Vallathol

Narayana
Menon

Vallathol Narayana Menon (16

October 1878 – 13 March
1958) was a poet in the
Malayalam language, which is
spoken in the south Indian
state of Kerala. He was one of
the triumvirate poets of modern
Malayalam, along with
Kumaran Asan and Ulloor S.
Parameswara Iyer. The
honorific Mahakavi (English:
"great poet") was applied to him
in 1913 after the publication of
his Mahakavya Chitrayogam.[1]
He was a nationalist poet and
wrote a series of poems on
various aspects of the Indian
freedom movement. He also
wrote against caste restriction,
tyrannies and orthodoxies. He
founded the Kerala
Kalamandalam and is credited
with revitalising the traditional
Keralite dance form known as
Kathakali.
 Mahakavi

Vallathol Narayana Menon

Born 16 October 1878

Chenara, Tirur
Malabar District,
Madras
Presidency,
British India

Died 13 March 1958

(aged 79)

Nationality Indian

Occupation Poet, translator

Early life
Vallathol was born in Chenara,
Tirur, in Malappuram District,
Kerala, as the son of
Kadungotte Mallisseri
Damodaran Elayathu and
Kuttipparu Amma.[2] He did not
receive any formal education
but was trained in Sanskrit
language, first under the
Sanskrit scholar Variyam
Parambil Kunjan Nair and then
under his own uncle Ramunni
Menon, who introduced him
into the world of Sanskrit
poetry. Ramunni Menon also
taught him Ashtanga Hridayam,
a medical treatise, and young
Narayana Menon soon began
helping his uncle in medical
practice and teaching.[2] He
also trained for a year under
Parakkulam Subrahmanya
Sastri and Kaikkulangara Rama
Variar in Philosophy and
Logic.[2] He married Vanneri
Chittazhiveettil Madhavi Amma
in November 1901 and shifted
to Thrissur, the cultural capital
of Kerala. He worked as
manager in the Kalpadrumam
Press in Thrissur from 1905 to
1910.[2] During this period, his
hearing began to deteriorate.
From 1915, he started working
in Keralodayam newspaper and
later joined Amrit Ritesh, a
journal published from
Thrissur.[2]

Poetry
He started writing poems from
the age of twelve. Kiratha
Satakam and Vyasavataram
were his earliest published
works.[2] He won Bhashaposhini
magazine's poetry award in
1894.[2] His poems began
appearing in Bhashaposhini,
Kerala Sanchari and Vijnana
Chintamani magazines.[2] His
first major literary ventures was
a rendition of Valmiki's
Ramayana into Malayalam, the
work of which started in 1905
and took two years to
complete.[3] Unlike some of his
contemporaries, Vallathol did
not have any acquaintance with
English language.[4] He earned
the title Mahakavi after the
publication of the Mahakavya
Chitrayogam in 1913.
Chitrayogam conformed to all
the principles of a traditional
Mahakavya and was divided
into 18 Sargas. The story of
Chandrasena and Taravali,
taken from Kathasaritsagara,
was the theme of this poetry
work.[5] Vallathol portrayed the
protest of Parvati against Siva
in the work Gangapati (1913)
and of Usha defying her father
for the sake of her love in
Bandhanasthanaya Anirudhan
(1914).[4] In 1917, the first of
his eleven-volume work Sahitya
Manjari (A Bouquet of
Literature) was published.
These volumes, published from
1917 to 1970,[4] contain his
collected short romantic
poems dealing with a variety of
themes.[6] Many of these
poems earlier appeared in P. V.
Krishna Variar's
Kavanakaumudi magazine. His
khanda kavya on Mary
Magdalene titled Magdalana
Mariam paved the way for a
new tradition in of Christian
symbolism in Malayalam.[6] The
poet's own struggle with
deafness from his early
twenties features in the work
Badhiravilapam.[3] Other
celebrated short poems of
Vallathol include Sishyanum
Makanum, Virasinkala,
Achanum Makalum,
Divaswapnam and Ente
Gurukulam.[3]

In addition to subjects from

nature and the lives of ordinary
people, Vallathol's opposition to
the indignities of the caste
system and the injustices
suffered by the poor form the
themes of many of his
poems.[7] He is also regarded
as the greatest nationalist poet
of the language.[8] He was one
of the triumvirate poets of
modern Malayalam, along with
Kumaran Asan and Ulloor S.
Parameswara Iyer. Literary
critic K. M. George has noted
that, together with Kumaran
Asan, Vallathol was
"responsible for bringing about
a revolutionary change in
Malayalam poetry in the
[nineteen]-twenties. Asan
concentrated on social themes
and Vallathol championed the
national movement; yet both
made very significant
contributions to the
khandkavya, ie: the short poem
of the lyrical type."[9]

He was awarded Padma

Bhushan title, India's third
highest civilian award, in
1954.[10]

Kathakali
Vallathol is credited with
revitalising the traditional
Keralite dance form known as
Kathakali.He played a
prominent role in setting up the
Kerala Kalamandalam at
Cheruthuruthy, near the banks
of Bharathapuzha River. The
revival of the art of Kathakali in
modern Kerala was mainly due
to the efforts of Vallathol and
the Kerala Kalamandalam.[3] He
stimulated the world's interest
in this art during his tours
abroad between 1950 and
1953.[11]

Involvement in
Nationalist movement
Vallathol is regarded as the
greatest nationalist poet of the
language.[8] He actively
participated in the Nationalist
movement. He attended the all
India Conferences of the Indian
Congress in 1922 and 1927 and
rejected a royal honour
bestowed upon him by the
Prince of Wales during his India
visit in 1922.[12][13] Vallathol
remained a great admirer of
Mahatma Gandhi and wrote the
poem "Ente Gurunathan" ("My
Great Teacher") in his praise. At
the same time, he felt attracted
by the Communist ideology and
wrote poems praising the
achievements of the Soviet
Union.[3] He wrote several
patriotic poems hailing India's
nationalist movement.[7]

Works
Abhivadyam
Achanum Makalum
Allah
Badhiravilapam
Bandhanasthanaya Anirudhan
Bapuji
Bhaval Sthotramala
Chitrayogam
Dandakaranyam
Divaswapnam
Ente Gurunathan
Indiayude Karachil
Kavya Manjusha
Kochu Seetha
Magdalana Mariyam[14]
Naagila
Oru Kunju Athava
Rugminiyude Pashchathapam
Onapputava
Oushadhaharanam
Patmadalam
Paralokam
Randaksharam
Rakshasakrithyam Kilippattu
Ritu Vilasam
Russiayil
Saranamayyappa
Sishyanum Makanum
Sahitya Manjari – 11 Volumes
Sthree
Vallathol Sudha — Two
Volumes
Vallatholinte
Khandakavyangal
Vallatholinte Padyakrithikal
Vilasa Lathika
Vishukkani
Veera Sringala
Arogya Chinthamani (Health)
Garbha Chikitsakramam
(Health)
Granthaviharam (Study)
Prasanga Vediyil (Speech)
Vallatholinte
Granthaniroopanangalum
Prasangalum (Study)
Vallathol Kathukal (Letters)
Vallathol Samagrapatanam
 (Study)

See also
Vallathol Award
Lokame Tharavadu(2014) –
A documentary about his life,
directed by Rifa Shalees
Chennara

References
1. Zarrilli, Phillip (2004).
Kathakali Dance-Drama: Where
Gods and Demons Come to
Play . Routledge. pp. 30–31.
ISBN 9780203197660.
2. "Vallathol Narayana Menon" .
Kerala Sahitya Akademi.
Retrieved 18 April 2014.
3. A. Sreedhara Menon (1982).
The Legacy of Kerala . DC
Books. p. 77.
ISBN 9788126437986.
4. Sisir Kumar Das (1 January
1995). History of Indian
Literature: 1911–1956, struggle
for freedom : triumph and
tragedy . Sahitya Akademi.
p. 206. ISBN 9788172017989.
5. Amaresh Datta (1988).
Encyclopaedia of Indian
Literature: devraj to jyoti,
Volume 2 . Sahitya Akademi.
p. 1185. ISBN 9788126011940.
6. Nalini Natarajan, Emmanuel
Sampath Nelson (1996).
Handbook of Twentieth-century
Literatures of India . Greenwood
Publishing Group. pp. 185–186.
ISBN 9780313287787.
7. Cir̲pi (1991). A Comparative
Study of Bharati and Vallathol .
Kolam Veliyeedu.
8. Raman Varadara, Raman
Varadara Staff (1993).
Glimpses of Indian Heritage .
Popular Prakashan. p. 138.
ISBN 9788171547586.
9. George, K. M. (1972).
Western Influence On
Malayalam Language And
Literature . Sahitya Akademi.
p. 75. ISBN 9788126004133.
10. "Padma Awards Directory
(1954–2013)" (PDF). Ministry
of Home Affairs. Retrieved
18 April 2014.
11. Sayed Jafar Mahmud
(1994). Pillars of Modern India,
1757–1947 . APH Publishing.
p. 129. ISBN 9788170245865.
12. Malayalam Literary Survey,
Volume 13 . Kerala Sahitya
Akademi. 1991. p. 26.
13. K. M. Pr̲abhākaravāriyar
(1978). Poetry and National
Awakening . Mahakavi Vallathol
Birth Centenary Celebrations
Committee. pp. 1–58.
14. Magdalana mariyam:
adhavā pasthāpam
prāyaschitham (2006, 2011).
ISBN 9788126412495,
OCLC 9788126412495

External links
Wikimedia Commons has
media related to Vallathol
Narayana Menon.

Biographical sketch, Portrait,

Handwriting and Books of
Vallathol – Kerala Sahitya
Akademi
Retrieved from
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a_Menon&oldid=883853932"

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