Laxmi Prasad Devkota (1909-1959) was a Nepalese poet, playwright, novelist, and politician. Honored with the title of Mahakabi (Nepali for ‘Greatest poet’) in Nepali literature, he was known as a poet with a golden heart, and is considered one of the most famous literary figures in Nepal. Some of his popular works include Muna Madan, Sulochana, Kunjini, Bhikhari, and Shakuntala.

Early Life

Devkota was born on the night of Lakshmi Puja on 12 November 1909 (27 Kartik 1966 BS Teel Madhav Devkota and Amar Rajya Lakshmi Devi in Dhobidhara, Kathmandu.His father was a Sanskrit scholar, who taught him in his childhood. He started his formal education at Durbar High college, where he studied both Sanskrit grammar and English. After finishing his calculation exams from Patna at the age of 17, he pursued a Bachelor of Arts along with a Bachelor of Laws at Tri-Chandra College and graduated from Patna University as a private examinee. His desire to complete his master’s degree was left incomplete due to his family’s financial conditions.

Literary career

Laxmi Prasad Devkota contributed to Nepali literature by starting a modern Nepali language romantic movement in the country. He was the second writer born in Nepal to begin writing epic poems in Nepali literature. Nepali poetry soared to new heights with Devkota’s innovative use of the language.

Departing from the Sanskrit tradition that dominated the Nepali literary scene at the time, and being inspired by the Newar language ballad song Ji Waya La Lachhi Maduni, he wrote Muna Madan , a long narrative poem in a popular Jhyaure bhaka folk tune. Muna Madan is till now the best-selling book in the history of Nepali literature.  Which on 2003 was adapted as film with same title Muna Madan, which was Nepal’s officially sent entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 76th Academy Awards. Muna Madan at it time received immediate recognition from the Ranas, the country’s ministers at the time.

The following couplet, which is among the most famous and frequently quoted lines from the epic, celebrates the triumph of humanity and compassion over the hierarchies created by caste in Nepalese culture.

“क्षेत्रीको छोरो यो पाउ छुन्छ, घिनले छुँदैन
मानिस ठूलो दिलले हुन्छ जातले हुँदैन !”
which translates into “The son of a Kshatriya touches your feet not with hatred but with love.
A man’s greatness is determined by his heart; not by his caste or lineage.”

Health Issues

In the late 1930s, Devkota suffered from nervous breakdowns, probably due to the deaths of his parents and his two-month old daughter. Eventually, in 1939, he was admitted to the Mental Asylum of Ranchi, India, for five months. With financial debts later in his life and being unable to finance the weddings and dowries of his daughters. He is once reported to have said to his wife, “Tonight let’s abandon the children to the care of society and youth and renounce this world at bedtime and take potassium cyanide or morphine or something like that

Death

Devkota developed cancer and died on 14 September 1959, at Pashupati Aryaghat, along the banks of Bagmati river in Pashupatinath Temple, Kathmandu. He had smoked for most of his life. Prior to his death, Devkota’s income was terminated by the Nepal Academy of Literature and Art because he attended the Afro-Asian Writers’ Conference, which was held in modern-day Tashkent, without first seeking permission from them. He also spoke at the ceremony, praising well-known figures for their contributions to Nepali literature, including Bhanubhakta Acharya, Lekhnath Paudyal, Pandit Hemraj, and Somnath Sigdel.  Devkota claimed in an interview that he hadn’t received pay for the previous eight months and that as a result, he had been unable to purchase the medication he needed to treat his disease; moreover, he was struggling to even buy food. Devkota’s personality was vibrant and assertive despite the fact that he was battling cancer, but his room was disorganized. However even after these many years of his death his works still connects with people including youths

References

1. Laxmi Prasad Devkota facts (Nepal News, Accessed 2025-10-20)
2. Regrets in Final Days (Nepal News, Accessed 2025-10-20)
3. Laxmi Prasad Devkota a name forever (Nepaltimes, Accessed 2024-12-22)