Acharya Rabindra Nath Ojha :
A Personality Sui Generis
Born to Devmuni Devi & Siddhanath Ojha in the village Badaka Singhanpura of Buxar district (Bihar, India) Prof (Dr.) Rabindra Nath Ojha did his schooling from Prathmik Vidyalaya Badka Singhanpura & K.P Uchcha Vidyalaya Dumri. He was married to Radhika Devi of Sonwani village, Balia (Uttar Pradesh).
He studied in Bhagalpur University & later Bihar University ( Now B.R.A University).Just after completing his post graduation in English he joined M.J.K college Bettiah as Lecturer and retired from the same college as University Professor.
Prof (Dr.) Rabindra Nath Ojha has been the rightful front-runner amongst the famous scholars of English, Hindi ,Sanskrit and Bhojpuri. He is a well-known name as an essayist, poet, critique, reviewer, analyst, translator, letter-writer, editor, powerful orator, Director (Play/Drama), successful organizer, trade unionist, champion of the causes of Teachers/Students & Deprived, social activist, philosopher, spiritualist above all humanist and what not. In the true sense of the 'saying' he has been the embodiment of "Simple Living & High Thinking".
Enlightened readers of Hindi must be aware of the fact that Ojhajee used to write letters very often. Long letters and that too continuously. His letters have been repeatedly published in Hindi Magazines such as 'Saarika', 'Dinmaan', 'Saptahik Hindustan','Navneet', 'Madhumati', 'Kadambini', 'Aajkal', 'Hans'.
Hans' patrika has honoured him as "Prabuddha Pathak" in the October edition of 1989.
Though Prof Ojha has used his pen on many aspects of Hindi literature, special mention may be made of his four published books on the collections of personal essays namely NAIVEDYAM, NIRMALYAM,SATYAM-SHIVAM, SHIVAM-SUNDARAM. After looking at the numbers of manuscripts of unpublished personal essays it appears that another eight collections can still be published. Apart from personal essays he has penned down hundreds of beautiful poems in Hindi as well as in Bhojpuri. He has also written a very extensive and impressive introduction of the "GEETA MAI" in Bhojpuri written by Ram Bihari Ojha. An introduction written in English by Prof Ojha of English Short Story "ICEBERG" has been highly appreciated.
After having retired as Head ,Department of English, M. J. K College Bettiah, he has been nominated as a member of Hindi Advisory Committee, Ministry of Railways and later Ministry of Law & Social Justice and has offered his services for the spread of Hindi for three-three years.
Prof. Ojha has been honoured by various institutions. He has been appreciated and remained in news for being a very powerful & arresting orator. An active Gandhian Social Activist Dr. Ojha has always fought for the causes and welfare of Teachers, students & other deprived sections of society. In the process he has gone on fast -unto -death and courted arrest several times.
Prof. Ojha jumped into the JP movement. He went to jail twice. First for 18 days and later detained even under MISA (Maintenance of Internal Security Act, 1971) for more than two months from 13th July 1974 to 16th September 1974 (First to be detained under MISA in Champaran) and kept under suspension . His family had to suffer tremendous tension & great hardship.
Detention order quashed by Patna High Court in the matter of an application under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, Rabindra Nath Ojha Vs The State of Bihar & Others (Cr.N.J.C.No.183 of 1974 dated 13th September 1974) in the presence the Hon'ble Justice A.N. Mukharji & the Hon'ble Justice Muneshwari Sahay.
(But even till date he has not been honoured under JP Senani Samman Yojana by Government of Bihar due to bureaucratic & other lapses for they could not find any proof of his stay in Bettiah & Motihari Jail due to destruction of the records in flood. What proof is more authentic than the order of the High Court which has everything in detail? Will the supreme sacrifice of a person go in vain just like this? This is really a shameful state of affairs.)
He has been the leading light of the Federation of Service Associations and Trade Unions of Champaran.
Dr. Ojha has been honoured with the degree of VIDYA VACHASPATI by Vikramshila Hindi Vidyapeeth( Bhagalpur) and on 22nd March 2010 with "CHAMPARAN VIBHUTI" by the Government of Bihar on the occasion of BIHAR DIVAS 2010.
Prof. ( Dr. ) Rabindra Nath Ojha has been a very successful Organizer & Director too. Be it a literary programme or cultural or social he has been successful in organizing all such programmes and even done compering too with all efficiency. He has been President or Chairman of various organizations such as "SAHITYA KALA SANGAM", "PRAGYA PAARIJAT".He successfully produced, staged and directed many plays of Shakespeare in the most backward district Champaran of Backward State Bihar and that too in early sixties. Really unparalleled, unique, unimaginable achievement.
Very few people, rather hardly anyone know that Dr.Ojha has been an expert in the field of Music also . This view has been expressed by Dr. Adinath Upadhyaya of Varanasi, who is a great scholar of Music. Very few people are aware that Prof Ojha has been a very good player of Tennis & Football. Playing wonderful Tennis clad in Dhoti -Kurta is again, maybe the only one example in the world.
Prof (Dr.)Rabindra Nath Ojha, a great thinker, philosopher and messenger of Indian sanskar & sanskriti (Indian Culture) has been above all a very simple, sensitive, down-to earth rustic, rooted to his soil, lover of nature, and pious human soul, devoid of any ego, any self interest - the only interest being to serve humanity, to give every thing for the welfare of the people without any expectation of any return either in the form of any prized post or any award or honour. That is why, may be, a multi-splendoured unique & unprecedented personality remained out of the lens of media or column of Newspapers which could not zoom in on him even when he breathed his last in the lap of nature during early morning walk , on 13th May in 2010, in HUDCO Park near ANSAL Plaza in South Delhi itself.
His has been a dynamic personality, restless soul, always aspiring after something good & great. He has been always on the march, never resting, never stopping. Thoroughly disillusioned and disgusted with various organizations - political or religious he went into deep introspection and meditation. Intensive study of scriptures helped him in discovering himself anew. He found peace and harmony deep inside himself. He has been in constant touch with his inner self, determining his life's course in the light of the dictates and directions of his deeper self.
Subsequently he developed his own philosophy of life based on his own personal experiences and realizations. His views and visions, feelings and realizations find free and full expressions in his speeches and writings . He has been humane to the core. Love and humanity - these two words have been two most valued words in his dictionary. Through the religion of love and humanity he has been able to achieve the supreme goal i.e. attainment of supreme bliss that is God-realization. All his thoughts ,words and actions directed towards this very end.
VIPRA BAHUDHA VADANTI is a small effort but a rare book bringing out a multi-sided assessment of this rare multi-faceted/multi-dimensional personality. This book was released in Delhi by Chief Guest Shri Raghav Sharan Pandey IAS, the then Petroleum Secretary, Government of India in April 2009.
His outstanding contributions to the world of literature :
