Master Story Teller : Manoj Das (1934—2021) by Dr. Sachidananda Mohanty

Novelist, short story writer, educator, editor, literary journalist, exponent of Indian culture and spirituality, Manoj Das would be remembered, most of all, as a narrator and story teller par excellence who belonged to and reclaimed the traditions of Panchatantra, the Jataka Tales and Katha Sarita Sagar for contemporary needs.

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I have now read the stories of Manoj Das with very great pleasure. He will certainly take a place on my shelves beside the stories of Narayan.  I imagine Orissa is far from Malgudi but there is the same quality in his stories with perhaps an added mystery. — Graham Greene

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In the passing away of Manoj Das, one of the finest bilingual writers of post-independence India, the nation has lost an original mind and creative voice in the world of literature, literary journalism, public culture and spirituality. Indeed, it would be hard to faithfully chronicle the diverse domains where Das excelled with equal ease and felicity. He acquired a magisterial stature in the course of more than six decades of active creative life. He was a novelist, short story writer, educator, editor, literary journalist, exponent of Indian culture and spirituality, a staunch believer in Sri Aurobindo’s Integral Yoga and the future evolution of the human species. He was, most of all, a narrator and storyteller par excellence who belongedto and reclaimed the traditions of Panchatantra, the Jataka tales and Katha Sarita Sagar for contemporary needs. He saw no contradictions in creative self-expressions in English and his mother tongue Odia, anchored to the rich repertoire of India’s Bhasha traditions.  He integrated the secular and spiritual traditions, the world of fantasy and realism through the magic prism of stories, legends and novels. For his creative writings, he chose essentially the form of the Novel and Short Stories in English and Odia.

Wide Appeal:

Manoj Das came from a remote hamlet of coastal Odisha; And yet, at the time of his demise, he was mourned widely by the world of literature and culture, politics and public services. He was given a State funeral thanks to his universal appeal and acceptability. Such was the reach of his writings commemorated by novelist icons like Graham Greene, R. K. Narayan and Ruskin Bond and critics like K. R. Srinivasa Iyengar. His personality and public presence have contributed to his public acclaim. Modest and affable, gracious and self-effacing, articulate and a believer in the culture of dialogue and the civility in discourse, he spearheaded with a missionary zeal, the value-systems that underpin the Indian civilization over the millennia, These  he saw manifest in the matrix of tales, legends  and folklores, from the Puranas  to  the Jataka tales, from  Vishnu  Sharma  to  the village story tellers, all  seamlessly  woven together, all creating  in the process,  the web of Indian life effacing  differences of all kinds. This, according to Manoj Das, formed the bedrock of Indian culture, diverse and pluralistic  with a   set of core  values  that unified us all.

Early Beginnings:

Born on 27.02.1934  at the Sankhari village on the eastern sea board of Odisha, to Madhusudan Das and Kadambini Devi, Manoj Das grew up in Nature’s bounty [and devastations too like floods, famines and cyclones] that  often  act as the settings of his creative  and critical work. After early learning at nearby Jamalpur and Balasore, he had higher education in English Literature and Law at Cuttack. While at high school, he wrote Samudrara Khyuda,[ ‘The  Hunger of the Sea’ ] that attracted critical attention.

Attracted to radical causes, he became the President of the University Law College Union, Cuttack, General Secretary of the Students Federation of India, Cuttack, and played an active role in the Afro-Asian Students Conference at Bandung, Indonesia, in 1956.

Turning Point:

The radical turning point in his life came when after four years of teaching at the Christ College Cuttack, in response to an inner call and inspired by the philosophy of Sri Aurobindo, he and his wife, Pratijna Devi joined the Sri Aurobindo Ashram at Pondicherry in 1963,which became their place of work and spiritual life. At Pondicherry, under the care of the Mother, Das continued to write creatively in Odia and in English.  He began to contribute pieces and wrote regular columns on literature and culture in leading forums in the country like The Times of India, The Hindustan Times and The Hindu. He edited The Heritage (1985-1989) of the Chandamama Publications and earned a name for himself and the magazine in discerning circles. Subsequently he was invited to be an author-consultant to the Ministry of Education, Government of Singapore (1981-1985).

Manoj Das wrote prolifically; his works in Odia received wide recognition for the manner in which he combined fantasy with newer forms of social/magical realism hitherto unknown in the field of Odia literature.  He began with poetry and his first collection of poems Shatabdira Arthwanadha was well received. Other works in fiction and non-fiction followed : Amruta Phala, Laxmira Abhisara, Sesha Basantara Chithi, Godhulira Bagha, Kanaka Upatyakara Kahini, Samudra Kulara Eka Grama, Abolakara Kahani, Shesha Tantrikara Sandhane  and Aranya Ullasa etc. Many of these celebrated ones were translated/ transcreated into English, some by the author himself. Some of his best-known works in English are the following: A Tiger at Twilight, The Submerged Valley, The Bridge in the Moonlit Night, Cyclones, Mystery of the Missing Cap and Myths, Legends, Concepts and Literary Antiquities of India

Chasing the Rainbow: Growing Up in an Indian Village, Oxford, 2004, a collection of memoirs, records the author’s childhood experiences in his remote village where the child protagonist ‘could run across a green meadow studded with palm trees, dreaming of catching the end of a huge rainbow spanning the sky’. ‘Even the ghosts are not frightening in this place, and the journey to the alien world across the river filled with the possibility of romance more than terror’. Similarly, Cyclones: A Novel, Sterling Publishers, 1987, captures a world in a state of transition from the colonial days to freedom, showing ‘the feudal system crumbling at the advent of a new politics and a typical village suddenly changing into a hick town — seen through the trials and tribulations of its young protagonist’.

Similarly, the opening of ‘A Farewell to a Ghost’ suggests the characteristic manner in which a conversational tone is deftly used to generate interest in the spectral world, the world of the occult and the world of youthful romance. The narrative voice throughout remains playful, cavalier and humorous, creating a spirit of hilarity and fun at the cost of the unsuspecting characters. Fantasy is used herewith a marked success.  The result is less of horror in the conventional sense rather than one of ambiguity about the spectral presence in the context of human frailties. Das departs from the social realism of the legendary Fakir Mohan Senapati. Here are the opening paragraphs:

‘It was on moonlit nights that the deserted villa looked particularly fascinating. From the river-bank we looked at it in long silences. When the fitful breeze made waves of the tall yellow grass around it, the house looked like a phantom castle floating on an unreal sea. Though pale, desolate and eerie, I must repeat, it was as fascinating as a fairy-tale world.

‘Generally, we didn’t talk during the night. But the next morning one of us would confide to another and we would all know by evening that he had caught a glimpse of the girl, standing on the broken terrace gazing at the moon or looking down at the river shedding tears which fell like drops of gold.

‘It was nothing new, yet we were thrilled every time and would gather on the river-bank again the next evening.

‘Any of us village boys would have done anything to help her in some way. But we knew we could do nothing. She was so near, yet she belonged to a faraway world. Besides, we knew only too well that we ought not to be too enamored of her. We had been repeatedly told about the gallant lad of a bygone generation who had fallen in love with her. There was a big banyan tree which stood in its mighty aloneness on the point of the river-bank closest to the villa. The lad had often slipped away from his home and climbed the tree. Settling down on a branch, he would gaze for long hours into a crumbling room on the upper floor of the villa through its weather-beaten window…

‘Finally, one summer noon, throwing to the winds all the stern warnings of his well-wishers, the lad had crept into the villa, climbed the decrepit stairs and peeped into the room. Perhaps the girl was asleep, for it was said that she wept the whole night and slept most of the day, sobbing in her sleep.

‘He should have behaved more prudently. Even a generation later we boys censored his rashness and pitied him. To be in love was risky enough. And to be in love with a ghost was surely dangerous. How could he ignore this fact?

‘He had rushed up and kissed her before she could stop him. She had given out a shriek. Many had heard her sobbing and her mad babbling but that was the only time anyone had heard her shriek.’

It is these qualities: fantasy and humor of the everyday life that endeared Das to a whole generation of celebrity novelists and   critics. The Strait Times, Singapore, noted: ‘Despite this… fantasy, a hardcore of realistic predicaments and problems underline his stories’.  John Harvey of The Fantasy Society Bulletin adds: ‘Manoj Das is one of these writers who can express in simple language items of considerable importance while entertaining you, while making you laugh and cry, happy or sad. Manoj Das is a rare person in today’s world’. Said The Sunday Times, London: ‘pundit pomposity is enjoyably pricked by Manoj Das’. Another critic noted memorably:’ Das’s forte is his conversation style married to a knack of reworking the classic ghost story. His favorite setting is the village and the small town; this is his natural element’.

Sadhana at the Ashram and work in the outside world:

While Das continued his literary career, he was conscious and mindful of his twin life-long commitments : to the Sri Aurobindo Ashram and to his home state of Odisha. He continued his creative and critical ties with the world of Odia literature and culture and mentored the younger generation of writers.  At Puducherry, he served the Sri Aurobindo Ashram in various capacities. With his life companion Pratijna Devi he took care of the ‘Home of Progress’, a hostel for the children of the Ashram’s Center of Education.

In due course, he became one of the best faces of the Ashram to the outside world.  He edited the Ashram journal Mother India for a while as the Assistant Editor and wrote extensively on the Mother and Sri Aurobindo in national and international publications. His research in the archives of London and Edinburgh in 1971 brought to light some of the significant glimpses of India’s struggle for freedom led by Sri Aurobindo in the first decade of the 20th century. He received the 1st Sri Aurobindo Puraskar for this pioneering work, offered by Sri Aurobindo Bhavan, Kolkata. Most recently, in 2020, his biography of the Master, based on years of research, entitled Sri Aurobindo: The Life and Times of the Mahayogi was published by the Sri Aurobindo International Center of Education Pondicherry. He was also carrying out the Odia translation of Sri Aurobindo’s magnum opus Savitri, no small feat, before his passing. He taught regularly at the Sri Aurobindo International Center of Education, Puducherry and was Visiting  Professor  at several  prestigious institutions of learning.

Accolades and Recognitions:

The numerous accolades Das has received include the Sahitya Akademi Award, the Odisha Sahitya Akademi Award (twice), the Sarala Award, the Sahitya Bharati Award, the Bharatiya Bhasha Parishad (Kolkata) Award. The Odisha Sahitya Akademi also bestowed on him its highest honor, the Atibadi Jagannath Das Samman. He received the Saraswati Samman, Padma Shri and the Padma Bhushan. The Sahitya Akademi conferred on him its highest honor, the Fellowship for life time.

Lasting Legacy:

‘In our own times’, wrote K. R. Srinivasa Iyengar, the doyen of the  Indian Writing in English, masters like  Premchand, Masti, Mulk Raj Anand  and  Vaikkom  Mohammed  Basheer  have  made their mark as exemplars  of this art. And ManojDas is of the same class…  His stories convincingly autochthonous have by their own Indianness, won for him a discriminating world audience’.

One could not agree more!

Dr. Sachidananda Mohanty
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About the Author: Dr. Sachidananda Mohanty is former Professor and Head of the Department of English, University of Hyderabad, an Institution of Eminence. Winner of many national and international awards, such as the Katha, British Council, Fulbright, Charles Wallace, and the Salzburg, he has published extensively in the field of British, American, Gender, translation and post-colonial Studies. His books have appeared in Oxford, Sage, Routledge and Orient Longman, among other notable Publishing Houses. He is the former Vice Chancellor of the Central University of Odisha. He had his early education at the Sri Aurobindo International Centre of Education, Pondicherry. [1966-75]

[An earlier version of this article had appeared in the Frontline Magazine of the Hindu Group of Publications, May 2021.Sincere thanks to the Editor of Frontline Magazine.]

4 Replies to “Master Story Teller : Manoj Das (1934—2021) by Dr. Sachidananda Mohanty

  1. Wonderful — Only Dr Sachidananda Mohanty could pen the profile of our beloved great teacher
    ” Manoj Das ” with such superb authenticity covering all the details of the life and times of
    Professor Manoj Das -the ” Man of Letters ”
    Surendra s chouhan – SAICE -69

  2. Thanks Sachi. It is an excellent tribute with all the relevant details about Manoj da’s life and works. We can use this article permanently, at all places, to introduce the great writer and the integral sadhaka.
    Goutam Ghosal

  3. Personally stepping forward to examine the double commitments of Manoj Das – Odishâ and Puducherry – nobody better than Sachi could reveal the hidden areas of this well-known iceberg.
    Thank you, Anurag, for this timely tribute.

  4. ———- Forwarded message ———
    From: smandeen@yahoo.com
    Date: Mon, 31 May 2021 23:02
    Subject: Sri Aurobindo’s Action Journal 2021 June issue
    To:
    Cc: sriaurobindosaction@yahoo.com

    Greetings from Pondicherry!

    It has been a tough month. The pandemic is raging. Many of us have friends or family affected by it, many testing +ve and recovering either at home or the hospital or both, some seriously ill and still recovering, while sadly all of us have lost several people close to us, mostly due to the virus but also otherwise. Among the latter was Manoj Das, in late April 2021. He was the first editor of the Action Journal from 1970 October to early 1973. He was awarded the Padma Bhushan in 2020, an apt recognition to his contribution in the field of literature and education. He will be fondly remembered by all of us.

    The people of our country are suffering, the fragile and highly inadequate public health system is barely able to cope. And yet, there are some, out to make what little gain they can out of the suffering of others. In the face of all this the following words of Sri Aurobindo remind us what is required for the highest ideal of ordinary human life and also the the divine ideal of Yoga.

    “Apart from external things there are two possible inner ideals which a man can follow. The first is the highest ideal of ordinary human life and the other the divine ideal of Yoga. …… The ideal of human life is to establish over the whole being the control of a clear, strong and rational mind and a right and rational will, to master the emotional, vital and physical being, create a harmony of the whole and develop the capacities whatever they are and fulfil them in life. …… The object of the divine life, on the other hand, is to realise one’s highest self or to realise God and to put the whole being into harmony with the truth of the highest self or the law of the divine nature, to find one’s own divine capacities great or small and fulfil them in life as a sacrifice to the highest or as a true instrument of the divine Sakti.”
    Sri Aurobindo
    (extracted from a letter written by Him on 30 Sep, 1925)
    (CWSA, Vol. 36, pp. 303-304)

    We are happy to bring you the June issue of our journal and as always, hope to hear back from you.

    The intense heat of Pondicherry May is slowly giving way to the cooler breezes of the monsoon which should soon arrive on the western coast of India. May the monsoon winds and the rain showers wash away some of the pain and distress and make us look forward to and work towards a new way of being.

    Stay safe.
    Best Regards
    Sunaina

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