Early and Medieval Bengali Literature
Here are brief notes on early and medieval Bengali Literature.
Early Literature: Charyapadas
Charyapada is considered to be the earliest extant work in the field of Bengali, Assamese, Odiya as well as the Maithili Language. It’s a collection of Buddhist mystical poems or songs belonging to 8th–12th century.
These songs have the element of the ritual gathering of practitioners in a tantric feast. The Charyapadas were written by the Mahasiddhas or Siddhacharyas, who belonged to the various regions of Assam, Bengal, Odisha and Bihar. Charyapada is also the collection of the oldest verses written in pre-Modern Bengali.
Influence of Vidyapati / Chandidas
Bengali as a distinct language evolved by around 10th century. The early medieval Bengali literature was influenced by Vidyapati, whose Padas though written in Maithili; influenced the medieval Bengali poets immensely.
Chandidas is the name of one or possibly more than one poets of Bengali literature, belonging to the 15th century. He / they have been ascribed to around 1250 poems related to the love of Radha and Krishna in Bengali with the bhanita of Chandidas. The modern scholars say that these poems are works of at least 4 poets named Chandidas, who have used different sobriquets.
Development of Bengali Literature in 14th -15th century – Mangal-Kāvya
In the 15th century, adaptations from various events of Ramayana became popular in the Bengali Literature. This led to development of the Mangal-Kāvya tradition. Mangal-Kāvya literature was written to popularise the worship of deities such as Manasa and Chandi. This genre of Bengali literature includes the majority of works of the medieval Bengali literature.
This genre includes three sub-genres viz. Manasā Mangal, Chandī Mangal and Dharma Mangal that refer to the portrayal of the magnitude of Manasā, Chandī and Dharmathakur respectively.
Chaitanya Bhagavata
In the 16th and 17th century, the literature that revolved around the life of Chaitanya developed, which was earliest biographical literature in Bengali. The notable work in this was the Chaitanya Bhagavata, written by Vrindavana Dasa Thakura. It was the first full-length work regarding Chaitanya Mahaprabhu written in Bengali language. The text details Chaitanya’s theological position as a combined Avatar of both Radha and Krishna.
Chaitanya Charitamrita
The Chaitanya Charitamrita is the magnum-opus of the Bengali saint/author Krishna Dasa Kaviraja. It is a hybrid Bengali and Sanskrit biography, documents the life and precepts of the Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. This became the main theological source of the Gaudiya Vashnav sect.
