Page 183 - DENG503_INDIAN_WRITINGS_IN_LITERATURE

Unit 21: Premchand: Godan: Detailed Study of the Text

religion as it should be. Characters from various religions show a tendency to corrupt spiritual Notes
teachings to avoid or excuse personal complicity in the commission of acts of injustice or to find
a way to personally benefit from religious status without having to accept the concomitant
26
responsibilities and austerities. Thus Mirza Khurshid is a Muslim who shows a complete lack of
charitable concern for the poor. Premchand adds: ‘He had twice made the hajj to Mecca, but he
drank heavily’ (62/82). Khanna points out to Rai Sahib at one point: ‘You proudly invoke the
names of Buddha and Shiva and then go around killing animals’ (90/116). The various Brahmins
27
who are supposed to act as spiritual and political leaders in the village are shown to be holy on the
outside and corrupt on the inside, lusting at alternate moments for money or for vulnerable, low-
caste women. Perhaps the only character who embarks upon a spiritual journey and remain
28
religiously ‘consistent’ in terms of linking teachings with actions is Hori. True, at times Hori seems
excessively attached to religious traditions—even to those that deprive him of status, freedom, or
dignity. Yet, to Premchand’s credit, he does not show Hori to be the stereotypical Hindu fatalist
who meekly accepts whatever comes his way. Rather, Hori undergoes a bhakti-style type of
spiritual transformation, reflecting at one point:
Why should he be a slave [gulami] to tradition? Why should he give up his spiritual merit just
because of tradition? If people laughed, then let them laugh. He didn’t care. He wanted nothing
but for God to keep him from doing wrong (175/232). 29
Through Hori, Premchand seems to suggest that traditional religious acts and devotions are not
inherently evil, but only retain value and meaning if they are carried out as self-willed acts and if
they allow for a direct relationship between divine power and human conscience.
One of the more interesting sections of the novel relates to the interplay of religion and injustice; it
is the sexual relationship of Datadin’s son Matadin, a Brahmin, with Siliya, a Chamar (dalit) girl

26. Cf. Premchand’s story ‘Babaki ka Bhog’ (The Pleasure Of the Holy Man) (1926), Prem. Rac. 13: 351–3, in
which a ‘holy man’ (sadhu) comes to the house of a poor farmer asking for food. The sadhu simply cannot
take his food without the luxurious taste of ghee; to please the sadhu, the farmer’s family obtains the ghee,
but as a result of the expense have nothing left to eat themselves. Far from the austerities associated with
‘holy men’, the sadhu happily rubs his full stomach while the poor family goes hungry. Premchand’s biting
satire can be seen in the last line of the story: when the hungry farmer lies down to sleep, he thinks to
himself—‘And he is better than me! [mujhse to vahi acche]’.
27. Though Godan would appear from its title to be more concerned with the fate of Hori’s poor cow, the
poisoning of the cow is more background for action between human characters. Nevertheless, Premchand’s
writings reveal a strong sympathy for the plight and suffering of animals at the hands of their human
counterparts; at times, the bond between animal and human is depicted as being stronger than that between
people. In ‘Do Bailo ki Katha’ (A Tale Of Two Bullocks) (1931), Prem. Rac. 14: 528–37, two bullocks appear
as central characters with emotions, feelings and personalities (sadly, at a time when it would have been far
stranger and controversial to do the same for untouchables). In other stories such as ‘Pus ki Rat’ (A Night
During (the Month Of) Pus) (1930), Prem. Rac. 14: 350–5, and ‘Dudh ka Dam’ (The Price Of Milk) (1934),
Prem. Rac. 15: 283–90, characters who are despised, cast-out, or otherwise mistreated find friendship and
comfort (and a lack of concern for social barriers and exploitative social norms) from companion dogs.
Considering the status of dogs in India at the time, this is quite a powerful statement.
28. Or, as in the series of humorous stories regarding Moteram Shastri, lusting after various sweets. See
‘Satyagraha’ (Satyagraha) (1923), Prem. Rac. 12: 455–65; ‘Manushya ka Paramdharma’ (The Highest Moral
Duty Of Man) (1920), Prem. Rac. 12: 195–8); ‘Moteramji Shastri’ (Mr. Moteram Shastri) (1928), Prem. Rac. 14:
19–23; ‘Moteramji Shastri ka Nairashya’ (Moteram Shastri’s Despair) (1928), Prem. Rac. 14: 77–82; and
‘Sampadak Moteramji Shastri’ (Editor Moteram Shastri) (1928), Prem. Rac. 14: 119–25.
29. In highlighting the theme of individual liberation in Godan, Premchand uses the word ‘gulami’ (slavery)
frequently and strategically to emphasise the multifaceted nature of mental and physical enslavement. The
word is used here to show Hori’s sudden awareness that uncritical acceptance of tradition is slavery; the
same word is also used in Gobar’s observation of village life as ‘slavery to no end’ and in Mehta’s claim that
the downfall of the Indian woman has occurred due to her ‘enslavement’ to Western values.

LOVELY PROFESSIONAL UNIVERSITY 177