A Journal of Mahatma Gandhi Antarrashtriya Hindi Vishwavidyalaya

is a collection of poems in Brajbhasha.
In his reviews Sapreji’s has evaluated Sridhar
Pathak’s merits as an experimental poet,
but also as a poet endowed with great
social awareness. He writes : “Just as Pathakji
has broadened the horizon of Hindi
Literature and established a new trend,
he will also make new inroads in the social
field as a social reformer, fighting against
social injustice.” Here we get a glimpse
of Sapreji’s knowledge of English Literature.
He has compared Wordsworth’s and
Shelley’s comprehensive and universal
sympathy with Sridhar Pathak’s universal
perception and understanding.He has
written that some of the essential qualities
of a poet are calm contemplation,
equanimity, power of thought and
imagination, and optimism. Along with
‘Dhanvijay’ he has also written a critique
on ‘Gunwant Hemant’ a collection of poems
in Hindi praising Sridhar Pathak as a poet
of Nature. Sapreji has written a lengthy
and detailed critique of Sridhar Pathak’s
“Jagat Sachai Saar”. Here, the concept
that the world is an illusion has been
refuted. “One should not deny the reality
of matter thereby becoming indolent.
Rather, one should embrace its essence
and thereby help God in his divine plan.
In order to portray his thought, Sridhar
Pathak composed 51 verses in “Jagat Sachai
Saar.”
In spite of all his love and respect
for Sridhar Pathak, Sapreji does not hesitate
to point out the shortcoming of his poetic
diction. He disapproves of an ostentatious
display of words, and complexity of thought
in poetry. He observes, “Many poets have
wasted their poetic talent in the mere
display of words. He advocates a simple,
sympathetic expression of the world.” In
his critical review of “Jagat Sachai Saar”
it is clearly evident that, in the field of
Literary Criticism, Mahavir Prasad Dwivedi
and Ramchandra Shukla followed the path
paved by Sapreji. Sridhar Pathak has
translated two poetic works of Oliver
Goldsmith, The Deserted Village as ‘Ujad
Gram’ and The Hermit as ‘Ekantvasi Yogi.’
Sapreji has written a detailed critical review
of these two translations emphasizing two
focal points. “Firstly, if the translation
corresponds exactly to the original text
or not, and if the thought of the poet
has been expressed explicity and with
complete perfection or not. Secondly, its
poetic quality viewed independently
regardless of the translation.” It is needless
to say that these points must be kept
in mind while critically reviewing any work
of translation.Referring to The Hermit he
writes, “The translator has applied all his
independent poetic ability.”In his critical
review of the deserted village he writes,
“This translation will always help to establish
his unparalleled poetic ability, his
encompassing genius, his amazing poetic
talent, and like a long standing memorial
will always remain immortal, in the field
of translation.” A good literary criticism
is possible only if the critic dares to express
24 :: January-March 2012