Narsinh Mehta and the Gujarati Literary Tradition

A short tour of Gujarati literature, from the medieval poet Narsinh Mehta and 'Vaishnav Jan To' to Narmad, Meghani and the Jnanpith Award winners.

Gujarati has a rich literary tradition stretching over about a thousand years. Reading even a few lines from its poets can deepen your feel for the language.

Narsinh Mehta (fifteenth century)

નરસિંહ મહેતા (Narsinh Mehta) is honoured as the આદિ કવિ (Adi Kavi), the first poet of Gujarati. He's associated with Junagadh and wrote devotional songs to Krishna, known as પદ and ભજન.

His most famous composition is વૈષ્ણવ જન તો તેને રે કહીએ (Vaishnav Jan To), which describes the qualities of a true devotee: one who feels others' pain, is humble, and doesn't take pride in helping. It became a favourite of Mahatma Gandhi, and is sung widely across India.

Another well-loved Narsinh Mehta song is the morning song જાગને જાદવા (Jaagne Jaadavaa), which wakes Krishna gently.

Other medieval poets

Premanand Bhatt (seventeenth century) — famous for આખ્યાન (narrative poems retelling epics and legends).
Akho (seventeenth century) — a satirical and philosophical poet writing in short verses called છપ્પા.
Dayaram (1777–1852) — known for devotional ગરબી songs, popular in garba.
Mirabai — the Rajasthani saint-poet is also loved in Gujarat, where tradition says she spent her last years at Dwarka.

The nineteenth century

Dalpatram (1820–1898) — a poet and reformer.
Narmad (Narmadashankar Dave, 1833–1886) — often regarded as the pioneer of modern Gujarati literature, a poet, essayist and reformer. His work includes the patriotic song જય જય ગરવી ગુજરાત (Jai Jai Garavi Gujarat), which is the state song of Gujarat.
Govardhanram Tripathi — author of the landmark novel સરસ્વતીચંદ્ર (Saraswatichandra).

The twentieth century

Kanaiyalal Munshi — novelist, historian and politician.
Zaverchand Meghani — collector of folk songs and tales from Saurashtra, and a poet, known by the title રાષ્ટ્રીય શાયર (national poet).
Umashankar Joshi — poet and essayist, the first Gujarati writer to win the Jnanpith Award (1967).
Pannalal Patel — novelist, Jnanpith Award winner (1985).
Rajendra Shah — poet, Jnanpith Award winner (2001).
Raghuveer Chaudhari — novelist and poet, Jnanpith Award winner (2015).
Suresh Joshi and Sundaram — influential modernist writers and poets.

The Jnanpith Award is one of India's highest literary honours, and Gujarati writers have won it several times.

Gandhi and Gujarati

Mahatma Gandhi wrote in Gujarati, including his autobiography સત્યના પ્રયોગો (Satyana Prayogo, "Experiments with Truth"), first published in Gujarati and later translated into English as An Autobiography: The Story of My Experiments with Truth. He also edited the Gujarati weekly નવજીવન (Navajivan).

Forms and traditions

ગઝલ — the ghazal, popular in modern Gujarati poetry
ગરબા / ગરબી — songs for the garba dance
ભજન — devotional songs
લોકગીત — folk songs
વાર્તા — short stories
નવલકથા — novels
નાટક — plays

Literary institutions

The Gujarati Sahitya Parishad, founded in 1905, promotes Gujarati literature.
Book fairs and literary festivals take place in Ahmedabad and other cities.
Gujarati publishers, libraries and newspapers support readers.

Why read literature as a learner

Vocabulary: rich and varied.
Culture: stories, values and history.
Motivation: connecting words to great works.
Pronunciation and rhythm: songs and verse are memorable.

How to start

Read a few lines of Vaishnav Jan To and look up each word.
Listen to it sung.
Read a short story or children's tale in Gujarati.
Use a dictionary for older words.

Poetic vocabulary

કવિતા — poem
કવિ — poet
ગીત — song
પ્રેમ — love
ભક્તિ — devotion
પ્રકૃતિ — nature
શબ્દ — word

Common beginner errors

Expecting modern usage in older poetry.
Skipping the sound of verse.

Look up literary vocabulary with English Gujarati Dictionary →