The famine of 1866 decimated millions in Orissa. At that time, Oriya society was plagued by an apathetic colonial administration, fervent religious activism and Brahminical caste discrimination. Few were ready to hear the words of a saint-poet, translated here from the original Oriya:
Touching the waters of Mahanadi
as I sit on its bank, I swear
I will transgress all Dharma, I will drink liquor.
I will elope with a Brahmin woman.Yet, Bhima Bhoi's compassionate verses had an impact, so much so that the Oriya people, irrespective of their literacy level or familiarity with literature, quoted his verses. One of their favourites was the following:
Endless are the agonies and sorrows of the living.
Who can bear to be witness?
Condemn my life to hell,
But let the world be uplifted.Bhima's ability to challenge prevalent belief has been appreciated not just by Oriya readers. His often mystical verses were also sung by the masses, accompanied by the tambourine-like khanjani – as they continue to be today.
The precise date of Bhima's birth is not known, but most estimates suggest that he was born around 1855 and died in 1895. Bhima's poetry reflects his background – he was blind, illiterate and born into a Dalit household – and communicates, in equal measure, the thoughts of a rebel, a disciple and a mystic who eventually came to be revered as a saint. He wrote, 'Tis a jest of my Guru that my eyes cannot see./ I mastered no Vedas or Sastras./ I compose my verses with my mind/ through my experience, peering into the void'. Thus, the issue of his blindness best fit into the canon as promoted by the Indian bhakti (devotional) tradition.
This new compilation, in both Oriya in Roman script and English, presents an authentic version of some of Bhima's best poems, such as 'Stuticintamani' (the jewel of spiritual hymns) and 'Bhajanamala' (devotional songs). The German editors, Bettina Baumer and Johannes Beltz, have wisely collaborated with two Oriya poets, Kalidas Mishra and Kedar Mishra, to arrive at a credible English translation of these verses, highly musical in their original form.
Of central importance in his verses, Bhima propagated a sense of a casteless society, and to this vision many – including Brahmins, against whom he specifically raised a voice – were attracted. Because of the rebellious nature of his poetry, he was ostracised from his guru at Joranda. Getting a land grant from the local king and donations from his followers, he established his asrama at Khaliapalli, where his wooden sandals are worshipped today. Even his writing process itself sounds almost supernatural: in his asrama, he is said to have dictated to four scribes 'one line each of four verses simultaneously; those verses became four different songs'. So enviable were his verses that, during later periods, others imitated his style, with some even trying to pass off such counterfeits as Bhima's works.