Compiling Aranyani: An Indian Ecowomen Poetry Book by Editor Sonali Sharma
Compiling Aranyani: An Indian Ecowomen Poetry Book by Editor Sonali Sharma
The northern mountainous state of Uttarakhand in India is quite famous for its environmental movements and leadership. The well-known Chipko Movement, in which women of the Garhwal Himalayas played a major role in saving the forests from being cut by the woodcutters, is a testament to the major role that women have played in saving the ecology of the region.
The idea for compiling this anthology is derived from the work of Dr. Vandana Shiva, a world-renowned environmental thinker and activist born in Uttarakhand. As a child studying in Class III at the Convent of Jesus of Mary, Dehradun, I heard my classmates say, “Dr. Vandana Shiva has come.” Years later, reading one of her books, “Staying Alive: Women, Ecology, and Survival in India,” has helped to make this book what it is—our favorite viridescent poetic journey!
The book is dedicated to the supreme powers Prithvi (Mother Earth), Prakruti (Nature), Aranyani (Goddess of Forests), Adi Shakti (Primal Force), and formidable eco-women of India who have taught us “Ecology and Value of Living.”.
A beautiful mantra in Sanskrit mentioned in the Rigveda dedicated to Goddess Aranyani at the beginning of the book translates to:
Aranyani of the Forest, who vanishes before our eyes, how is it that you dwell in no village yet are unafraid? When the first insects of the evening raise their shrill voice and other forest creatures reply, at that time the Lady of the Forest exults, seeming to sound like tinkling bells. And the cows seem to be grazing, and the house seems to be visible when, in the dark evening, the Lady of the Forest dismisses the carts—so it seems. One man calls his cow; another is gathering wood. One who lingers in the forest in the dark evening may think they hear a scream. Aranyani herself does not harm anyone, but some other approaching creature might. People may eat the forest’s delicious fruits that fall and then take their rest as they will. She who is fragrant, abundant with foods yet without tilling the land, mother of the wild animals, Aranyani, I praise.
(Translation by Devala Rees, Practitioner of Sanatana Dharma under Mata Amritanandamayi)
Aranyani was specifically created keeping in mind the Indian ecofeminism movement. Women at home regularly manage the natural resources and are the guardians of the food security of their households.
In India, eighty percent of rural women work in agricultural fields, doing various tasks like sowing, weeding, irrigation, harvesting, rescuing, cutting grass, and taking care of plants, among others (Patel & Sethi, 2021). However, the masculine development initiatives have eventually destroyed women’s agrarian roots, not just in Indian society but across the globe. Because of the reductionist thinking emerging from specialists, bank loans, plastic bags, and imported seeds, women’s lives are now seen as pointless and irrelevant. Women are impacted by the ecological catastrophe (Shiva, 1979, 1989).
The book published by the Noel Lorenz House of Fiction in Kolkata contains 44 poems from poets Anuradha Gupta, Bholanath Das, Devangi Tevani, Dr. Paromita Mukherjee, Harpreet M Caur, Indu Kant Angiras, Jennie Kakkad Jobanputra, Kamalika Majumder, Kavita Parwani Talib, Patrichia Dcruze, Sampurna Das, Sandhya Navodita, Shubha Dwivedi, Shyamal Mukhopadhyay, Smitha Adithan, Sristi Ray, Dr. Sudha Dixit, Surela Chakraborty, Swati Verma, Tazeen Fatma, Vinita Agrawal, V Rashmi Rao, Vyomi Malik, and Yashita Gupta, coming from all across India. The book also contains fantastic artwork by Harpreet M Caur, Dr. Sudha Dixit, Sristi Ray, Swati Verma, and Dr. Paromita Mukherjee.
The poems present in the book are grouped into various sections: Tales of Aranyani, Vanajyotsna, Sita, and Shakti; Unfolding Ecofeminism; Nature’s Elements and Women as Parallels; Nature and women as enchantresses; Cataclysmic modern-day development; Nature and women’s affliction; Calls of Mother Earth; Women of Revolution; The long-lived and women-led environmental movements of India; Nature and women outlive.
These sub-themes are forms of experiences and depth held by the goddess within herself. She knows her tale and that of her sisters Sita and Shakti. She unfolds the scenario of ecofeminism while living in the forest. Her beauty as a woman is in sync with that of nature. She suspects that modern development will cause pain to nature and make Mother Earth call for help.
She realizes her female companions will come as women of revolution to rescue Terra Firma. And she has witnessed historical environmental movements for ages. Poetry is the perfect way to explore this sequence of events by holding hands with Aranyani. The concluding poems in the book give readers hope for a new tomorrow where nature and women, despite struggling, will find their way to peace and prosperity. Nature and women have always survived. Aranyani thinks, believes, and acts so.
The book sincerely conveys voices who are thankful to everyone who strives for the cause of environmental conservation and wishes to inspire future generations. The people associated with this book think of such people as real defenders of nature and humanity.
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Aranyani-An Indian Ecowomen Poetry Book
“We are either going to have a future where women lead the way to make peace with the Earth or we are not going to have a human future at all.”
Dr. Vandana Shiva
For the world, ecofeminism may be a movement that began in the 1970s. But in the context of India, this women-led movement has age-old roots. Aranyani, the Goddess of the Forests, is a fearless eco-woman of Indian origin who dwells in the wild. She captures the true spirit of ecofeminism in her role in preserving trees and wildlife.
Aranyani: An Indian Ecowomen Poetry Book consisting of 44 eco-poems brings out those iconic tales, thinking, motivation, and efforts that have attracted ecological conservation and repelled destructive development. The poetic images cling to the beautiful, gladdening relationship between women and nature. The calls of Mother Earth and the eco-women of India will help nature and women outlive again!
Read a story rinsed in poetic sunshine!
Editor’s Bio: Sonali Sharma belongs to the hilly state of Uttarakhand. She is an alumna of Panjab University, Chandigarh. She has qualified for GATE (IISc, Bangalore) and UGC-NET (twice). She is an aspiring researcher, a social worker, a published poet, and a writer. Her poems have appeared in various books, anthologies, and online platforms. A few of them include the Indian Periodical, Indian Ruminations, Indus Woman Writing, International Human Rights Art Festival (NY), Kali Project: Indian Women’s Voices (US), Femasia (UK), Setu (Pittsburgh), Our Poetry Archive (US), Emerge Magazine (US), and Period Magazine (Netherlands). Her edited book “Fall to Pieces: Stand, Break, and Rise” was published by Inkfeathers Publishing, New Delhi, in 2023. She has expressed her environmental concerns in Down to Earth and the Indian Policy Review. She has served as Executive Secretary (BOG) with the Rural Litigation and Entitlement Kendra, an NGO under special consultative status with UNESCO, and also worked with the Himalayan Environmental Studies and Conservation Organization (HESCO). Currently;y, she works with the Navdanya Biodiversity Farm founded by Dr. Vandana Shiva.
Category: On Writing
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