Sujit Mainali is one of the more popular names in Nepal’s literary landscape. Most of Mainali’s works have to do with history, a subject that the author/translator is keenly interested in. His first book, ‘Breaking Nepal’, released in 2017, is a collection of criticisms of foreign scholars’ writings on Nepal. His 2019 book ‘Shilanyas’ (2019) and 2021 book ‘Sati: Itihas Ra Mimamsa’ are both based on Nepal’s history and traditional practices. In 2020, Mainali translated ‘Yuganta: The End of an Epoch’ by Irawati Karve, into Nepali. In this interview with the Post, Mainali talks about his favourite genres and his preference between authoring and translating.

Did you grow up in an environment that encouraged reading?

Hindu rituals and values structured the life of my grandparents. My grandfather had all four books of Vedas, which he used to recite on different occasions. His respect for the Vedic books could be some of the earliest socialisation factors that sowed deep curiosity in me to learn more about these books. In addition to this, my grandfather was a great narrator. He told me stories from different Indic epics. This further raised my curiosity to unfold more stories and wisdom from these texts.

Which genres do you enjoy reading? And which do you avoid?

For the past two years, I have been reading academic books that are related to the history of religions in the Indian subcontinent. I chose these books to learn more about how religions in the subcontinent may have evolved and how they shaped people’s thinking and social organising capacity then and even now.

Since my passion is for non-fiction books, I have very little opportunity to enjoy fiction. However, whenever some of my friends insist I go through any fiction, I read them. Some of the fiction I have read in the past few years are ‘Ular’ by Nayanraj Pandey, ‘Paitala’ by Ganesh Poudel, and ‘Hamsa’ by Sanjeev Uprety.

What is the one interesting thing that you learned from a book you read recently?

I just finished reading a couple of books on Harappan civilisation- ‘Update on the Aryan Invasion Debate’ by Koenraad Elst and ‘Early Indians’ by Tony Joseph.

‘Early Indians’ was eye-opening to me. Elst and some other authors writing on Indology argue that the Vedic civilisation and Sanskrit language emerged on Indian soil, and in the meantime, they dispersed to other parts of the world through migration. Joseph, an Indian journalist, outrightly denies this idea and asserts that the Vedic civilisation was introduced in the sub-continent from East Europe via Central Asia and the Harappan civilisation pre-dates the Vedic civilisation in the sub-continent.

After reading ‘Early Indians’, I realised that the inquiry of pre-history has nearly ceased to become a subject of historians. The study of the genome has dominated this subject, thereby making historians lacking a sound knowledge of science absolute.

I also found an interesting fact about the incompatibility between milk and meat in the ‘Early Indians’. According to the book, a study of the DNA samples across India shows that the people in North and West India possess higher lactose persistence which means that they are able to digest milk even after infancy. That’s why they consume dairy products very frequently for protein. On the other hand, meat is consumed more frequently by the East and South Indians as their ability to digest milk is lower. While reading the book, I realised that the campaigns to make the entire people vegetarian are incompatible with our nature.

Could you name one book that you wish your younger self had read?

I think it is never too late to read good books.

An author or a translator, which role do you prefer more and why?

I prefer the role of the author because it is related to expressing my own thoughts. Although translation is a great job, I have found it more difficult. In the Nepali publication industry, we have yet to institutionalise the practice of peer-reviewing the translated contents, and translators aren’t paid well. These are some of the reasons why not many are interested in working as translators.

What books would you recommend to someone who wants to begin a career in writing?

One cannot become a writer simply by reading good books. But without reading books, one cannot become a good writer. Reading helps to gloss our understanding of a subject.

‘Madhavi’ by Madan Mani Dixit, presents a brilliant portrayal of the Vedic period. The author had well understood the Vedic period with the help of extensive readings. I read Steven Pinker’s ‘The Better Angels of Our Nature’ during the Dashain festival. The book claims that we are living in the most peaceful era of history. This assertion is backed by facts collected from multiple sources. Without becoming an avid reader, one cannot write these types of books. Thus, rather than suggesting one or a handful of books, I suggest they make reading a routine of their daily life.

Could you name a book you think today’s youth must read and why?

I suggest they choose books of their own interests. If they are football fans, they can grab biographies of some great footballers. Reading helps to make people imaginative, and only an innovative mind can think outside the box.

Could you name your favourite books?

The first one is ‘Lichchavi Kaal ka Aavilekh’ by Dhanavajra Vajracharya. I think one cannot write anything substantive about Nepali history if he or she ignores this book. The second one is ‘Janai Purnima dekhi Rani Pokhari Samma’ by Mahes Raj Panta. I haven’t read any other books of this worth that can shed light on the historicity of the festivals and traditions which exist in Nepal. The third one is the ‘Thatched Huts and Stucco Palaces’ by Mahesh Chandra Regmi. It gives us a glimpse of how draconian our state was in the pre-democratic era. Fourth is the entire volume of the ‘History of Dharmasastra’ by PV Kane, which I think is essential to understanding Hindu civilisation. The fifth one is ‘The Position of Women in Hindu Civilization’ by AS Altekar. Although several feminists have criticised this book, it has proven to be a milestone in an intellectual quest to unfold the history of the life of women in South Asia. In addition to this, all the books which offer a critical analysis of the ancient Hindu epics, ‘Mahabharata’ and ‘Ramayana’, are also included in my list. ‘Yuganta: The End of an Epoch’ by Irawati Karve is an example of a book of this genre.

Sujit Mainali’s favourite books

‘Licchavikalaka Abhilekha’ by Dhana Vajra Vajracharya

‘Janai Purnima dekhi Rani Pokhari Samma’ by Mahesh Raj Panta

‘Thatched Huts and Stucco Palaces’ by Mahesh Chandra Regmi

‘History of Dharmasastra’ by PV Kane

‘The Position of Women in Hindu Civilization’ by AS Altekar

‘Yuganta: The End of an Epoch’ by Irawati Karve