5 verses · ~2 min
चिर सजग आँखें उनींदी आज कैसा व्यस्त बाना! जाग तुझको दूर जाना!
अचल हिमगिरि के हॄदय में आज चाहे कम्प हो ले! या प्रलय के आँसुओं में मौन अलसित व्योम रो ले; आज पी आलोक को ड़ोले तिमिर की घोर छाया जाग या विद्युत शिखाओं में निठुर तूफान बोले! पर तुझे है नाश पथ पर चिन्ह अपने छोड़ आना! जाग तुझको दूर जाना!
बाँध लेंगे क्या तुझे यह मोम के बंधन सजीले? पंथ की बाधा बनेंगे तितलियों के पर रंगीले? विश्व का क्रंदन भुला देगी मधुप की मधुर गुनगुन, क्या डुबो देंगे तुझे यह फूल दे दल ओस गीले? तू न अपनी छाँह को अपने लिये कारा बनाना! जाग तुझको दूर जाना!
वज्र का उर एक छोटे अश्रु कण में धो गलाया, दे किसे जीवन-सुधा दो घँट मदिरा माँग लाया! सो गई आँधी मलय की बात का उपधान ले क्या? विश्व का अभिशाप क्या अब नींद बनकर पास आया? अमरता सुत चाहता क्यों मृत्यु को उर में बसाना? जाग तुझको दूर जाना!
कह न ठंढी साँस में अब भूल वह जलती कहानी, आग हो उर में तभी दृग में सजेगा आज पानी; हार भी तेरी बनेगी माननी जय की पताका, राख क्षणिक पतंग की है अमर दीपक की निशानी! है तुझे अंगार-शय्या पर मृदुल कलियां बिछाना! जाग तुझको दूर जाना!
इति
The Poet
महादेवी वर्मा
Mahadevi Varma
1907 · 1987
Mahadevi Varma stands as the absolute pinnacle of lyrical mysticism in modern Hindi literature. Born in 1907 in Farrukhabad, she was a central pillar of the Chhayavaad romantic movement and is universally revered as the modern Meera for the intense spiritual devotion embedded in her verse. She lived a life of fierce intellectual independence. As the principal of the Prayag Mahila Vidyapeeth, she revolutionized women's education in India, while her literary salon in Allahabad became the epicenter of Hindi letters. Her poetic masterworks, including Yama, Nihar, and Rashmi, are profound meditations on sorrow, the eternal soul, and the quiet strength of the natural world. She did not merely write about pain. She transformed it into a vehicle for spiritual liberation. Honored with the Jnanpith Award in 1982 and the Padma Vibhushan, she passed away in 1987. She remains an immortal figure whose words continue to offer solace to anyone who has ever felt the ache of existential longing.
Paired Painting
Maharana Pratap Praying to Goddess at Haldighati
This profound painting captures a deeply spiritual moment from the legendary Battle of Haldighati fought in 1576. Maharana Pratap, the noble ruler of Mewar, pauses amidst the swirling chaos of war to offer his absolute devotion to the Divine Mother, depicted in the celestial clouds manifesting with multiple arms bearing sacred weapons. Mounted on his loyal horse Chetak, the warrior king lowers his sword and bows his head in complete surrender to the divine will, reminding us that true strength is born from humility and faith. Around him, devoted soldiers tend to the wounded and ready themselves for the righteous struggle, their armor gleaming under a turbulent sky, while the royal standard flutters bravely in the distance. The artwork serves as an eternal testament to the unyielding spirit of Mewar, where duty to the motherland and spiritual grace were inextricably intertwined.
Open the viewer →