Mitramela: Krantidoot (Part 3 )

Dr. Manish Srivastava has been expressing his social and traditional views on social media through the name @Shrimaan. 

His first book “Roohi – Ek Paheli” was a novel written about relationships clenched into an extreme passion. 

The second book “Main Munna Hoon” was a social experiment about the child abuse problem. His third book has been published as a series of 10 books on the Indian independence struggle.

The title of the series is #Krantidoot” and the theme is Introduction to the heroes who laid down their lives in the armed revolution in India’s independence. 

The author has made it clear by writing books on three different subjects that his writing is not going to be tied to any genre. 

His views are free, and with the same freedom, he will continue to write on other subjects.

“Krantidoot” is a series of ten books on the lives of freedom-loving revolutionaries who laid down their lives in the Indian Independence War. Its three parts #Jhansifiles #Kashi, and #MitraMela have been published and other parts are still in publication. #Jhansi, #Kashi, and #MitraMela seem to be popular trends on social media.

The books in this series based on the lives of revolutionaries have really started a new trend. 

The way important moments of history have been told in narrative form is a unique experiment in itself as very few historical contexts are found in this genre.

The first two parts of the series #Jhansi_Files and #Kashi introduced us to Chandrashekhar Azad and his team. In the third part, we hear stories related to Savarkar. 

What was the impact of the armed revolution of the Chapekar brothers in the life of Savarkar and what form did it take later? 

We will understand this only after reading the book. Mitramela, which started from Bhagur of Nashik, establishes Abhinav Bharat in London. This is a journey of faith. Reading and knowing these anecdotes like a school student adds a new flux to the book.

On the cover page, there is a picture of Mata Ashtabhuja Bhavani. You can also see,  a child is seen sitting in a meditative posture in front of her.  

When Savarkar receives the news of the hanging of the Chapekar brothers, the child becomes disheartened. 

India whose history is found in the form of the land of heroes, it is today slave of Britishers. The slavery of the British weakened the strength of the Indians as well as their ideas. Savarkar sits for hours in these thoughts and tears started flowing from his eyes.

As a child, when Savarkar used to get frustrated and remember his mother, his father used to say, “Tatya Mata Ashtabhuja Bhavani hi Teri maa hai. Mother Ashtabhuja Bhavani, the goddess of our clan, has a lot of blessings on our family, consider her as your mother.

One fine day when Bal Savarkar’s mind was depressed, he comes in front of Maa Ashtbhuja and praises her by sitting at her feet. Savarkar takes this oath sitting at the feet of his mother.

“O mother, today I take this oath in front of you that from today my life is dedicated to the freedom of this country. From today there will be only one purpose in my life and that is the freedom of India from the slavery of the British.

– Bal Savarkar

Savarkar dedicates himself to the nation since childhood. Tales of his childhood heroism are many, some episodes come here in the book. 

Fearing the campaign he launched against the British power, the British sentenced him to double life imprisonment. He has been tied with shackles and sent to Kalapani prison. 

Mitramela’s school begins with a discussion of Savarkar looking at the numbers printed on his badge in this prison.

A new and unique experiment in writing arouses interest in knowing history. Listening to historical events in narrative form like any lesson in school does not seem to be a boring history lesson for the children. They listen to it with great interest and also clear their doubts by asking questions in between. 

In this way, it becomes easy to teach history to the new generation. The story moves in a single flow, but the excessive interruption in the middle weakens the flow. The story introduces us to many great characters like Shyam Ji Varma, and we get to know about their contribution to the freedom struggle.

The problem of binding, which was there in the last two editions, has been fixed by the publisher and the book is now available in hardcover only. The binding is quite good and the pages of the book are also of good quality. Overall the book and the writing of the book is quite good. The book helps in getting to know the youth who have dedicated their lives to the freedom summer, and it is a must-read.

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Book: Krantidoot (Part-3) Mitramela

Author: Dr. Manish Srivastava

Book Review By: Pradeep Rajput

Pradeep Rajput is a Civil Engineer by Profession, who is much interested in reading- History and Historical Fiction.

Link to Order – https://pages.razorpay.com/krantidoot

Publisher: Sarva Bhasha Trust

पार्थ सारथी – एक कविता

मैं पार्थ बन तुम्हारी हर बात मान लूं।
तुम कृष्ण बन मेरे सारथी बन जाओ ना।।

मैं लाख तुम्हारी बातों पर प्रश्न चिन्ह सा अड़ा रहूं।
तुम सरल सा उत्तर देकर मेरी व्यथा सुलझाओ ना।।

मैं पार्थ बन तुम्हारी हर बात ……..

मैं गर खो जाऊं जीवन के इस युद्ध प्रांगण में।
तुम मेरे जीवन रथ को संभाले रास्ता दिखलाओ ना।।

जो उलझ जाऊं सही गलत के संकट में।
तुम बिना अस्त्र उठाए मुझको जीत दिलाओ ना।।

मैं पार्थ बन तुम्हारी हर बात मान लूं।
तुम कृष्ण बन मेरे सारथी बन जाओ ना।।

About the Poet:

ज्योति तलरेजा: नवयुवती जो कविताओं के मध्य रहना पसंद करती है

Twitter account: @JyotiTalreja15

पानी – इतिहास और मिथक

पुराने ज़माने की बात है। कुडन, बुडन, सरमन और कौराई चार भाई थे। जैसा कि आम तौर पर उस ज़माने में होता था ये चारों भाई भी खेती करते थे। किसी तरह एक दिन इनकी मुलाकात राजा से हो गई थी। राजा ने इनसे कह दिया था ‘अच्छे अच्छे काम करते जाना’। गरीब किसान के लिए राजा का कहा बिलकुल पत्थर की लकीर जैसा होता है। सम्मान ही इतना होता है कि ऐसा ना हो तो कैसा हो, जैसी बातें सोची नहीं जा सकती। चारों भाई भी खेती करते और हर छोटे मोटे काम में कुछ ना कुछ अच्छा करने की कोशिश करते।

सुबह जब चारो भाई खेतों पर जाते तो दोपहर में कूड़न की बेटी खाने की पोटली लेकर आती। एक रोज़ जब लड़की खाना देकर लौट रही थी तो रास्ते में उसके पांव से एक नुकीला पत्थर टकरा गया। लड़की को गुस्सा आया और उसने कमर में ही टंगी दरांती खींच के पत्थर पर दे मारी। अब दरांती से पत्थर का तो क्या बिगड़ना था ? मगर जो लड़की ने अपनी दरांती की तरफ देखा तो उसकी आँखें फटी की फटी रह गई ! लोहे की काली दरांती सुनहले रंग की हो गई थी ! पत्थर से छूते ही लोहा दमक उठा था !

लड़की समझ गई ये कोई चमत्कारी पत्थर है उसने सहेज के पत्थर को मिट्टी से निकाला और दुपट्टे में लपेट कर घर ले गई। शाम में जब चारो भाई लौटे और परिवार पूरा इकठ्ठा था तो लड़की ने सबको दरांती और पत्थर दिखाया। सब आश्चर्यचकित हुए ! थोड़ी ही जांच में सबको समझ आ गया कि उनके हाथ पारस पत्थर लग गया है। पूरे परिवार को पता था कि गांव में पारस पत्थर की खबर ज्यादा दिन तो छुपी नहीं रहेगी। राजा को पारस ना देना चोरी भी होती। तो चारों भाइयों ने तय किया की वो अगली सुबह ही राजा को देने जायेंगे।

जब वो राजा के पास गए तो राजा ने ना पारस लिया ना सोना। फिर से कह दिया जाओ और इस से अच्छे अच्छे काम करते जाना। पाटन इलाके की ये प्रसिद्ध कहानी सच्ची है कि नहीं ये तो मालूम नहीं। लेकिन ये किवदंती इतिहास को अंगूठा दिखाती आज भी जिन्दा है। पाटन में उन भाइयों ने पारस से निकले सोने से तालाब बनवाने शुरू कर दिए। वहां कई तालाब हैं। पारस आज लोहे को सोना नहीं बनाता लेकिन इन तालाबों का पानी, मिट्टी से सोना जरूर उपजाता है।

बुढागर में बुढा सागर है, मांझगांव में सरमन सागर, कुआंग्राम में कौराई सागर है और कुंडम गांव में कुंडम सागर। चारों भाइयों के नाम पर बने इन बड़े बड़े तालाबों-झीलों के किनारे कई गाँव आज भी हैं।

अनुपम मिश्र की किताब “आज भी खरे हैं तालाब” इसी कहानी से शुरू होती है। परंपरागत तरीकों से पानी के संरक्षण को सीखने के लिए फ़िलहाल भारत में इस से रोचक कोई किताब नहीं है। अगर आप अपने इलाके में घटते जल स्तर के बारे में जानते हैं तो इस किताब से सीखिए कि पानी का संरक्षण कैसे होता है। अपने इलाके के गाँव के लोगों को ये किताब पढ़ाइये। पानी की कमी सिर्फ एक लातूर की समस्या नहीं है। अगले दो तीन दशकों में ये भारत के कई इलाकों की दिक्कत होगी। अभी से शुरू कीजिये अगले कुछ सालों बाद ताकि दिक्कत ना आये।

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About The Blogger:

आनन्द मार्केटिंग एवं मीडिया से स्नातकोत्तर की पढ़ाई के बाद डाटा एनालिटिक्स में काम करते हैं। मार्केट एवं सोशल रिसर्च के अपने काम के अलावा अपने शौक की वजह से भी वो भारत भर में भ्रमण कर रहे होते हैं और कहते हैं कि वो यात्री हैं, पर्यटक नहीं हैं। संयुक्त परिवार में पले-बढ़े आनंद अपने परिवार के साथ पटना में रहते हैं। शिक्षा को जीवन पर्यंत चलने वाली यात्रा मानने वाले आनंद उपशास्त्री हैं और संस्कृत से स्नातक के छात्र हैं।

पुस्तक वियोग

इस बार गांव गया तो पिताजी ने कह दिया था, इन उपन्यास आदि में कुछ नहीं रखा कोर्स की पुस्तकें पढ़ो, काम आएंगी। पुस्तकें जेबखर्च से ही ली जाती थी पर पिताजी ने पहले कभी टोका नहीं था। इस बार शब्द तो समक्ष थे किंतु भावना अलग थी, भविष्य की चिंता स्पष्ट दिखाई दे रही थी।

   मैने धीरे से कहा अब नौकरी लगने तक कोई पुस्तक नहीं खरीदूंगा। लगा था यह कहने से बात समाप्त हो जायेगी किंतु पिताजी ने कहा “जो पुस्तकें खरीद रखी है उन्हें बेच दें?”, यह मेरे लिए वज्रपात था। जो भी पुस्तकें थी घर छोड़ दी गई ।

   एक वर्ष पश्चात एक सरकारी विभाग में पद मिल भी गया और दस्तावेज सत्यापन के लिए जाना हुआ बनी पार्क, जयपुर । सामान्यतः नौकरी मिलने की प्रसन्नता बड़ी होती है किंतु मुझे तो फिर से पुस्तकें खरीदनी थी। सत्यापन पूर्ण हुआ, घर वापसी की ट्रेन रात्रि में थी और अभी सांझ होने में भी समय बाकी था। सबसे पहले सामने श्री राम मंदिर पर प्रभु आशीर्वाद लिया। बाहर निकलते ही वर्षा होने लगी , सामने खड़ी गीताप्रेस की पुस्तकों की गाड़ी में शरण ली। सामने रुचि की सभी पुस्तकें थी। वर्षा आधे घंटे तक रही तब तक 15 – 20 पुस्तकों को टटोला जा चुका था। अंत में दृष्टि “संक्षिप्त महाभारत” पर जाकर रुकी, यह दो भागों में २००० पृष्ठों का सेट था। मूल्य था ६०० रुपए, घर से लाए १००० रुपए में से ८०० अभी भी बचे हुए थे। २०० रुपए में घर पहुंचा जा सकता था। किसी प्रकार बैग में स्थान बना कर रख लिया गया।

घर पहुंचने पर छोटे भाई ने परंपरानुसार पूरे बैग को खाली कर दिया। मां कह रही थी, घर में महाभारत नहीं रखनी चाहिए। पिताजी कुर्सी पर बैठे मुस्कुरा रहे थे।

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About The Blogger:

This guest post is written by नवीन शर्मा ( @devnagrihindi )

नवीन शर्मा विद्युत विभाग में लेखाकार हैं, पुस्तक व हिंदी भाषा प्रेमी होने के साथ कंप्यूटर स्वचलन एवं माइक्रोसॉफ्ट एक्सेल में भी रुचि रखते हैं। आप उनके ट्विटर खाते @devnagrihindi का भी अनुसरण कर सकते हैं।

Little Girl

“I am going to see my Mummy and Daddy!” exclaimed the little girl to everyone and no one in particular. 

She skipped down the drive clutching the hand of her guardian looking like a vision in her golden brown curls, and wearing her favorite gown. To her chest she clutched the little doll that was her constant companion during all those nights did not have her Mummy and Daddy.

She waved and smiled at the people who had lined along the drive to bid her goodbye. Many were crying and telling how much they would miss her. 

“Don’t cry,” she said, “I will come back one day with my parents and that will be a fun day. Won’t it?” she asked her guardian while tugging at his sleeve.

He looked down at her eager face and smiled. With a sigh and in a soft voice he whispered, “Come on now, we must hurry.” As they reached the end of the drive, he glanced back at the funeral and picked up the little soul to leave. She hugged the reaper and exclaimed 

“I am going to see my Mummy and Daddy!”  to everyone and no one in particular. 

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About The Blogger:

This guest post is written by Ramya ( @readncrochet )

“A complete bookworm who cannot stop going on about books! When not thinking, buying and talking about books you can find her buried in her pile of yarn crocheting stuff related to books or on twitter talking about books.”

Of Fiction and Worlds

A bookworm’s musings about worlds that unite minds and hearts.

Of words we swallow, we live them for every moment – engraving these pictures fortified from the words in our minds to procure a life that isn’t distinctly ours and still rather very much ours.

We – the readers are a part of the community which keeps running through internal and external chaos, isn’t that true? We absolutely enjoy the feeling of being decapitated into another personality for who we have admiration or maybe to escape the normality – the reality we live in each day.

Books have proven to be a great source of knowledge. We live in a world where we have built our realm and taught ourselves the knowledge we have through the scriptures and books that were written a long time ago – the art of reading has always been a boon to the mankind.

And, this is so fun to observe because when I try to look back and read about history – the religious texts all over the world, the civilizations, the
stories that have followed for generations; I can find no idea on how we would have worked it all out without being a reader.

Of course, I am biased! I am an avid reader, where avid for me is ‘reading something for self-enjoyment and/or learning experience’ and definitely does not depend on the amount of books being read. For someone who reads a lot of fictional books, I have been often told that these are the stories which do not make sense but it would be delightful to take you into the world of fiction where the writers take more than a few years sometimes to put the story out with some beautiful essence as well.

Fiction has often been deciphered as something that does not provide knowledge and belongs to entertainment purposes. But, in recent years — just when I stepped out in the world as a book, I discovered that these stories are a lot more than just entertainment and laughter. Maybe, all these books do not contain exact facts but amazing authors around the world have been able to capture the emotions and pour them fluidly into the form of these novels in the books.

There are multiple books out there which take you through grief people might have had felt and we might have not noticed before. Books which ask and stand out calling for representation and there are books which provide insight into the brains of humans in the form of stories instead of facts are something that enchants me.

I do not say that fiction is solely for giving out messages either. A part of fiction has always served the purpose of giving enjoyable time of leisure. There are feel-good books which comply with simpler storylines and jotting everyday lives of a very life-like character and it would become so peaceful to read. Writers and authors are on a soul-wrenching marathon to give you this escape where you might want to travel to a different country or maybe into a realm which you have always dreamed of but never could explain in person to someone else.

Do you not think that authors have the power to manipulate your mind in the best way possible? I believe so, I have adored reading fantasy and transforming into mages who perform magic to zoning into historical fiction which has made me cry tears for nights. With that, I recently found about comfort books (too late to the party!) which are all about slice of life and solving problems which clutter our lives and somewhere when these characters smile right after getting through pain – we as the readers and immersing self into these characters – feel them too.

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I would love to hear what you think about the question that I asked above. It is so fun to pour out my mind about these beautiful books that keep me engaged everyday. Comment below or reach out to Padhega India on one of the socials or drop a message to me with your answers.

Here are a few books I’d love to recommend, to order any of these, reach out to Padhega India at any of the socials 🙂

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Well, I will see you with another post very soon. See you till then! Keep reading!

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About The Blogger:

This guest post is written by Chai, a very much of our own uncontrollable book lover.

Chai is a book blogger and lover (no doubt!), a chaotic bookworm who cannot stop talking about books, music and fictional characters. At times when books do not abide her hands, you can find her writing poems or ranting randomly on her Twitter. Talk to her about chai or books, she’d not let you have a chance to talk then. Grab a hold of her here.