‘poor’, qalam = kalam ‘pen’). The dental stop /t/
is lost in the final position if it is preceed by /s/ or /sh/. (e.g.,
darxa:st = darkha:s ‘application’, a:bg:osht = a:bgo:sh ‘a
mutton preparation’).
Kashmiri has largely developed its registers of religion,
business, and law from the lexical items borrowed from Persian
(and Arabic).
It is mostly on the basis of the choice of the use of certain
borrowed lexical items that the speech of Hindus and Muslims is
sometimes distinguished. Muslims trend to make use of the
borrowed Persian lexical items and Hindus prefer to borrow
Sanskrit lexical items, e.g.,
Muslims Hindu
a:b po:)ny ‘water’
kh*da: bagva:n ‘God’
ruh pra:n ‘soul’
akhta:b siriyi ‘sun’
kha:b sopun ‘dream’ etc.
The borrowed lexical items are adapted according to the
phonological system of Kashmiri. phonological system of Kashmiri.
In comparison to other modern Indian languages,
lexicographical works on Kashmiri commenced very late. No
lexicographical works were written before the middle of 19th
century. Lexicographical works on Kashmiri fall under different
categories: vocabularies, glossaries and dictionaries.
A number of attempts have been made by native speakers of
Kashmiri to compile dictionaries in Persian, Arabic and Sanskrit
towards the middles of the 19th century. It is believed that Sonti
Pandit compiled a Kashmiri -Persian dictionary in 1859. This
dictionary remained unpublished and is not available now. Some
other attempts were made by other scholars as well, but are not
available in completed form now.
Pandit Ishvara Kaul (d.1893) made a first serious attempt to
prepare a Kashmiri-Sanskrit dictionary, but could not complete it
before his death.
Grierson (1916-1932) compiled A dictionary of Kashmiri
Language partly from materials left by Late Pandit Ishvara Kaul.
He was assisted by Mahamohapadhyaya Mukundram Shastri.
This dictionary was published by the Royal Asiatic Study of
Bengal in four parts. This is first comprehensive Kashmiri-
English dictionary available. Most of the lexical items are
explained in Sanskrit as well. The lexical entries are given in
Roman script with transliteration in Devanagari. It explains
idioms and phrases in detail. It makes use of Kashmiri texts and
gives quite useful references of the same wherever necessary.
Grierson has used English alphabetic order for this dictionary
with additions and modifications wherever necessary to suit the
sound system of Kashmiri.
Jammu and Kashmir Accadmey of Art, Culture and
Languages launched a project of compilation of Kashmiri -
Kashmiri and Urdu -Kashmiri dictionaries in sixties. Both these
dictionaries have been published in several volumes each. The
k+:shir Dictionary: (Kashmiri Dictionary) is published in seven
volumes : (vol. I in 1972, vol. II in 1973, vol. 4 in 1974, vol. V
in 1977, vol. VI in 1978, and vol. VII in 1979). This dictionary
has been compiled by the editorial board consisting of S.K.
Toshkhani as the chief editor, and J.L. Kaul, Mohi-UI-Din
Hanjini, P.N. Pushp, and Akhtar Mohi-UI-Din. This is first
Kashmiri-Kashmiri dictionary. It provides the etymology of
Kashmiri lexical items and explains their meaning. It also
explains idioms and proverbs. The entries are listed in Kashmiri
(Perso-Arabic) script. The compilers have attempted to make use
of almost all the lexical items used in Grierson’s Dictionary and
added the new terms and expression as well which are currently
being used in spoken as well as literary Kashmiri.
khani as the chief editor, and J.L. Kaul, Mohi-UI-Din
Hanjini, P.N. Pushp, and Akhtar Mohi-UI-Din. This is first
Kashmiri-Kashmiri dictionary. It provides the etymology of
Kashmiri lexical items and explains their meaning. It also
explains idioms and proverbs. The entries are listed in Kashmiri
(Perso-Arabic) script. The compilers have attempted to make use
of almost all the lexical items used in Grierson’s Dictionary and
added the new terms and expression as well which are currently
being used in spoken as well as literary Kashmiri.
The Urdu-Kashmiri Farhang (Urdu-Kashmiri Dictionary)
has been published in nine volumes: (vol. I in 1967, vol. II in
1973, vol. III in 1974, vol. IV in 1975, vol. V in 1976, vol. VI in
1977, and vol. VII in 1978; vol. VIII in 1979 and vol. XI in
1980). This dictionary has been compiled by the editorial board
comprising of S.K. Toshkhani as the chief editor, and other
members namely A. Rehman Rahi, Hamidi Kashmiri, Abdul
Rashid Nazki, and Mohan Nirash. It explains Urdu lexical items,
idioms and some other phrases (including proverbs) in Kashmiri.
A Hindi-Kashmiri dictionary has been compiled by Rattan
Lal Shant et.al. and published by the Central Hindi Directorate,
New Delhi in 1980. This is the first dictionary of this type. A
Punjabi-Kashmiri dictionary complied by Omkar N. Koul and
Rattan Talashi and is published by the Language Department,
Government of Punjab, Patiala in 1999.
Besides the above dictionaries, number of vocabularies and
glossaries of Kashmiri have been prepared and published so far.
Some of these vocabularies and glossaries have formed parts of
other works related to Kashmiri, and others independently
prepared for different purposes. Some of major works are:
Edgeworth’s (1814) Grammar and Vocabulary of Kashmiri
Language, Godwin Auston’s (1866) Vocabulary of English,
Balti and Kashmiri, Bowring’s (1866) Vocabulary of Kashmiri
Language forming an Appendix D in Sir George Compbell’s
Ethnology of India.
Elmslie (1870) ‘List of Kashmiri words’, was followed by
more detailed work by him entitled Vocabulary of Kashmiri
Language in 2 parts. (Part I: Kashmiri-English, and Part II:
English-Kashmiri. Grierson’ Standard Manual of the Kashmiri
Language (2 volumes) originally published in 1911 and reprinted
in 1973 contains Kashmiri-English vocabulary besides grammar.
Neve (1973) provides a short list of English-Kashmiri
vocabulary in 58 pages. The author’s primary aim has been to
provide the visitor to Kashmiri with a list of words for quick
reference. Kachru (1973) has also provided a Glossary as
volume. 2 of his An Introduction to Spoken Kashmiri divided
into two parts: Kashmiri-English, and English-Kashmiri.
miri-English vocabulary besides grammar.
Neve (1973) provides a short list of English-Kashmiri
vocabulary in 58 pages. The author’s primary aim has been to
provide the visitor to Kashmiri with a list of words for quick
reference. Kachru (1973) has also provided a Glossary as
volume. 2 of his An Introduction to Spoken Kashmiri divided
into two parts: Kashmiri-English, and English-Kashmiri.
Handoo and Handoo (1975) have prepared Hindi-Kashmiri
Common vocabulary. Here the Vocabulary is divided into four
sections: 1. Words of similar shape and same meanings, 2.
Words with slightly different shape but same meaning, 3. Words
of similar shape with different meaning, and 4. Words with
similar and additional meanings. The vocabulary is listed in both
Devanagri as well as Kashmiri (Perso-Arabic) scripts.
A Kashmiri-English Glossary listing about 5000 words has
been prepared by Koul et. al.(1976). It uses both Kashmiri
(Perso-Arabic) and Roman scripts for Kashmiri. The revised
version of this Glossary is published by the CIIL under the title
Kashmiri-English Dictionary for Second Language Learners
(2000).
Some lexicographical works are available on Kashmiri
proverbs, saying and riddles. Prominent among such works are
Knowles (1885) A dictionary of Kashmiri proverbs and sayings
explained and illustrated from the rich and interesting folklore of
the Valley. Koul (1992) has compiled A Dictionary of Kashmiri
Proverbs based on primary and secondary sources. Koul (2000)
provides a Kashmiri-Kashmiri dictionary of Kashmiri proverbs.
Knowles (1997) has also compiled a list of Kashmiri
Riddles. Anand Koul (1933) has published two articles entitled
“Kashmiri Riddles” and ”Kashmiri Proverbs”. This presents
Kashmiri proverbs with their literal translations, and idiomatic
equivalents or explanations in English.
The above review of lexicographical works in Kashmiri
suggests that much needs to be done in the area of lexicography
in Kashmiri. The out of print materials need to be reprinted as
early as possible. There is a strong need for the preparation of a
good pedagogical Kashmiri-Hindi-English and English-Hindi-
Kashmiri dictionaries. This would facilitate the teaching of
Kashmiri as a second/foreign language, as well as teaching of
Hindi and English to native speakers of Kashmiri.
Bibliographical reference and annotations of main
lexicographical works in Kashmiri are given below:
Central Hindi Directorate 1988. Hindi-Kashmiri angrezi:
tribhasha kosh (Hindi-Kashmiri English Triangular
Dictionary) vols. I-III (vol. I pp. viii+1008, vol. II pp.
iii+804, vol. III pp. iii+404). New Delhi: Central Hindi
Directorate. It is a first triangular dictionary presenting
Kashmiri and English equivalents of the lexical items of
Hindi. Kashmiri entries are given in both Perso-Arabic as
well as Devanagri script thus facilitating its use by those
native speakers of Kashmiri as well as those who are not
proficient in the Perso-Arabic script.
Central Hindi Directorate 1989. Hindi-Kashmiri dictionary.
New Delhi: Central Hindi Directorate. It is a first bilingual
dictionary of Kashmiri related to Hindi and Kashmiri. The
Kashmiri vocabulary is written in modified Perso-Arabic
script to suit the Kashmiri pronunciation.
Elmslie, W. J. 1872. A Vocabulary of the Kashmiri language.
Part I: Kashmiri-English. Part 2: English-Kashmiri. London.
Grierson, George A. 1916-1932. A Dictionary of the Kashmiri
Language compiled partly from Materials left by the Late
Pandit Ishwara Kaul. Royal Asiatic Society of Bengal. Part I
1916, Part II 1924, Part III 1929, and Part IV 1932. The first
comprehensive dictionary of Kashmiri-English Dictionary ,
which is now out of print. It is compiled by Grierson with
the assistance of the Mahamohapadhyaya Mukundram
Shastri (a native speaker of Kashmiri). It gives lexical items
in Roman and Devanagari scripts. Most of the Kashmiri
lexical items are translated into Sanskrit and then into
English. Idioms and Phrases are explained in detail.
Handoo, Jawaharlal and Lalita Handoo 1925. Hindi-Kashmiri
common vocabulary. Mysore: CIIL. pp. xii+292. The
vocabulary is divided into four sections: 1. words of similar
shape and same meaning, 2. words with slightly different
shape but same meaning, 3. words of similar shape with
different meanings 4. common words with similar and
additional meanings. The vocabulary is given in Devanagari
and as well as Kashmiri (Perso-Arabic) script.
shape and same meaning, 2. words with slightly different
shape but same meaning, 3. words of similar shape with
different meanings 4. common words with similar and
additional meanings. The vocabulary is given in Devanagari
and as well as Kashmiri (Perso-Arabic) script.
Kantoo, Gopi Krishen 1980. Lexical variation in Puj dialect of
Kashmiri. M.A. Thesis. Kurukshetra University. Lists lexical
items used by Kashmiri butchers.
Knowles, James Hinton 1885. A Dictionary of Kashmiri
proverbs and sayings, explained and illustrated from the rich
and interesting folklore of the valley. Provides a first
detailed dictionary of Kashmiri proverbs and sayings. Most
of the proverbs and sayings are obsolete now. Some appear
mare literal translations of Persian proverbs and sayings. The
roman phonetic transcriptions does not provide exact
pronunciation. It is a useful reference for further research in
this area.
Koul, Ashok Kumar 1986. Lexical Borrowings in Kashmiri.
Kurukshetra University, Ph. D. dissertations (unpublished).
Provides a linguistic description of the Perso-Arabic and
English lexical borrowings in Kashmiri. It is the first
detailed study in this area.
Koul, Omkar N. 1984. Lexicography in Kashmiri. Kashir
Khabar. Presents a brief survey of lexicographical works in
Kashmir.
Koul, Omkar N., S.N. Raina and R.K. Bhat 1976. Kashmiri-
English glossary. Patiala: Northern Regional Language
Center. (Mimeo) 300p.It is a compilation of most frequent
vocabulary of Kashmiri used in both oral and written modes
of communication.
Koul, Omkar N., S.N. Raina and R.K. Bhat (2000) A
Kashmiri-dictionary for Second Language Learners.
Mysore: CIIL. It is a revised version of Kashmir-English
Glossary (1976).
Kashmir-English
Glossary (1976).
Koul, Omkar N. 1992. A dictionary of Kashmiri Proverbs.
Patiala: Indian Institute of Language Studies. pp. viii+160.
Provides literal and idiomatic translations of about 1300 very
frequently used Kashmiri proverbs into English. Kashmiri
proverbs are listed alphabetically using Roman script. A
useful reference for further research in this area.
Neve, Ernest F. 1973. English-Kashmiri vocabulary. Jammu:
Light and Life Publishers, pp. 58. It provides a short list of
English-Kashmiri Vocabulary. The author’s primary aim has
been “to provide the visitor to Kashmiri with a list of words
for quick reference”.
Toshkhani, S.K. (chief editor) 1967-1980. Urdu-Kashmiri
Farhang (Urdu-kahmiri Dictionary) vol. I-IX. Jammu and
Kashmir Academy of Art, Culture and Languages, Srinagar.
vol. I 1967, vol. II 1973, vol. III 1974, vol. IV 1975, vol. V
1976, vol. VI 1977, vol. VII 1978, vol. VIII 1979. A first
Urdu-Kashmiri dictionary compiled by the chief editor and
the editorial board consisting of A. Rahman Rahi, Hamid
Kashmiri, Abdul Rashid Nazki and Mohan Nirash. It
explains meanings of Urdu lexical items in Kashmiri and
also explains idioms and proverbs.
Toshkhani, S.K. 1980. Kashmiri Dictionary. Misra, B.G.(ed.)
Lexicography in India. Mysore: CIIL 1981, pp. 89-90.
Introduces and describes the project of the preparation of the
Kashmiri-Kashmiri and Urdu-Kashmiri dictionaries taken up
by J&K Academy of Art, Culture and Languages, Srinagar.
This paper was written in 1970.
Toshkhani, S.K. (Chief Editor) 1968-1980, k,:šir d,ikshanari:
(Kashmiri-Kashmiri Dictionary) Vols. I-IX. Jammu &
Kashmir Academy of Art, Culture and Languages, Srinagar.
6. Socio-Cultural and Historical Studies
The study of socio-cultural aspects of the people and its
interference with historical developments has been an interesting
area of scholarship as far as Kashmir is concerned. Kashmiri has
attached attention of different historians, politicians, sociologists,
linguistics, anthropologists, journalists, etc. who have written
about the socio-cultural and historical aspects from their own
points of view. Both native and no-native scholars have equally
been attached to it. As a result of it, a large number of studies are
available in different languages: Sanskrit, Persian, English,
Urdu, Hindi, Kashmiri, etc.
These works are of different types. They describe different
socio-cultural, political and historical upheavals the valley of
Kashmir has undergone from the earliest period to recent times.
Some works present chronology of different historical events,
some present political commentaries on the problems of rulers
and ruled class, other present socio-cultural surveys of the
people, and their life who have witnessed ups and downs in the
valley.
Most of the historical treatese written in Sanskrit and Persian
are concerned with the presentation of the main account of rulers
and historical events. They have not bothered to write about the
welfare or socio-cultural aspects of the ruled class. Even the title
of Kalhan’s Rajatarangin,i written in the 12th century makes it
clear that it is a ‘history of Kings’. This earliest work is followed
by different additions and versions contributed by other scholars.
Similarly, the histories written in Persian during the medieval
and early modern periods have been largely written about the
rulers and their governance or mis-governance. The practice has
been to write about the glory of certain rulers under the
patronage of power. Such works are not important from the
socio-cultural point if view. They also distort the realities.
Things have changed lately. During the modern period,
various attempts have been made to present an objective
overview of socio-cultural aspects of the people and the
historical events people have gone through. Some studies deal
with purely socio-cultural aspects of the people, and others
presents a chronology of historical events in conjunction with
socio-cultural survey of people.
-cultural aspects of the people and the
historical events people have gone through. Some studies deal
with purely socio-cultural aspects of the people, and others
presents a chronology of historical events in conjunction with
socio-cultural survey of people.
Kashmir has witnessed political upheavals. People have
largely suffered under the misrule of both alien and native rulers
during different times. The present-day situation in the valley has
something to do with the simmering problems which have
continued for long. Genuine grievances of the people have not
been redressed under one pretext or the other. Even after
independence the situation has not improved. The political
masters have not paid adequate attention to the sufferings of the
people. Due to en-masse rigging and unfair elections, people are
denied their constitutional rights which promise them a
democratic form of government in the true sense of the term. No
attempts have been made to present the ethics and value system
of the people in an unbiased way or objective so far.
Bibliography references and annotations of the prominent
works related to the socio-cultural aspects of the people and
historical studies are given below:
Akbar, M.J. 1991. Kashmir: beyond the vale. New Delhi:
Viking Penguin India, pp. x+232. Presents a chronological
account of prominent socio-cultural aspects, historical events
and political ups and downs the valley has undergone. The
book is divided into three sections: The ripples of falling
empires; love, politics and other tragedies; and cold blood.
Akhtar, Bashir 1984. twari:ki aqva:mi Kashmir (History of
Kashmiri people) Mohammed Din Fauq. In so:n adab pp.
151-62. Presents a critical review of the book related to the
description of communities and their surnames in Kashmiri
written in Urdu.
Bamzai, P.N.K. 1962. The History of Kashmir. Delhi:
Metropolitan Book Company. Edition 1973. A first detailed
political and socio-cultural history of the state of Jammu and
Kashmir. It presents a lucid account of all the prominent
upheavals of the state from the beginning up to the period it
is written. The author draws on heavily on the original and
authentic sources and the description is quite objective. It is
an important reference work for understanding the sociois written. The author draws on heavily on the original and
authentic sources and the description is quite objective. It is
an important reference work for understanding the sociocultural
milieu of the people.
Banihali, Marghub 1984. ba:gi sulaima:n. (The garden of
Sulaiman). In so:n adab pp. 79-94. Presents a critical review
of the history of Kashmiri written by Syed Ali in Persian.
Bhat, Ghulam Rasool 1984. ta:ri:khi Syed Ali. (History written
by Syed Ali). In so:n adab pp. 54-63. Presents a critical
review of the history of Kashmiri written by Sayed Ali in
Persian.
Charak, Sukhdev Singh 1980. History and culture of Himalyan
states, vol. 5. Presents the historical description of the
Jammu from the beginning of the Sikh kingdom set up at
Lahore till Maharaj Gulb Singh’s rule in Jammu.
Deambi, B.K. Kaul 1982. Corpus of Sarada inscriptions of
Kashmir with special reference to origin and development of
sarada script. Delhi: Agam kala Prakashan, pp. xx+184.
It contains two main sections on 1. Origin and development
of Sharada script and 2. Sharada inscriptions of Kashmiri-
Jammu and Ladakh. The third sections gives appendices on
decayed and lost inscription, Kashmiri names of the
individual Sharada characters, and the Laukika (saptasi) Era.
Dhar, Somnath 1991. Jammu and Kashmir. New Delhi:
National Book Trust, pp. viii+212. First published in 1977.
The book published under the series India-the Land and the
People provides the basic information about the state of
Jammu and Kashmir. It covers wide range of subjects
including the land and the people, sources of Kasmiri
history, earlier periods of the rules of Mughals, Afghans,
Sikhs, Dogras and independence and after. It provides
information on Kashmiri culture heritage, folklore, music,
arts, crafts, monuments, tourism, etc. The general readers
will find this book quite informative and useful. will find this book quite informative and useful.
Drew, Frederich 1875. The Jummoo and Kashmir territories. A
geographical account. London: E. Stanford. Reprinted
Karachi: Indus Publications 1980. xiii, 568 p. Frontispiece,
illustrations collection of folding maps, plans, diagrams,
genealogical tables, and one folded map in pocket. A useful
description of geography of the region. It contains
information about the routs and travelling distances as they
existed a century ago. It also contains ethnographic and
linguistic notes, some of which have been incorporated into
Grierson 1919, vol. 8, Part 2.
Fazili, Manzur 1984. k-ši:r by G.M.D. Sufi. In so:n adab, pp.
163-70. Presents a critical review of the history of Kashmir
written by G.M.D. Sufi bringing out salient features of the
book.
Ganahar, J.N. 1987. k-ši:ri h.nd’ bo:dh. (Budhists of Kashmir).
In so:n adab, pp. 122-27. Presents mainly the review of the
book Buddhists of Kashmir, which describes the salient
features of the Buddhists movement in Kashmir.
Hasnain, Fida Mohammad 1984. History of Muslim rule in
Kashmiri by R.K. Parimoo. In so:n adab pp. 171-78.
Presents a critical review of the book highlighting the strong
points and weakness.
Ibrahim, Malwi Mohammad 1984. ta:ri:khe kashmi:r (History
of Kashmir) by Birbal Kachru. In so:n adab, pp. 95-115.
Presents a critical review of the history of Kashmir written
by Birbal Kachru in Persian upto the period of 1845.
Ibrahim, Mohammad 1987. Mulla Abdul Quadir Badyuni h/ndis
muntak-hab ta:rikhas manz kAshi:r (Kashmir as described in
the short history of Kashmir written by Mulla Abdul Qadir
Badayuni). In so:n adab pp. 16-55. Presents a review of the
description of Kashmiri in the Historical work written by
Mulla Abdul Qadir Badayuni. The book reviewed is
important. important.
Jagmohan 1991. My Frozen Turbulence in Kashmir. New Delhi:
Allied Published Pvt. Ltd. pp. xv+723. Presents the
description of the events of the state of Jammu and Kashmir
during the two terms of governorship of the author in the
state in his historical prospective. A well-documented
analysis of the events is helpful in understanding the current
socio-political problems of the state.
Kalhana 1916. Rajatarangini: A Chronicle of the Kings of
Kashmir. Translated, with an introduction, commentary and
appendices by M.A. Stein. Reprinted Delhi: Motilal
Banarasidass 1916, vol. 1: Introduction and Books 1-7 vol.
2: Notes, Geographical Memoir, Index, Maps. Kalhan’s (12 th
cen.) Rajatarangini is a classic work on the history of
Kashmir, which contains references to the Dards (Darad,
Darada) and their country (Dard-desha).
Kapoor, M.L. 1971. A history of medieval Kashmir. Jammu:
A.R.B. Publications. The book comprises eleven chapters
presenting description of the Sultanate, Zain-ul-Abdin
Basdshah, his inheritors, Chaks, the spread of Islam, socioeconomic,
position and the culture of the medieval Kashmir.
Kapoor, M.L. 1975. Eminent rulers of ancient Kashmiri. Delhi:
Oriental Publishers. The author presents the description of
the ten kings namely Lalitaditya, Jayaped, Awanti Verman.
Rani Sughandha, Ded Rani. Sangam Raja, Anant. Kalash
and Hasrsh. Towards the end he describes the fall of the
Hindu dynasty.
Kapoor, M.L. 1980. History of Jammu and Kashmir state. vol. I.
The book is devided into ten chapters presenting an
introduction and historical description related to the rule of
Maharaja Ranjt Singh, Gulab Singh as the king of Jammu,
expansion of the kingdom of Jammu, Gulab Singh and
Punjab, Gulab Singh and Afghan war, the politics of Punjab,
situation in Jammu etc. It is a first detailed attempt on the
subject bringing out various issues related to the kingdom of
Jammu.
. It is a first detailed attempt on the
subject bringing out various issues related to the kingdom of
Jammu.
Koul, Anand 1978. Geography of Jammu and Kashmir State.
New Delhi: Manohar Books Service. pp. xii+164,
Illustrations, photographs, maps. Originally published in the
year 1925, the present edition is updated and includes an
introduction by P.N.K. Bamzai. A general description of
Jammu and Kashmir with chapters dealing with routes, the
inhabitants, commerce, industries, natural calamities and
places of interest. Useful in connection with Drew 1875.
Koul, Omkar N. (Forthcoming). Historical development of
Kashmiri. Mishra, Vidya Niwas (ed.) An encyclopedia of
Indian grammatical tradition. Calcutta: Bharatiya Bhasha
Parishad. Discusses historical development of certain
linguistics characteristics of Kashmiri.
Majboor, Arjan Dev 1984. Review of History and culture of
Himalayan states, vol. 5 by Sukhdev Singh Charak. In so:n
adab, pp. 179-202. Presents a critical review of the history
which is related to the history of Jammu with the belonging
of the Sikh kingdom in Lahore till Maharaja Gulab Sing’s
five years of kingdom.
Pandit, Mohammad Amin 1984. Review of va:kiva:ti Kashmir.
In so:n adab pp. 71-78. Presents a critical review of the
history of Kashmir written by Mohammad Azam Dedmari in
Persian and originally published in 1936. Another book
reviewed is ta:ri:khe Kashmir Azmi. The review highlights
the salient features of the book.
Rafiqi, Mohammad Amin 1984. Review of ta:ri:xe Haidar
Malik (History of Haider Malik). In so:n adab pp. 64-70.
Presents a brief review of the history of Kashmir written by
Haider Malik in Persian. The review deals with the
description of Major aspects of the history as described in
the book.
Sadhu, S.L. 1984. Review of Rajatangin,i by Shreevar. In so:n
adab, pp. 32-53. Presents a detailed review of the historical
book bringing out salient features of the historical events
described in the book and their importance.
Rajatangin,i by Shreevar. In so:n
adab, pp. 32-53. Presents a detailed review of the historical
book bringing out salient features of the historical events
described in the book and their importance.
Sadhu, S.L. 1984. Elphinstone t0k1:ši:r. In so:n adab. 128-46.
Presents the review of the description of the Kashmiri during
the Afghan rule as described in the Kingdom of Kabul
written by Mount Stuart Elphinstone, first published in 1814.
Elphinstone has presented a vivid description of certain
socio-cultural aspects of the people prevalent during that
period. The review brings out the salient features of the
historical descriptions made in the book under review.
Saqi, Moti Lal 1984. Rajatangin,i by Kalhana. In so:n adab pp.
15-31. Presents a critical review of Kalhan’s Rajatangini
highlinting important features of this important historical
work.
Saqi, Moti Lal 1987. ved, maha:bharat pora:n t0k1shi:r (Veds,
Mahabharat, Purans and Kashmir). In so:n adab pp. 92-105.
Described certain important clues find in the Vedas,
Mahabharatas, and Puranas about Kashmiri and its people. It
is well-researched article and reveals in-depth study of the
author.
Sufi, G.M.D. 1948-49. Kashir: Being a history of Kashmir from
the earliest time to our own. Punjab University, Lahore. New
Delhi: Light and Life Publishers (Reprint 1974). vol. I and
II, pp. xxviii, 846. Appendix, pp. 258. Maps, illustrations
and pictures. Contains chapters on Kashmir and the
Kashmiri culture in the Pre-Islamic period. The spread of
Islam in Kashmiri, the Sultans of Kashmir, Kashmir under
the Chaks, Kashmir under the Mughuls, Kashmir under the
Afghans, Letters and Literatures in Kashmir under Muslim
rule. Arts and crafts in Kashmir under Muslim rule, civil and
military organization under Muslim rule in Kashmiri,
Kashmir under the Sikhs, and Kashmir under the Dogras.
Sufi, G.M.D. 1979. Islamic culture in Kashmir. New Delhi:
Light and Life publishers. pp. x+393. The author presents a
general survey of the history of the Islamic culture in
Kashmir. He provides a general description of Kashmir and
Kashmiris, a brief outline of the pre-Islamic period,
descriptions of the spread of Islam under the sultans,
Mughals and Afghans. He also describes the advancement of
learning development of arts and crafts and the civil military
administration under the Muslim period. He also presents the
salient features of Kashmir under the Sikhs and Dogras. The
book is quite useful for the students of Kashmiri culture with
special reference to the spread of Islam in Kashmir.
Islamic culture in Kashmir. New Delhi:
Light and Life publishers. pp. x+393. The author presents a
general survey of the history of the Islamic culture in
Kashmir. He provides a general description of Kashmir and
Kashmiris, a brief outline of the pre-Islamic period,
descriptions of the spread of Islam under the sultans,
Mughals and Afghans. He also describes the advancement of
learning development of arts and crafts and the civil military
administration under the Muslim period. He also presents the
salient features of Kashmir under the Sikhs and Dogras. The
book is quite useful for the students of Kashmiri culture with
special reference to the spread of Islam in Kashmir.
Sultanpuri, Mashal 1984. Review of tari:kh-i-k2ši:r: akh
mwakhsar tanqi:di: j3:yz4. (History of Kashmir: A brief
critical review). In so:n adab pp. 137-50. Presents a critical
review of the book written by Haji Mahi-ul-din Miskin. The
review mentions the silent features of the book under review.
Taing, Mohammad Yusuf 1984. guldasta Kashmir - dwad t4a:b
(Gulistan Kashmir: A review). In so:n adab, pp. 116-36.
Presents a critical review of Guldasta -Kashmir written by
Pandit Gopal Koul Khasta in Urdu. This book narrates the
history of Kashmir upto the period of 1887. The reviewer
brings out the salient features of the book and arouses
interest in the readers for reading the book in original.
Taing, Mohammad Yusuf 1987. Hiuen Tsang: k2ši:ri h4nd.
mwakht4 pit,a:ruk kunz4 barda:r. In so:n adab, pp. 56-81.
Presents a review of Hiuen Tsang’s reference to Kashmir in
his famous work of History related to India.
7. Folk Literature
Kashmir has a long and rich tradition of folk literature. The
earliest samples of folklore are available in cult-chants reflecting
the philosophy of life. Some of such cult-chants, transformed
into popular rhymes, cannot be understood easily. Some
important Sanskrit texts like Brhatkatha: composed by Sanskrit
poets of Kashmir (Kshmendra and Samadeva during the 11th
century) are believed to have been based on Kashmiri folk
tradition. Similarly, the themes of katha:saritsa:gar,
panchatantra, etc. are also related to folk traditions. Folk-tales
based on such texts have been adapted in different cultural
contexts. For example, Persian renderings reflect different locale
and names of characters. Some folk-tales of Kashmiri are based
on the Persian version of old native themes. The folk-tales have
undergone different improvisations. As in other languages, they
are assimilated and improvised in Kashmiri as well to suit
different occasions and cultural contexts.
There are different genres of the Kashmiri folk literature:
folk-tales, comic narratives, folksongs, proverbs, riddles etc.
Folk tales are of different types presenting themes related to
romance, adventure and miracles, anecdotal episodes, fables,
fairy tales, ghost tales and tales of wit and wisdom. Most of them
are found in Perso-Arabic and other Indian folk literature as
well.
Kashmiri has a typical comic narrative style called
l5d,i:sha:h. It is balladic and recited accompanied by an iron
jingle. The themes of this genre are natural calamities, social
problems, economic exploitation, political oppression, etc.
Folksongs are of various types: van6vun (marriage ceremony
song), vastun (folk lyric), li:la: (devotional verse), na:t (lyrical
tributes), manqibat (related to Muslim saints), chak6r (folk
chorus), rov b5:th (folk song sung with a rov dance), manz6l’
b5:th (cradle songs), shur’ b 5:th (children songs), mata:m b5:th
(songs related to death) are of two types: marsi: (grief songs),
and va:n (bereavements verse).
Besides the above genres, Kashmiri has a largest number of
proverbs, saying and riddles. Kashmiri proverbs are of interest
from the point of view of the style. A large number of proverbs
and sayings are in the conversational style.
proverbs, saying and riddles. Kashmiri proverbs are of interest
from the point of view of the style. A large number of proverbs
and sayings are in the conversational style.
Kashmiri folk literature has not been studied in depth so far.
Most of the folk literature is scattered and has not been properly
compiled. There is a wide scope for research in different genres
of Kashmiri folk literature.
Bibliographical reference of the prominent works related to
Kashmiri folk literature are as follows:
Ahsan, Mohammad Ahsan 1975-76. kashmiri lo:k adab me•
zira:fat (Satire in Kashmiri folk literature). In Hamara adab,
JKAACL.
Andrabi, Mohammad Ahmad 1975-76. tio:ha:ru• : ke gi:t
(Songs of festivals). In Hamara adab, JKAACL.
Akhtar, Bashir 1975-76. faslu• : ke gi:t (Songs of crops). In
Hamara adab, JKAACL.
Afaq Aziz 1994. k7ši:r t8 amik’ ibtid 9:yii b9siki:n (Kashmir and
its original inhabitants). Srinagar: Bavath Publications.
Presents a socio-cultural and geographical survey of
Kashmir of ancient times.
Bashir, Bashar 1982-83. lo:k adab (Folk literature). In Hamara
adab, JKAACL.
Bhat, Nur Mohammad 1979-80. mausi:qi: (Kashmiri music). In
Hamara adab, JKAACL.
Bhagat, Mohammad Subhan 1979. k9:šur luk8the:t,ar
(Kashmiri folk theatre). Srinagar: The University of
Kashmir, pp. 156. An attempt to describe the main
characteristics of Kashmiri folk theatre with the help of
various examples of this type of theatre.
Dulai, Narinder 1975. Kashmiri lo:k katha:vã: (Kashmiri
folktales) Patiala: Bahsha Academy, pp. 112. A collection
and rendering of Kashmiri folktales in Punjabi.
Kashmiri lo:k katha:vã: (Kashmiri
folktales) Patiala: Bahsha Academy, pp. 112. A collection
and rendering of Kashmiri folktales in Punjabi.
Handoo, Jawaharlal 1971. Kashmiri aur hendi ke lo:k gi:t (The
folksongs of Kashmiri and Hindi ). Kurukshetra: Vishal
Publications, pp. xvii+403. A revised version of the Ph. D.
dissertations submitted to the Kurukshetra University.
Presents a comparative study of Kashmiri and Hindi folk
songs.
Handoo, Lalita 1994. Structural Analysis of Kashmiri Folk
Tales, Mysore: Central Institute of Indian Languages, pp.
xiii+230. This presents a first detailed analysis of Kashmiri
folk tales using Proppain methodology. The scholars and
researchers will find it quite useful and will stimulate further
interest in the study of Kashmiri folk literature.
Hajini, Mohi-ud-Din 1975-76. kashmiri zaba:n ke nasri: lo:k
adab ka: xa:ka: (An outline of the Kashmiri folk literature in
Prose). In Hamara adab, JKAACL.
Kalla, Badri Nath 1980-81. k::šur še:vmat (Kashmir Shaiva
Mata). Srinagar: University of Kashmir, pp. 120. Presents a
brief survey and description of Kashmiri Shaiva philosophy
in Kashmir.
Kalla, Badri Nath 1980-81. Kashmir shaivmat (Kashmiri
Shaivism). In Hama:ra: :dab, JKAACL.
Kalla, K.L. 1985. Our Glorious Heritage. In Kalla, K.L. (ed.)
The Literary Heritage of Kashmir, Delhi: Mittal
Publications, pp. 1-9.
Kalla, K.L. 1985. The culture of Kashmir. In Kalla, K.L. (ed.)
The Literary Heritage of Kashmir, Delhi: Mittal
Publications, pp. 10-17.
Kalla, K.L. 1985. Some Supernatural Characteristics of
Kashmiri Folklore. In Kalla, K.L. (ed.) The Literary
Heritage of Kashmir, Delhi: Mittal Publications, pp. 236Kashmiri Folklore. In Kalla, K.L. (ed.) The Literary
Heritage of Kashmir, Delhi: Mittal Publications, pp. 236
238.
Kalla, K.L. 1985. The Merchants and His Seven Treasures. In
Kalla, K.L. (ed.) The Literary Heritage of Kashmir, Delhi:
Mittal Publications, pp. 236-238.
Knowles, James Hinton 1885. A dictionary of Kashmiri
proverbs and sayings, explained and illustrated from the rich
and interesting folklore of the valley. Bombay: Education
Society’s Press. vii, 236 p.
Knowles, James Hinton 1887. Kashmiri riddles. JRASB vol. 56,
Part 1, pp. 125-154.
Knowles, James Hinton 1893. Folk tales of Kashmir. London:
Kegan Paul Trench, Trubner 1893. xxi, 510p. Glossary.
Reprinted New York: Arno Press, 1977; and Islamabad:
National Institute of folk Heritage, 1981. The author
provides the narrator’s name, explanatory notes, and
reference to other collections.
Koul, Anand 1933. Kashmiri Riddles. Indian Antiquary. vol.
1xii, pp. 21-28.
Koul, Anand 1933. Kashmiri Proverbs. Indian Antiquary. vol.
1xii, pp. 71-198.
Koul, Omkar N. 1992. A Dictionary of Kashmiri Proverbs.
Patiala: Indian Institute of Language Studies. pp. viii+160.
Provides a literal idiomatic translations of about 1300 very
frequently used Kashmiri proverbs into English. Kashmiri
proverbs are listed alphabetically using Roman Script.
Lone, Ali Mohammad 1975-76. kašmi:ri: lo:k šairi:: ek ja:yza:
(A study of Kashmiri folklore). In Hama:ra: adab,
JKAACL.
Munawar, Naji 1975-76. lo:k adab aur bacce (Children and folk
literature). In Hamara adab, JKAACL.
-76. lo:k adab aur bacce (Children and folk
literature). In Hamara adab, JKAACL.
Nazir, Ghulam Nabi 1975-76. kashmiri kaha:vate• : aur inka:
pas manzar (Kashmiri proverbs and their background). In
Hamara adab, JKAACL.
Nazir, Ghulam Nabi (ed.) 1975. k;:shir luk<b=:th (Kashmiri
folk songs) vol. 6 Srinagar: JKAACL, pp. 277.
Nazir, Ghulam Nabi 1988. k;:šir’ d ;pity (Kashmiri sayings).
Srinagar: J&K Academy of Art, Culture and Languages.
Provides explanations of Kashmiri proverbs and sayings
from Kashmiri into Kashmiri.
Nazik, Rashid 1979. reš kalt, t<s=:n’ reš (The Rishi cult and our
Rishis). Srinagar: University of Kashmir, pp. 183. A first
attempt to present in Kashmiri a brief description of the
Rishi cult with special reference to Kashmiri Rishis.
Nishat Ansari 1975-76. lad,i:sha:h: Kashmiri ki: ava:mi:zindagi:
ka: tarjuma:n (Ladi Sha:h: A representation of the folk life of
Kashmir). In Hamara adab, JKAACL.
Pardesi, Shyam Lal and Som Nath Sadhu (Compilers) k=:shir
luk<b=:th (Kashmiri folk songs) Part VII. Srinagar:
JKAACL, pp. 323. A collection of Kashmiri folksongs with
an introduction.
Pompur, Rosul 1975-76. lo:k adab aur zaba:n (Folk literature
and language). In Hamara adab, JKAACL.
Pompur, Rosul 1979-80. mele aur tio:ha:r (Fairs and festivals).
In Hamara adab, JKAACL.
Premi, Brij 1975-76. kashmiri lo:k gi:tu• : ka:sama:ji: pas
manzar (A social background of Kashmiri folksongs). In
Hamara adab, JKAACL.
Pushp, P.N. 1984. Folk Literature: Kashmiri. In George, K.M.
(ed.) Comparative Indian Literature, Trivandrum: Kerala
Sahitya Akadmi and Macmillan.
(ed.) Comparative Indian Literature, Trivandrum: Kerala
Sahitya Akadmi and Macmillan.
Qalandar, Quasir 1980-81. mausi:qi (Kashmiri music). In
Hamara adab, JKAACL.
Saqi, Moti Lal 1067. k>:sir’luk ?b>:th. (Kashmiri folksongs) vol.
II. Srinagar JKAACL pp. 238. A collection of Kashmiri folk
songs along with an introduction and notes on certain lexical
items.
Saqi, Moti Lal and Naji Munawar (eds.) 1965. k>:shir’luk ?b>:th.
(Kashmiri Folksongs), Srinagar: JKAACL. pp. 35. A
collection of Kashmiri folk songs with an introduction by Ali
Mohammad Lone.
Saqi, Moti Lal 1975-76. sha:di: biya:h ke gi:t (Folk songs of
marriages in Kashmiri). In Hamara adab, JKAACL.
Shad, Ghulam Mohammad 1975-76. lo:k adab aur ta:ri:x ka:
ba:hmi: rabt (The mutual relationship between Kashmiri folk
literature and history). In Hamara adab, JKAACL.
Shouq, Shafi 1975-76. lo:k adab aur ala:mtiyat (folk literature
and symbolism). In Hamara adab, JKAACL.
Sultanpuri, Mashal 1975-76. lo:k kaha:niyu• : par mubni:
Kashmiri masnaviya• : (Kashmiri masnavis based on folk
literature). In Hamara adab, JKAACL.
8. Literature
The Kashmiri Literature can broadly be divided into four
periods: 1. The Beginning (upto 1500), 2. Early Middle Period
(1500-1750), 3. Late Middle Period (1750-1900), and 4. Modern
Period (1900). We will make an attempt to point out salient
features of literary activities during these periods.
The Beginning
The earliest use of Kashmiri as a written medium is found in
commentaries interpolated in Sanskrit texts of Kashmiri Shavism
written in the 12th and the 13th centuries. The beginning of
Kashmiri literature is traced to apabbramsha-prakrit stanza
preserved in early Sanskrit texts related to Kashmiri Shaivism
such as tantrasara (c. 1015) by Abhinavagupta. They were
meant to sum the doctrine for the common masses in their
speech. Shitikanth’s mahanaya-prakasha (c.1250) is actually the
finest complete text of Kashmiri. In its preface, the author writes
that he has chosen to write in sarvagocarya deshbhasha (the
language of the area spoken by the people). There are 74 sutras
written in Kashmiri apbhransha in chummasampradaya
(Chumma cult) written around 1150 A.D. The language used in
it is close to Kashmiri of today. The Kashmiri language was
primarily adopted by the Shaiva scholars for propagating their
views and beliefs among the common masses.
In the 14th century, Kashmir was adopted by Shaivite saints
as the vehicle for expressing their mystical poetry in four-line
stanzas (va:kh, from Sanskrit va:kya, ‘saying’). Lalla’s versus
written in this style have become proverbial wisdom, quoted by
Hindus and Muslims alike. Her younger contemporary, Nunda
Rishi (also known as Sheikh Nur-ud-Din or Sahajanand), is
another leading saint-poet often quoted today. His poetry
composed in a meter called Shrukh (Sanskrit shloka:) is
influenced by Sufi mysticism. The early period of Kashmir
poetry is thus called the va:kh-shrukh period its hallmark is the
blending of Hindus Shaivite and Muslims Sufi thought and
traditions. The poetic compositions of the other poets of this
period are not available. During this period, two religio-cultural
traditions of Hindus and Muslims came face to face and it had an
impact on the literary tradition which followed.
traditions. The poetic compositions of the other poets of this
period are not available. During this period, two religio-cultural
traditions of Hindus and Muslims came face to face and it had an
impact on the literary tradition which followed.
Lalla (1335-1376) is considered as poet-philosopher or a
seer, who is respected by Hindus and Muslims alike. Legends
about her life and experiences are quite popular. According to
popular belief, she was born at Pandrenthan near Srinagar and
was married to Sona Pandit at Pampore at a tender age of twelve
years. Her mother-in-law was cruel to her and did not treat her
well. At the age of twenty-six, she renounced the family and
accepted Srikantha as her spiritual Guru. She was not moved by
pleasures or sorrows of life. Lalla’s poetical compositions have
been transmitted orally from generation to generation. Total
number of compositions attributed to her is around 150.
The structure of va:kh is important from stylistic point of
view. A number of them are composed in a simple ‘questionanswer
style’. This technique is used in Kashmiri by several
other poets. Her compositions are often quoted as sayings in day-
to-day conversations and in both literary and oral texts. They
express a rich experience of moral, and human experiences
which are very much true even today. Like other saints, she has
expressed her personal experiences of the universe. Her poetical
compositions are valued in Kashmiri literature for their contents
presenting philosophy and human messages and also for the
unique style adopted by her. They have become part of
proverbial wisdom of the people. Lalla is affectionately called
Lal Ded (Grany Lalla) on lal m@:j (Mother Lalla). She has
influenced a number of poets in Kashmiri.
Lalla’s younger contemporary saint poet Sheikh Nur -ud-Din,
is considered the founder of the Rishi Order in Kashmiri. He
followed a style of shruk in the composition of poetry, the whole
period is designated as va:kh-shrukh period. Most of his
compositions express moral lessons.
The va:kh-shrukh period was followed by a genere of
narrative verse, of which two compositions survive. The
bha:na:surkatha:, or bhat,tavta:r (mid-15th century), describes
the love of Bhanasura’s daughter Usha for Krishna’s grandson
Anirudh, within the framework of the war between Krishna and
the demon Bhana. The sukh-dukha carit of Ganaka Prashasta (c.
1476) describes the aims and ideals of human life.
the demon Bhana. The sukh-dukha carit of Ganaka Prashasta (c.
1476) describes the aims and ideals of human life.
Early Middle Period
This period is marked by the genres of love and devotional lyrics
sung by poets. By this period, the Muslim Sultans had begun to
patronize Persian scholarship, and Persian was eventually
established as the court language. Nevertheless, a Kashmiri
genre originating in folk poetry, called vatsun (Sanskrit vacana,
‘speech’) flourished during this period. In lo:l vatsun a poet
sings of his/her lo:l (a word signifying an untranslatable complex
of love and longing of heart). The lo:l lyric is a short poem of
about six to ten lines which express a single mood. Its first and
foremost poet is Haba Khatoon (16th century), who is composed
lo:l vatsun, or love lyrics. Her singing is said to have captivated
Prince Yusuf Shah Chak, who made her his consort. Yusuf
Shah’s reign was short. He was defeated by the Mughal emperor
Akbar and imprisoned in Bihar. In her lyrics, still sung today,
Haba Khatoon described the sorrow of separation. Haba
Khatoon’s lol brought Kashmiri poetry back from the mystical
and idealistic plane of earlier poets to the joys and sorrows of
everyday life. Her lyrics represent extreme simplicity of mind.
The lo:l vastun tradition continued for two centuries, with
compositions by Habibullah Nawshehri (1554-1617), Jumu Bibi
(c. 1717), Rupa Bhavani (1621-1721), Arnimal, Svacha Kral and
Shah Gafoor (18th century), as the most prominent poets. The
romantic and mystic trends of Kashmiri continued for long.
Arnimal (a forsaken wife of Persian poet of love lyrics)
expressed her sorrows of life in a number of lyrics which are
often recited for their melody.
Most of the poetry written during this period is either lost or
has become part of the folk literature. Due to the lack of
patronage and encouragement at the hands of the rulers, most of
the Kashmiri works are lost or their authorship is under dispute.
It is the simplicity of this genre which is very close to human
heart that enabled part of the literature to survive in Oral
tradition.
The Late Middle Period
This period is marked by two parallel genres and style of
Kashmiri literary compositions. On the one hand devotional
lyrics based on Puranic legends and local folk traditions were
composed by Hindu poets, and on the other hand, themes of love
and religious themes based on Persian legends were adopted
Muslims poets. In both types of compositions, there was
influence of Persian narrative literary styles.
This period is important in the development of a
combination of Shaivite and Vaishnative thoughts. This was
expressed in the literary works composed in Hindu saint poets,
popularly known as Bhakts (devotees). In the so-called Bhakti
literature of Kashmiri, age-old Kashmiri Shaivite thoughts were
influenced by the Vaishnavite beliefs under the influence of the
literature of other neighboring languages like Hindi, Punjabi etc.
The theme of Bhakti (devotion) was expressed in two types of
main genres: lyrics and narratives. The poets who adopted the
genre of devotional lyrics were Prakash Ram (18th century),
Parmanand (1791-1879) and Krishna Joo Razdan (1851-1926).
Some compositions of the lo:l vatsun type can also be read as
lila:yi vatsun, as the imagery of human love can be understood to
represent the love between God and man.
Prakash Ram has composed ra:ma:yan in Kashmiri based on
folk legends prevalent at the time. While most of the legends are
based on Valmiki’s Ramayana, some of the legends are original.
For example, the legend about Sita’s birth. She is described in
Ramayana as the daughter of Ravan. Prakash Ram used the
narrative style with an influence of Persian borrowed vocabulary
and metaphor. There are about seven Ramayanas written in the
language. All these Ramayans are written in the same style
combining the Persian narrative style and Kashmiri lo:l lyrics.
Out of these, Prakash Ram’s Ramayana is most popular.
Like legends about Rama, there are legends related to
Krishna as well. Parmanand was quite successful in basing his
work on Puranic legends and contemporary realities and
environment. His prominent works are: ra:sli:la, shv-lagan,
ra:dha:-svayamvar and suda:ma:-tsarith. He also uses a
combination of narrative style and devotional lyrics. Though, his
style is mostly Sanskritised, as far as the borrowings of
vocabulary is concerned, however, he uses Persian similarities
and metaphors very frequently. His devotional songs written in
li:la: style are quite popular. He is followed by other prominent
Hindu poets, who used the same style in narratives related to
legend of Krishna and Shiva. Krishna Razdan in prominent
among them. He composed his Shivapurana combining the
narration and li:la: lyrics using very simple style. This Hindu
Shavite-Vaishnavite tradition of poetry continued for long and is
even now followed by compositions written in li:la: lyric style.
style is mostly Sanskritised, as far as the borrowings of
vocabulary is concerned, however, he uses Persian similarities
and metaphors very frequently. His devotional songs written in
li:la: style are quite popular. He is followed by other prominent
Hindu poets, who used the same style in narratives related to
legend of Krishna and Shiva. Krishna Razdan in prominent
among them. He composed his Shivapurana combining the
narration and li:la: lyrics using very simple style. This Hindu
Shavite-Vaishnavite tradition of poetry continued for long and is
even now followed by compositions written in li:la: lyric style.
The rov vatsun or lyrics to accompany rov (a folk dance)
were composed by Mahmud Gami (1759-1855), Shams Faqir
(1843-1904) and Maqbool Shah Kralvari (d.1875), among
others. And, finally a genre of mystical lyrics, or sufiya:n.
vatsun, emerged during the 19th century with compositions by
Shah Gafoor (c. 1850), Svacha Kral (c. 1860) and Shams Faqir.
The sufiya:nAvatsun, draws its themes from Muslim Sufi
tradition, whereas li:la:yi vatsun is inspired by Hindu Motifs.
Kashmiri literature has borrowed the masnavi (narrative
verse) from the Persian tradition and elaborated it into several
sub-genres. These include lo:l masnavi: (Romantic tales), dali:l
masnavi: (based on folk legends such as of Alif Laila, Hatim
Tai, etc.), razm masnavi: (themes related to the Prophet’s life),
sufiya:nAmasnavi: (themes from Sufism), and avta:r masnavi:
(incarnation legends from the Hindu epics). Other genres
borrowed from Persian and Arabic include the marsi (elegy),
gazal (independent rhymed couplets) and nazm (rhymed
couplets with a connecting theme).
The Islamic faith was expressed in the na:t (addressed to
Prophet) genre. This has its roots in the folk tradition and has
been first used by Mahmud Gami. Most of the masnavi: poets
wrote na:t. In his na:t genre, Abdul Ahad Nadim used the folk
form of the vanAvun which became quite popular.
The poets sang of divine love and mostly remained
unconcerned with the agonies and day to day suffering of people.
There were poets who sang the love lyrics unmindful of the life
like realities. The genres of gazal and nazm developed under the
influence of Persian and later Urdu. Mahmud Gami is considered
the first Kashmiri poet of gazal. He wrote vatsans too. His
gazals and vatsans are not always distinguished beyond doubt.
Following a Persian tradition, in the gazal and vatsuns of
Mahmud Gami, a woman is a lover and she addresses a man –
her beloved, in the pang of separation.
gazal. He wrote vatsans too. His
gazals and vatsans are not always distinguished beyond doubt.
Following a Persian tradition, in the gazal and vatsuns of
Mahmud Gami, a woman is a lover and she addresses a man –
her beloved, in the pang of separation.
The gazals was introduced by Mahmud Gami, in Kashmir. It
was not free from Persian influence at the levels of the use of
vocabulary, metaphors and similes. It was Rasul Mir (18101870)
who made quite a few innovations in this genre. In his
composition, man and woman address each other according to
the appropriateness of context. Rasul Mir’s gazal is free from the
influence of mystical jargon and Persian influence. He was born
and brought up in a village Duru (Anantnag district) and was
charmed by the beauty of nature and people. He talks about his
charming sweetheart of extraordinary beauty – ‘Kong’ by name
in several poems. He felt deep pain at her separation after her
marriage and expressed his heartfelt feelings in several poems.
He excelled in both simplicity of content and expressions. His
imagery is surcharged with emotion and simplicity of mind. His
poems are pieces of art developed in thematic content, sensibility
and technical sophistication. His poems are quite popular from
the point of view of rhythm. He has made significant
contribution in using very effective metaphors and idioms of the
language. He brought the use of language very close to the
expressions of human heart.
The Modern Period
The modern period is marked for some quite significant
developments as far as the Kashmiri literature is concerned. The
most important being the beginning and development of different
genres in prose. Prose literature appeared with the Kashmiri
translation of the Bible in 1827, Secular prose genres developed
later with the first drama in 1923, the first short story in 1950,
and the first novel in 1955. The adoption of Kashmiri as a
medium for radio and television has done much to foster the
development of the Drama in Kashmiri, whereas the weaker role
of print media has handicapped writers of short stories and
novels. The silent features of Kashmiri poetry and prose during
the modern period are given below.
atures of Kashmiri poetry and prose during
the modern period are given below.
Poetry
A large number of innovations have taken place in genres of
poetry during this period under the influence of English and
other modern Indian languages. Ghulam Ahmad Mahjoor (18851952),
Abdul Ahad Azad (1906-1948) ushered the concept of
modernity by expressing the feelings of the people, Their
sorrows, pains and expectations. Instead of singing divine lore,
the poets gave expressions to the hard realities of life.
Azad is called a revolutionary poet of Kashmiri. He had a
revolutionary bent of mind, and was in favor of resulting social,
economic, political orders and values. He was deeply moved by
the miseries of common man who suffered under the unjust
social, political and economic bondages. He insists that the aim
of life is to struggle against injustice and inequality without fear.
Azad has made some significant innovations in both theme
and art of expression. He wrote shikwa-B-Bbli:s (Complaint of
Satan)which was quite new to Kashmiri. It is written in the genre
of a nazm on a very revolutionary theme. It provides a complaint
of Satan questioning God’s wisdom in creating the world. Azad
established himself as a good critic of Kashmiri poetry. He
compiled a history of Kashmiri language and poetry in Urdu
which was published posthumously in three volumes. It presents
the first critial survey of Kashmiri poetry in detail.
Mahjoor is also treated as a revolutionary poet. His entire
poetry is divided into three parts: kala:m-B-Mahjoor, Paya:m-B-
Mahjoor, and sala:m-B-Mahjoor. He was a patriotic poet and was
moved by the suffering of the people under the alien rule. He
awakened the common masses towards the need of protecting
their homeland from invaders and alien rulers. He sang about
beauty and charm of the valley. Mahjoor has made a significant
contribution to genres of gazal and nazm. He retrieved the
language itself from the old Personalized styles of poetry and
brought it close to the speech of its native speakers.
Master Zinda Kaul (1886-1966) has contributed a great deal
to the modern poetry. Though his poetry is largely mystical. His
poems are distinguished for their in-depth mystical meanings.
Quite a few of his poems represent the struggle of mind between
the modernity and tradition. His poems present a quality of broad
vision. It is the content of hidden or mystical meanings which
makes his poems different for other contemporary poets.
-depth mystical meanings.
Quite a few of his poems represent the struggle of mind between
the modernity and tradition. His poems present a quality of broad
vision. It is the content of hidden or mystical meanings which
makes his poems different for other contemporary poets.
The Kashmiri poet took a sharp turn as a consequence of
happenings after the partition of the country in 1947. The
Kashmir valley witnessed an upheaval as a result of first conflict
between Pakistan and India over the state of Jammu and
Kashmir. The valley was attacked by the troops from across the
border. Some poets were moved emotionally and raised a voice
against the happenings and expressed their views about the
situation which prevailed all around. Prominent among them are:
Dina Nath Nadim (1916-1990), Ghulam Hassan Beg Arif
(b.1910), Rahman Rahi (b. 1925). Amin Kamil (b.1924),
Ghulam Rasool Santosh (1929-1997) etc. Nadim was influenced
by the progressive movement and made significant innovations
in the genre of poetry. Ghulam Hassan Beg Arif wrote nazms on
cetain new social and patrotic themes. Beside writing nazm, he
has made a special contribution to the genere of ruba:ya:t.
Rahi was influenced by leftist and progressive literary
ideologecies. In the beginning, he was influenced by the
progressive literary movement. His gazals are distinguished for
their imaginary, mataphor and direction. He has several volumes
of poems to his credit. He got Sahitya Akadmi award on his
collection navroz-e-saba:. Rahi has written largely symbolic
poems. He gave up the progressive writing and adopted new
themes and stylistic directions. He appears to be influenced by
existionalistic phenomena. His poems express his own
experiences presented in his own unique style.
Kamil also started writing poetry under the influence of
progressive movement and drifted towards self-experiential
aspects. He turned inwards and became philosophical in
expression. His collection of poems lavCtC paravCgot Sahitya
Akadmi award.
Among other prominent poets who were deeply influenced
by the contemporary socioeconomic and political problems, we
may mention Nur Mohammed Roshan (1919-1997), Ghulam
Nabi Firaq (b.1922), Prem Nath Koul Arpan (1919-1997),
Shamboo Nath Bhat Halim (b.1924), Arjan Dev Majboor (b.
1926), Ghulam Nabi Firaq (b.1922), Vasudev Reh (1926-2001)
etc. They have written on the themes of patriotism, nationalism
and nature.
1926), Ghulam Nabi Firaq (b.1922), Vasudev Reh (1926-2001)
etc. They have written on the themes of patriotism, nationalism
and nature.
The contemporary Kashmiri poets have taken up all the
modern thmes prevalent in other Indian languages. They have
made significant innovations in styles. Most of these poets are
influenced by contemporary English and Urdu poetry. This
period is not represented by a particular poet or a special trend.
Prominent poets are: Ghulam Nabi Nazir (b. 1930), Muzaffar
Azim (b. 1934), Ghulam Nabi Khayal (1936), Moti Lal Saqi
(1936-1999), Chaman Lal Chaman (1937-1996), Rafiq Raz (b.
1952) etc.
Prose
As mentioned above, this period is important from the point of
view of the development of various genres in prose: Short story,
Novel, Drama, Criticism, etc.
Kashmiri short story developed only after the progressive
movement had influenceed the literary circles and the ‘cultural
Congress’ was established. The short story has undergone
different phases. Somnath Zutshi’s (1922 -1996) short story ‘yeli
phol ga:sh’ (When there was Dawn) and Dinanath Nadim’s
‘javD:bi: ka:rD’ (A Reply Card) written in 1950 were presented
in the meeting of Cultural Congress and later apperaed in the
same issue of Kongposh. They were followed by short stories
written by some other writers. Mostly the short story writers
described the social backwardness and oppression on the poor in
a descriptive style. They were largely carried away by the
ideological commitements and did not bother much about the art
of writing. An important phrase in Kashmiri short story began
with the short stories written by Akhtar Mohi-ud-Din (19282001).
His first collection of short stories sath sangar (seven
pinnacles) published in 1955 got Sahitya Akadmi award. His
short stories open up new vistas of observation and rich
experience. They provide a new conciousness in the art of story
writing. Some of his short stories like ‘dand vazun’ (Bickerings)
and ‘darya:yi hund ye:za:r’ (The Silken Trousers) are widely
acclaimed and are considered masterpieces even today.
darya:yi hund ye:za:r’ (The Silken Trousers) are widely
acclaimed and are considered masterpieces even today.
Akhtar’s short stories had an impact on the stor ies written by
several others including Sofi Ghulam Mohammad. Other short
story writers who have made their name in Kashmiri are Amin
Kamil (b. 924), Umesh Koul (b. 1929), G.R. Rahbar (b. 1933),
Hari Krishen Kaul (b. 1935), Farooq Masoodi (b. 1935), H.K.
Bharati (b. 1937), Ratanlal Shant (b. 1938), Shankar Raina
(1939-1975), Omkar Koul (b. 1941), Roopkrishen Bhat (b.1955),
Mahfooza Jan, etc. The short stories written by these writers are
characterized by imaginative exploration of the sorroundings,
distinct Kashmiri colour, and the depicting of socio-cultural
patterns of people. It is not possible to indicate a particular short
story writer or a particular theme as the representative of this
period. There are prominent individual characteristics. Bansi
Nirdosh’s short stories included in his collection a:dam chu
yithay badna:m (It is not a Man’s Fault) are dominated by the
realistic point of view. Similarly, Raina’s collection of short
stories zitni zu:l (Illumination) presents a combinations of
realism and romanticism. The short stories of Harikrishen Kaul
in his collections partEla:ra:n parbath, yath ra:zda:ni, and zu:l
apF:rim present hard realities of the human relationships in a
complex social and political environment. Shant’s short stories
in his collection Gcharva:lan pet,h koh, and triku• :jal depict
neo-realishtic view and relationships. His short stories included
in his recent collection rF:v’m Et’ ma:ne: are mostly symbolic
and are of interest to the scholars of sociology and philosophy.
These short stories go beyond the human relationaships.
Masood’s short stories present the helplessness and the ups and
downs of destiny one is confronted with. Bhat’s short stories
present the present-day hard realities a Kashmiri community is
faced with in recent years. Most of the contemporary short
stories of Kashmiri present symbolism and the state of mind
which is burdened with ever growing demands and unfulfilled
desires and passions.
Only a limited number of novels have been written in
Kashmiri. They do not make a tradition. The genre has
developed neither thematically nor in style. The novels appear
more experimental and have not made any significant mark so
far. Three novels were written and published almost at the same
time. Akhtar Mohi-ud-Din wrote do:d tHdag (The pain and
Anguish) in 1957. It revolves around a social theme which
appear unrealistic, in which two sisters become victims of the
lust of the main charrecter which ultimately bring anguish and
pain. Amin Kamil’s novel gat,i manz ga:sh (Light Amid
Darkness, 1957) is written on the theme of tribal raid on
Kashmiri in 1947. He has used a narrative style of da:sta:n (We
too are Human, 1957) deals with a journey to the Holy cave of
Amarnath. It is written in a documentary style and reads more
like a reportage than a novel.
time. Akhtar Mohi-ud-Din wrote do:d tHdag (The pain and
Anguish) in 1957. It revolves around a social theme which
appear unrealistic, in which two sisters become victims of the
lust of the main charrecter which ultimately bring anguish and
pain. Amin Kamil’s novel gat,i manz ga:sh (Light Amid
Darkness, 1957) is written on the theme of tribal raid on
Kashmiri in 1947. He has used a narrative style of da:sta:n (We
too are Human, 1957) deals with a journey to the Holy cave of
Amarnath. It is written in a documentary style and reads more
like a reportage than a novel.
There was a long gap between the above three novels and the
other attempts which followed due to the limited relationship.
Ghulam Nabi Gauhar (b. 1934) has written two novels: mujrim
(Convicted, 1967) and myul (Reunion, 1973). The first presents a
long and tiresome narration of a criminal case being decided in
courts. It fails to create the suspence. The dialogues do not
present a natural flow. His second novel is even less satisfying. It
presents a very unconvincting theme. The style is not impressive.
Bansi Nirdosh’s novel akh do:Ir (En Epoch, 1974) relates to the
social theme of prostitution. Though the theme touches the
human emotions they lay out and the characterization is weak.
Amar Malmohi’s novel tre:sh tHtarpan (Water and ablution to
Dead, 1976) is unique in both theme as well as expression. In
short the genre of novel has not fully developed in Kashmiri so
far.
Drama in Kashmiri has its roots in the folk drama dances of
ba• :d,HpI:thHr, roph and damI:l’ . The literary dramas in
Kashmri started with Nand lal Kaul’s (1870 -1940) satHc kIhvIt,
(The Touchstone of Truth, 1929) presenting a Pluralic theme of
the story of Harishchandra and Taramati, was enacted widely.
The dialogues were Sanskritized and it catered to the interests of
a particular community. The formation of Cultural Front had an
impact in the development of the genre. One act plays like
d,a:lar sIJb and akh bat,a: tre (One by three, 1949) became
popular. The theare went to the people and performed throughout
the valley. The cultural Congress did yeomen service in
introducing plays in Kashmiri.
The genre of drama has developed as a result of setting up of
Radio Kashmiri and later Television Centre in Srinagar. A large
number of plays have been specially written for the above media.
A number of operas have been written in Kashmiri. Dinanath
Nadim has written several operas. His operas bombur yambarzal
(The Bumblebee and Narcissus, 1953), ni:ki: tKbLdi: (Good and
Evil, 1956), hi:ma:l nLg’ra:y (Hemal and Nagraj, 1956), shihil’
kul (The Shady Treem 1965), and veth (Vitasta, 1976) have been
staged and have become very popular. Amin Kamil and
Muzzaffar Azim have written some operas in same style. Noted
among the Kashmiri playwrights are Ali Mohammad Lone,
Pushkar Bhan (b. 1925) Motilal Kemmu (b. 1934), and Hari
Krishen Kaul. Lone’s suyya: based on a historical charrecter has
been widely acclaimed. He won Sahitya Akademi Award on it.
His other plays like a:dam, hava: tKibli:s (Adam, Eve and
Satan), are quite popular. Kemmu’s plays yinsa:ph (Justice),
tsha:y (The shade), harmukhukh L:nK(The Mirror of Harmukh)
have been acted several times. His collection of plays truc has
won Sahitya Akadmi award. Besides the original plays written in
Kashmiri, some plays from other languages have been translated
into Kashmiri.
Radio Kashmiri and later Television Centre in Srinagar. A large
number of plays have been specially written for the above media.
A number of operas have been written in Kashmiri. Dinanath
Nadim has written several operas. His operas bombur yambarzal
(The Bumblebee and Narcissus, 1953), ni:ki: tKbLdi: (Good and
Evil, 1956), hi:ma:l nLg’ra:y (Hemal and Nagraj, 1956), shihil’
kul (The Shady Treem 1965), and veth (Vitasta, 1976) have been
staged and have become very popular. Amin Kamil and
Muzzaffar Azim have written some operas in same style. Noted
among the Kashmiri playwrights are Ali Mohammad Lone,
Pushkar Bhan (b. 1925) Motilal Kemmu (b. 1934), and Hari
Krishen Kaul. Lone’s suyya: based on a historical charrecter has
been widely acclaimed. He won Sahitya Akademi Award on it.
His other plays like a:dam, hava: tKibli:s (Adam, Eve and
Satan), are quite popular. Kemmu’s plays yinsa:ph (Justice),
tsha:y (The shade), harmukhukh L:nK(The Mirror of Harmukh)
have been acted several times. His collection of plays truc has
won Sahitya Akadmi award. Besides the original plays written in
Kashmiri, some plays from other languages have been translated
into Kashmiri.
The genre of literary criticism has not developed fully so far.
The earlier examples of literary criticism in Kashmiri are
examples in the form of essays written in collage magazines or
periodicals brought out from time to time beginning with 1936
when a Kashmiri section was added to Pratap a local college
journal. A number of journals were started and have ceased
publicaion now: Kong posh (1949), Gulrez (1952), Vatan (1965),
Chaman (1965) etc. The journals Shiraza (Kashmiri), of Jammu
and Kashmir Academy of Art, Culture and Languages, Anhar of
the University of Kashmir, Bavath of Bavath Cultural Society
and A:lav of Jammua and Kashmir, government continue to
publish regularly. They occasionally publish literary articles.
Radio Kashmir played a role of broadcast of various literary
talks. The other form of literary criticism is availiable in the form
of introduction written to anthologies etc. The survey of
Kashmiri literature are presented in two books written in
Kashmiri: kL:shiri adbbuk tL:ri:kh vol I (A History of Kashmiri
literature, 1965) by Autar Krishen Rahbar, and Munwar and
Shafi Shauq. Besides these books Ghulam Nabi Nazir’s kMshir
shM:yri: (Kashmiri poetry) and Motilal Saqi’s ga:shir’ presents a
general survey of Kashmiri poetry. Other recent publications
kMshir
shM:yri: (Kashmiri poetry) and Motilal Saqi’s ga:shir’ presents a
general survey of Kashmiri poetry. Other recent publications
devoted to literary criticism in Kahsmiri are written by Motilal
Saqi, Amin Kamil, Arjan Dev Majboor, Sayed Rasul Pompur,
etc.
There has been no serious theoritical base or basses of
literary criticism in Kashmir for a long period of time. Rahman
Rahi and Ghulam Nabi Firaq (b. 1922) introduced Marxism style
of literary critisism. They brought literary and literature criticism
very close to politics. Rahi changed his style lately. His style
reflected in kMhvMt, (The Touchstone, 1979) is influenced by the
author’s self consiousness. He has provided some new
dimensions to the form of literary criticism. Most of other works
are influenced by the western point of view.
As far as other genres in prose are concerned only a limited
number of essays, travelogues, biographies etc. have been
written so far. Mohhamad Zaman Azurda has brought out two
collections: phikri hNnz t,akNr (1980) and essay (1984). He won a
Sahitya Akadmi Award on his second collection. Rasul Pompur
has also published collection of essays -yath a:dNm’ vanas manz
(1985), and ke• h natNke• h (1991). He won a Sahitya Akadmi
Award on his second collection of essays. Akhtar Mohi-ud-Din
has written sala:va:mir as a travelogue on his first visit to former
Soviet Union in 1968. A special issue of so:n adab journal
(1979) has been devoted to travelogues. Biographical literature
in Kashmiri is still in infacy.
To sum up, Kashmiri literature has developed under different
influences during diffent periods. As Kashmiri has never been
assigned serious roles in administration and education in its its
home state, the development of Kashmiri literature has been
indipendent of any State patronage and encouragement. The
literary forms written in Kashmiri had to compete with the works
in Sanskrit, Persian and non-native literatures written in the state.
The literature has survived through the earlier period on the basis
of its marit alone. In comparison to other major Indian
languages, all the genres of prose have not developed adequately
in the language due to limited readership. Once this language is
assigned adequate roles in administration, education and mass
media, these genres will develop at the same pace as in other
major Indian languages. major Indian languages.
The Kashmiri literature has not been studied in depth so far.
It is only in last two decades or so, some serious research work
has begun in this area. The Jammu and Kashmir Academy of
Art, Culture and Languages, the university of Kashmir have
made some serious efforts in this direction. Some other agencies
and individuals are also involved in the resarch work in
Kashmiri.
Besides serious research work in Kashmiri, it is important to
conduct comparative studies of different literary genres of
Kashmiri with those of other major Indian languages. Some
efforts have been made by different scholars in this regard. Some
such comparative studies have been made in the form of doctoral
dissertations submited to different Universities. Most of the
comparisons have been made with Hindi and Urdu literatures.
There is a need to translate prominent literary works of
Kashmiri into other languages. Not much work has been done in
this regard.
Bibliographical reference of prominent works devoted to
Kashmiri literatures are as follows:
Afaq Aziz 2002. kuliya:t-i-Shamas Faqir (Complete works of
Shamas Faqir). Srinagar: Nund Reshi Cultural Society. The
complete works of Shamas Faqir are preceeded by a detailed
introduction, justification and a critical appraisal of Shamas
Faqir by the compiler and a chapter contributed by
Mohammad Yusuf Taing.
Ahmad, Shams-ud-Din (ed.) 1959. Shams Faqir. Srinagar:
JKAACL, p. 71. A collection of selected Kashmiri poems of
Shames Faqir -a noted poet of Kashmiri, translated into
Urdu by the editor.
Akhtar Mohi-ud-Din 1984. General Prose: Kashmiri. In George,
K.M. (ed.) Comparative Indian Literature, Trivandrum:
Kerela Sahitya Akademi and Macmillan.
Afaq Aziz 1994. sha:hna:mOO:ra:n ti kP:shur adab (Shahnama
of Iran and Kashmiri literature). Srinagar: Bavath
Publications. Discusses the tradition of writing Shahnamas
in Iran and Kashmiri. It depicts the influence of Persian on
Kashmiri and the indigeneous charrecteristics of Kashmiri
renderings.
sha:hna:mOO:ra:n ti kP:shur adab (Shahnama
of Iran and Kashmiri literature). Srinagar: Bavath
Publications. Discusses the tradition of writing Shahnamas
in Iran and Kashmiri. It depicts the influence of Persian on
Kashmiri and the indigeneous charrecteristics of Kashmiri
renderings.
Afaq Aziz and Mahfooz Jan 1989. kP:shir masnavi:- akh
tanqi:di: sa:m (Kashmiri Masnavi: A critical study).
Srinagar: Bavath Publications. Discusses different aspects of
Masnavi in Kashmiri.
Afaq Aziz and Mahfooz Jan 1989. sombran (Collection).
Srinagar: Bavath Publications. It is a collection of articles
related to different aspects and genres of Kashmiri literarure.
Azad, Abdul Ahad 1959-1963. kP:shir zaba:n aur sha:iri: (in
Urdu) Vols. I-III. Srinagar J & K Academy of Art, Culture
and Languages. vol. I, pp. 218 (1959), vol. II pp. 489 (1962),
vol. III, pp. 278 (1963). The vol. I of the book presents a
brief introduction to the Kashmiri language, its dialects and
its genealogical classification. The section on Kashmiri
dialects is interesting. The book presents a first detailed
survey of Kashmiri literature from the beginning to the early
modern period.
Badgami, Shahid 1979. kP:shiri marsi hund tawP:rikh (A literary
history of Kashmiri elergy) 1322-1979. Badgam: Published
by the author, pp. 376.
Chaman, Chaman Lal and Bashir Akhtar 1972. Pvha:l namOvol.
I, Srinagar: The University of Kashmir, pp. 316. Presents
brief introductory notesd on selected men of letters of
Kashmiri in Kashmiri.
Batsh, Ghulam Mohammad 1984. Kashmiri Gazal par Urdu
Gazal ke asra:t (The influence of Urdu Gazal on Kashmiri
Gazal). Ph. D. Dissertation, University of Kashmir
(unpublished).
Bhat, Mohammad Ramzan (Mashal Sultanpuri) 1984. Urdu aur
Kashmiri shairi: me• taraqi: pasand rahjuva:t (Progressive
Elements of Urdu and Kashmiri poetry). Ph. D. Dissertation,
University of Kashmir (unpublishd).
Sultanpuri) 1984. Urdu aur
Kashmiri shairi: me• taraqi: pasand rahjuva:t (Progressive
Elements of Urdu and Kashmiri poetry). Ph. D. Dissertation,
University of Kashmir (unpublishd).
Bhat, Noor Mohammad 1960-62. kashmiri sha:yri me•
mozu:a:ti: tabdi:liya• : (Changes of themes in Kashmiri
poetry). In Hamara adab. JKAACL.
Fayaz, Farooq 2001. zaba:n, adab tQtR:ri:kh (Language,
Literature and History). Srinagar: Nunposh Publications.P.
214. Presents aspects of Kashmiri folk literature as well as
some literary works of Kashmiri writers from the historical
perspective.
Firaq, Ghulam Nabi 1981. adbi: istilah (Literary terms).
Srinagar: The University of Kashmir. pp. 222. Describes
literary terms used in Kashmiri.
Firaq, Ghulam Nabi 1980. nRv sha:rQsombran (New collection
of poems). Srinagar: University of Kashmir. pp. 198.
A collection of selected pieces of poetry written by various
poets from Lal Ded to the present period.
Firaq, Ghulam Nabi 1984. Literary Criticism: Kashmiri. In
George, K.M. (ed.) Comparative Indian Literature.
Trivandrum: Kerela Sahitya Akademi and Macmillan.
Fitrat Kashmiri, Maulana (ed.). 1959. Haqani. Srinagar:
JKAACL, pp. 69. A collection of selected Kashmiri poems
of Azizulla haqani and translated into Urdu by the editor.
Ganju, Padam Nath (ed.) 1967. kuliyati a:za:d, Srinagar:
JKAACL, pp. 637. Complete poetry of Abdul Ahad Azad
with an introduction.
Hajini, Mohi-ud-Din 1967.maka:la:t. Srinagar. A collection of
seven essays written in Kashmiri on different aspects of
Kashmiri language and literature (including one on Tagore).
The essay dealing with the early development of Kashmiri
language is useful.
ri language and literature (including one on Tagore).
The essay dealing with the early development of Kashmiri
language is useful.
Hajini, Mohi-ud-Din (ed.) 1960. kS:shir shS:yri:. (Kashmiri
poetry). New Delhi Sahitya Akadmi, pp. 296. A selection of
Kashmiri poetry of prominent Kashmiri poetsfrom early
period to modern.
Hajini, Mohi-ud-Din (ed.) 1959. Wahab Parey. Srinagar:
JKAACL, pp. 72. A collection of selected Kashmiri poems
of Wahab Parey, translated into Urdu by the editor.
Hamidi, H.U. (ed.) 1969. Maqbul Kralwari. Srinagar: JKAACL,
pp. 63. A collection of selected Kashmiri poems of Maqbool
Shah Kralwaria noted poet of Kashmiri, translated into Urdu
by the editor.
Hashimi, Manzur 1973. sa:m na:mT(of Amir Shah Kreri).
Srinagar: JKAACL, pp. 534. Presents the mathnavi of Amir
Shah Kreri with an introduction by the editor.
Kachru, Braj B. 1981. Kashmiri literature. Gonda, Jan (Ed). A
history of Indian Literature, vol. 8, Fasc. 4. Wiesbaden: Otto
Harrassowitz, ix, 114p. Presents a survey of all forms of
Kashmiri literature from 1300 A.D. to the modern period.
Treats Shaivite, Bhakti, Sufi, vatsan and lol traditions as
well as modern poetry, prose and literary movements. The
introduction describes the linguistic affinity of Kashmiri and
formal traditions.
Kalla, K.L. (ed.) 1985. The literary Heritage of Kashmir. Delhi:
Mittal Publications, pp. ix + 307. It is a collection of 32
articles devotedto various aspects of Kashmiri language,
literature and culture. The articles are contributed by
different scolars including four by the editor himself.
Kamil, Amin (ed.) 1972. kS:shir sufi shS:yri: (Kashmiri Sufi
Poetry). Srinagar: JKAACL, vols. 1-3. Presents a selection
of sufi mystic poetry of fourteen Kashmiri mystic poets with
a detailed introduction. a detailed introduction.
Kamil, Amin 1966. kU:shiri asan tra:yi (Kashmiri humour).
Srinagar: JKAACl, pp. 287. A selection of different pieces
of Kashmiri literature by different writers depicting humour
and satire in Kashmiri.
Kamil, Amin (ed.)1959. Habba Khatoon. Srinagar: JKAACL,
pp. 97. A collection selected Kashmiri poems of Habba
Khatoon and translated into Urdu by the editor.
Kamil, Amin 1999. Mahjuurnen boonyen tal. Author, p. 208.
A collection of critical and literary essays related to various
aspects of Kashmri literature and literatures.
Kaul, Bhushan Lal 2003. sa:hitya aur vistha:pan: sandarbh
Kashmir. Jammu: Sanmukh Prakashan. It presents a critical
appraisal of the poetry and plays written by prominent
Kashmiri writers during the period of their migration from
the valley.
Kaul, Bhushan Lal 2003. arzath . Jammu: Nagrad Adbi Sangam.
It is collection of fourteen critical articles devoted to
Kashmiri culture, prominent Kashmiri poets, philiosophers
and historians. While diealing with literature he has raised
some important questions. It would be useful for the students
of Kashmiri literature.
Kaul, J.L. 1968. Studies in Kashmiri. Srinagar: Kapoor Brothers,
pp. xi+339. Besides presenting a critical survey of some
aspects of Kashmiri literature like poetry, prose, lullabies,
humour, masnavi tradition. Kashmiri literature (1947-1967)
etc. it has independent chapters on Lal Ded, Haba Khatoon
and Arnimal, Parmanand and Zinda Kaul – some important
poets of Kashmiri.
Kaul, J.L. and Moti Lal Saqi (eds.) 1972. Parmanand vol. I,
Srinagar: JKAACL, pp. 555. A collection of selected poetry
of Parmanand -a noted Kashmiri poet, with an introduction.
Kaul, J.L. 1973. Lal Ded. New Delhi: Sahitya Akademi pp.
xii+147. Presents the life and legend of Lal Ded, the text,
content of he vakh, her times and milieu, a reappraisal and
English translation of her 138 vakhs (verse-sayings).
Lal Ded. New Delhi: Sahitya Akademi pp.
xii+147. Presents the life and legend of Lal Ded, the text,
content of he vakh, her times and milieu, a reappraisal and
English translation of her 138 vakhs (verse-sayings).
Kaul, J.L. and Nand Lal Kaul Talib (ed.) 1969. Lal Ded.
Srinagar: JKAACL, pp. 168 Revised edition 1975, pp. 307.
A collection of selected Kashmiri vakhs (Verse-sayings) of
Lal Ded and translated into Urdu by the editor.
Kaul, Zinda Parmanand su:ki-sa:r, vols. 1-3 Srinagar: Published
by the editor, vol. 1 (1941), vol. 2 (1942), vol. 3 (1958).
Presents devotional poetry of Permanand with an
introduction.
Khayal, Ghulam Nabi (ed.) Mohmud Gami. Srinagar: JKAACL,
pp. 170. A collection of selected Kashmiri poems of
Mahmud Gami – a noted poet of Kashmiri, translated into
Urdu by editor.
Khaya, G.N.(ed.) 1962. sa:m namV by Lakshman Kaul Bulbul.
Srinagar JKAACL, pp. 152. A Kashmiri mathnavi written by
Lakshman Kaul Bulbul with an introduction by the editor.
Koul, Anand 1933. The wise sayings of Nand Rishi. Indian
Antiquary, vol. lxii.
Koul, Anand 1933. Lalla-vakyani: The wise sayings of Lal-Ded.
Indian Antiquary. vol. lxii, pp. 108-111.
Koul, Omkar N. 1974. Kashmiri aur hendi Ramakatha kavya ka
tulnatmak adhyyan (A comparative study of Kashmiri and
Hindi Ramakatha-kavya). New Delhi: Bahri Publications,
pp. xi+348. Presents a comparative and critical study of
prominent works of the legends of Rama written in Kashmiri
and Hindi.
Koul, Omkar N. 1991. Prose in Kashmiri. In Encyclopedia of
Indian Literature. vol. IV, New Delhi: Sahitya Akademi.
Presents the development of different genres like short story
, novel, drama and criticism in Kashmiri.
Encyclopedia of
Indian Literature. vol. IV, New Delhi: Sahitya Akademi.
Presents the development of different genres like short story
, novel, drama and criticism in Kashmiri.
Koul, Omkar N. 1992. kashmiri kaha:niya• : (Kashmiri short
stories translated from Kashmiri to Hindi). New Delhi:
Vitasta.
Koul, Omkar N. (Forthcoming). Kashmiri literature. In A
Companion to Indian Literature. Calcutta: Oxford
University Press.
Koul, Omkar N. 1996. Kashmiri me• Krishna Ka:vya (Legends
of Krishna in Kashmiri). In Shiraza (Hindi) vol. 32. Also in
Braj Gaurav no. 2, 1997.
Koul, Omkar N. 1997. Ramavtarcarit of Prakash Ram. In
Masterpieces of Indian Literature, vol. 1 edited by K.M.
George. New Delhi: National Book Trust.
Koul, Omkar N. 1997. Radha Swayamvar of Parmanand. In
Masterpieces of Indian Literature, vol. 1 edited by K.M.
George. New Delhi: National Book Trust.
Koul, Omkar N. and Narinder Dulai 1987. kashmi:ri: sa:hit da:
itiha:s (A history of Kashmiri literature). Patiala: Punjab
Univeristy. The book presents a brief survey of Kashmiri
literature from the beginning to the modern period. It is the
first book on Kashmiri literature written in Pujabi.
Leitner, G.W. 1872. The Dastan Sheikh Shibli in Kashmiri
verse, with an interlinear and a literal translation. Indian
Antiquary, vol. 1, pp. 266-199.
Lone, Ali Mohammad 1960-62. Kashmiri zaba:n me• bacu• :
ka: adab (Children literature in Kashmiri). In Hamara adab
JKAACL.
Lone, Ali Mohammad 1984. Kashmiri Novel. In George, K.M.
(ed.) Comparative Indian Literature, Trivandrum: Kerela
Sahitya Akademi and Macmillan.
(ed.) Comparative Indian Literature, Trivandrum: Kerela
Sahitya Akademi and Macmillan.
Lone, Ali Mohammad 1984. Kashmiri Drama. In George, K.M.
(ed.) Comparative Indian Literature, Trivandrum: Kerela
Sahitya Akadmi and Macmillan.
Mahfooz Jan 1994. Mohi-ul-Din hajini tWkX:shur adab (Mohiul-
Din Hajini and Kashmiri literature). Srinagar: Bavath
Publications. Describes the contribution made to Kashmiri
literature by Mohi-ul-Din Hajini as a critic, poet, translator
and editor.
Majboor, Arjan Dev tahqeeq (Research) Author. 1999.
Essay related to Kanshak , History and Culure of Himalyan
States, History of Kashmir, Kashmir of Buddha and Hindu
Period, Kashmiri folk songs, etc.
Majeed, Gulshan 1984. Kashmiri movements and Institutions.
In George, K.M. (ed.) Comparative Indian Literature,
Trivandrum: Kerela Sahitya Akadmi and Macmillan.
Majeed, Gulshan 1988. Mahjoor tYsama:j (Mahjoor and
society). In Shiraza. Mahjoor Number.
Majeed, Gulshan 1989. Kashmiri Shaivism and Sufism. In
Dembi, B.K. Koul (ed.) Kashmri and Central Asia. Srinagar:
University of Kashmir.
Majeed, Gulshan 1991. naqd-W-sha:r (Criticism of poetry)
Delhi: J K Offset Press. The book present a critical appraisal
of Sheilh-ul-Alam’s poetry, shahna:ma: of Wahab Parey,
Gul-I-Bakavli of Lassa Khan Fida, mysticism in Kashmiri
poetry, modern sensibility, steam of conscience etc. It is
useful for research and general readers.
Majeed, Gulshan 1996. Lakshman Koul Bulbul. New Delhi:
Sahitya Akadami. It presents an overall review of the life
and works of Laskshman Koul Bulbul – a prominent poet of
Kashmiri. It is published under the series of ‘Makers of
Indian Literatiure’.
– a prominent poet of
Kashmiri. It is published under the series of ‘Makers of
Indian Literatiure’.
Malmohi, Amar 1969. husun, fan tZfanka:r (Beauty, art and
artists). In vwalr[ky malar. Hajan: Halka Adab.
Malmohi, Amar 1992. sha:stri: t[suufi: sh\^]yri: (Classical and
Sufi poetry). In so:n adab.
Malmohi, Amar 1982. lal dedi h[nz shashsiyath (The personality
of Lal Ded). Adabi Markaz, Kamraz.
Munawar, Naji and Shafi Shauq 1978. k\:shiri adbuk t\:ri:kh (A
History of Kashmiri literature). Srinagar: University of
Kashmir, pp. 292. The book presents a brief survey of
Kashmiri literature from the beginning upto the modern
period. The book is written in Kashmiri and is useful for the
students of Kashmiri Literature.
Munawar, Naji and Shafi Shauq 1992. nov k\: shiri adbuk
t\:ri:kh (New History of Kashmiri Literature). Srinagar:
University of Kashmir. pp. 402. A revised and enlarged
edition of the authors 1978 edition.
Nazir, Ghulam Nabi 1974. k\:sir sh\:yri: Yaripora: Kashir
Mehfil pp. 180. Presents a critical survey of certain literary
aspects of Kashmiri poetry.
Nazki, A. Rashid (ed.) 1972. Kulyat-[-Nadim. Srinagar:
JKAACL, pp. 207. A collection of Kashmiri poetry written
by Abdul Ahad Nadim, with an introduction by the editor.
Nazki, Ghulam Rasool (ed.) 1959. Abdul Ahad Nadim.
Srinagar: JKAACL, pp. 105. A collection of selected
Kashmiri poems of Abdul Ahad Nadim and translated into
Urdu by the editor.
Nazki, Ghulam Rasool 1960-62. Haba Khatoon se Wahab Parey
tak (From Habba Khatun to Whab Parey). In Hamara adab
JKAACL.
-62. Haba Khatoon se Wahab Parey
tak (From Habba Khatun to Whab Parey). In Hamara adab
JKAACL.
Pandit, Balaji Nath (ed.) 1965. k_:shur ra:ma:yan (Kashmiri
Ramayan) of Pakistan Ram Kurigami. Srinagar: JKAACL,
pp. 254. The text of the Kashmiri Ramayan based on the
earlier versions has been presented with an introduction.
Pompur, Sayed Rasul 1999. mye mashi n`za• :h (I will never
forget). Author, p. 192. A collection of literary essays
related to various literary scholars of Kashmir.
Pushp, P.N. (ed.) 1962. Azad. Srinagar: JKAACL, pp. 79.
A collection of selected Kashmiri poems of Abdul Azad and
translated into Urdu by the editor.
Pushp, P.N. (ed.) 1960. Mahjoor. Srinagar: JKAACL, pp. 97.
A collection of selected Kashmiri poems of Ghulam Ahmad
Mahjoor and translated into Urdu by the editor.
Pushp, P.N. 1984. Traditional Poetry: Kashmiri. In George,
K.M. (ed.) Comparative Indian Literature, Trivendrum:
Kerela Sahitya Akademi and Macmillan.
Pushp, P.N. 1984. Modern Poetry: Kashmiri. In George, K.M.
(ed.) Comparative Indian Literature, Trivendrum: Kerela
Sahitya Akademi and Macmillan.
Rahbar, Autar Krishen 1965. k_:siri adb`c t_:ri:kh 1209-1775
(History of Kashmiri literature, from 1209 to 1775).
Srinagar: Published by the author. Presents first
comprehensive survey of early Kashmiri literature in
Kashmiri.
Rahbar, Autar Krishen and Ghulam Nabu Khyal (eds.) 1967.
k_:shur nasar (Kashmiri prose). Srinagar: JKAACL, pp.
551. A collection of selected pieces of prose in Kashmiri.
Rahi, Rahman 1960-62. kashmiri sha:yri (Kashmiri poetry). In
Hamara adab JKAACL.
-62. kashmiri sha:yri (Kashmiri poetry). In
Hamara adab JKAACL.
Rahi, Rahman 1979. kahvat, (Touchstone). Srinagar pp. 312.
It is a collection of critical essays on different aspects of
literature with special reference to Kashmiri. It is written in
Kashmiri and is useful for students of Kashmiri literature.
Rahi, Rahman 1992. sha:yr-i-Kashmir Pirzanda Ghulam Ahmad
Mahjoor (The Kashmiri poet Ghulam Mohammad Mahjoor).
In Bazyaft, vol. 9, nos. 12-13.
Raina, A.N. 1974. Zinda Kaul. New Delhi: Sahitya Akademi,
pp. vii+51. Presents a brief life sketch of Zinda Kaul -a
Kashmiri poet and mian characteristics of his poetry.
Raina, Shiban Krishen 1972. Kashmiri bha:sha: aur sa:hitya
(Kashmiri Language and Literature). Delhi: Sanmarg
Prakashan. Presents a survey of Kashmiri literature from the
beginning to the modern period in Hindi.
Raina, Triloki Nath 1972. An anthology of modern Kashmiri
verse (1930-1960). Poona, pp. 280. Presents English
translation of selected Kashmiri poetry of prominent poets of
the period. The origenal text is presented in Roman
transcription alongwith a brief introduction of the poet.
Romani, Premi (ed.) 1999. vyetshnay, Jammu: Rachna
Publishers. A collection of literary essays written by Brij
Premi. Essays are related to Urdu literary scholars.
Saraf, Makhan Lal, Kashi:ri manz Dra:ma: tari:k. Jammu:
Krishna Publications, 1999, pp. 367.
Presents a critical survey of origin and development of
Drana with reference to its development elsewhere. It deals
at its development in Kashmir.
Saqi, Moti Lal (ed.) 1973. kuliyat-b-Samad Mir. Srinagar:
JKAACL, pp. 364. Compilation of the poetry of Samad Mir
-a noted Kashmiri poet, with an introduction.
kuliyat-b-Samad Mir. Srinagar:
JKAACL, pp. 364. Compilation of the poetry of Samad Mir
-a noted Kashmiri poet, with an introduction.
Saqi, Moti Lal 1975. ga:shir’, Srinagar: The author, pp. 364
Essays on various literary aspects of Kashmiri written in
Kashmiri.
Saqi, Moti Lal 1985. na:val k’a: g cyi (What is novel?)
Srinagar: University of Kashmir, pp. 174. Provides a
description of the genre of novel and its types with special
reference to the development of this genre in Kashmiri. A
useful textbook.
Saqi, Moti Lal 1988. Samad Mir. New Delhi: Sahitya Akademi,
pp. 92. Provides an introductory survey of the life sketch of
Samad Mir, a renowed Kashmiri poet, and his contribution
in Kashmiri poetry.
Saqi, Moti Lal. Agarneeb, Author, 1988. A collection of critical
essays related to History of Kashmir with special reference
to Chinese, Greek, Budhist, Mahabharat and Puran, Ibroni,
Kalhan, Stein & Kashmir etc.
Sayil, Prithvi Nath Koul (ed.) 1981. RitsbDed. Srinagar, pp.
176. A collection of Kashmiri vakhs (verse-sayings) of Rits
Ded -a saint poet of Kashmir with introduction by Dina
Nath Nadim, Hari Krishen Koul Fani and the editor.
Shamim, Shamim Ahmad 1959. kashmiri novel. In Hama:ra:
Adab, JKAACL.
Shamim, Shamim Ahmad 1960-62. Kashmiri zaban va adab ke
chand masa:yil (Some problems of Kashmir Language and
Literature). In Hama:ra adab, JKAACL.
Shant, Ratan Lal 1981. nasrbc kita:b. Srinagar: The University
of Kashmir, pp. 303. A compilation of pieces of prose
written by different Kashmiri writers in Kashmiri with an
introduction by the editor and a set of relevant questions at
the end of each piece and prose. Useful for reading
comprehension.
tor and a set of relevant questions at
the end of each piece and prose. Useful for reading
comprehension.
Shant, Ratan Lal 1984. Kashmiri Short Story. In George, K.M.
(ed.) Comparative Indian Literature, Trivendrum: Kerela
Sahitya Akademi and Macmillan.
Shant, Ratan Lal 1980. afsa:ndkya: gav (What is a short story?)
Srinagar, University of Kashmir. Explains all the
characteristics of a short story with a special reference to
Kashmiri.
Shant, Ratan Lal 1999. Kashmiri sa:hitya: sandarbh. Jammu.
Presents a critical appraisal of some aspects of Kashmiri
literature in Hindi.
Shant, Ratan Lal (ed.) 2004. jalaayi vatnii hund adab (Literature
of Exile). Jammu: Samprati. Proceedings of the Seminar
held by SAMPRATI at Jammu. It describes the works
written by the Kashmiri migrants in Kashmiri.
Shauq, Shafi, 1980. zaba:n tdadab (Language and literature)
Srinagar. No publisher mentioned, pp. 139. The author
discusses different aspects of literary criticism, language,
literature and style. It includes some essays on Kashmiri
literature also.
Shauq, Shafi, 1984. Childeren’s literature: Kashmiri. In George
K.M. (ed.) Comparative Indian Literature, Trivendrum:
Kerela Sahitya Akademi and Macmillan.
Shauq, Shafi, 1984. Biographical Writings: Kashmiri. In George
K.M. (ed.) Comparative Indian Literature, Trivendrum:
Kerela Sahitya Akademi and Macmillan.
Taing, M.Y. (ed.) 1958. Rasul Mir, Srinagar. JKAACL, pp. 93.
A collection of selected Kashmiri poems of Rasul Mir,
translated into Urdu by the editor.
Taing, Mohammad Yusuf 1964. Wali-Ullah-Mattu. Srinagar:
JKAACL, pp. 143. Presents a life sketch and main
characteristics of the poetry of Walli Ullah Mattu and a
selection of his poetry.
Mohammad Yusuf 1964. Wali-Ullah-Mattu. Srinagar:
JKAACL, pp. 143. Presents a life sketch and main
characteristics of the poetry of Walli Ullah Mattu and a
selection of his poetry.
Taing, Mohammad Yusuf 1965. Gulrez by Maqbool Shah
Kralwari. Srinagar: JKAACL. pp. 241. The text of Gulrez is
presented with an introduction and notes by the editor.
Taing, Mohammad Yusuf 1991. mehju:r shine:si: (A critical
study of Mahjoor). Srinagar. A collection of critical essays
on Mahjoor. The students of Kashmiri literature will find
these essays useful.
Talashi, Ratan Lal 1995. Parmanand. New Delhi: Sahitya
Akademi. The book is published under the series of Makers
of Indian Literature. It presents a critical survey of the
writings of Parmanad in Kashmiri.
Talashi, Ratan Lal and Ratan Lal Johar (eds.) ezyuk ke:shur adab
(Modern Kahsmiri Literature). Jammu: Sampreti, 1998.
It is a collection of literary essays about Kashmiri
contributed by Arjan Dev Majboor, R.L. Shant, Amar
Malmohi, Mohanlal Ash, R.L. Talashi, Premi Romani, R.L.
Johar, Makhanlal Saraf, Gauri Shankar, Raina and
Prithavinath Bhat.
Temple, Richard Carnac 1924. The world of Lalla the
Prophetess, being the sayings of Lal Ded or Lal Siddi of
Kashmir. Cambridge: University Press.
Toshkhani, S.K. (ed.) 1960. Parmand. Srinagar: JKAACL, pp.
93. A collection of selected Kashmiri poems of Parmanand,
translated into Urdu by the editor.
Toshkhani, S.K. and Moti Lal Saqi (eds.) 1974. Parmanand
vol. II. Srinagar: JKAACL, pp. 304. A collection of selected
Kashmiri poetry of Parmanad – a noted Kashmiri poet, with
an introduction.
– a noted Kashmiri poet, with
an introduction.
Wani, Mahbooba 1979. Urdu aur Kashmiri shairi: me•
roma:niyat (Romanticism in Urdu and Kashmiri poetry). Ph.
D. Dissertions, University of Kashmir (unpublished).
Kashmiri Language, Linguistics and Culture
An Annotated Bibliography
by
Omkar N Koul
© The Author
First published 2000
An Annotated Bibliography
by
Omkar N Koul
© The Author
First published 2000
Published by
Central Institute of Indian Langugaes
Manasagangotri
Mysore 570006
______________________________________________________________
KASHMIR Literature
8.1 THE ORAL TRADITION
The oral tradition of Kashmiri language is highly colourful and
complex in nature. It consists of various folk forms and its folk
literature is the most representative form. It was from Kashmir that
Somdeva collected various forms of stories with varied motifs for his
universally acknowledged Kathasarit Sagar of 11th century AD. Kashmiri
language has not only preserved its folk tradition but also has enriched
and modified it in every age. It represents many aspects of social
change, behaviour patterns, hopes, repressed wishes, creative thoughts,
unconscious yearnings and collective dreams. The folk literature
analyses the social drama in the geographical frame and with reference
to the historical compulsions. For its beauty, diversity and complexity
of interpretation, Kashmiri folk literature has received the attention
of various scholars of different fields of learning. Hinton Knowels,
compiler of the first anthology of Kashmiri folk tales, writes, “Kashmir
as a field of folk literature is perhaps not surpassed in fertility by
any other country in the world”.
The folk literature in Kashmiri mainly exists in four forms
1. Folk Story (Kath, Daleel)
2. Folk Song (Baath, Manzil bath, Ladishah, Rov, Wanvun, Nende bath, Khaandar beeth)
3. Folk Drama
4. Proverbs and Sayings
The urgency to preserve the folk tradition was felt long back by some
European scholars. They contacted various storytellers and a good
number of folk tales, proverbs and sayings were collected. The pioneers
in this context are J.H Knowels, Aurel Stien and G.A.Grierson. In 1887
Knowels compiled Folk Tales of Kashmir, a dictionary of Kashmiri
Proverbs and Sayings. Aurel Stien heard many tales from an oil seller
named Hatim and these tales were later edited by Grierson and entitled
Hatims Tales. Nand Lal Chatta and C.L.Hakhoo brought out folk tales
collections in Hindi entitled Kashmir Ki Lok Kathayein. S.N Dhar’s Tales
of Kashmir is also helpful to the students of folk tales. However the
most painstaking efforts for preserving the oral tradition were made by
the Cultural Academy of Jammu and Kashmir by publishing many volumes of
folk songs as well as folk stories. Mohd. Sultan Bhagat brought out his
Kaashur LukI Theatre. Moti Lal Kemu tried to preserve the folk drama and
made efforts to make it relevant to modern times. He not only wrote in
folk form but also added new dimensions to the stage play by using folk
elements as symbols.
Kashmiri folk literature is a treasure of unwritten history. It
depicts life in various colours and moods. It shows the importance of
many social institutions like joint family. It depicts women, specially
common and elite and brings out contrasts in their behavior. There are
reflections on local customs like Khaana Daamaadi and adoption .One not
only comes to know about the social life of the community through
Ladeeshah and various Baanda Paathairs but also feel the revolting
spirit of the common people who use folk forms to express their
displeasure and disapproval of political and economic exploitation.
Kashmiri folk theatre comprises of many Paathairs. The main ones are
Darza paathair, Bata paathair, Raaza paathair, Buhari paathair, Haanz
paathair, Bakarwaal paathair, Gosaain paathair, Waatal paathair and
Mughal paathair. The paathairs are not originally written rather, they
have striking resemblances. In some cases they differ only in name. For
instance, Bata paathair and Buhari paathar are same in presentation and
texture. Being unwritten, the paathairs constantly change in text
according to the changes in social setup, contemporary taste and
political scenario.
The main characters of paathairs are Maagun and Maskhar. Maagun is in
a way the director and producer of the paathair. He is also head of the
Baandes in their day today lives. He is like the Sutradhaar of Sanskrit
drama. He performs various roles. Maskhar is the chief character in a
paathair. His role is of interest for the audience and of much
significance for Maagun. Goopali is an important female character in
some paathairs like Gosain Paathar.
The study of Kashmiri proverbs and sayings shows social conflicts,
psychological contradictions, economic compulsions as well as linguistic
beauties. These sayings show how some aspects of the cultural destiny
of the people have been shaped.
Kashmiri folk songs are especially rich in depicting emotions,
dreams, miseries and desires of the Kashmiri woman. In these woman is
represented in complexity of her relationships. She has to observe and
honour all the values of feudal society and has to be selfless and
emotionless like a stone. From dawn to dusk, she is supposed to attend
the domestic work. One can find ample evidence of polygamy, early
marriage, Pardah system among the upperclass Muslims, and curses of
widowhood everywhere.
Generally the parental home of a woman is a source of joy for her,
while the home of her inlaws is the cause for constant nightmare. A
woman should be under the control of Hash (mother-in-law) and Zaam
(husband’s sister). She has no right to complain. Speaking to her
husband in daylight is considered indecent. Hence many instances of
moral laxity can be found. The other reasons for this laxity were early
widowhood, poverty, strained relations between husband and wife, feudal
sensuality and licentious attitudes. All these factors combined, gave
rise to professional prostitution among common and aristocrats.
8.2 EARLY PERIOD (900 TO 1554 AD)
Most of the Manuscripts written in Kashmiri before the fourteenth
century have not been found so far as they may have been lost due to
recurrent foreign invasions and natural calamities. There is no evidence
to show when Kashmiri got over its dialectic stage. At the same time it
may be mentioned that the scholars of Kashmir did consider Kashmiri
language suitable for serious themes like philosophy and literature.
When Shiti Kantha wrote his Mahanaya Prakasha in Kashmiri he translated
every Vaakh in Sanskrit to communicate himself fully. One can find some
phrases of Kashmiri in Kahalan’s Rajatarangani. In his Desh Opdesh,
Kshendera (11th century) suggests that poets should write in their own
language. Some people, without much evidence believe that in about 150
B.C Nag San, a Kashmiri Buddhist Scholar wrote his Milind Panha in
Kashmiri and BrihatKatha of Gunadhya was also written in Paishachi of
Kashmir (Dardic group).
The earliest use of Kashmiri Language was found in Chhuma Padas. This
oldest specimen of Kashmiri literature was used to express and explain
various Shaivit doctrines especially the Pratibhajna philosophy. These
Pads are in Apabharmasha form of Kashmiri and they are as difficult to
understand as those of Shiti Kantha’s Mahanay Prakash. Mahanay Prakash,
the first book of Kashmiri poetry is written in Sanskrit style. The
author claims that he has written the book in Sarvagochara Desha Basha
(language of the common people) but the nature of the subject, Sanskrit
expressions and the Sanskrit translation of the Vaakhs show amply that
Shiti Kantha doubts his communicative ability in Kashmiri language.
Mahanaya Prakasha has only linguistic and esoteric importance. The
Vaakhs of Shiti Kanth are also very important for the study of the
Vaakhs of Lal Ded. Shiti Kanth provides form and subject to Lal Ded
which Lal used with different poetic and spiritual experience and
recreated Vaakh in Kashmiri and got it to pinnacle of glory.
Vaakh and Shrukh
Vaakh and Shrukh are Kashmiri words for Vaakya and Shloka of
Sanskrit. There is not much difference in the structural forms of the
two differently named genres. Both are fourlined. However, there is
difference in their subjects. Vaakh is associated with Lal Ded so much
so that her Vaakhs are the only authentic source for understanding her
creative personality. Shrukh form is mainly associated with Nund Ryosh
popularly known as Sheikh-ul-Aalam and Alamdari Kashmir (i.e. universal
teacher and the Banner Holder of Kashmir). Lal Ded was born in early
14th century at Sempora near Paandrethan and was married at Padampora
(modern Pampur). After her marriage she was named Padmavati according to
custom but she is known as Lal which was probably her parental name and
which is short form of Lalita (The Goddess of Fortune). She was most
probably initiated into Yoga at an early age by Siddha Shree Kantha,
popularly known as Sedhamol. She did not have a pleasant family life.
Early spiritual practices coupled with her sublimation, added great
intensity to her spiritual experience. She was born with a poetic soul
and had a natural linguistic flair. Hence her experience found
expression in such creative language that her Vaakhs have everlasting
freshness and inspiration. She presents linguistic transition in 14th
Century. Her Vaakhs represent the dawn of the modern Kashmiri language.
Her poetry not only provides numerous idioms and phrases but also
philosophical thoughts to the Kashmiri language, which adds beauty of
expression to it. She is the maker of modern Kashmiri. Due to her inborn
communicative skills, her Vaakhs are considered a great literary
treasure both for the common reader and the critics. She recreated Vaakh
in such a manner that it became the standard of criteria for judging
this genre for all types. Assonance, inner rhymes, depth of meaning,
images, non-didactic nature and inner poetic conflict or auto-drama are
some of the characteristics of her Vaakhs
e.g. aami pana sodras naavi chas lamaan
aati bozi dai myon meti diyi taar
aamyan Taakyan pony chhum shaman
zuv chhum bramaan gara gatsahaa
'With raw thread, I tow my boat upon the sea
May my God lead me across!
My half baked plates are soaking;
I yearn for my Source'
Lal was a Shaivite of Trika branch. Her spiritual experiences come
from her active Sadhana and bear no impact other than Trika. On the
basis of her Vaakhs it can safely be said that she was neither mad and
naked nor undisciplined. She was against religious rituals and dogmas,
as she became elevated in Sadhana in the later part of her life. The
control of Chitt (Consciousness) and its absorbtion in Shunya – a
positive void, is the pinnacle of her experience.
NUNDA RYOSH
Nunda Ryosh (Sheikh-ul-Aalam) is the founder of Rishi order (a form
of Reshi Sufism) of Kashmir. He was greatly influenced by Lal Ded and
considered her a great apostle of light .Lal and Sheikh shared the same
spiritual moorings and both are the makers of the composite culture of
Kashmir. Lal bears a spirit of revolt and reformation and the same is
true of the great Sheikh, who lashed out upon that mullah mentality
which wanted to exploit the masses and was trying to tarnish the fair
face of Kashmir. Sheikh gave his message of love, simplicity, tolerance
and non-violence.
The form of poetry used by Nunda Ryosh is known as Shrukh, which is a
four-line composition like vaakh. The vaakhs of Lal Ded and shrukhs of
Sheikh are intermingled. Many efforts have been made to identify them
separately. Even the vaakhs of Lal Ded have been interpolated.
Sheikh was a great organizer. He visited the whole length and breadth
of the valley to deliver his message and strengthen the Rishi order.
The order believed in public works, service of people as well as
meditation for long periods away from mundane world as practiced by the
Sheikh himself. Sheikh was a vegetarian and survived on fallen leaves of
Difsacus and Chicory. Amongst his disciples Nasr-ud-din, Baam-ud-din,
Zain-ud-din, Payaam-ud-din and Shyaama Bibi are well known.
Shrukh unlike vaakh is didactic in content and exhortative in nature
.It is a vehicle of Sheikh’s teachings. Instead of abstract images,
Nunda Ryosh used the names daily use articles and visual images to
express his ideas. Sheikh believed in moral preachings’ for the
upliftment of man and harmonious social living and used shrukh to convey
his ideas.
Nunda Ryosh died in 1438 AD and was buried at Tsrar-I-Shareef , which
has become a place of pilgrimage since then. Sheikh enjoyed reverence
of masses and he is the only poet- sage in whose name a coin was issued
by the Afghan governor Aatta Mohammad Khan in 1809, almost 370 years
after his death. The prophetic insight of the poet seer is evident from
his Shrukhs. Only a saying is quoted here
Ann Poshi Teli Yeli Wan Poshi
'The growth of food is subservient to the growth of forest'.
Shahi Khan popularly known as Budshah became king during this period
and ruled effectively from 1420-1470 AD. He is also known as
Zain-ul-abdin. He is considered one of the greatest kings of Kashmir and
a genius who appreciated the cultural tradition and left no stone
unturned to preserve it. He was the lover of cultural heights and
respected scholars, poets and artists. Almost all fine arts got new life
due to his patronage. He was himself a poet and wrote in Persian and
Kashmiri languages. It is believed that many books in Kashmiri were
written during his reign. These include Zaina Tsareth by Som Pandit,
Zaina Prakash by Yodha Bhat, Baanasur vadhKatha by Avatar Bhat. Only
Avatar’s Baanaasur vadh katha has survived the ravages of time. It is a
long narrative poem about the love affair of Usha and Aniruddh. It is
the first epic poem in Kashmiri, but its language is highly
Sanskritized. Some scholars prefer to term it as a form of Kashmiri
Apabhramsha.
After the death of Badshah in 1470, no Kashmiri work was created,
except for Gana Prashast’s Swokh Dwokh Tsareth written in the Baanasura
katha style. Folk literatures, however, must have flourished in
abundance during this intervening period. Of the folk tales that
survived, the AkaNandun and Heemal Naagiraay entertained the people
during the calamities of famines and floods, and it is performing the
same function even now.
Rupa Bhaawani (1625-1721) the saint poetess was well
versed in Vedantic philosophy . She knew Sanskrit and Persian well. She
composed vaakhs, which do not have as much of linguistic beauty as the
vaakhs of Lal. These seem to be distant from common speech. She wrote
her vaakhs in a scholarly fashion, depicting spiritual journey of a
seeker. After Bhawani, the vaakh form was continued by Kashmiri pandit
saints for their personal communications. Mirza Kaak, Lachi Kaak and
Rits Ded expressed their experiences in vaakh form. Rits Ded
(1880-1966), though illiterate, was conscious of the whole vaakh
tradition and contributed to it by her rich expression and experience.
She herself claims the impact of Lal Ded, Nunda Ryosh, Rupa Bhaawani and
Mirza Kaak.
No poetic form ever dies and it is as true about vaakh. In 1998 Bimla
Raina published her vaakh collection Resh Maalyun Myon. Her Vaakhs are
of high literary merit. It seems, she has not only rediscovered vaakh
tradition but also has recreated it. Her second collection of vaakhs
Veth Ma chhe Shongith (2002) further adds to her mastering of Vaakh.
Bimla Raina also tries to rediscover idiom of Lal Ded.
8.3 The Medieval Period (1554-1819 A.D)
After the establishment of the Muslim rule in the 14th century, many
cultural changes took place. However, linguistic changes were most
prominent. Persian was rapidly establishing itself in place of Sanskrit.
At the instance of Bud Shah the Kashmiri Pandits adopted Persian and
the bulk of them became Karkuns – i.e. service class. Kashmiri language
developed very rapidly during this period and the important genres of
Kashmiri poetry Vatsun and Masnavi came into being and developed to a
greater extent. Hence this period can also be called as the Vatsan and
Masnavi period.
Vatsun
Genres like Vatsun- a literary form, were used in many Indian
languages especially in Kannada for expressing spiritual thoughts.
Vatsun genre may have existed in Kashmir even before Lal Ded. However,
the first Vatsun writer of repute is Habba Khaatoon. There is no
authentic reference about her life. One has to depend upon the folk
tradition, legend and her own poetry to determine the course of her
life. Folk tradition and legends provide only contradictory accounts.
Habba Khaatoon is one of the makers of Vatsun form in Kashmiri and is
surely the first significant romantic poetess. Her Vatsuns are brimming
with her personal emotions, agony and love. The depths of her feelings
give inner rhymes to her Vatsun. She decorated her style with imagery
and medial rhyme. Her emotions are reflective of the emotions of the
woman in general. She was well educated in music and enriched Kashmiri
music by composing Rast Kashmiri, a new raag in Kashmiri music.
Khawaja Habib Ullah Nowsheri (1555-1617), Mirza Akmal-ud-din Badakshi (1642- 1717) are the other two poets of this genre.
Sahib Kaul (1629 ?) is the most important poet of the Mughal Age of
Kashmir. His Sanskrit works are well known. He wrote three books in
Kashmiri viz. Kalpa Vriksh, Janma Charit and Krishnavataara Charit. His
language contains many Persian, Arabic and Sanskrit words. He was a
Shaivite and had a remarkable craftsmanship. Krishnavataara is praise
worthy for its musical style and the development of Vatsun.
Arnimaal is another remarkable poetess of the Vatsun genre. She was
born at Palhalan and married to Bhawani Das Kachru of Srinagar who was a
high official in Pathan court. Due to the charms of the court beauties
he forgot his poet-wife. This separation is the subject matter of the
Vatsan poetry of Arnimaal. Her love lyrics are sensuous, full of agony,
reflective of her heritage and flair of language. An example of the kind
is given below:
Arni rang gom shraavuni hiya
Kar yiye darshun ma diye
'My midsummer Jasmine bloom faded away
I yearn to see him'
She was so popular a poet that her contemporary Mahmood Gami, one of
the epoch makers in Kashmiri poetry, was fascinated by the flair of song
quoted above. He adopted this couplet for his own Vatsun and made his
own additions to it. The Vatsuns of Arnimaal have much to tell about the
poetess.
Sochaa Kraal (1774-1855) is a significant mystic poet who believed in
the doctrine of Wahadat-ul-Wajood, which means that God and man are not
separate qualitatively and in essence. Sochaa Kraal expressed his
thoughts in a simple but effective style – Naav dar aab ta Aab dar Naav
(The boat is in the water and the water is in the boat)
Shah Gafoor had vast knowledge of Sufi tenets as well as the
Shastras. He presented an amalgam of both for communicating his
experience –
Yot Yith Zanmas Kenh Chuna Larun
Darnaayi Daarun Soo Hum Soo
'Taking birth in this world, one gets nothing
So meditate upon He is me'
Mohmood Gami (1765 – 1855) is the most attention deserving poet of
his times not only for the development of Vatsun but also for the genre
of Masnavi. The whole creative beauty of Vatsun is reflected in his
lyrics. He was inspired by the folklore and the poets like Arnimaal. He
had capacity to understand the tradition and recreate it. He influenced
not only his contemporaries but also the poets of the coming
generations. His own cotemporary Wali Ullah Matoo called him the master
poet. His Vatsuns have a wide variety of themes and they present a
synthesis of mundane and spiritual elements.
Mohmood was well versed in Persian and Arabic and had deeply studied
Persian poets especially Jami and Nizami who are the masters of Persian
Masnavi. Mohmood introduced not only Masnavi with its variety of colours
but also Naat to Kashmiri poetry. At the time of his death at the age
of 90 he had made Kashmiri language richer by his Vatsun and Masnavis.
He introduced Persian aesthetics to a great extent to the Kashmiri
poetry. He is remembered for his nice diction, craftsmanship and melody
that appeals even to modern taste.
Kar saa myon nyaay ande
Maarymande madanvaaro
'When I will get justice
Oh! My darling beloved'
Katyoo chhukh nunda bane
Volo maashooka myaane
'Where are you my fascinating one
Come my darling'
Mohmood is basically a lyricist. His lyrics represent Kashmiri culture, social life, yearnings and repressions.
Most of Masnavi writers are also Vatsun writers. Even Naats,
Manqabats and Leelas have been written in Vatsun form. Bhakti poets
Parmanand and Krishna Razdaan who wrote Leelas also wrote Masnavis in
Vatsan technique. The great mystic poets from Rahim Saab Sopori (1775)
to Bhaagiwaan Ded ( d 1950?) have used Vatsun form to express
themselves. As such Vatsun is the best part of Kashmiri poetry as it has
preserved the essence of vocal Kashmiri music. Even the non-Sufi
lyricist poet, Rasool Mir could not but use this classical form of
Kashmiri literature. Rahim Saab, Rahmaan Daar, Shamas Faqir (1849 to
1904), Niama Saab, Asad Pare(1862-1920) are some of the mystic poets who
added to the linguistic beauty of Vatsun. Rahmaan Daar’s Vatsuns are
musical with freshness of experience and idiom. Daar’s Shesh Rang, in
its unique form of eight lined stanza, is a six stanza song. It is an
allegory. Niama Saab & Shamas Faqir communicate deep thoughts in
simple language. They have mastery over expression and experimentation
in the use of language. Asad Pare’s expressions convey his deep
experiences mainly in allegorical style.
In the early 20th century, mystic tradition and Vatsun genre
continued with more vigour. Wahab Khaar (1912 d),Ramzaan
Bhat(1887-1918),Ahmad Batawaari(1845-1918),Samad Mir(1892- 1959),Abdual
Ahad Zargar(1904-1983),Bhaagiwaan Ded etc. developed Vatsun genre and
took it to its glory. Samad Mir an illiterate sawyer and a great mystic
poet with intensity of spiritual experience, used new metaphors. Zargar
was another seeker of the ultimate reality. According to T. N. Raina
“Zargar used imagery that would shock normal sensibility into an unusual
awareness”. Bhaagiwaan Ded is the last poet of repute in the mystic
rosary of Vatsun. Her collection Mani Pamposh published in 1998 shows
how she has masterly used language and form. She was influenced by her
senior contemporaries, Samad Mir and Ahad Zargar. Among all the mystic
poets of Kashmir her work is most voluminous. Due to her communicative
skills, innovative imagery and command over language, she has carved out
a place for herself in the annals of Kashmiri mystic poetry. Almost all
the mystic poets were influenced by the philosophy of the Hindu
mysticism. They believed in universal love and are the torchbearers of
the composite culture of Kashmir.
Masnavi
Due to the wide influences of Persian language a new poetic form viz.
Masnavi came into being. Masnavi is a long narrative poem and it has
mainly four kinds.
1. Bazmia (Romantic)
2. Razmia(Depicting Bravery and Battle)
3. Mazhabi(Religious)
4. Hazlia(Satiric)
No doubt, a number of local legends like Heemaal Naagi Raay, Aka
nandun and the Hindu epics are a part of Masnavi Contents, but most of
the Kashmiri Masnavis are translations or adaptations of Persian
Masnavis with unchanged characteristics. Mohmood Gaami wrote the
Masnavis like Sheereen Khusro, Laila Majnun, Yusuf Zuleikha, Sheikh
Mansoor, Sheikh Sanaan and Pahalynaama. His most famous Masnavi, with
its linguistic smoothness and beautiful meter changes is Yusuf Zuleikha.
It became a model for others who followed him. Gaami however due to the
overwhelming Persian impact could not change Persian Masnavis as much
as to suit the temper of Kashmiri language perfectly.
Maqbool Amritsari wrote three Masnavis, some Vatsuns and ghazals.
Only Yusuf Zuleikha is available in manuscript form. He lived for a
greater period of his life in Amritsar and much is not known about him.
Wali Ullah Matoo (d 1858), was a contemporary of Gaami. He wrote
Masnavi Heemaal Naagi Raay – a local love legend which depicts hostility
between the Naagas and Pisaachas. The poet uses simple language,
maintains local temper but does not absorb himself into his subject well
and that is the reason why his Masnavi seems soulless.
Maqbool Shah Kraalawaari (1820-1877) wrote Gulrez – considered to be
the best Kashmiri love Masnavi. He also wrote some satirical Masnavis,
Grees Naama and Peer Naama. Gulrez is an adaptation of a Persian Masnavi
of Zia-ud- din. It is based on a roman tie tale of love between Ajab
Malik and Nosh Lab. The poet has taken certain liberties with the
original to make it suitable to the local people. Local colour in
atmosphere and traits of characters, beauty of plot and the vivid
expression of emotions are some of the qualities of this Masnavi. The
poetic flow and beauty of narration make Gulrez the most important
Masnavi of Kashmiri literature. To the poet goes the credit of writing
the first satirical Masnavi Grees Naama in Kashmiri language.
Prakash Ram Kurgami (d1885) is the author of Ramavtaar Charit , Lava
Kusha Charit , Krishnavataar , Akanandun and Shiv Lagan.His most famous
Masnavai is Ramavtaar Charit which is the first Razmi Masnavi in
Kashmiri . Its language is sweet and is neither burdened with Sanskrit
nor Persian vocabulary. It presents the beauty of Kashmir and creates
Kashmiri settings in Lanka. Its songs are melodious and soothing. They
are good enough for religious sentiment. He depies the beauty of nature,
excellently.
Aav bahaar bol bulbulo
Son vwolo barayo shaadee
'Oh! Nightingale, sing it is spring
Come to us for entertaining'
Vishnu Razdan of Kulgam, a saintly man has translated Valmiki
Ramayana into Kashmiri. Almost all the poets of the 19th century and
early 20th century including Abdul Ahad Azad (Chandar Badan) wrote
Masnavis. Narrative poetry provided rich entertainment to listeners of
that time. Masnavi satisfied the yearnings of people who possessed
nothing but frustrating dreams. A fairy or princess depicted sensually
showed them such daydreams. Some times they found mystic dimensions in
Masnavi and got their hallow spiritual needs satisfied. The long periods
of subjugation had taken away the whole zest of activity from their
lives. Hence epic heroes like Saam became great source of catharsis.
Religious romance and the hallow sensuousness are sources of
satisfaction for the people who are bereft of good things in life.
Eighty percent of Masnavis are unpublished as yet. Among the
published ones the following three Razmia Masnavis are very significant.
1. Saam Naama of Lakshman Joo Raina Bulbul (1812-1898)
2. Shah Naama of Wahab Pare (1846-1914)
3. Saam Naama of Amir Shah Kriri (1846-1905)
The Shah Naama of Wahab Pare is purported to be a very free
translation of the Shah Naama of Firdosi and it seems that Wahab has not
paid full attention, nor has he been very serious to the translation.
Wahab’s Shah Naama is a huge work of 23491 verses and it has not been
possible for him to keep its cohesiveness. Amir Shah Kriri could not
make his Saam Naama an organic whole due to the lack of craftsmanship.
There are so many digressions in it and too much use of Persian
vocabulary does not suit the poem. Bulbul’s Saam Naama has artistic
niceties. The smoothness of plot and the flow of language make it a
masterpiece. As against Wahab and Amir Shah, Bulbul’s warp and woof is
local and hence responsible for effective narration. Against looseness
of Wahab and Amir Shah, Bulbul has woven the whole story around the
center figure Saam that gives compactness and freshness to the whole
epic. Bulbul uses a sweet language, local imagery and common man’s
idiom.
Naat
Naat is a sort of ode in which adorations to the Holy Prophet of
Islam are sung. It has no definite form. Hamud and Manqabat are
respectively the praises of God and great seers. Sometimes Hamud
Manqabat and Naat are interconnected .
Naat starts with Nunda Ryosh where it is a part of Hamud. After about
150 years Habib-ullah-Nowshari wrote Naat. A little later Fakhir wrote
beautiful Naats in Kashmiri in a very simple language. Walli- ullah –
Matoo also wrote Naats fulfilling all the literal demands of this genre.
Maqbool Shah Kraalawaari introduced Naat in Vanvun form and filled the
genre with genuine emotions. Abdul Ahad Nazim and Pir Aziz-ullah Haqani
are very important poets in the history of the development of Naat.
Nazim’s language, emotions and etiquette are quite suitable for Naat
writing.
chus dour pyomut ghatshit rodum yar Madinus
tami noori roshan gaay dar-o-divar Madinus.
'I am away from my friend who has gone to Madina
His beauty has enlightened the whole Madina'
However the master poet of this genre is Abdual Ahad Nadim (1258-1329
H). He took Naat to its perfection. His simple language devotion,
reverence and allusions are the qualities of his Naat. His Naats are in
Vatsun form. It has given effectiveness to his poetry.
Naat writing continues till date and modern poets like Mir Ghulam
Rasool Nazki, Fazil Kashmiri, Dina Nath Nadim, Pitamber Nath Dhar Fani,
Rahaman Rahi and many others have written beautiful thought provoking
Naats.
After 1990, most of the poets in Kashmir valley wrote Naats. Some
critics believe that the upsurge owns its origin to the political
situation over there.
Leela
According to Aurbindo, world is not Maya but Leela of God. In this
sense Leela as a genre of literature means ‘to play’. As such, Leela is
that poetic expression which contains various colours and aspects of
creation and thereby reflects the play of the Creator. It doesnot have
any definite form. However, as Leela is a song set on instrumental music
the Vatsun form is most suitable for it and bulk of this type of poetry
has been written and is being written in the Vatsun form.
The early traces of Leela are found in Nund Ryosh. There may have
been some other Leela poets, but it is Prakash Ram who popularized this
genre. In his Ramavtaar Charit he has inserted a plethora of Leelas and
these Leelas were more popular among the masses than the epic itself. He
set the pattern of Leela which was followed by Vishnu Razdan whose
Leelas have been collected in Leela Sagar recently. Some of his Leelas
like Padi Kamalan Tal bi aasaay are evergreen. Leela is basically a
devotional song which got attention of many poets. These include Nila
Kanth, Vasudev, Anand Ram and Bhaskar Ji. The Leela’s of Nila Kanth are
adorations of Lord Krishna and are very popular .However the greatest
poets of Leela in 19th century are Parmanand (1791-1885) and Krishna
Razdan (1850-1925).Parmanand lived at Mattan which is not only a sacred
place but also an important transit camp during Amarnath pilgrimage. The
place was resplendent with spiritual light. So the atmosphere was
suitable for Parmanand. He had a vast study, which is reflected, in his
poetic works along with his spiritual experiences. Among his writings
Radha Swayamvara is most interesting and musical. His Leelas have been
rightly called lyrical narratives and are in Vatsun form. His devotional
songs are artistic expressions of his inward experiences in most
suitable idiom. Parmanand has depths of meaning and passionate
intensity. The allegorical character of his poems is remarkable.
Gokal hridai myon tati chon goory vaan
Tset vyamarsha deptimaana Bhagvaano.
Vrats myaani goopiyi tsey pata laaraan
Bansari naad vaad mataano
'Gokul is my heart where you tend your cows.
O Lord, radiant with the light of pure consciousness
My senses are the gopis whom the magic of your
Flute wafts to a higher plane'
(Translation T.N Raina: A History of Kashmiri Literature)
Sometimes Leela’s of Parmanand are didactic yet their excellent
allegorical character, matured wisdom and imagery makes such Leelas very
communicative. His Karma Bhomika is an example of such Leelas. It is
said that his disciple Lakshman Bulbul wrote some of the Leelas for
Parmanand.
Krishna Raazdaan had a firm faith in Shaivism. His Shiv Puran and
Shiv Lagan show his mastery over poetic art. His observation was minute
and it provided raw material for his poetry .His usage of ordinary
expressions conveys more than what the words mean. The inner music of
his mystic experience is well conveyed by his words. He generally used
Vatsun form and sometimes he experimented with other forms with equal
success. No poet could surpass him in style, depth and diction.
Govind Kaul, a saint of Radha Swami order was also a Leela poet. But
the most important Leela poet of the mid 20th century is Jiya Lal Saraf.
His Leelas are in Vatsun form and were published in two parts entitled
Bhajan Maalaa. He has the credit of translating Panchastavi, Gauri
Stutti , Bhaja Govindam , Mahimna Sotraa in verse in Kashmiri. All his
Kashmiri translations are sweet and linguistically flawless with their
original music well preserved. These translations are being sung like
Leelas. Saraf made Leela very popular. Prem Nath Arpan’s verse
translation of Bhagwatgita has been very popular like popular Leelas
sung all over the valley. Pushkar Nath kaul author of Poshe Daale is
another living Leela poet whose Bhajans are very popular.
After the exodus of 1990, many new Leela composers like A. N. Dhar,
N. N. Suman, K.N. Bhagwan, P.N. Shad, J. L. Juroo and N.K. Yarbash have
emerged.
Marsia
Marsia is an elegy, a mourning song for someone the poet loves.
Marsia describes the qualities of the deceased. A Poet can write Marsia
on any body, but it is generally associated with the martyrs and events
of Karbalaa. Hence, Marsia is a form of poetry in which the character of
the people, especially of those who were with Imam Hussein during his
martyrdom, is sung. Hussain is the epic hero in the Marsia genre.
The classical Marsia of Kashmiri is different in technique form the
modern Marsia which bears the influence of Urdu Marsia .The classical
Marsia consists of five parts viz, Barkhast, Dunbaale,Gath , Krakh and
Nishast. The Marsias sung during the mourning meetings in the month of
Muharram are of this nature. Some important Marsia writers of the
classical Marrsia were Hussain Mir, Hakkem Azim, Mohd. Baqir ,Mirza Abhu
Qasim and Munshi Ahmed Ali .
The Marsia-writing in Kashmiri started in early period. Shyam Bibi
wrote the first marsia in Vatsun form. It was written on the death of
Nunda Ryosh. Then comes the name of Mahmood Gaami who wrote an elegy on
the death of his son. Nazim also wrote Marsias. Wahab Khaar also wrote a
Marsia expressing his shock over the death of his son. Maqbool
Kraalawaari wrote Marsia and his Marsias contributed a lot in the
technical growth of the genre .He wrote in Mussadas form i.e. six lined
stanzas. Pir Haqani translated some Persian Marsias into Kashmiri.
Ghulam Mohmaod Hanfi wrote many Marsias of merit. Marsias have been
written in abundance by some modern poets belonging to Hindu as well as
Muslim communities.
Marsia writing has enriched Kashmiri language with new words,
phrases, allusions, expressions, thoughts, forms and styles .The greater
portion of Marsia literature is unpublished as yet.
8.4 Modern Period (1819 onwards)
The Ghazal and the Nazam are two genres of Kashmiri poetry that
developed in the modern period. Ghazal had taken its birth much earlier.
Ghazal
Early Developments
The word Ghazal means ‘talking romantically’. Romantic approach of
the poet determines the temperament of his Ghazal. However, the genre
has not remained limited to romantic experiences and expressions. It has
been a vehicle of expression for all sort of thoughts – mystical,
philosophical, psychological and has become gradually richer with
varying dictions and styles. A Ghazal couplet has the rhyme scheme ab ab
– ab. Every couplet is complete in meaning. The bravity of words that
can enfold the various dimensions of experience is the main beauty of
the Ghazal.
Ghazal was adopted in Kashmiri due to the increasing Persian
influence. In the early period some poets like Fakhir experimented with
this genre, but Vatsun remained a dominating force. Mahmood Gaami was
the first poet who used Ghazal form with liberal Persian words. Maqbool
Amritsari wrote Ghazals but it was Rasul Mir who under the influence of
Gaami gave Ghazal the rear lift. His Ghazal is the product of
imagination, feeling and musicality. Rasul Mir was the greatest among
Ghazal writers till his times .He was greatly interested in Ghazal but
did not have any pretensions of mysticism or narration. He limited
himself to the expression of his experiences of human love. He even
discarded the platonic notions and only sang of human love. He is
sensuous and passionate in his expressions. He has his own stature as a
romantic poet and he moulded the Ghazal form to suit his intensity of
experience.
Maqbool Kraalawaari also wrote Ghazals. But it was Wahab Pare of
Hajin who developed Ghazal by writing 781 Ghazals which exist in his
Deewan .In most of his couplets he just seems to be a rhymester but many
couplets contain poetic experiences and beauty of expression. Samad Mir
and Ahad Zargar have contributed to Ghazal in a manner as to suit their
mystical experiences. However the pioneers of Ghazal in the first half
of 20th century were Ghulam Ahmad Mahjoor (1885- 1952) and Abdual Ahad
Azad (1909- 1948).
Modern Developments
Mahjoor was a lover of beauty and the adoration of beauty in any form
is the chief quality of his Ghazals. He made his songs reflective of
his feelings in a conventional style. He had capacity to understand the
pulse of the time. He inspired the Kashmiri people for political &
social change. He wanted to protect the tradition of love and tolerance.
He loved various colours of life and depicted the hues of nature in
his Ghazals. This attracted the attention of Tagore and he called
Mahjoor ‘the Wordsworth of Kashmiri poetry’.
Mahjoor is a link between old and new poetry .He enlarged the canvas
of Ghazal, decorated it with new and fresh imagery, widely referred to
local flora and fauna and made his Ghazal the chief vehicle of his
thought.
Abdul Ahad Azad’s creed was humanism, scientific temperament and
revolution. He was moved by the subjugation, suffering and poverty of
the people of Kashmir. His advocacy of the universal brotherhood was not
liked by some sections of the conservative society but he continued
with his ideology. Like Majhoor he gave a new direction to Kashmiri
poetry with his simple diction. His Ghazals are better known for his
radical humanism in a language that was perfectly understood by the
people.
Mirza Arif, Ghulam Rasool Nazki, Fazil Kashmiri are some other poets
who developed Kashmiri Ghazal. However, it is after 1947 that Kashmiri
Ghazal achieved its literal and creative heights through the works of
Nadim, Rahi, Kamil, Firaq and others.
Dina Nath Nadim is a very significant poet. He contributed to Ghazal
also. He was associated with the cultural renaissance of Kashmir and was
a progressive poet. His Ghazals have the beauty of language and unique
of tradition. His images are mostly taken from rustic life and are
captivating.
Abdul Rahmaan Rahi was associated with Nadim and in his early poetry
he bears Nadim’s influence. His poetry collection Nowrozi Saba contains
conventional and musical Ghazals. After 1960, Rahi’s poetry does not
evince an objective approach to life and subjectivity becomes main tool
of his creative ability. He tries the quest of truth through his own
experience. That may have made his creative effort, ambiguous at times.
This whole phenomenon is reflected in his Ghazals which are included in
his Siyah Rooda Jaryan Manz .
Mohammad Amin Kamil is one of the makers of modern Kashmiri Ghazal.
He has infused realism in the genre and his Ghazals are a mirror of his
sensibilities, human feelings and psychological depths. Kamil is a
master of Ghazal writing. He understands the basic temperament and
tenderness of the genre. His use of Kashmiri words and craftsmanship is
very remarkable. In every couplet he has conveyed some experience. The
observation and imagination with a touch of satire gives elegance to his
Ghazal. He has his own style and he has the credit of bringing the
Ghazal out of the clutches of feudal values.
Ghulam Nabi Firaq’s Ghazals have emotion, flow and depth. He bears the influence of the English lyric.
Moti Lal Saqi, Ghulam Rasool Santosh, Muzaffar Azim, Mishal
Sultanpuri , Ghulam Nabi Khayal ,Margoob Banihaali, Chaman Lal Chaman ,
Moti Lal Naaz, Makhan Lal Kanwal , Rasool Pompur, Radhey Nath Masarrat
,Manzoor Hashmi, Arjun Dev Majboor , Nishat Ansari , Farooq Nazki are
some important names in the history of the development of Ghazal.
Naseem Shifai’s Darichi Mutsrith makes the presence of the poetess felt in Ghazals with intensity of feeling and soft language.
Rafiq Raaz has given a new direction to Kashmiri Ghazal by the
freshness of his style. Many younger poets are influenced by him.
Suneeta Raina Pandit with her Rihij Yaad and Sonzal came up as a very
prominent Ghazal writer.
Ghazal in Kashmiri language has developed rapidly during the last 50
years. It is rich both in content and language. Sometimes it has
continued with conventional forms of expression and sometimes modified
itself with new experiments in style. But in every case it has come out
of its traditional mechanical frame and has taken many steps towards
sophistication. There are new tools of communication, new perceptions
and new metaphors. These have added to the aesthetics of the Kashmiri
Ghazal.
Nazam
Nazam is a form of poetry in which a single thought is expressed
without any digressions. Nazam is an organic whole that indicates a
single creative attitude of the poet. There is no restricted form for
this genre. Many experiments have been made in its structure. Sometimes a
poem is written without any rhythm and sometimes blank verse form is
used for it. Inner rhyme is the most important element of the modern
Nazam. The development of Kashmiri Nazam has the following stages :-
a. Till 1947: Some scholars believe that Nunda Ryosh wrote first
Kashmiri Nazam Gongal Naama. After him Parmanand wrote some beautiful
Nazams. No doubt, these are allegories but they cannot be termed as
Nazam in modern context. Modern Nazam starts with Mahjoor and Azad.
However, none of the two had complete notion of this genre. Basically
the genre with its modern characteristics came from Europe. It came
through Urdu into Kashmiri. After 1857, need for a new form was felt by
the people connected with the Aligrah movement. A similar development
took place from 1938 in Kashmiri due to the spread of education and
political struggle. Mahjoor, Azad and Zinda Kaul (1884-1965) wrote some
beautiful poems such as, Dariyaav, Shikwa-I-Iblees, Inqilaab of Azad and
Yamberzal and Azadi of Mahjoor. Zinda Kaul popularly known as Master Ji
wrote poems. His Sumaran(The Rosary) was the first book in Kashmiri
which was awarded Sahitya Akademi Award in 1956. His poems are
devotional and philosophical in content and are rich in structure and
style.
b. 1948-1960: The Progressive Movement affected Kashmiri literature
with the same intensity as Sir Syed Movement had given new directions to
Urdu Nazam after 1857. Certain political, economic and social changes
also helped in the growth of the Nazam. Well-educated youths of that
period were influenced by Karl Marx .The social change and economic
revolution became their creed. The young poets gave up all the previous
models of adoration and adopted a new form of expression called Nazam to
suit the changing times. Realism was their watchword and the working
class was the center of their attention. Most of the modern poets of
repute were the torchbearers of social change, which in spite of good
humanitarian motives became sloganism in literature. Though the poets
never bothered for literary refinement and originality yet it can be
safely said that poems of this period are a milestone in the growth of
the Nazam. It was the only period when common people took great interest
in Mushairas and literary functions. They found a mirror of their lives
in Nazam. Poets of this period were greatly influenced by Nadim. The
new forms that were born as a result of the change are free verse,
sonnet, blank verse, the opera and the Tukh(Quatrain). Ornamental
language and other traditional conventions were discarded and every
effort was made to meet the demands of change. Some good poems like
Nadim’s Me chamm aash paguhch, Kamil’s Yaarabaluk Sahar were written in
this period.
Nadim was a born poet and even the poems written with socialistic
motivation by him bear certain degrees of literal beauty . Wothi baaguch
kukilee (Arise the cuckoo of garden), Dal haanzni hond Vatsun(The song
of the boat woman) are some of the instances.Nadim introduced new
rhythms superbly. His original imagery and use of blank verse (as in Bu
gyavana az) speak of the many creative capabilities of Nadim.
Rahi was a progressive poet in essence but at the same time his poems
impress the reader by his craftsmanship. He introduced the
monologue-technique in his Gata-ta-Gaash (Darkness and Light) Nowroze
Saba shows his maturity and promise of creativity. Some of his important
poems of this period are Zindagee(Life), Path agar yiyi the motas vaary
(Then if death were to come) and Azich kath(Today’s tale).
Mirza Arif also played his role in the development of Nazam, with the
same progressive notions. Dusa, Zanaanan hund ehtejaaaj(the protest of
women) are some of his important Nazams. Kamils Mas malir (1955)
contains many poems depicting progressive trends and growth of Nazam. He
experimented with the form of Nazam and he himself claims that his
style and craftsmanship are different. This difference is amply brought
forward in his second collection Lava ta Prava(Dew Drops and
Sunbeams).His other two poetic collections are Beyi sui paan and Padis
Pud Tshaayi. His craftsmanship is commendable. Kamil successfully uses
references from Hindu mythology in his poetry to communicate
effectively. He has freshness of language and beauty of metaphor. The
poet seems conscious of the changing values of the modern life.
Ghulam Nabi Firaq shows influence of the progressive Urdu poem and
romantic English poetry. He has written some good poems and his subjects
are conventional like agonies of life and love. Almost all those poets
who have contributed to Ghazal have also contributed to the development
of Nazam in their own way. However, most of the poets are not having any
new experimentation in structure of the poem and some of them write in
traditional style.
c. 1960 onwards: Nadim, Rahi, Kamil. Moti Lal Saqi, Muzafar Azim ,
Ghulam Nabi Khyaal , Arjun Dev Majboor, Vaasdev Reh, Mishal Sultanpuri,
Margoob Banihaali, Moti Lal Naaz , Nishat Ansari, Naji Munavar, Santosh,
Rasul Pompur and Farooq Nazki are some of the poets who contributed to
the development of Nazam. These poets have explored new horizons. The
same poets who had discarded the tradition under the influence of
progressivism are trying to recreate at present. Poets like Rahi are
finding new meanings in Lal Ded and other classic poets. Old idioms are
being used to communicate the new meanings. Poet’s creativity has
displayed their special use of images and symbols. Modernity was a trend
upto 1980 but it could not become a movement like the Progressive
movement. It had its influence upon the poets like Rahi. But the
circumstances prevailing in Kashmir after 1990 have affected their
creativity to a great extent and poetry has become much more topical.
Nadim was the first poet who affected structural changes. He took up
abstract themes in his Nazam after 1960. His Naabad Tyathavyan is a
milestone not only in the development of Kashmiri Nazam but also in the
evolution of Nadim. This poem set a new trend of style, structure and
thought in Nazam. Some important poems of Nadim in this context are
Kaathi Darwaazaa Pathi Gara Tani, Lakhchi chuu Lakhchun. However his
best contribution in this regard are his small poems which have a chain
of metaphors, symbols and unlimited scope of meaning. Such poems of his
are called Haarisath.
Rahi exhibited many elements of modernism through his poems. His
poetry bears the influence of existentialism. The poet seems lost in his
agony of loneliness and has no solace and feels bereft of all those
things which man had taken for granted as his conventions and support.
One of his poems Badbeen (The Cynical) expresses the tragedy of man who
has nothing to depend upon. The poetic collection of Rahi viz. Sihya
rooda jareen manz is a masterpiece work that shows the changing
attitudes and creative evolution of the poet.
Moti Lal Saqi’s three poetry collections( Modury Khaab, Mansar,Neery
nagma) show the changing trends of Nazam. His poem Mandore is a fine
example of artistic use of symbol and his Vaaraag uses symbol of smoke
to express his sensibilities. Majboor’s Tyol presents the trauma of the
migration of a large section of Kashmiri pandits following militancy in
Kashmir. Almost all such poets communicate the agonies of exodus and it
has almost become a trend in literature. It is replete with emotion and
is topical to a greater extent. Moti Lal Naaz’s Poshe Kuj presents some
fine poems, which are the mirror of his feelings expressed in a suitable
style. Rasool Pompur’s Safed Sangar and KhandI contain nice poems.
Some very recent trends can be found in the Nazam of Shafi Shouq,
Ghulshan Majeed , M.H. Zafar and even in Rahmaan Rahi . Shouq and
Ghulshan’s poems are better understood at an abstract level and they
represent to some extent the postmodern trend in Kashmiri poetry. Naseem
Shafai sees the bleeding society through the eyes of a woman with
wounded sensibilities.
Growth of Prose
It is not known what type of prose existed till 19th century, as no
prose work has been found. In 1821 the first effort was made by
Serampore Missionaries who got New Testament translated into Kashmiri in
Sharda script. The same was reprinted in 1884 in Persian script. In
1879 the first book in Kashmiri was printed and the subject matter of
this book was geometry. This book was authored by Pandit Mahadev Gigoo
who wrote under pseudonym of Ram Joo Dhar . The book was printed on hand
made Kashmiri paper in Kashmir. In 1898 Royal Asiatic Society of Bengal
published Ishwarakaul’s Shabda-amrita, a work on Kashmiri grammar in
Sanskrit. Moulvi Yahaya’s Tafseer-I-Quraan and Kaashar Kitaab by Agha
Sayyad Mohammad with heavy Persian diction were also published.
The Persian script of Kashmiri was not suitable for reading and
writing, as it had no diacritical marks. It can be one of the main
reasons for the lack of prose till 1947. Kashmiri prose writing did not
develop till it got the attention of Mahjoor and Mirza Arif who
persuaded writers to write in Kashmiri prose.
The greatest contribution of Progressive Movement in Kashmir is the
development of Kashmiri prose. The Cultural Congress stressed on the
development of fiction, drama and criticism. It was in the meetings of
cultural congress that modern prose really evolved. Since July 1948,
Radio Kashmir and since 1958, Jammu and Kashmir Cultural Academy have
been doing their best to develop Kashmiri literature and language. The
development of Kashmiri prose is actually the development of various
prose genres like drama, short story, novel etc.
The Drama
Kashmir has a rich tradition of folk drama which is entertaining the
people over centuries. However, interest was shown by some people in
stage and literal drama. Nand Lal Kaul, Tara Chand Bismil and Ghulam
Nabi Dilsoz were the first to take steps in this direction. Kaul’s
Satuch Kahwat was written in 1929 and staged in Raghu Nath Mandir,
Srinagar for four years. Its language is heavily Sanskritsed, yet people
took it very eagerly. Dilsoz wrote a play titled Lailaa Majnoon and
Shirin Farhaad for a gramophone company. The recordings entertained the
people. Bismil wrote Satuch Vath. A big step towards the drama writing
was taken by Mohi-ud-din Hajni by his Grees Sund Gara, most probably
under the literal influence of Gowdaan of Munshi Prem Chand. In 1944,
various drama clubs came into being. The Sudhar Samiti Club wanted to
affect social reformation of Kashmiri Pandits through the medium of
drama. Due to the efforts of Balraj Sahni, Indian Peoples Theatre
Association (IPTA) was established and this had its impact on the
development of theatre in the State. The Cultural Front took theatre to
rural Kashmir. Its purpose was not to develop drama but rather the
theatre was used as a medium, to awaken people politically and socially.
Due to the political considerations Bata Har play of Prem Nath Pardesi
could not be staged. His second play Shaheed Sheerwaani whose songs were
written by Mahjoor was not successful due to the lack of its stage
ability. Some plays like Ali Mohammad Lone’s Viz chhi saany, Roshan’s
Son Sansaar and Amin Kamil’s Pagaah Chhu Gaashdaar were staged. All the
three dramas were published and titled as Kuni Kath in 1955. The impact
of Progressive Movement was felt through the medium of drama. Nadim
contributed, as usual in this field also .His plays include Zameen chhi
Greesy Sonz (The land is the tillers), Nekee ta Badee(Good and
Evil),Vaavan Vonnum and the famous opera Bombur ta Yemburzal. Nadim
liberated Kashmiri drama from the shackles of other languages by using
the diction of the common people with aesthetic effects. The opera was
shown to Khrushchev and Bulganin in 1956 when they visited the state.
Hemaal-ta-Naagiray was his next opera. Shihil Kul is a drama of bigger
canvas and some of its parts were presented through light and sound
medium in an open theatre. The Vitasta is an opera with fine musical
language. It was a great stage success and the Times of India considered
it “ a glorious feast of Colour, dance & drama”. It was staged in
many cities of India. Vitasta is the first Kashmiri opera to win
international fame.
The writers who followed Nadim include Amin Kamil (Raav Roopee),
Muzaffar Azim (Sony Kisur), Ghulam Rasool Santosh(Gulrez), Pushkar
Bhan(Dodi Majnoon), Jagar Nath Wali (Zoon) Noor Mohmood Roshan(Choor
Bazar)Som Nath Zutshi(Potsh)Aziz Haroon (Soda),Akhtar Mohi-ud-din(Nasti
hund Sawal).
Kashmir Theatre Federation formed in 1962 consisted of 17 drama
clubs. It helped in the promotion of drama. In 1960, Tagore Hall was
constructed and the State Cultural Academy has been organising drama
festivals since then. Many new dramatists came to forefront. They
include Moti Lal Kemmu, Avtaar Krishen Rahbar , Sjood Sailani , Bansi
Nirdosh, Hari Krishen Kaul , Mohammad Subhan Bhagat.
Ali Mohammad Lone wrote Taqdeer Saaz. Kemmu has many plays to his
credit. Some of them are Tshaay, Haram Khaanuk Aana and Manzil Nika.
Natak Truch is collection of his three plays. Kemmu enriched drama by
his stagecraft and creative production. Sajood Sailani wrote Zalur,
Rwopaya Rood, Tanate Ku, Shihul Naar, Kajy Raath, Gaashi Taarukh. Other
plays in Kashmiri include Hari Krishan Kaul’s Dastaar, Lone’s Chaary
Paathir and Suya. Pushkar Bhan’s Rangan handy Rang, Farooq Masoodi’s
College Paathir, Rattan Lal Shant’s Shahrag, Kemmu’s Lal bu draayas
lolare, Dakh yeli Tsalan, Nagar Woodaasy,RadhaKrishen Braroo’s Reshy
Vaar.
Many European dramas have been translated into Kashmiri and some of
them have been staged. Radio drama is a very popular genre in Kashmiri.
Mention may be made of Pushkar Bhan’s Machama –a social satire, which
was a great success. Som Nath Zutshi, Akhtar Mohi-ud-din, Ali Mohammad
Lone, Avatar Krishan Rahbar, Soom Nath Sadhu, Bansi Nirdosh, Shankar
Raina, Hriday Kaul Bharati, Rattan Lal Shant, Amar Malmohi, Bashir Dada
and Sajood Sailani are some of the successful radio drama writers in
Kashmiri.
The Short Story
Dina Nath Nadim and Soom Nath Zutshi are the first ones whose short
stories Jawaabee Card and Yeli phol Gaash were published in Kwong Posh
in March 1950. Arjun Dev Majboor followed with his Kwolivaan. The other
writers who started short story writing are Aziz Haroon and Noor
Mohammad. Some more writers who came to forefront include Amin Kamil,
Umesh Kaul, Ghulam Ahmad Sofi, Akhtar Mohi-ud-din and Deepak Kaul. Short
stories of these writers are motivated by the Progressive Movement in
form and content. However, these writers introduced the genre in
Kashmiri and paved the way for new writers who were not bound by any
political convention or some particular social philosophy. They started
to think for themselves and this affected their writings. Akhtar felt
the change and tried to develop short story according to the demands of
creativity. He created realistic situations with moving characters .His
short story collection Sath Sangar was published in 1955. His second
collection Sonzal shows better growth of his creativity. Amin Kamil’s
collection Kathi Manz Kath shows his understanding of character and deep
observation of society. Kokar Jung is the most famous story of his.
Generally Kamil uses a light satire and tries to tear off the curtains
of hypocrisy. Sofi Ghulam Mohammad has two collections Sheesha ta
Sangistaan and Loosymuty Taarkh to his credit. He writes fine prose but
has less art of characterization. Bansi Nirdosh has three short story
collections to his name viz Baal Maraayo, Adam Chhu Yithai Badnaam and
Girdaab. Nirdosh has mastered the art of story telling. Avatar Krishna
Rahbar’s Tobruk, a short story collection, has fine technique, suitable
language and art of characterization.
Short story writers continued with new experiments and more stress
was given on character development than plot. Writers like Ali Mohammad
lone, Santosh, Bharti, Hari Krishen Kaul and Shant made inroads into new
trends. Akhtar continued to develop his short stories with new
patterns. Gahe Taaph Gahe Shihul, Rotul, Mayate Kath, Irtqa, Hatak are
some of the short stories that show his experiments with structure and
the changed attitudes for creating a tense atmosphere with inner
conflicts of the character at subjective level.
Hari Krishan Kaul Taaph (Sunshine) written in 1967 is his first short
story. His other short story includes Pati laaraan parbat , Haalas chu
Rotul, Yeth Razdaanaya and Zool Apaaraum. Kaul’s diction is a mirror of
his art. Kaul has his own style and does not bother for experimentation.
He has always something to convey and his stories are multidimensional.
A tender satire is a pleasant factor in his fiction. The ordinary
events of common day life within the frame of a particular culture and a
political setup provide the basic substance to his short stories. His
colloquial is a beauty.
Rattan Lal Shant has three collections of short stories namely Achhar
Waalan Pyath Koh, Trikoonjal andRaevimut Maane to his credit. Shant
knows the art of short story and that is why his short stories are well
streamlined. He knows the use of words and is never extravagant in his
use of language. He presents characters with all sorts of tensions and
deals with them with perfect psychological understanding. The short
stories in Trikoonjal present a three dimensional social picture where
characters act and react with their own motives. Shant writes with
perfect understanding of the cultural patterns involved.
Hriday Kaul Bharati’s short stories present abundance of
experimentation. His short stories are subjective and are much more
abstract. He uses symbols freely and does not follow the traditional
plot, character or social setting. His Humzaad, tsakarvyuh, Mili hund
Deh are his representative short stories.
Some other short story writers include Bashir Akthar, Amar Malmohi,
Ghulam Nabi Baba, Abbas Taabash, Ghulam Nabi Shakir, Farooq Massudi,
Gulshan Majid, Shamas-ud-din Shameem, Chaman Lal Hakku, Shafi Shooq,
Majrooh Rashid, Nazir Jahaghir, Iqbaal Fahim, Rattan Johar and Makhanlal
Pandita.
After the exodus of 1990 some writers have influenced short story
writing with their creative activity .One of them is Roop Krishen Bhat.
His short story collection Harda Vaav shows that the writer is very
conscious about the rapidly occurring changes, their impact upon the
individual and society. Roop Krishen’s stories present tensions,
conflicts and the helplessness of man who is alienated under the force
of unpredictable circumstances.
The Novel
Novel in Kashmiri language has not developed like in other Indian
languages. The main reason for this is the multilingual character of the
State of Jammu and Kashmir. There is not much readership for novel.
Kashmiri people prefer to read novels in Urdu, Hindi and English. In
such circumstances very few novels as listed below can be termed as
commendable though none of the novels possesses perfection.
1. Dod Dag Akthar Mohi-ud-din 1958
2. Gati Manz Gaash Mohd. Amin Kamil 1959
3. Asyti Chhi Insaan Ali Mohd. Lone
4. Mujriam Ghulam Nabi Gauhar 1972
5. Myul Ghulam Nabi Gauhar 1973
6. Akh Door Bansi Nirdoosh 1975
7. Tresh ta Tarpan Amar Malmohi 1976
8. Pyon ta Paap Ghulam Nabi Gauhar 1986
9. Sheen ta Vatapod Pran Kishore 1989
10. Dastan-e-Amir Jaan Bashar Bashir 1994
Literary Criticism and Research
Abdul Ahad Azad has the honor of being the first literary research
scholar and critic in Kashmiri. He wrote three volumes of Kashmiri
Zabaan aur Shayiraa with deep research and critical insight.
Mohi-ud-din Hajni contributed to criticism and research with his Muqalaat and other works.
State Cultural Academy Publications: The Academy published many
research works regarding the poets and writers of various Ages. Such
Collections include critical assessments by scholars like Mohd. Yusuf
Taing, Moti Lal Saqi, Mohd. Amin Kamil and Rasheed Nazki. The Academy
also published some collections of folk songs and folk stories. Most of
the critical essays written by the individual authors were published in
the journals of Academy – Sheeraza and Son Ada.
Mohd. Yusaf Taing is a leading critic with colourfulness of language
not quite suited for criticism. However, Taing has a high degree of
critical insight, vast study and clear perceptions. Talash is a
collection of his critical essays.
Anhaar, journal of Kashmir University helped greatly in evolving
literary criticism and expanding the cipher of literary research.
Rahmaan Rahi is a very important modern critic with clear perceptions
and remarkable understanding. He is well versed in the European trends
of criticism. Kahwat is considered the threshold of modern trends in the
art of criticism.
Ratan Lal Shant is a well-versed literary critic. He has written many
thought provoking articles about practical criticism. His work Kaashur
Afsana ‘Az-ta-Pagah’ is a critical analysis of the merits and demerits
of the modern short story. It shows the depth of understanding Kashmiri,
English and Hindi literature.
Amar Malmohi’s interest is on contemporary criticism. His Vakshnay ta
Vatshnay is a collection of articles presenting objective criticism.
Naji Munawar interest is on research rather than on criticism and Pursaan is his well known criticism.
Ghlushan Majid and Shafi Shouq are critics with modern sensibilities.
They have contributed much to the development of criticism and
research. Shouq has written Kaashiri Adabuk Tawaareekh.
Trilokinath Raina writes in English and has rendered valuable
services to Kashmiri language by his translations, critical
appreciations and research. His latest work A History of Kashmiri
Literature is a commendable work.
The Essay
Basic experiments of essay writing were made in the Pratap magazine
of S.P College Srinagar. But no serious efforts were made to develop
essay for a long time. Some essays were written by Somnath Sadhu and
Sofi Ghulam Mohammad. But the pioneer in Kashmiri essay writing is
Mohammad Zamaan Azurdah. He made essay a distinct literary form in
Kashmiri. He has added colourfulnes to Kashmiri prose by the variety of
his essays. Fikar ta Tikar (1980) and Nuna Posh (1986) are his two essay
collections. His essays bear the impact of Pitras Bukhari and some
other Urdu writers. Humor and satire makes his essays very interesting.
He creates humorous situations.
Rasool Pampur and Manzoor Hashmi have also contributed to essay
writing. Zaifraan Zaar is a collection of Hashmi’s humorous essays.
Zareef Ahmad Zareef makes his essays very interesting by the use of
natural Kashmiri idiom. Ghulam Ali Majboor writes fine essays, which
seem spontaneous and colourful. Pushkar Nath Dhari’s Cheti Naav is a
fine collection of literary and social critical essays.
The Journalism
Prof. J.L Kaul has the credit of using Kashmiri for the first time in
print word (1936) in the magazine of S. P. College. It was followed by
Lalla Rukh magazine of Amar Singh college. However it was Mahjoor who
published Gaash newspaper but could not continue it. In 1949 Pamposh a
journal was brought out at Delhi. In 1952 Mirza Arif brought out
Gulreez. Information department of J&K Government devoted a part to
Kashmiri in Urdu Tameer in 1960. Presently the same institution
publishes a bi-monthly literary journal Aalov. This journal has achieved
good reputation within a short period of time. The publication of many
journals continued for some time but none of them could go on for some
considerable period of time. These Journals include:
Journal Editor Year
Desh S.N Sadhu 1957
Wattan G.N Khayaal 1962
Chaman G.R Nazki 1965
Neb Amin Kamil 1968
Kaashur Adab G.R Santosh 19?
Aash Shouq & Gulshan 1970
Kaashur Akhbaar Cultural Organisation 1974
The above-mentioned journals could not continue their publication for
a considerable period of time due to many reasons. The State Cultural
Academy has been publishing Son Adab and Sheeraaza regularly.
Kaashur Samachar continues regular publication. Now its under the
editorship of S.N.Bhat Haleem. Kshir Bhawani Times (Jammu), Vitasta
(Kolkatta), Naad (Delhi), Patrikaa (Delhi) are some of the journals
which have a considerable Kashmiri portion in Devnagri.
Samprati is a centre for preserving culture and language of the
Kashmiri exiled batch at Jammu. It publishes Satisar, a literary journal
in Persian script.
8.5 The Translations
Below is the list of Kashmiri translations worth mentioning:
Author Work Translator
Aristotle Poetics Ghulam Nabi Khayyal
Arabian Nights Mohi-ud-din Hajini
Agha Shahid Ali Country without Post Office Shafi Shauq
Arthur Miller Death Of a Salesman Mohan Nirash
Abdul Kalam Azad Tarjaman al Quarn M A Shaida
Bhabani Bhattacharya Shadow from Ladakh Shaqi Shauq
Cervantes Don Quixote Shyam Lal Sadhu
Chekov The Three Sisters Rattan Lal Shant
Franz Kakka The Trial Soom Nath Zutshi
Goethe Faust Ghulam Nabi Firaq
Goldsmith She Stoops to Conquer Autar Krishen Rahbar
Galsworthy Justice Akbar Ali Ansari
M.K. Gandhi My Experiments with Truth Akther Mohi-ud-din
Talib Gurbachen Singh Sheikh Baba Farid-ud-din Rahman Rahi
Guru Gobind Singh Jappaji Sahib Fazil Kashmiri
Baha Ullah Ta Mohd. Amin Kamil
Asar-I- Jadeed
Henrik Ibsen The Wild Duck Soom Nath Zutshi
Ghosts Akhtar Mohi-ud-din
Khayyam Rubaiyat Ghulam Hassan Big Arif
Khayyam Rubaiyat Ghulam Nabi Khayyal
Keats, Tennyson Selected Poems Khizir Magribi and
Ghulam Nabi Firaq
Kalidas Malvikagnimitra Bansi Nirdosh
Maxim Gorky Mother Ali Mohammad Lone
Man is Born Rahman Rahi
Mohammad Abdulla Hadees-I-Sharif Margoob Banihali and
Taaree
Nicoloi Gogol The Inspector General Soom Nath Zutshi
Rajinder Sing Bedi Ek Chaadar Maili Si Rasul Pampur
Som Dev Katha Sarit Sagar Amar Malmohi
Saidi Gulistan G.H.Taskeen
William Shakespeare Othello Ghulam Nabi Nazir
King Lear Naji Munawar
Julius Caesar Naji Munawar
Sophocles Dedipusees Naji munawar
Sumitra Nandan Pant Vyor Prithvi Nath Pushp
Sudha Murti Wise and otherwise Shafi Shauq
Leo Tolstoy War and Peace Muzaffar Azim
Rabindranath Tagore The Post Office Mohd. Amin Kamil
Raja O Rani Mohd. Amin Kamil
Red Oleanders Noor Mod. Roshan
Chandalika Noor Mohd. Roshan
Mukut Dhara Ali Mohammad Lone
Cycle of Spring Gh. Hassan Beg Arif
Reeta Gh. Hassan Beg Arif
Chitra Autar Krishen Rahbar
Gitanjali Moti Lal Naaz
James Maurier Haji Baba of Isphahan Shamas-ud-din
Unknown Panchastavi Jia Lal Saraf
Vishnu Sharma Panchtantra (Persian) Margoob Banihali
__________ World short Stories (1) S L Sadhu
__________ World short Stories (2) Naji Munawar
Vijay Tendulkar Kanya Daan Shafi Shouq
Rawapad Chowdhury Ghar Badhi Rattanlal Shant
Oscar Wilde Salome Rattanlal Shant
Albermin India Rattanlal Shant
Omkar Koul Mulaqgat Pyare Hatash
Copyright CIIL-India Mysore
Who are Dutt or Datt ?
