The literary elite of Chernivtsi, in western Ukraine, which was then a part of the Austrian Empire, was astounded by a poem written by a 16-year-old student in 1866. The poetry At the Grave of Arun Pomnul was Mihail Eminovici’s debut piece, and it was dedicated to a deceased philologist. Its depth and complexity of language, however, set it apart as more the product of an experienced poet than a young student. One day, that young man would go on to become Romania’s national poet, earning enormous respect and acclaim as Mihai Eminescu, the Romanian translation of his Slavic name.
Eminescu, who is thought to have had Armenian ancestry and was raised in the area where Romania and Ukraine converge, was exposed to a variety of cultural influences when he was young. When he relocated to Bucharest and joined the Orient literary group, his perspectives began to extend beyond Europe.
His growing interest in the East brought him to Vienna, where he started reading Immanuel Kant and Arthur Schopenhauer. He started studying under the eminent Prussian Indologist Albrecht Weber in Berlin in 1872. His fascination with the Sanskrit language, which would last the rest of his life, was sparked in this place. The Romanian language’s initial source for the ancient language was Eminescu, who caught the bug and translated portions of German Indologist Franz Bopp’s Critical Grammar of Sanskrit Language into Romanian.
Eminescu read the Bhagavad Gita and studied Buddhist literature in Berlin. According to his own writings, Hindu philosophy resonated with him the most. The Brahman religious belief was described as being nearest to the findings of modern science.
News Mania Desk
