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Prime Minister of India. Mr Vajpai.

THE CREATOR OF 'OM JAI JAGDISH HARE'

By 
Mohan Maitray
The Tribune, Chandigarh
Sunday, September 27, 1998


A powerful literary figure of the 19th century Shardha
Ram "Phillauri" was a Sanatani missionary. He was also a
social reformer and a trend-setter in the fields of Hindi
and Punjabi literatures. His contribution towards the
evolution of modern Hindi is imseminal. While on his
death-bed he had said, "There are two writers of Bhasha
in the whole of India. To-day only one shall remain. His
reference to the other Bhasha writer was to the
celebrated Bhartendu Harishchandra. This dying
declaration of Shardha Ram might have seemed an
exaggerated estimation. However, with the passage of
time, the truth stands established. Renowned critic Ram
Chander Shukla writes "His language was forceful and his
speech hypnotic. He was a true Hindi lover and an
effective writer of his times."

Only a few people are aware of the fact that Shardha Ram
was the creator of the most popular prayer Om Jai Jagdish
Hare , sung by almost every Hindu family the world over.
Even during his lifetime, the popularity of this prayer
tempted many persons to appropriate it. The word Shraddha
denotes the devotion and dedication of the author at the
same time, this reference makes him the creator of the
prayer. The devotional feelings of the author show
through each line of the prayer. The omnipresent Almighty
God is everything to the poet and he cannot even think in
terms of another:

Maat pita tum mere, sharan gahun main kiski,

Tum bin aur na duja aas karun main jiski.

He firmly believed that total surrender before the
Almighty bestows all kinds of bliss!

Jo dhyave fal pave dukh vinshe maanka,

Sukh sampati ghar aawe kasht mite taanka.

Satya Dharm Muktavli and Shatopadesh established Shardha
Ram as a poet of eternal devotion and dedication on a par
with Tulsidas and Surdas of the Bhakti Movement.

Shardha Ram was born in a Brahmin family at a small town,
Phillaur (Jalandhar) in the year 1837. His father, Jai
Dyalu was an astrologer by profession. When the latter
learnt about the birth of a son, he predicted that the
boy would accomplish many things and win laurels during
the short span of his life. The prediction came true.

Sikhan De Raj Di Vithia and Punjabi Batcheet are two
notable works of Shardha Ram in (Gurmukhi) The first work
earned him the title of "Father of modern Punjabi prose.
It contains the story of the Sikh religion and politics
according to the perception of the author. The book is
divided into three chapters. The last chapter contains
customs, usages and folk song s of Punjab. Perhaps for
this reason this book was prescribed as a text book for
higher education. Punjabi Batcheet depicts different
customs usages and fashions prevalent in different
regions of Punjab such as Malwa and Majha etc idioms,
modes of expression and variations in dialect are shown.
The study of this book was made compulsory for getting
into the administrative services.

Though Shardha Ram was the product of religious turmoil
of his age, he was far ahead of his times". His novel
Bhagyawati, written with the sole purpose of bringing an
awakening amongst the womenfolk, has been called the
first Hindi novel, although the claim is not uncontested.
Pariksha Guru, written by Shri Niwas Dass, is a contender
for the prestigious first place. Bhagyawati can, however,
rightly claim many firsts in the field. 

On the birth of a female child, Bhagyawati, the main
character in the novel makes her husband understand that
there is no difference between the male and the female
child. Opposition to child-marriage and laying stress on
adult education makes this novel far ahead of its times.

Satyamrit Pravaha demonstrates the profound scholarship
and rational outlook of Shardha Ram and it shall be long
remembered for the strong convictions and principles that
it embodies. 

Even a sentence uttered by a child, with a rationale
behind it is more acceptable than a quote from the Vedas
without a rationale says the author. Shardha Ram was a
person of independent views and he desisted from
withholding his own thought and interpretation of Vedas
and Shastras". He was charged with conducting a
propaganda against the British Government, through his
forceful lectures on the Mahaabharat’. 

His lectures on the Shalya Parva were attended by police
trainees. He was exiled from his hometown, Phillaur.
Shardha Ram did not relent and the order had to be
subsequently withdrawn after the persuasion by father
Newton, who had a great admiration for Shardha Ram’s
scholarship. Through his literary pursuits and lectures,
Shardha Ram emphasised the literary development in Punjab

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