Narayan Wamanrao Tilak (1861-1919) and Laxmi bai Tilak (1868-1936)

Narayan Waman Tilak, a renowned Marathi poet and a social reformer, is loved throughout Maharashtra as “the poet of children and flowers.” He was born into a Hindu Chitrapavan Brahmin family in Karajgaon village in the Ratnagiri District of Maharashtra on 6 December 1861.  Biographies of his life mention he was disliked by his father because he was born with feet first, which at that time was considered a bad omen in the Indian culture. During his education, he learned Sanskrit literature extensively. He later married to Manakaranika Gokhle, who then took the married name of Lakshmibai Tilak.

After completing his education, he took up several jobs in different places in Maharashtra such as a teacher, a Hindu priest and a press compositor. In 1893, Tilak traveled by train from Nagpur to Rajanandgaon Sansthan in search of a new job. Rajanandgaon Sansthan, in those times, was a princely state in the Central Province of India.  While on the train, he met a Christian missionary, who after     lengthly conversation, presented Tilak a copy of the Bible and whispered a “prophesy” in Tilak’s ears saying,“You will come under the  grace of Savior Jesus in less than two years.” Tilak was very disappointed in the Hindu caste system, with its emphasis on rituals and ceremonies in Hinduism. He was drawn to the teachings of the Jesus Christ in the Gospels, and after a series of life changing events, he decided to follow Jesus Christ in 1895. When Lakshmi bai heard about his decision, she was stunned. This led to a separation between the couple for some time. She started studying the Bible on her own and eventually felt the same interest and affection. She, too, accepted Jesus as her personal Savior in 1900. The couple resumed their married life together. After accepting Christ, Tilak primarily lived in the town of Ahmadnagar and served about 24 years as a preacher in the local church, until his death in 1919.

Christ Centered Work of Tilak

Tilak introduced using “Bhajans” and “Kirtan” to the Marathi church, enriching their devotional life by this art form familiar to them. He never gave up his Indian cultural birth right but brought the riches of Hindu heritage in to the Church. Narayan Wamanrao Tilak has written more than 2100 poems, some of them comprising hundreds of lines. He also started to compose, in Marathi, an epic titled “Khristayana”, describing the works of Jesus Christ in native Indian form. However, he died after finishing only ten of its chapters. Lakshmi bai later completed the epic by adding 64 chapters of her own. Laxmi bai also wrote her autobiography titled, “Smruti Chitre”, which was a masterpiece in Marathi literature. It was published in 1934-1937 in four parts. Narayan Waman Tilak’s work in Christian literature and poetry in the Marathi language has been immense, yet sadly, much forgotten over time.  However, his legacy and Christian influence still lives on in the many lives he touched through the love of Jesus Christ.