By Sudeshna Sarkar, IANS
Kathmandu : Even as Nepal’s King Gyanendra awaits the abolition of his crown with parliament declaring his kingdom a republic, one of his ancestors has made a comeback with much fanfare, establishing her place firmly in history.
An 18th century queen whose life was a mix of tragedy and accomplishments has been resurrected to lay claim to being the first woman writer of Nepal, if not the first author.
Lalit Tripura Sundari, who was born in 1793 and lived for only 38 years, is the first Nepali author of note, overtaking Nepal’s most acclaimed epic poet Bhanu Bhakta Acharya, according to a modern writer and researcher.
“In 1824, seven years before she died, the queen wrote a treatise on the duties and responsibilities of kings,” Narendra Prasain, who spent 20 years researching the anonymous manuscript that is still preserved in a Kathmandu library, told IANS.
“It was at least 70 years before Bhanu Bhakta wrote his first poem,” he said.
The queen’s manuscript, called “Raj Dharma” – the duties of monarchs – is the Nepali translation of a segment of the Mahabharat in which, after their victory over the Kauravas, the eldest Pandava brother Yudhishthir begins ruling the conquered kingdom and guidelines about his duties are laid down.
The manuscript is, in a way, similar to Artha Shastra, the celebrated treatise on statecraft penned by Chanakya, the guru of Chandragupta Maurya, founder of India’s powerful Maurya dynasty.
Though a Nepali publishing house published the manuscript almost 45 years ago, it did not carry the name of the author.
Prasain says he went through a series of references by Nepali scholars and historians to conclude that the dead queen was the author.
Now, he has brought out a new edition of “Raj Dharma” that not only acknowledges the queen as the author but also carries her portrait.
“The queen’s personal life was tragic,” he says. “She was married to King Ranabahadur Shah, a womaniser who was smitten by a widow and coerced her to marry him after promising to make her son his successor.
“He married Lalit Tripura Sundari when she was a child and died before she attained puberty. The queen built the Dharahara, one of the tallest monuments in Kathmandu and a landmark, as well as the bridge that connects Lalitpur with Kathmandu.”
An inscription on the bridge calls her as majestic as a goddess and more beautiful than Parvati, the consort of Hindu god Shiva.
An old statue of her also exists in a museum.
Prasain, who last year brought out a book on Nepal’s women writers called “Nari Chuli”, commissioned the illustrator to do a portrait based on the statue and the tributes.
“I then showed it to King Gyanendra since she was his ancestor and he approved,” he says.
Now, the Maoists, the king’s bete noir, are asking the government to issue a commemorative stamp on the queen.
It would be the royal family’s revenge if the portrait becomes a household face at a time Nepal is erasing its king’s face from currency notes and his photographs from government offices.