This articleneeds additional citations forverification.(October 2007) |
Sadhu bhasha(Bengali:সাধু ভাষা,romanized:Sādhu bhāṣā,lit. 'Chaste language') orSanskritised Bengaliwas a historical literary register of theBengali languagemost prominently used in the 19th to 20th centuries during theBengali Renaissance.Sadhu-bhasha was used only in writing, unlikeCholito-bhasa,the colloquial form of the language, which was used in both writing and speaking. These two literary forms are examples ofdiglossia.Sadhu-bhasha was used in official documents and legal papers during the colonial period; however, it is mostly obsolete in the present day.[1]
| Sadhu Bhasha | |
|---|---|
| Chaste Language | |
| সাধু ভাষা | |
| Region | Bengal |
| Era | 19th–20th century |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | – |
History
editThisSanskritisedform ofBengaliis notable for its variations in verb forms and the vocabulary which is mainly composed ofSanskritortatsamawords. It was mainly a vocabulary making it easier for literary works inSanskritto be translated. Notable among them wasIswar Chandra Vidyasagar,who standardised theBengali alphabetand paved the path for literary works. The colloquial usage of Bengali consisted mostly of itsPrakritbase as well as indigenous (deshi),PersianandArabicwords embedded into the vocabulary. As a result, theBrahmins,aHindupundit caste, chose the path of Sanskritisation to make a "pure" language which would be used as a representative of classical languages into which the works of Sanskrit andHindu literaturecan be translated. This shifted Bengali further towards Sanskrit thus archaizing its vocabulary. This in turn increased the commonality in Bengali vocabulary with other Indo-Aryan languages, such asHindiwhich has also consciously replaced Persian and Arabic elements with Sanskrit Tatsama, a process which separated it form the Khariboli source and Urdu.[citation needed]
By the time ofRabindranath Tagore,the Sadhu-ness ( "purity" ) of the literary form had largely waned into just a set of Sanskrit verb forms and in a decade,Tagorehimself would switch to writing in Cholito Bhasha. Dr. Radha Nag's bookAtmaghati Nirad Choudhuriআত্মঘাতী নীরদ চৌধুরী (Suicidal Nirad Choudhuri) appears as the last Bengali book written in Sadhu Bhasha.
The newspaperAnandabazar Patrikauses Sadhu Bhasha on their editorial column, partially, even today.[2]
Styles
editThe mid-19th century hosted two influential writers of Sadhu-bhasha;Ishwar Chandra VidyasagarandBankim Chandra Chattopadhyay.Vidyasagar's style was very conservative towards withholding only the use oftatsama(Sanskrit) when writing. His style came to be known asVidyasagariandAkshay Kumar Dattaalso wrote in this style. Chatterjee's writing style was somewhat more lenient to the use oftadbhavaand deshi vocabulary. It came to be known asBankimi– a more popular style, it was practised by the likes ofRabindranath Tagore,Hara Prasad Shastri,Dinesh Chandra Sen,Mir Mosharraf HossainandIsmail Hossain Siraji.[1]
Sample text
editThe following is a sample text in Sadhu-Bhasha of Article 1 of theUniversal Declaration of Human Rights:
Bengali in theBengali alphabet
- ধারা ১:সমস্ত মানুষ স্বাধীনভাবে সমান মর্যাদা এবং অধিকার লইয়া জন্মগ্রহণ করে। তাঁহাদের বিবেক এবং বুদ্ধি আছে; সুতরাং সকলেরই একে অপরের প্রতি ভ্রাতৃত্বসুলভ মনোভাব লইয়া আচরণ করা উচিৎ।
Bengali inphonetic Romanization
- Dhara êk:Sômôstô manush shadhinbhabe sôman môrjada ebông ôdhikar lôiya jônmôgrôhôṇ kôre. Tãhader bibek ebông buddhi achhe; sutôrang sôkôleri êke ôpôrer prôti bhratrittôsulôbh mônobhab lôiya achôrôṇ kôra uchit.
Bengali in theInternational Phonetic Alphabet
- d̪ʱaraɛk|ʃɔmost̪omanuʃʃad̪ʱinbʱabeʃɔmanmɔɾdʒad̪aebɔŋod̪ʱikaɾloijadʒɔnmoɡrohonkɔre|t̪ãhad̪erbibekebɔŋbud̪d̪ʱiatʃʰe|ʃut̪oraŋʃɔkoleriɛkeɔporerprot̪ibʱrat̪rit̪ːoʃulɔbʱmonobʱabloijaatʃorɔnkɔrautʃit̪
Gloss
- Clause 1:All human free-manner-in equal dignity and right taken birth-take do. Their reason and intelligence exist; therefore everyone-indeed one another's towards brotherhood-ly mind-spirit taken conduct do should.
Translation
- Article 1:All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They possess conscience and reason. Therefore, everyone should act in a spirit of brotherhood towards each other.
Cholit bhasa
editThe following is a sample text in Cholit-Bhasha of Article 1 of theUniversal Declaration of Human Rights:
Bengali in theBengali alphabet
- ধারা ১:সব মানুষ স্বাধীনভাবে সমান মর্যাদা আর অধিকার নিয়ে জন্ম নেয়। তাঁদের বিবেক আর বুদ্ধি আছে; তাই সবারই একে অপরের দিকে ভাইয়ের মতো মনের ভাব নিয়ে আচরণ করা উচিত।
Bengali inphonetic Romanization
- Dhara êk:Sôb manush shadhinbhabe sôman môrjada ar ôdhikar niye jônmo ney. Tãder bibek ar buddhi achhe; tai sôbari êke ôpôrer dike bhaijer môto môner bhab niye achôrôn kôra uchit.
Bengali in theInternational Phonetic Alphabet
- d̪ʱaraɛk|ʃɔbmanuʃʃad̪ʱinbʱabeʃɔmanmɔɾdʒad̪aarɔd̪ʱikaɾnie̯edʒɔnmonæy|t̪ãd̪eɾbibekarbud̪ʱːiatʃʰe|t̪aiʃɔbaɾiɛkeɔpɔreɾd̪ikebʱaijermɔt̪omɔnerbʱabnie̯eatʃɔrɔnkɔrautʃit̪
Gloss
- Clause 1:All human free-manner-in equal dignity and right taken bear. Their reason and intelligence exist; so everyone-indeed one another's direction-to brother's like mind's spirit taken conduct do should.
Translation
- Article 1:All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They possess conscience and reason. Therefore, everyone should act in a spirit of brotherhood towards each other.
See also
editReferences
edit- ^abHuq, Mohammad Daniul."Sadhu Bhasa".Banglapedia: National Encyclopedia of Bangladesh.Asiatic Society of Bangladesh.
- ^Majee Mondal, Suvodip (8 August 2021)."সম্পাদকীয়, আমাদের মত".