CHAPTER - I.

INTRODUCTION
 CHARTER -I.

INTRO DUCT I Q,N:>-

1. 1 o Justification of ?the Title "Bodhisattvavadanakalpalata" —

Importance of the book in the field of Buddhist Sanskrit
Literaturet

The Bodhlaattvavadana-kalpalataf' (popularly known as av adana-

kalp alata) of Ksemendra, the Zashmirian poet and polymath, was

1 o First edited and published by Sarat Chandra Das and Paijdit Hari
Mohan Vidyabhusana (from 1906 onwardB replaced by Satis Chandra
Vidyabhusana) in the Bibliotheca Indica (Calcutta, 1888—19^7)9
based upon a Tibetan blockprint (consisting of 62o folios $hd
printed in 1664-1665) containing both the Sanskrit Text in
Tibetan transliteration and the Tibetan translation. Sarat
Chandra Das discovered the blockprint of the book from the
library of the Potala Royal Palace in Tibet in 1882. The
Asiatic Society of Calcutta possesses another Sanskrit Ms .
of the book (of course incorrect one) containing Pallavas 50
to 108. Rajjeddra lal Mitra published a synopsis of the same
in his The Sanskrit Buddhist Literature of Nepal. Calcutta,
1882, pp. 56-76. B.H. Hodgson procured this Ms. from Nepal
and preserved in The Asiatic Society. Calcutta. S.C. Das also
utilised this Ms. while editing the introduction and the table
of contents added to the book by Ksemendra’s son Somendra. In
his Textcritical Remarks on the Bodhis at tvavadane-galp alata
(Pallavas 42-108) published in the Studia Philologies 3uddhlca
(Monograph Series II) by the Reiyukai Library, Tokyo, in 1079,
J.W.de Jong informs us about two more Ms. of the book preserved
in the Cambridge University Library (Daniel Wright Collections,
Add. 13o6 and Add. 913, cf. C. Beadall, Catalogue of the Buddhist
Sanskrit Manuscripts in the University Library, Cambridge
(Cambridge, 1883, pp. 41-43, 18-2o). The Add. 1306 is an old
Ms. written in 1302, containing pallavas 42-108. Story No.42
i

contd • • • • •
 - 12 -

completed in 1052 A.D. (during the Buddha’s birthday festival

in the, month of Vaisakha of the Laukika year

in Add. 13q6 is entitled Panditavadana.. but the Bibliotheca

Indica has wrongly printed the title as Kapil avadana (in his
Bengali translation however, Sarat Chandra Das has corrected
the error). The Add. 913 is a modern Ms. containing stories
in the following order: 50-66, 42 (beginning with sahisnayah
in verse No. 7) - 49, 76 (without the beginning)- 108. In his
edition of Pallavas 50-66 S.C. Das most probably utilised
three Ms. (1) Hodgson's collection Ms. preserved in the
Asiatic Society, Calcutta, (2) Add. 13o6 and (3) Add. 913.
Also edited by P.L. Yaidya in two volumes in BST Series Nos.
22-23 (Mithila), Darbhanga, 1959;. Bengali translation by S.C.
• Das published by Banglya Sahitya Paris had. Calcutta, 1319
(Reprint, Calcutta, 1388).
£ ' • •

The. Bodhisattvavadana-Kalpalata was translated

. f into
Tibetan by Laksmikara and the Master from Son, Rdo-rje Rgyal-
mtshan, probably between 126o and 1280 under the auspices of
Hphags-pa (one of the distinguished Sa-skya hierarchs),, the
spiritual guide of the emperor Kublai Khan. The finally
revised version was printed iii 1664-1665. This is incorporated
in the Tanjur. The Narthang and Peking Editions contain only
the Tibetan translation but the Perga and Cone Editions con­
tain both the transliterated Sanskrit text and the Tibetan
translation. The Tibetan translation of the book is found in
Yols o 128 and 129 of the Japanese reprint of the Peking Edition
of Tanjur. it is said that some Sakya-Srl, a Pandita of Kashmir,
presented a copy of the book to Kun-dgah Rgyal Mtshan, a lama
of Tibet in 12o2 A.D., which was'first translated Into Tibetan
about seventy years later. The translation as found by Sarat
Chandra Das is extremely literal and is considered as the
master-piece of Tibetan poetry (Suryakanta, Ksemendra Studies.
P»19), H. Prarike translated the book in German verses and
published from Leipzig in 1901 . A number of legends translated
in JBTS,; Vols.- I-V, 1893-1897. The Serial Nos. of the pallavas

contd ...
 - '13 -

2
27). The work consists of 108 'Pallavas' (literal meaning
•leaf',1 2'foliage')
3 of which Ksemehdra composed 107 P allay as and
his son Somendra added’ one more (i.e. Jimutavahariavadanam) to
3
make the number 108, which is considered to. he auspicious. In
his iritrpduction to his father's work Bodhisattvavadarta-kalpalata
Somendra narrates how his father took interest in the composition
of the hook B o dhis at t vav ad ana-k alp al at a. He writes: first of
all Ksemendra's friend Sajjariananda requested him to compose a
hook on Buddhistic Jataka-stories. Next another of his friends,
4___
named Nakka, approached Ksemendra and said : "Acarya Gopadatta
vary in different Mss., and editions, as the ,♦ Garbhavakranti-
Avadana' (translated by S.C. Das as the 49th PallAva) is not
found in the list of Somendra's introduction. Again the
'$addantavadana' mentioned hy Somendra as the 49th Pallava is
missing in the Ms. In the P.L. Vaidya's edition*- the 49th
Pallava is missing ('ekonapancasattamo nopalahhyate' ).
2. "Samvatsare saptavimse vaisakhasya sitodaye /
"Krteyam Kalpalatlka Jima^anmamahotsave //"
— Somendra's Introduction, verse no. 16.
3. "Asmatpitr avadanariam krte saptottare sate /
Somendrena mayapyekam krtam mahgalapuranam //"
— Somendra's Introduction, Verse No. 14.
Also in the introduction to his jlmutavahariavadanam (No.108)
Somendra saysj
"Saptottara^atam etat tena krtam B o dhis att vac aritanam /
Mahgalasamkhyapuranam .ekam karyam prayatnena // 3 //
Somendrariima tanayo'tha tasya
kavir Niruddhaparanamadheyah /
Asmin Jinodarakathaprahandhe
sampurayisyaty Avadanasesam // 4 //
."Tam kadacit sukhasinam suhrd gunavatam varah /
Saugatah khyatdsukrto Nakkariama samabhyadHat // 6 //

contd • • •
and others abandoned series of Avadanas. They selected only few
Jat aka-stories and composed their Avadana-booka in a disorderly
manner, mixed with prose and verse. There are many J at aka-stories
of Jina (= Buddha) which follow the same tradition and which are
descriptive but most dry and grave. You are the person who can
make the birth-stories of the Tathagata (= Buddha) sweet and
charming by compiling beautiful Avadanas. long and short, in
series." Thus requested Ksemendra undertook the tank but left
after compiling only three Avadanas. as they seemed to him too
lengthy. But in a dream the Buddha instructed him to complete
the .work. Some Viryabhadra, an authority on the Buddhistic
> ~r i ■

SaStras, himself came to Ksemendra'a house to assist him in the

— — — * — - i _
work. Acarya Suryasri, an expert in all the Sastras, became the

Acarya-Gop adattadyair Avadana-kramoj jhitah /

Uccityoccitya vihita gadya-padya-visrnkhala // 7 //
Ekam arg anusari ny ah param gambhlryakarkasah /
Vistlrnavarnanah santi J inaj atakamalikah // 8 //
Avadanakramenaiva tvam tu samksepavistaraih /
Eamyais T athagatakathahjkomalah kartum arhasi // 9 //
Ityuktas tena vinayat tim katham kartum udyatah /
Avadanatrayam krtva viraramatidairghatah // 10 //
Tatah svapne Bhagavata Jinena preritah svayam /
So'grahlt punar udyogam Avadanarthasamgrahe // 11/
Athabhyetya svayam tasya grham prajnaprakasavan /
Acaryo Viryabhadrakhyah prakhyata-sukrtoj jvalah // 12 /
J inas as ana-s astresu parinisthitamanasah /
Gambhlragamamarge *s«in yayau ratnapradipatam // 13 //

Yasya hastagatam sarvaaastram ayati suddhatim /

Acibryah so'tra Suryasrir lip i ny as arth am arthitahM // 15 //
 - 15

scribe. • And thus

t
the work; was finished
* within
* a short time.
’ ' • : ' 5
Somendra, otherwise known as the £oet Hiruddha, states with
• ■ A _ . _

pride about his father's Bodhisattvavadana-kalpalata that

although many Buddhist VI haras and’ cave-temp lea (where hundreds
of the Buddha's birth-stories depicted in mural paintings and
stone-carvings) that have teen built in the past have perished,
his father's work would never perish. In the words of Somendra
A

himselfj
"Yes am suvarnapratima-pratana-
Jinavadanany abhavan guhaisu / , .
»
Saa^akta-netramrta-citracitrah ,
■ • , * • .. i.

kalena te te'pi gat a viharah // 11 //

S aras vatitulik aya vicitra-

, -
varnakramaih a amkalit av adaridi /
» - • * *

Tateria yo'yam vihito maharthah f

s

sannkndanah punyamayo viharah // 12 //

Na tasya riaso'sti yugaksaye'pi

j al anal all as a-p arip lave na /
* • • • • // 1» //
Justification of the titlet
\
. Tiie word 'Avadana' means glorious deed, great achievement,
a heroic and noteworthy deed, an illustrious aot. The expression
'Bodhisattvavadana' means glorious deeds, great achievements,
heroic arul noteworthy deeds and illustrious acts of the B-odhlsattya

5-. "Somendrahima.tanayo'tha tasya

Kavir Niruddhaparariam&dheyah — jlmutavahanavadana,
Verse 4.
 - 16 -

/ Pali Bodhisatta. meaning would-Be-Biiddha, one fulfilling

i

perfections (Paramitaa. Pali ParamXs) in different Births to

attain the Buddha-hood, to he Enlightened One, a Being destined
to attain Bodhi (= enlighte?mentj7. The term Kal-pal at a means a
faBulous creeper or a celestial creeper yielding all wishes in
- , i '
the form of moral sayings in the present context. 'As the author
adds to the title’the word Kalp alata. he names the section or
chapter of the stories as Pallavas. meaning leaf, foliage to
keep symmetry with lata (creeper) i' But why the author choose ^

the tford K alp alata. that is the question. Prom the introduction
of the Book, written By the author's son Somendra, we learn that
Ksemendra left the work after compiling only three Avadana-
stories, as they seemed to him too lengthy. But in a dream, the
Buddha appeared Before him and gave him instructions how to write
' ’ . . ■
and complete the work. Perhaps this incidence left a deep impre­
ssion in Ksemendra’s mind that he could not have finished the work
0

unless he could get some heavenly help. As a Kaplavrksa yields

all wishes, as it grows in heaven, so does the Kalp alata to
• 4 ' ‘
Ksemendra which super naturally yields him the Beautiful Avadana-
stories (i.e^ supernaturally helps him in the composition of his
Avadana-stories). For this reason, perhaps, Ksemendra adds the
word Kalpalata tp the title of his Book. Therefore, i-n the present
context, .the whole, title Bodhlsattvavadana^kalp alata means (the
Book consisting of) a wish-yielding creeper having its paJLlavas or
leaves denoting the glorious deeds, great achievements, heroic
and noteworthy deeds and illustrious acts performed By the Buddha
 17

in his previous births, while he was still a Bodhisattva. So

the title of the: present book as the «B odhis attvavadana-k alp al at a1
is justified. But in his Aucltvavicaracarca. ksemendra himself
mentions about the book by different names. For example, while
explaining the verse No. 18, he* mentions HB anddhav ad ana-kale al at an,
v _ _
in verse No .30 we find the name- l*Bauddhavadanalatika11 and in verse
. __ ___

No. 38, *B auddhav adanal at a1*. in his introduction to the Jimuta-

vihanavadanaffl. Somendra refers to his father's book as "Avadana-
kal-palatika1' and only "Kalpalatika" in the general introduction
to the book. But so far as the contents, morals and motif3 of
the book are concerned, we must ^ay that- out of” s,o many titles,
the title "B odhis at t vav adana-k alp al at a" is! quite appropriate,
and perhaps, this is the .reason why in all the available manus­
cripts of the‘'book only this title has been used. The Tibetan
translation of the book also, gives the same title* Rtogs-brjod-
dp ag-bs am-hkhri-s in.

Buddhist Sanskrit Literature and the Bodhisattvavadana-k alp al ata:

The Buddhist literature, so far available uptil now, are

in Pali and. Sanskrit (both pure and mixed). The Pali Buddhist,
■ 'i

literature is no doubt rich and extensive, but the Sanskrit

Buddhist*literature too occupies a no less prominent place, both
in quality and quantity, in the history of Buddhism of the whole r
world. £fter the downfall of the Mauryan Empire in India, the
Buddhists who survived persecution took their shelter outside the p
jurisdiction of the Mauryan Empire, especially in the north­
western and southern parts of India. These newcomer-Buddhlsts and
 '4

- 18

the original Buddhists of those areas jointly ventured to preserve

the discourses of Buddha (= Buddhavacana;} by'committing them to
’ -—'~»r ———7
waiting, as the. Singhalese king Vattagamani did in the first
oenturyJB_;G. to put the prally transmitted Buddhavacana to
writing. - They produced their works written partly in pure
Paninian Sanskrit and partly in Mixed1* Sanskrit (= a Middle Indian
dialect assimilated to Sanskrit).^ Those who migrated from the

Madhyade'sa wefe not well conversant with Sanskrit, as a result

of which' what they produced as literary works became hybrid, in
character, i.e«• Sanskrit mixed with Middle Indian dialects.
£>enart terms this hybrid language as ’’Mixed Sanskrit”, while
' 7 • #1 -
Edg xton calls it Hybrid Sanskrit.1 Now a great bulk of this
literature, both in Pure and'Mixed Sanskrit, have come down to
us, but in some cases they are available in fragments only. They
were most ^.preserved in Nepal a^nd Tibet. fWe are indebted to
B.H. Hodgson, Alexander Osama de Koros, Pandit Rahul Samkrtyayana
and same others who procured numerous Buddhist manuscripts from

Nepal and Tibet. .Many fragmentary manuscripts have been discover-

edj.n Central Asia also. The originals of many Buddhist Sanskrit
Texts are lost, but fortunately they are available in their
Chinese and Tibetan translations. Many Indium.Pandits from the

6. ’’Roughly from the time of Kanishka, specially in India, the

Buddhist took up Sanskrit language as the medium of. preach­
ing their religion to’keep pace with the demand of the day
and particularly to enlighten the Sanskrit-knowing people
> of different religious faith about the Buddhist- truth and
fonus of the religion.” — S.C. Sarkar, Studies in the common
J at aka and Avadana Tales, p <. 35.
7 . HI1, II, p. 226. •
f -
 <

■ 19 -

ancient Indian Buddhist- went to Tibet and China,

learned Tibetan and Chinese languages, and'translated Buddhist
Sanskrit worka^lnto these languages. Chinese pilgrims like -m\

ri1" "" & ?

Hiuen Taang, Fa-hien, I-tsing and others came to India, learned

, . *

Sanskrit and Buddhism, and translated Buddhist texts into

•Chinese;. In this way; Sanskrit Buddhist teats wevd preserved in
Chinese and Tibetan translations ,. In the mean time many such
texts h>ave been reconstructed into Sanskrit, and thus enriched
thejfielff of Buddhist Sanskrit literature. Another good news
for us is that a' great project has been started by the German
Oriental Society in 19-70 under Dr. W. Voigt. This project is
known' as flfepal German Mamscript Preservation Project. • In the
mean time it has been able to procure about 40,0(fo manuscripts;
from the Nepal' Archives and private collections from Nepal.
Thanks to Professor Michael Hahn as he has; been able to find
out 3,000 Buddhist Sanskrit manuscripts from this lot, and being
assisted by a band of his pupils, he could restore and publish a
•good number of Buddhist Narrative literature hitherto unknown to
the world. The^mamscripts in-fragments discovered from Central
Asia are not only.iof Sanskrit texts, but also of their, tr ansi a-
tions in iag.es, like Kuchean -(Tokharian).
Khotanese and Uigarian..

This Buddhist literature in Sanskrit, pure and mixed, is

f ’ 8
termed as MBuddhist Sanskrit literature" by M. Winternitz. There
----- .------------------------ ;---------------- " r'
is_a Sanskrit canon correspoijding to the Pali canon, although no
complete copy of the Sanskrit canon has come down to us. We

8. HTL, II, p. 227.

 - 20 -

We. know about-this canon from the fragments so far discovered

from Eastern Turkestan, frorn^ quotations-in other' Buddhist. Sanskrit
works, such as Mahavastu. Divyavadana and Lalitavistara. and
. *■ ’—7~ s====^ —----------------------- --------------- q

lastly from the translations in Chinese and Tibetan languages,

The original Sanskrit canon of the Sarvastivada and the Tinayas
' ~ '1' ............................ .......-—*r*~ ‘

of the Mula-s arvastivada. Mahis as aka. Dharmagupta and the Maha-

sanghika. show manifold divergences from the Pali canon. The
seven Abhidharma Treatises in Sanskrit have nothing in common
with the Pali Abhidhammaplteka. The. Buddhist canon in Sanskrit
is not a pure Sanskrit all through. The Mahavastu. which is
’* • 4

regarded as the Vinaya text of the Lokottaravadin Mahasanghikas

' • , ’ '-i ■

is written ^entirely in Mixed Sanskrit. There is|no systematic

arrangement irithe book. Apparently it'will show that the main
purpose of the book is to relate the iife-story of the Buddha.
c................. —----------------------------------- --------- 1------------------;---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- —---------- _------------------------------------------------------- ’

But ..this has been interrupted by numerous Jatakas. Avadanas and

the dogmatic Sutras. Moreover, same matter.has been told twice,
first in prose and then again in verse. Next comes the Lalita-
vistara, which calls itself a Yai-pulya^-Sutra ("discourse of great
extent"). The biography of Buddha forms the contents of the book.
The life of the Buddha on earth is termed "Lalita" (the sport)
of a supernatural being. The title Lalitavistara. therefore,
means "the detailed narration of the sport (of the Buddha)”.
The Lalitavistara is an anonymous compilation, in which early,
and recent passages stand side t>y side. Here we find a continuous
narrative,in Sanskrit prose, while long metrical passages in
mixed Sanskrit. But the book is most informative as regards the
 - 21 -
Sr ■> ' i J.
- , ‘

development of the Buddha-iegend from its earliest "beginnings

down to the deification of the Master1, in which he appears as
God above all gods. The booh, therefore, is of immense value
from the point of view of the history of Buddhism as well as the
history of Buddhist literature.

Next comes the period whence we are getting the names of

K / f'''
different writers of the Buddhist Sanskrit Texts. Asvaghosa, a
cpntemporary of King Kaniska (2nd century A.D.), is one^of them,
r C----------------------- ------------------- -- -------------------------------- ------------------- * ________ _____________—— —

An important predecessor of; Kalidasa, Asvaghosa was the creator

--------------- ------------- ------------- —--------------;------------ ------- ;* ' ".rIL - 1

of epic, dramatic and lyrical compositions in faultless Sanskrit,

although the rules of Panin! have not been, strictly followed
therein. His Buddhacarita (in 17 Cantos) is regarded as a Maha-
kavya. Winternitz has rightly observed: "In contrast to the
-c——-—,
-chaotic disorder in texts like the Mahay as tu and the Lallta-
yistara, we find in the Buddhacarita a well-planned, artistic
' ,10
arrangement of the material." Hfs second poem 11Saundarananda-
kavya" is also an ornate court poetry (of 18 cantos) connected
with the life story of the Buddha. This has been composed in
pure Sanskrit.. - As a dramatist too Asvaghosa was. a worthy prede-
_ / J.
cessor of Kalidasa. This is evident from his drama "Sariputra-
Prakarana" (of 9 Acts) dealing with the conversion of Sariputra
and Maudgalyayana, two chief disciples of Buddha. The source of
this drama is the Pali Mahavagga of the Vinayapitaka. This also
■" ^ ----- :— ---------- ; ------------- -
has been composed in good Sanskrit.

10. HIL ., p. 26o,

 - 22 4

After Asvaghosa we may mention the name of Kumaralata,

author of the Kalpanamanditika (or Kaleahalamkrtika) written in
prose and poetry in the style of ornate poetry. Kumaralata was
;—■ "" """" ' 1.......... ' _ _
a junior contemporary to Asvaghosa and the Kalpanamanditika is a
collection, of pious legends after the manner in which the Jatakas
and Avadanas are told. The language is perfectly correct Sanskrit,
with some 'deviations from Paninian grammar. • It is a wo& of , *
literary distinction and of historical importance as' it mentions ^
the epics, doctrines of Samkhya and Vaisesika, religious views y^
of the. Jainas and Brahmanas, and so on. The Sanskrit Jatakamalas
of Aryasura, Haribhatta and Gopadatta resemble the -Kalp anamandi-
tika in style and language.' They are also composed in ornate
y < __________ __________
poetical language-, in. a mixture of prose and verse. The legends
of the Jatakamalas illustrate the P~aramltas (ten or siz in number)
of "Perfections" of a: Bodhisattva. The Jatakamalas are also, called
"B odhis at tv av ad anam ala11 . because the J atakas are synonymous with’
'"Bodhisattvavadana". the hero in both the cases being the
Bodhisattva.

In the Buddhist Sanskrit literature, the Avadana texts

play an important role. ' We will discuss, about this Avadana lite­
rature in the second chapter of* this dissertation. To show the .
development of the Buddhist Sanskrit literature, here this much
we can say that Buddhist literature in Sanskrit so far discussed
and the early Avad~ana texts in Sanskrit (like the Avadanas at aka.
K arm as* at aka. Dlvvavadana etc.) belong to the transitional period
of Hlnayana (popularly known as Theravada among the Southern
 - 23 -

composed in prase and poetry.Those in. pf bse are written in

•#
faultless. Sanskrit, so to Eay,. while those in poetry are written
in Mixed Sanskrit. Most of the later Avadana texts are composed
in poetry, of which the Bodhisattvavadana-kalpalata of Ksemendra
is one.' But "before going to judge the merit of the
B odhis attvavadana-kalp alat a and its position in the Sanskrit
■. r **
c*

Buddhist literature, we must give some light about the Mahayana-

Sutraa which were compiled before the B odhis attvavadana-kalp alat a

The "Nine Dharmas" (Nava-dharma). which are held in great

honour in Nepal aid to which a regular .divine service is conse­
crated, fpirm the heart of Mahay ana Buddhism, of-the past and the
present throughout the world. The titles of these nine dharmas
, (= books) are: Astasahasrika Prajnaparamita.' Saddharmapundarika,
Lalitavistara. Lankavatara Cor Saddharma-Lankavatara)\ Suvarna-
prabhasa. Gandavyuha. Tathagataguhyalca. S am adhir a.1 a and Das a-
' ~-t " ; - - ’ •’ 1
bhumisvara. These are also known as Yalpulya-Sutra (Discourses
of Great Extent)*
p ' ■ ■
Of the Nine Texts or principal Mahayana-Sutras, we have
already discussed about the Lalitavistara. Now about the other
%
Yaipulya-Sutras. Of them the Saddharmapundarika is the most
important text for the study of Mahayana Buddhism. This text
was composed when Mahayana Buddhism took a considerable .shape.
t’_

Here we find the glorification of Buddha (Sakyamuni) as the God

of gods, but-side by side we find that the Bodhisattvas like
/ /\y f —
Avalokitesvara, Manjusri are given prominence as the Buddha

. ' • 4
 - 24 -

Tatbag at a and sometimes given importance above the Buddha Tatha-

gata. Their importance lies in the fact -they, though they have
attained Bodhi (supreme enlightemient), will not enter into
Nirvana so long .as the last being of the world becomes free
from suffering i.e. finally released. For this reason they will •
prefer to call themselves Bodiiisattvas. although they have become
Buddhas . The ,ASt as ah as rika Pra j nap ar amit a deals with uhe Maha-
yana doctrine of Sunvata. as the highest perfection called
Prajna, ’implying the conviction that all Dharmais or. objects of
. . 11
thought, are only endowed with a conditional or relative existence1
The Larikavatara deals with the farther developed dobtrine of
Mahayana i.e. Vijnanavada (Doctrine of Consciousness). This is
iV— _ $ ___ — i

the principal text of the MahaySna Vijnanavada. The Dasahhumisvara

deals with the tep Bhumis (= steps) by which Buddha-hood may be
attained. Samadhiraja. Suvarnaprablias a. Gandavyuha. T^thagata-
guhvaka and Dasabhumisvara belong to the comparatively later
phase of Mahayana-Sutras. ' There are other later Mahayana texts
like Karandavyuha. Sukhavativyuha (larger and smaller), Avatamsaka,
Kasyapa-parlvarta. Rastrapala-Pariprccha and the like. The
t _ _ _
Sataaahasrika-Prajnaparamita is regarded as the latest of the
Mahayana-sutraB. Upto this period the Sanskrit Buddhist texts
were composed in mixed Sanskrit, with a few exceptions as in the
cases of Asvaghosa, Kumaralata etc. But this is followed by a
Golden Age of Mahayana Buddhism as well as of Buddhist Sanskrit

11. On the basis of this Pra^ nap aramita-Sutra, a good number of

Sutras titled VSatasahasrika Prajnaparamita1*. "Panpavlmaati- .
a ah as rika Praj nap aramita11 etc. developed in future.

\
 - 25 -

literature. A galaxy of renowned Buddhist philosophers came to

the field who not .only farthered the caus'e^of Buddhism and
Buddhist Philosophy,hut also the field of .Buddhist Sanskrit
literature. Mention may be made of Nagarjuna, Aryadeva, Asahga,
Vasubandhu, Dinnaga, Dharmakirti, Santideva, Santaraksita and
others. These philosopher-scholars greatly contributed to the ,
field of Buddhist philosophical literature in Sanskrit, pure
Paninian Sanskrit. This in brief the history of the origin <)
and development of Buddhist Sanskrit literature' which covered
nearly one thousand years i.e. from the 2nd century B.C. down
to the 8th century a.D. This is followed by the period of
Tantric Buddhism, Mantrayana arid Vajrayana. According to W

Winternitz:. "Mantrayana is the vehicle in which the Mantras.

words and syllables of mysterious power,the chief means of
attaining salvation. Vajrayana is the vehicle which leads: men
to salvation not only.by using Mantras. but by means of all
things which, are denoted by the word Vaira (the realities of
i_ _
Sunya and Yijnana are described as being indestructible as a
Vajra). The Vajrayana i& a queer mixture of monistic philo-
M
sophy, magic and erotics, with a small admixture of Buddhist
12
ideas." The Sanskrit texts dealing with these Mantrayana and
Yajrayana are also written in good Sanskrit.

Now comes the period of Ksemendra i.e. 11th 'century.

Suryakanta, a translator of Ksemebdra’s. yorks (viz. Cavllcantha-
bharana. Aucityavicaracarca and Suvrttatilaka). could rightly

12. HIL. II, pp. 387-388.

judge the merit of Ksemendra in the following lines: '‘Ksemendra
holds a unique position in the hiatory-of Sanskrit literature. He
appears as poet, dramatist, rhetorician, lexicographer and
historian. He has written numerous works which form important
landmarks in several fields of Sanskrit literature. , His works
include treatise on poetics, prosody, kavvas.rjmahakavyas, a drama,
many didactic poetic compositions, poetical epitomes of the epics
and of Ganadhya's Brhatkatha. a.chronicle of Kashmir-kings, and a
dictionary. Almost every important branch of Sanskrit literature
has been enriched by the facile pen of this.versatile genius.
Indeed, in the whole range of Sanskrit, literature, only Bhoja
and Hemacandra have tried their hand on such a variety of subjects,
but Ksemendra displays a depth and originality peculi&Ely-his
^ _ . , • - ' ■ .
........ ... • t

In the present context we are concerned with Esemendra's

Bodhlsattvavadana-kalpalata which is regarded as one of the best
kavvas in the field of Buddhist Sanskrit literature in particular
and Sanskrit literature in general. . We have discussed above, in
brief, the Buddhist literature in pure and mixed Sanskrit. But so
far as the Kivyas are concerned, Aavaghosa was the only shining
stardnjthis field before Ksemendra. Ksemendra is the author of
about 42 works on various subjects. But his Bodhisattvavadana-
kalpalatH Is the best of all works ascribed to him., Here he has

13. Ksemendra Studies, p. 33.

14. 34 works according to Suryakanta (op. cit.. p.28) and 3o works
according to Madhusudan Kaul (Desopadesa and NarmaaiAla .
Ksemendra, Intr., p. 25). *
 - 27 -

followed epic style and handled figures of speech beautifully.

In his early life he has.studied the Rama^ana and the Mahabharata
which left a deep impression on his style of composition. The
sources he ^utilised for this Kav.va are the J at aka-stories mainly.
He has gathered together the choicest Jatakas to suit his purpose
' t

and naprated them in poetry using a vast vooabulary to his command

Ksemendra's skill lies in the fact that he has presented the old
stories by his wonderful command over the art of narration. He
was a practical man who kept his eyes, and ears open. Whatever
he saw, he heard — he accumulated them in his stories. So a
motely combination of episodes, characters and wonderful •
experiences can he visualised in his av ad ana-stories. Some of
the stories, he no doubt gathered from the writings of his prede­
cessors, hut even in the matter of presentation of the'anecdotes,,
he retained his individuality. He electrified the old characters
and events with.his masterly strikes in new dies. He. never failed
s.

to put hie readers in front of strange and amazing experiences.

Moreover, to gather together the ancient Buddhist stories suitable
to his intention of giving lesson to the people as regards the
inevitability, of the effect of' Karma (good or bad) and to narrate-
them in pure Kavyic style, proved Ksemendra's proficiency in
arduais^task and untiri/n^ of"~a~literary

work of extraordinary merit. As a narrator he is taken as a

follower of the Vajdarbhl diction. This diction of style of
writingCis called Riti in Sanskrit, poetics;'.Dandin, however,
---------------- ""; ■ ' ~~ — ----------------------- —
used the expression Marga) in Sanskrit is of various types,
like Vaidarbhi. Gaudi, Avanti, Lati etc. Writers on Sanskrit'
 - 28 -
■y. .

poetics like Bhamaha, Dandin, Yak ana and others made serious
discussions on their essence and distinguishing features and
thereby made significant contributions in the field, Dandin in
his Eavyadaraa referred to ten poetic excellencess
/ ______ ''

"Slesah prasad ah samata madhuryam- sukumarata / .

Arthavyaktir udaratvam o j ah-kant i-s amadhayah //"
— Eavyadarsa, I. 41.
1 — . _ _ _
i.e. Slesa. Praaada, Samata, Madhurya, Sukumarata. Arthavyakti,
Udaratva. Ojas, Eanti and Sainadhl are regarded as the soul of
the Yaidarbhi diction. ' It is not for the elements of the story,
but for the style of presenting the story itself that Esemendra
. has become well-known and unique. His style is replete with all
~ ^ ~ ~~------------- 1 ! —>

the ten excellences of the Yaidarbhi diction. He uses puns often,

and lucidity is the most prominent feature of his style. Equani­
mity, sweetness and delicacy are-also found in his verses.. Clear­
ness of expression, force., charm, Samadhi and Udaratva are also
found in abundance in his Eavya. Scholars, of course, hold
different opinions about the merits of Ksemendra’s work. According
to some ’he is not a poet of first rank1, while, according to
others ’his style is not uniform1, ’he is distinguished not so
mubh by genius arid taste?and so on. But the scholars like.
» ......

Winternitz has properly fudged his merit with the eulogizing

words?^ "Esemendra is a prolific* writer and a verse-maker of
astonishing ferlity"; "Esemendra Is, undoubtedly, a great luminary
in the firmament of poetry. He is* truly an inspirer like Valmiki
and Vyasa who were his own mentors. His was ’a vow to perpetuate
 - 29 -

learning1 in a selfless spirit, viz. Vratam sarasvatoyagah

(Kavik ant hath arana. II, 2); All praise be to him. He was;
"Eaviravir aviluptavyap tibhih suktap adair
Nayati- navanavatvam bhavabhavasvabhavam //w
i

■ — Eavikanth abharana. II, 23

•The poet like the sun with his rays of poetry reaching every
region reveals in fresh colours the sentiments, feelings and
emotions of all beings•16

In Tibet, therefore, Ksemendr&’s Bodhisattvavadana-

katpalata is regarded as the best literary production both
from poetic and religious points of view.
i

I. 2, The Author of* the book and his other contributions:

k

Esemendra of the 11th century holds a distinct place in

the galaxy of Sanskrit poets. He was one of the great poets and
intellectual persons that Eashmir, the ancient seat of learning
in India, had produced. A writer of great eminence, Esemendra
was regarded as the polymath, a versatile genius of indomitable
zeal arid inexhaustible resources, who had traversed freely in
almost all the fields of Sanskrit literature. To his credit
there are about 42 works dealing with multifarious subjects,
viz. treatises on poetics and prosody, Eavyas and Mahakavyas,
drama, didactic poems, poetical epitomes of the great Epics, of
Gunadhya’s Brhatkatha. chronicle of kings of Eashmir and lexicons.
What is unusual is the fact xhat all pursuits of Esemendra saw

16. Esemendra Studies. Intro., p. 5.

 - 30

the- light of success and. : Suryakanta: "Ksemendra* s

",l—

comprehensive style, his clarity of expression, his power to use

satire to the ^best advantage and his critical insight into
literature' have earned for him a place among the masters of
^—.------------ ------------ ------------------- --------------------- ----------------------------------------
Indian literary tradition."

•Ksemendra was unknown to the world since 1871 wHen Burnell

first discovered a Ms. of Brhatkathaxnannarl of Ksemendra in the
Durbar Hall of Tanjore. A few days after Burnell’s discovery,
Buhler discovered another Ma . of the B rh atk at ham ann arl in Gujarat.
Prom this Ms. Buhler tried to determine the probable date of
x 18
Ksemendra and published an article in Journal asiat 1 que. But
when in the year 1877 some more works of Ksemendra were disco-
vered, Buhler came to the conclusion'tEat Ksemendra must lave
i -------- --------— ^

completed his works by the second half of the 11th century. levi
.* ^19 ~ " ^--------------------------—’

and Peterson alsp hold the same opinion with Buhler. Sarat
V—------------------------------ --------grj------------ ----------------------------- —----------- “ " ~ #t ■- j
Chandra Das also endorsed the opinion of Buhler, Levi, Peterson
and other eminent writers as regards the date of Ksemendra. Pandit
Madhusudan Kaul Sha&tri, however, says that Ksemendra was born
2i'
after 990 and died after 1c65 A.D. V.P. Mahajan also holds the

17. Ksemendra Studies. Poona Oriental Series No.91. 1954, Intro.,

p. 1 • -
18. YCl. I, 1872, p. 307.
19. Ibid.. Yol.YIII, p.400; Peterson's edition, of Subhis it avail <
. of Yallabhadeva. Introduction.
20. Avadanakalp alat a. Prefatory Note, pp . vf f . (Bibliotheca
Indica. Calcutta, 1888).
21. De^opadesa and Naim am ala. Kashmir Series of Text and Studies,
No. 40, 1923., Intro., p. 2q.
 - 31 -

22
same view i.e. 990-1070 A.D. Suryakanta also is of opinion
that Ksemendra was horn about 990-1010 A.D. and died about 1070
23
A.D.

As Ksemendra has not left any regular biographical account

of himself, it is very difficult to draw a full picture of his
life. But his works give us some clue; the concluding verses of
his works are informative. Moreover, his son Somendra gave-
---------------- - : ' ’ " 1% r

some idea of his father in the introduction to his father's <

Avadanakalpalata. Kalhana's Rajatarariglni also is a definite
source of information. Prom all these sources we can have some
idea, at least, about Ksemendra's date, genealogy, private life,
religion and identity. Ksemendra's family-tree would be as
follows:
Mare ndra _ _ •
(Minister to King Jayapida)
Bhogendra
0 • „
Sindh u (= "Sindft mentioned in-the
0 Dasavataracarlta)
PraksU'endra

5—;----- -----------
Ksemendra (during King
f_ >
Cakrapalh ;
0 Anantadeva) ;
Somendra

Ksemendra's exact date of birth is very difficult to Know,

■as there is no definite source. But we can surmise something
from hiB work Brhatkathajnardarl where he mentions clearly that
,f 1 »>.-—

22. Hit ik alp at aru. Ed., Intro., p. iii. ;

23 . Op«, ,cit., pp . 7-15*
 - 32 -

he^yaa a student of A~bhinavagu.pta, author of the Vidyavivrti

or Prat yabhinnavrhat i—vim arsini;
"Srutvabhi'navaguptakhyat sahityam bodhavaridheh /
Acaryasekharamaner Yidyavivrtikarinah //M
— Brhatkath aman,jarl, XIX, 37.

Abhinavagupta wrote his commentary on the Pratyabhljna-

Darsana in 1014 A.D. This means that Ksemendra studied under his
teacher Abhinayagupaa 'round about 1o14 a.D., and the Brhatkatha-
Manjarl was Ksemendra's third work. Prom this Madhusudan Kaul
Shastrl and Suryakanta surmise that Ksemendra was nearly twenty-
five years of age when he- composed his Brhatkathamanjari and,
therefore, he was born somewhere between 990-1010 A.D. during
24
the reign of king Ananhadeva (1q28 A.D.-1063 A.D.) of Kashmir.
And if the Dasavataracarita is regarded to be his last work,
which was composed in I065-66 A.D., then he must have died
shortly after 1065—66 a.D. and from this Suryakanta comes to the
' — 2 ———

conclusion that Ksemendra died at about 1070 A.D.

According to Somendra, in the dynasty of Narendra, a

minister (holding perhaps not so important position) to king
Jayaplda (8th century) of Kashmir, Bhogendra was born. Bhogendra's
son was Sindhu (or Sindu), while Sindhu's son was Prakasendra.
Ksemendra
• ___
was the son of Prakasendra who was a man of immense
____________ S.... —--------------------- --------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------ ■■■ ----------- ------------ -----------------------------

wealth and charity. In his Aucityavicaracarea . Ksemendra

speaks of his father Prakasendra as follows:

24. Suryakanta, op . cit.« p . 7 »

25. Ibid., p. 8.
 33 -

"There was Prakasendra, the very light of the country

of Kashmir. He poeseseed the glory of uthe lord of
gods. In his house there were always' going on a 1
continuous' sanctifying sacrifices in which the. ;
Brahmanas obtained the foremost place. In the ' i
wonderful temple of Svayambhu (Brahman) he installed ,
the figures of sixteen mothers in painting. In that
very temple in, course of time he, the donor of cows, ’
land, black-deer skins and dwelling plaeeB, gave,up 1 '
his life.'*26
! ;■

In his B rhatk at ham and ari. Ksemendra gives further light about his1

father*
I

"On the occasion of the solar eclipse,, he (» Prakls'endra) !

gave in charity three black-deer. skins to Brahmanas j i
with three lakhs each..............He set up images of : 1
■Is'

deities in Siva’s temple and spent four croreer on

the gods, Brahmanas and Mathas (temples). On his , j
last day, he worshipped Siva himself and died when, ,i
embracing the image of his honoured god."^7

Proem the above two instances, we can surmise that Prakasendra was
a very rich man and Ksemendra must have been brought up like a
prince; Perhaps this was the reason why in his earliest origi­
nal comp os it ions like Desop adeea and Naim am ala. Ksemendra
descends low vulgarity and points to.his low taste.

About Ksemendra*s education very little is known. In the

Aucityavicarac'arca he, however, mentions that he studied under
various teachers (= sarvamanisisisya^) who were specialists in

26. A,uc:Ltyayjcaracarca. concluding verses. .

27 . Brhatkathaman.jari; XIX9 33-35 .
 - 34

28
different branches of learning He specially meritions the-names
Pq
30 and Soma-
of his three teachers, vis. Abhinavagupta, y Gangaka*''-'

pada. Under Abhinavagupta, he studied rhetoric, under Gangaka

he studied poetics and the art of writing poems, while under

S om ap ad a, a Bhigavata, he studied Yaisnavism and later on was

converted to the Yaisnava faith^under the. influence of his

:teacher Somapada. His father Prakesendra was a devout Saiva.

f
So Ksemendra, bom^Saiva and taught by Sdivite stalwarts like
Abhinavagupta, later on became a Yaisnava.*^ He composed his

Dasavataracarlta in the spirit of a Yaisnava and he remained a

Yaisnava for the rest of his life. He became so much devoted to

V^aisnavism that in his Desopadesa and Narmamala, he criticised

f ---------------------
* - - " ■ -------- -gg ■ ~

Saivism with a taunting and humiliating tone.

Ksemendra came in contact with a Buddhist scholar named

Yiryabhadra under whom he studied the Buddha's teachings minutely 1

which enabled him to compose his famous religious Kavya entitled

----- ^ ---------------- g 3 ~~ ~~ i -------- ™--------- -—
Avadanak alp al at a. Being impressed and influenced by the teach­

ings of the Buddha, he included the Buddha among the ten Avatar as a
------------ 34
—------------------------------------------ "" ' '

(=. incarnations) of Visnu. Most probably Ksemendra was the

..................... ■ - ............- _ -~V ~T"i-----~.. ‘ - -------------- ------ —------------ ------------------------- -------------------

28. Aucityavicaracarea, concluding verses.

29. Mentioned in the Brhatkathamardari.

30. Aucltyavlcaracarea, verse 39.

31 . Mentioned in the Brhatkathimannari.

32. auryakauita, o^V_cit.,

33,. Somendra’.s Introduction to Ksemendra's Avadanakalpalata,

vs. 12—13.

34. Dag ay at ar ac ari t a. Canto IX

 4

- 35 -

first author to our knowledge to propagate that view and produce

**-■- ------ IJT'jlM ............. .................

a work of literary merit to that emd.

In every likelihood, some Devadhara Was also Ksemendra1s

teacher under whose order he composed-his Brhatkathaman.i arl.
Devadhara must have been a great scholar as "Ksemendra calls
36
him a 'Sarvajjna* (= All-knowing). Ksemendra mentions one
—j—-----------------------—— ' " " ’Xn __

Ramayasas at whose request he wrote many works. Sajjanananda

and Nakka, two Buddhist scholars, were also his friends at whose
r-
request he composed his Avadanakalpalata.. Some Cakrapala was
-------- -—- --------- -—=----------------------- -- —■-----------------------------'
his brother. Cakrapala also was a poet.

Ksemendra mentions some more names as his friends and

pupils, which have been supplemented by Somendra in the introduc­
tion to the Avadanakalnalata. They are Suryasri (the scribe),
Ratnasimha, Bhatta Udayasimha, Laksmanaditya, and the like.

Ksemendra calls himself 'Yyasadasa* (follower of Yyasa.).

_ ■ ' 40
In the colophon of the Aucityavlcaracarca this is mentioned:,
nHis (Prakasendra's) son, Ksemendra, also known by the blessed

35 • Suryakarxta, ibid., p. 15.

36. Mentioned in the Brhatkathaman;iari.
37. Mentioned in the B rh atk atham an.j ari and Bh ar at am an.1 ari: also
mentioned by Somendra in the Av adanak alp al at a. Intro., Yerse 5*
38. Avadanakalu alat a. Intro., verses 5-6.
39. Eavikanthabharana, 2nd Sandhi, verse 1.
... ..... ... —— > —» * *

40. Aucityavicaracarea, concluding verses.

 - 36 -

■ 4

name of 'Vyasadasa* (follower of Vyasa) and, the pupil of all

the learned men of the age and possessed of^imperislja'ble poetic
fame, composed this new treatise on 'propriety in Poetry'

We learn something more about Ksemendra from Pandit

Madhusudan Eaul Shlastri, who has ' edited-• with ..introduction
Ksemendra* s Dftsopades'a and Nam am ala. But Pandit Madhusudan is

silent about the clue of his information regarding Ksemendra's

life. According to him, Ksemendra did ,not like the company of
dry logicians and grammarians. His course of studies included
songs, gathas, vernacular works, mathematics, astrology, medi-
cine, surgery, politics, erotics, Buddhist philosophy and creed,
and Mantrasastra. As he was born of a rich family everything
was possible for him. He was very much fond of novel And’inter-
r— ~~ --------------------------- ———---------------- *
esting conceits of poetry._ He liked the company of the persons
of noble charaoter and cultured people. He was decent In speech
and dress . He was fond of. talcing rich and mtritious food. He
used to amuse himself with music. Occasionally he witnessed
dramas in the stage. He used to hear stories and tales in soli­
tude. He was kind-hearted and helped deserving writers with
money. He was very much fond of travelling, reading literature
of travels and tours. He mingled freely with the foreigners
and collected Informations about the places outside Kashmir. The
Kabulis, Turks, Chinese, Gaudas, Jalandharis, Dards and Afghans
find their mention in his work Samayamatrka.^

4"t. Pandit Madhusudan Kaul Shastri, Desopadesa and Narmamala,

pp. 21-25.
 - 37 -

Literary activities of Ksemendra;

We may now discuss about Ksemendra’s literary works, About

42 works are ascribed to him, but all the works are not available.
Ksemendra.is undoubtedly a prolific writer and polymath. His
extant works fall into four divisions:

1* Poetical Epitomes: Ramay anamannari or Ramayanakathasara,

Bharatmanj ari. B rh atk at him an;] ari - Das av atarac ar it a and Ay ad ana-
✓
kalpalata (otherwise known as Bodhisattvavadanakalpalata,
______ _______________ - -A

Bauddhavadanakalpalata, Bauddh avad analatika and Bauddhavadanalata).

II. Didactic Poems; Kalavilaaa. S am ay am at ik a. Came aryas' at aka,

Sevyasevakopadesa, Darp adalana, Desopadesa, N arm am. ala and

Caturvargasangraha.

III. Poetics and Metrics: Kavikanthabharana, Aucityavicara-

care a and Suvrttatilaka.
11 ■ ■ 1 n
• ■ ■■ “ ■ ’ ■1

IV. Miscellaneous; Lokaprakaaakosa, Nftikalpataru and Vyasast .ka.

Other works axe not available. Let us, therefore, confine

ourselves to extant works;
_ _ _ 42
1. . Ram ay anam anii ari: A volumiiCous book (of 509 printed
pages) this is a faithful'. summary in verse of the Ram ay ana of ,
Vaimiki. This shows the condition of the Ramay ana in the 11th
century. Genuine poetry is here lacking and the work is full of
obscure passages. The style is immature. In the colophon he

42. Edited in the Kavyamala series No. 83; edited by Pandit

Bhavadatta Sastri and Kashinath Pandurang Parab, Bombay,
1903.
 -37 <»

TTwmwft i
»nwciwrn i
. flji wrarIfr srwi %wrf^n i .;',
e#r f^*r goirw^r n V ii *
<$it mfo 3i#fqo w5#: i
m t&T®r wm^\ ar^ n % 11

. wn^rftl^TW frHr ii ^ it
3*o ssMfts? er *pffai wfW^ i :
#Mf^rr spwft II » n
$cr g£o *Rrcffa: s i;
wm# wif^r stm^ ii <\ ii
$t%sf$reiM #o Wtoi«jo §^>s^5; i
MrfsiI m ii % ii
gf^n wm^bi wrft gfr^nf^r i••■ •
%*r wm mmi n-» ll .
5T5TRt «frt 3 SSRlffa i
f#r grot ^ spr: II <f II
%$( ISt 5#%W 5|R^ ScWTO i
grRmf^tt SrfSft *g*n^o ll < n
*J. fqpr: 5^ ms: %?nft *jf^?T:.

■ t'- ». r
 - 36 -

mentions that his father PrakSsendra, son of Sindhu, was a man

of immense wealth and charity!

"Kasmiresvabhavat Sindhujanma candra ivlparah /

Prakasendrah sthira yasya prthvasya kirtikaumudi //
Sad a danardrahastena m ah at a bhadramurtina /
Sadhu kunmarita yena p rapt a kirtipatikina //"
— Ramayanamanjari, Colophon, Vs. 3-4.
_ _ ^ _43
2. (Maha) Bharat am anj ari: Though a voluminous book (of
851 printed pages) this is no better than an appendix to the
Mahabharata. Ksemendra very faithfully reproduced the Great
Epic of Vyisa. H ari yams a also has been included here. This was
a successful composition and Ksemendra himself assumed the title
'Vyasadasa* . In the colophon he mentions that he was the son of
Prakasendra. By this work he earned a high place among the poets
of the day, which is evident from the last verse of the Bharata-
m an-jar is
"Bsa Visnukathatlrthapunyavat saliloksitah /
Praptah s am any aj alp o1 p i Ksemendro'dya kavindratam //'*

Though a faithful summary of the Mahabharata. the work

lacks literary merit and poetic value. - This is full of obscure
passages. But the work is useful for the students of Sanskrit
literature. There are so many unimportant episodes and incidents
i
which, of course, helpB us in determining the exact condition of
the Great Epic in the 11th century. Chapters 342-353 of the
/_
Santi-Parva of the Great Epic are omitted.

43. JCavvamaia Ser'lea No, 28,

 -38 (c\) -

” ■ ‘ ^ 6 ,1^

V 1 ■■ ^MTOT.
s ■-.

■*nrrraraff i
-*XK*
I1' .
Jtnfrqf i -.
sf# I
w srartfawrar ^t'TFrerc ^ li { n ,
£V, ’’ 3*F # I
... 4,
<r- ■ .
I' '
■Hfcrflpft H \\.
-J|; ^ww gtor m sOTrftfc i
\* ,
tf mmVmn qf^R mkw n \ li
X1.
r, SRfcppiqfr I
*; i‘
, *.
* v ■«

\’\
mm w^ewc il ? H
sroiwi tnpf vn*r faajj i. ■
m\ «neR w:ufn m<\ li v li
% 3^'sf^KcRRHE# i .

IK li ■■•
<Wtc^lHfcr^(fltS*r wfw: i
.' m&i $m ^rrfcr m\s$ ^3w.. ii « n
' gW. *R#C%4 l •■■■;■ .
snf^t m fcwfftk^igprnrc: n <r n
1. 'fa'C 'i^T pHf'HJ! I tlfan <l'.|RRtS»£f »«H<WW((F
bi.'
tfq: u 3?t fwwii: g'4 ntHWMt crar^c u' K *rr<«q:. ..
 - 39 -

3. Vyasastaka; After the composition of the Bh ar at am an j ar i,

Ksemendra eulogized his favourite poet Vylsa. This consists of 8
verses and may he regarded as an appendix to his Bharataman.iarl.

_ _ _ 45
4. Brhatkathaman.1 arit This is a summary of the Brhatkatha
of Gunadhya, Suryakanta is of opinion that the Brhatkathamannari
determines the correct form of Gunadhya's Brhatkatha. The
original Brhatkatha is lost,but Ksemendra's book finds an echo
of the Brhatkatha. This was composed in 1037 A.D. (12th year
of the Laukika century).

The Brhatkathiman.iari is divided into 19 Lambakas (= chap­

ter depicting the victory of a hero). Upto the 5th lambaka,
Ksemendra has faithfully copied Gunadhya, but after that he widely
diverges. Because he tries to relieve his work of the barrenness
by adding elegant descriptions.
Lambaka 1 : Kathapitha introduces the legend of Gunadhya.
» : 2 s Glorification of Udayana.
" 3 % Udayana wins Padmavatl.
r
11 4 5 Saktivega comes to Udayana and relates how he
went to the city of Vidyadharas and won four
maidens.
5 j Naravahanadatta, the future emperor of the
Vidyadharas is born.
'i

6 : The legend of Suryaprabha.

4jf. Edited in the Kavyamala Series No.

45. Ibid., No. 69.
 Lamb aka 7 Kalingadatta, father of Kalingasena, wants
Udayana uo marry Suryaprabha. Udayana agrees,
but his minister Yaugandharayana objects and
Udayana promises to marry Kalihgasena's
daughter to Naravahanadatta.
f
ii
8 Episodical legend of Vela and her husband. The
legend ends with thd statement that Madana-
mancuka has been abducted by Manas avega.
" 9 Prince's espousal of Lalitalocaria and her dis­
appearance*
'• 10 Legends of Vikramaditya.
11 s The recovery of Lalitalocana.
H 12 j Gomukha tells the tale of Muktaphalaketu.
II 13 j The prince finds Madanamancuka with the help of
five Vidyadhara maidens, but again loses her and
marries the four maidens.
_ _y
II
14-16: The prince marries Ratnaprabha, Alarikaravati
and Saktiyasas .
II 17 : The prince obtains 7 jewels from sage Vamadeva
and kills Mandaradeva.
18 j Gopala and Palaka resign their tenure of king-
ship of Ujjayini# Avantivarman weds the heroine
and the two are protected against a jealous
Vidyadhara by the emperor.
19 : Conclusion.

46
5 Desopadesat This is the composition while Kaemendra
46 „ Edited by Pandit Madhusudan Kami Shastrl, Kashmir Series of
Texts and Studies, Wo.4o, 1923s published under the authority
of the Goverrsnent of His Highness Maharaja Sir Pratap Singh
Sahib Bahadur of Jammu and Kashmir State.
 - hoM-

'rv'fS

(sraw 3r#*r:)
to?* ito l
wfrt^toT! tm to ^ 11 X \\

smfci to I
^PT^T^f ^ROTIlto ;
• Rwrr^mM ^ $pft II ^ li
-v _— -. '.. -n «■*_____ , '. .\

h ; J
tor * % w.i ;;- j
<%to^'^'tof^f . . . -. |
to*to tot fpn^r it\ift • >. it
%$m *r mkH t j
w ^rapw: li ’# H j
■ri^T I . ..'. j
ms% ^i'to 5 ii % tf . |

<nvw. to li\ li

b*^«j
was still young. Here the author describes the customs and
notorious characters of the day. This, york has been edited by
Madhusudan Kaul Shastri and published by the Kashmir Besearch
Department.. This is divided into 8 Upadesas (= chapters):

Upadesa 1: ridicules the wicked man

" 2* describes the miser’s habits and life in general.
It forms a caricature.
describes a courtesan’s life and calls her a rest­
less dancing mechanical puppet, fitted with strings.
4; ridicules the bawds.
5* criticises the ’Vita* .
6% satire on the student from Gauda country in a
Kashmir University for his arrogance and bad
behaviour.
7s an old man’s marriage is’ laughed at in a vulgar
language.
t

8s criticises different types of people, viz. the

poet, the quack, the grammarian and so on.
_ _ 47
6. Narmamala; This is also Ksemendra's earliest attempts
on an original theme, which' is quite akin to the Dea'opadesa. This
also has been edited jointly with the Desopadesa by Madhusudan
Kaul Shastri, as mentioned above. This is divided irco 3
Parihasas (= jokes) dealing with the villainous Kayastha (other­
wise known as Ganja Divira and Niyogi) who is '‘the incarnation
of the home-account ant of the Daifyas’* and whose ambition is to
become a state-official. He finds pleasure in ruinirsg temples
and making the Brahmanas go on hunger strike. Ksemendra describes

47. Edited by Pandit Madhusudan Kaul Shastri, Kashmir Series of Texts

and Studies, No. bOt 1923. .

 — b J c°o ~

3W

I
(ir«w: «t%mt) . ii

ft 'JRRfrRt siffar^TTWH ’IT^rrj II ^ II

Hf^RrfRP^r *fl%T I

^R^Rf^riSa#?w i
^ Mforc^fafa^: ii 3 ii
w^wk 1
lull
!r-f
SRi II M II ;v
ft ^llRi I
w*Hft £<Mr#4warR; li $ n , !,
i r
p^wiwi w RRimftftft i

rtFr h*jto i,
Wlfwftft ft II < II
 - 42 - t

Kayastha's bad behaviour, evil practice of bribery as a state-

official, repulsive account of his private life, and so on. The
author criticises physicians, astrologers, Guru etc. The work
concludes with the tragic end of the Kayastha. He was arrested
and put into prison. He is released through the wickedness of
his sister-harlot. But his misfortunes multiply. All his
riches arid property are confiscated. At the colophon Ksemendra
calls himself Vy as ad as a (krtir vy as adasap aranam°,nah ksemendraayeti).

48
7. Suvrttatilaka; This is a work on metres.. Here the
author seems to have taken up vrttaucitya I .e. "propriety of
metres". The book is divided into three chapters or Vinyasas.
In the Chapter I (38 verses) 27 metres are defined and illustra­
ted. The illustrations of the metres came from the author’s own
pen. In the Chapter II (46 verses) merits and demerits as
regards metres are described. In the Chapter III (40 verses)
there is a discussion on the uses of metres in different contexts.
The Chapter II and III are valuable as they contain the names of
•a

many Sanskrit poets, and also as they discuss the particular

situations to use the particular metres. Suryakanta has trans­
lated the hook Suvrttatilaka (= Forehead-Mark of Fine Metres) into
English in his book Ksemendra Studies (pp. 173-205).

This work is primarily meant for students and aspirant

poets. Only 27 metres are discussed out of 183 in the Vrttsraxna-
Icara c»f Kedarahhatta and 280 in the Ch and omaniarl of Gargadasa.

48. Edited in the Kavyamala Series No.2 and Haridas Sanskrit

Series No. 26.
 — 4/2 (Ox) -

■ ;;^' ^enffr^r^l v^>-^ ■

' !-')•'■' ' JWfrfipqra: i ; '■> ^
:-

;;; • •^mf^i%^R:FTO505,g^>t;ii \ II .
i _ r- *\ .. *

wrw wrro «trito*t ^fm w % il ■••.

‘ 5n??9^tf*P?Rrc 1 ;ol ,

* II \ II' ;: ; ■
gftpair^f m«mn i !-;i- , ,;
. gprfwtf wsftf fm% g# li v n - . ■ ’,.;
fc'. qnr ERtft? f^mr#pn m* I !;. . :
4m il \ n.-vo
if *t qsto Jrtfirlmr i ::? ^.
il l'll -
f%r» i ' - .'
f$n?fj ii v© it
nwi *rc*rr ^wiff ^%crri l •
t*fr sg&frRissr wzm w * il> (w)

''• w# ^f^lgTTOTW% II ^ H ■
1 ,5
ftim, %> ss swpn i i wc, i ^ i mw,, 11« «w, i i.y. ,
^rw, I s s *jip>rs, s I s w:, s s r m, 5% fFtwq% . • -
 - 43 -

Ksemendra’s contribution here lies in the fact that he has tried

to fix the usage of each metre and has also attempted to bring
out clearly the excellences and blemishesjof each Chandas. His
observations are scientific and based on experience. This is
clear from the examples he gives. He was quite efficient in
pointing out the defects in metre of any verse composed by any
poeti Further lie could detect whether a metre; has been used in
the right place or not. The result is that his contribution is
49
genuine and remarkable.

The Suvrbtatilaka is important from another point of view.

Here Ksemendra defines the form of poetry. To him form was as
important as the sense; metres are ornaments’ of poetry. From this
ye can have an idea of Ksemendra »s notions about language and
style, which would indicate.that it was written before his
Aucityavicaracarca.

8. Kavikanth abharana;^0 in the words of Suryakanta: ^ "In his

Kavikanth abharana (which may be rightly called Kavisiksa) besides

discussing possibilities of becoming a poet, of borrowing and
adopting from masters of poetic art, the poetic charm and its
illustration in its ten aspects, merits and demerits with regard
to sense, sound and sentiment, Ksemendra gives a hundred pieces
of sound advice to the budding poet. Eminent writers on Sanskrit

49. Suryakanta, on . cit.. pp . 4o-41 .

50. Edited in the Kavyamala Series No* 4 and Haridas Sanskrit
Series No. 24.
51. Op. cit., Introduction, p. 1.
poetics like Dandin, Eudrata, Vamana, Vagbhata, Eajasekhara,
Bhoja and Hemacandra have developed this subject in their
treatises, but Ksemendra appears to be quite original in his
treatment."

The work is important both for its form and matter. ■ Prom
the huge examples cited in the work from different authors, we can
have some idea about the lower date of Ksemendra and others.
»

Ksemendra wants to train up the budding poet in an entirely

new method, of which five successive stages are marked*
"Tatrakaveh kavitvaptib siksa praptagirah kaveh /
Oamatkrtis ca siksaptau gunadosodgatis tat ah /
Pascat paricayapraptir ityete panca sandhayah //" {.e.

(a) acquisition of the art of poetry, (b) learning and practice,

(c) aim at poetical charm, (d) discrimination between merits and
demerits, and (e) lastly, attainment of ease and familiarity.
Each of these stages is dealt with in separate chapters. The
chapters are named as Sandhis . The five chapters (= Sandhis) of
the book are as follows*

(i) Sandhi Is Both divine and human efforts are required for
becoming a poet.
(ii) Sandhi lit Deals with the training of the poet. One
hundred pieces of sound advice given to train up a student of
poetry both physically and pS3rehieally.

(iii) Sandhi III* Discusses how a poet can compose striking and
brilliant poems. Ten classes of 'camatkara* explained.
 - 45 -

(iY) Sandhi 17; Treats of the merits and demerits of poetry.

(v) Sandhi V: Enumerates the different sciences in which the
poet should he well-versed in order to write good poetry.

Suryakanta has translated the Kavikanthabharana

^* • ■■■■■ I—-■ ............... • mmm
(~
^
Neck-
lace for poets) into English in his hook Ksemendra Studies (pp.
92-117).

9* Aucityavicaracarea* This has been published in the Kavya-

52
mala Series No. 1 and also in the H arid as Sanskrit Series No.25.
Suryakanta has translated this work giving itB English ritle as
"A Critical Discourse on the Theory of Propriety" and published
in his Ksemendra Studies (pp. 118-172).

The Aucityavicaracarca is a treatise on literary criticism.

It declares propriety (= aucitya) as the soul of poetry., which is
si;sti.:ired by means of Rasa or flavour. Ksemendra mentions 28
places where propriety should be observed by a poet. Each of the
28 places has been defined by a Karika which has' been followed by
a discussion. In every case two illustrations have been cited,
one gshowing propriety and the other showing impropriety. For
example in Karika 15, Ksemendra says: ”A poem becomes bright with
a figure of speech (e.g. simile, metaphor etc.) which has a
propriety of meaning, just as a fawn-eyed lady looks beautiful
with a necklace hanging on her vell-developed bosdm." He quotes
from Sri Harsa's verse as an example of propriety*

•Here comes to witness his great festival, the ever-

longing lord of the Yatsas, who has stopped all talk

52. Edited by Mahamahopadhyaya Pandit Durgaprasad and Kasinath

Pandurang Parab, Bombay, 1929-
 || l\\ \f
?TTOro 5^'#^ i a -'K
^ wimqfii r \\* )!)\^/iJJ
\
ftm i^sv|^T ii 3 u (pr«o
m ftfWrft ?r ^ 11. g 11
3i^ra^#OT *m ^ *ott: m 1

%s^r ^M^uff: %^ *FTM3I%sft g?RM-

slteifc?™ vm%m: 1
1 ^i5^, ^ fqrrr^r jpn^i^wri^
I ft#K^raj #r wr^ffi s#^ qj|pf-
5Rsfei?ta ^rsftfoj fwfSns#: 1
-. .,«? ^ r^ ~\ ... . '
sgjprw nsnjtt?;—

fo?r w&t gwr 30m IK II

irfec%%—(i)8m<mK:, (^) 5fHft^,(^) gfowftwterr, (•*) sfercef*

xm, (h) fownft. «pt ^ fttewra:’ jf*mw
.fef?^, ?n^fi «cfWNHt ^r fan,
«m^n»nRfi n^raPf: srafacrwjf: S^-

i__
 - 46 -

about war, is of erotic mind, and has won the hearts of

his people; and thu3 he (the Lord of Vatsas) imitates
Love, that flower-bowed god, with no more talk of his
body going about, accompanied by his wife Rati, living
in the hearts of men, and dear to his friend spring,
and arriving to attend his own festival.'
Here, the suitable comparison of the Lord of Vatsa with the
flower-bowed god reveals through propriety an indescribable
j.

charm- to the mind especially in the love context.

Again as an example of impropriety, in this case, he

quotes from Rajasekhara's verses ^
1 i

’The moon is the circular funeral, pyre of the dead

body of the flower-bowed god. The dark spots in it
resemble the black charcoal; and since with its
light, it looks like camphor slightly cut, (it
seems as if) the ashes are blowing in all directions
being scattered by wind.'

Here, as the comparison of the moon, lovely on account of raining

down delightful nectar, with a funeral pyre, is improper; it is
unwelcome to the-ears and rouses a sense of awe. A statement,
free from all impropriety, and agreeable to the heart, develops
beauty of the figures of speech all the more.

From the above examples, it is clear, that as regards the

theory of propriety in poetry, Ksemendra'.s notions are revolu-
f

tionary and based on deep thinking. He is the last person to

follow the sayings of his predecessors blindly. Like a true and
dispassionate critic and like one desiring really beautiful poetry
from the pens of the poets^ he puts forward his own views, and

*
 - 47 -

does not hesitate even to criticise the great poets like Kalidasa,
Bhavabhuti, and the like. He finds fault with his own verses too,
and criticises even Bhattenduraja, the preceptor of his teacher
Abhinavagupta.
.4 •

In the cc&ophon Ksemendra mentions that his father was

PraKasendra.

- 53
10. Dasavataracarita; This work deals with the Avataras
(= incarnations) of Yisnu. Here Buddha also has been included
in the list of Avataras . Ksemendra was the first religious bene­
factor to accept the Buddha as the incarnation of Yisnu, his
intention being to bring ^reconciliation between Hinduism and
Buddhism. He tries to show that.Buddhism is a part of Hinduism,
and that Buddhism had developed so much that it superseded even
Brahmanism. There had been constant rivalries between the
t

Buddhist monks and the Brahmanas. Ksemendra tried to put ah end

to these rivalries by accepting the Buddha as an incarnation of
the Hindu Supreme God Visrn. This is an instance of Ksemendra*s
religious tolerance. But most probably Buddha was being worship­
ped in India long before Ksemendra’s birth. Buddha was a popular
figure as an incarnation of Yisnu. Ksemendra just gave a poetic
expression to this popular concept. Poet Jayadeva was inspired
by Ksemendra's expression.

The Dasavatara, however, is not an independent composi­

tion. Excepting the Buddhavatara (composed in 74 verses), the
r
53. Edited in Kavyamala Series No. 26,' edited by Pandit Durga-
nrasad and K.aainath Panda rang Parab, Bombay, 1891.
 ~ h7 ^ 0 -

q, :/o/ r' ..\ty?!ia

^ir^R^fCrfln[ l

JTc^tm^rr. -i
artlrq^'fllN^Fir?^qr w i
. HFTPT^I^Ff n V ii, .»

r;.t
. ifr: 'W^RTf^WreFH^T: ff iFtf-
sig^FTO ’wrr .TOfo 3^: ^qpfs#f,
i
I'.1 .' iw! ^ swfaswBt w>t :'. . 1 ,. |
I . ^Tfc^r: ^ ptp: tffrflRT =* ■1':: |
i'-;.^^. :f!llft^: H 5TO^: :miy}rf#ll: I.> :,
TO ^ II .VII-4 V ... 1"'/ "i. ’t?T,'\ ’ '.5
tjrk ^:*(M«",iRr’
'":f',",'jr1\ si ■'^TrrarffS' ^ jt*T:* rrnrnrcrarTxr
wrofei I
11« II ;
w;-R ..<;■:
fr-' ■ i- mi ^ 1" •' :,i
p WWM'TfWf 11 * H - :
' jG-V, ,i. towiw ^sm^wwfTOififtTii. nsr gwna# tfrasr a-
f ;: ®t®r a;tfrcfairatft?t staff yaawfwaaftajSTO^ fart nrocrw-:
i?,;; • datpw^4aNci$: $aaral?ctJi. ffyfaatf srwnjftf&M vv
rp‘ a*par wnfro.. fetor spm^sfcf ^ <mcsatsr-wk. jct-;
' . . aija wrcwgifc; qrtflwircrarfeRl: ^%><j#srac; af^a;. ?rsr.
,.-■ aas M a«Tfrw stfa 'fcftt cc awrwi''OTTtfr-fafa5fctf
. ssfrr aifHft: *r 'sr-s*rn. t^g^^a^a^gCTrarTfrt sfwr%r.
1^; ;^; 'stofc’•*!,•;3. *3fw afarr’,^., v. ‘g^cwrV r.' *v ‘a^fTstsfael-
.Ifev'#:1 n?fr fe^swftfci' iti %:, 'TOfiV tt.’ *. 'arfflfm# ^ .*«$*&
faia^’ jstj < >ralr’ %%/ •:?; .' : /,

ii ’
,» ■ . .fl 1 Vi*' f»*^•', 1
 - 48 -
i

subject-matter of the other incarnations is taken from the old

Puranas. 'In the, chapter dealing with the Ram avatar a. the whole
of the Ramavana has been narrated with Havana as the central
figure. The vivid description shows Ksemendra's maturity of
conception and unique style.' In the colophon of the bool
Ksemendra writes that he composed this Das av at arac ar it a during
the reign of Kalasa (son of king Anantadeva and father of
Harsadeva) in the Laukika year 41 or 1o66 a.D* while he was
/
enjoying a retired life on the top of the Tripuresa mountain
where he breathed his last.

54 ?
11. Kalavilasa: This work is regarded as the best produc­
tion of Ksemendra. This consists of 1o cantos as follows:
Canto I: Introduces the cheat Muladeva and his pupil
Candragupta. Threefold arrogance has been described as crane­
like, tortoise-like, and cat-like, of which the cat-like arro­
gance pervades a,ll creations..

Canto II; Origin of greed found in trades mostly, ..as

is of opinion,. < '

Canto III: Describes the pitiable condition of love-affairs

* . Canto IV: Depicts intimate knowledge of the ways and habits

of courtesans. Deceitful character of courtesans is exposed. This
will prove that being the son of a fabulously rich father,
"Ksemendra was given to youthful luxuries and possessed a charac­
ter *far from honourable.

Canto V; The unscrupulous character of the Kayasthas, the

royal employees,has been exposed'with a tone of satire.

54. Edited in the KSvyamala Seriefe No.1, Bombay, 19^9.

 - A-9.M-

*rafr«itfrs: w^t 11

■ «& stefa 5J5J3 $T>$i mm$z%: i

it wn #-#:^ , .
§w> «bJ *ra!?r *r<it %# ti n
rsfmi ^WS^D3f^f5orfer^f^ft'
5^jr w$ *rr w<^$Rr: l
siarerfo g*irfi qpf^ie^ sfan5*
qfcfofar: iw&rawj qmfeaf; wt il *\ |i
ft fft: i%3 wzh &% ft
^ . ^ *CS L 1. -J^V r-. ! Lr J-J 5^-tf-r-^ i

3^ qratfct ^s4
■) ot^^^s^T^tqrir: QJffq: II vs? II

s^iRwift spRfarcr m^t mit i , '

er#^ u ^3i^M?iRr ft Ri^fu s '
jiser! wfam ^fftsw w%m m il saH u
SfcT ^fSFF^: Wf: I

•rsrcfti sgew, srals^r s^-

J
 Canto VI; Denounces Mada <= pride) and divides Mdda

into 14 illmarked divisions. There is a-grand description of. a

(irurikard who cannot differentiate between good add had, gold ak^d

silver} thus though an ascetic, the drunkard goes to hell. \

Canto VII: Describes that bards and singers deprive

people of their wealth by uttering just a few tunes. There is

-

also a legendary origin of music. ;

Canto VIII: This is a satire on goldsmiths, who possess

64 arts — 6 of hissing, v12 of movements, 11 of thinking new ways

of deception, 5 of weight., and so on. The poet narrates humorous

■story that the mice that undermined the Mt. Meru v/ere cursed by

gods, to be born in the world as goldsmiths.

Canto IX-X; These two cantos serve as advice to young

men, and indicate the means by which one can avoid falling into

evil ways.

In the Kalavilaaa, the poet criticises ascetics, doctors, astro­

logers, singers, goldsmiths, merchants, actors and indeed the

whole society.

55 _ _
12. ■ Samayamatrka; Like the Kalavilaaa, the Samayam'atrka is

didactic in character and . of Esemendra,s finest compositions.

This deals with the life of courtesans,, an elegant description

how . L&rivatl becomes a prostitute. The book is divided into 8

\ ■ i

chapters called Sam ay as as follows:

Samaya I: A barber named Karika meets the heroine Kalavati

Samaya IIs Kdrika gives information about bawds in Kashmir

55 • ' KSyyamala Sexiea No. 10.

 town

{falto fto^tototo
^ ^T ^ >T!#Bm <pr: I] \\V II •
flijto sgibr ^'tor gSt: i
tow ^toto sfiqf h ^ to1* I! US il
fa^rtoTfl^nr j^mrtorfto; i
?j? i%frg Hftfsf: li \\% it
Cfa f^qrflBren^w^pna>ir^s:^fq'fcTr ^fqeirg; pm; i

WIT 1
hmth:
• Wntol~c^T: flTOT ^TT^fcT: 11 \ II
m% g^f' s^^torPtom i
•. m- %f£ ^TT^r^rqxkijqrmr nu 11

cMFf t^fT tmmi 11 ^ 11

*f i-MRT tot toR^ I
*rP#i m> I! 8 II
to srstoct f*fe?Rfi%R3 i
gfr to topto
5f to: il s il to
%rto ntor =nr ^fnr to* to: i'.
srwfatoto to w ^rifto IK H
to^tow W?toFJ^W4: I ■
1,’tu'q (ii'l'll'iHjI tiki*!.:. s^n;. \, \lcil -ii-i yf-n, arfrti k,.lf,K1’if
mfcRcfssrfq ?cssqr.
 50 -

Samaya Ills Describes the incidents that take place in

'prostituere1 in the evening..
Saciaya IV: The bawd meets Kalavati and gives her ins-
, tructions about the works of prostitutes.
Samaya V s Divides lovers in 80 classes and mentions
23 ways in which a lover, having no money,
>, ‘ can be got rid of. ' '
Samaya VI: Describes the morning scene in 'prostituere ’.
Samayas VII-VIII: The heroine Kalavati at Tast gets hold
,of a young fool and his parents.
This was composed in 1050 A.D.

_ —■ ^ 5(5
13. C aruc ary a Cs at aka} ; This has been composed in 100 verses
in Anustubh metre, to teach law and polity and also to prescribe .
the rules of conduct. The pattern followed in the book as
— >■

follows: the first line of every verse is a moral aphorism,

while the second line is an illustration of the truth embedded
in the first line. All the illustrations are mainly drawn and
cited from the Bam ay ana V the Mahabharata and the Pur anas.
/ I

Sarat Chandra Das has translated the book into Bengali

where he comments that the Carucarya s'at aka may be regarded as

propagating the morals of the very ancient form of Hinduism.

<

57
14. Caturvargasamgraha; This is one of Ksemendra's didactic
composition, describing the four ends of human life, viz. morality
(” dbartiia), practical life (= artha), lovk {= kama) and release

56. This has been edited in the Kavyamala Series No. 2.

57. Ibid.. Series No. 5, 2nd edition, 1937.
 - ^60-

^tn^:

■-^RjRjrwW '
1%t Vwg w tr vt ir

wwr srir *Rftr %

. m*$ $mr% it ?o» U
*R w . •

^ qsft fr^ wraf^f :

5 ’ sfew h ? o {ii
S[Rr ^■^t.*i^ifl4wf<fr qsRmt ^(?ftRr«6^ i
.r

.Lrf.,. rv rtA^ t-_r■„ -tv.

t
•im?n nrftr^; I ‘

■; 4 i'­
*[$: s^R®** mm II ? II

ll. -^rsmw^ ^r-tr-'f«HHi>^%.

>
 51

(= moksa) which fozm the four tiltimates of the Bhagavadg.ita* In

the introduction Ksemendra mentions that he has composed this
text ty his. own slokas to give instructions -to the pupils and to
give pleasure; to the wises
"upadesaya sisyanam samtosaya manisiriam /
ksemendrena nijjaslokaih kriyate vargasamgrahah //"

„
15 . Sevyasevakopadesa:
/ 58 - ,
This consists of 61 slokas aiming at

issuing instructions for servants (= sevaka) and their masters

(= sevya), and seeking to tetter their relations. This reminds
us of the Buddha's advice to the householder Singala in the
Singalovadasutta of the Pali Dighanikaya.

16. Nitikalpataru: This is a commentary on a treatise of

*

polity ty Mahakavi Vyasa.

59
17. Darpadalana: Here the poet narrates his reflections on
the world and its vanities. There is sharpness toned up with
good humour and realism. His ridicule of the hards, singers,
goldsmiths, quacks, astrologers and vendors of patent medicines
is frequent and poignant. The took is intended to show the folly
of pride (= darpa).

This is a quite long poem consisting of 7 chapters called

Vicaras, as follows:

Yicara I; Ksemendra asserts 7. causes of pride, viz;. high

'* tirth, wealth, learning, beauty, valour, muni­
ficence' and austerities.,,

58. *Kavyamala Series No, 2. ;

>

59. Edited in the Kavyamala Series No.6; Edited ty Pandit Durga-

prasad and Kasinath Pandurang Parat, Bombay, I960*
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 - 52 -

Vicara II-VII; Each chapter begins vith the general cause

of each pride and then illustrates them
with interesting stories in which the
■ pride of the hero has a fall. '

The Darpadalana is a masterpiece of the satirical lite­

rature in Sanskrit.

18. Lokaprakasa-Kosa:
/ This is a dictionary (= Kosagrantha) of
T
Ksemendra dealing with.the daily life of the Hindus which are not
found elsev/here. Two Ms. of the book have been discovered, one
by Weber and the other by Buhier, but as they are fragmentary
and in very bad condition the work has not been published. There
are also doubts about the authorship of the book. Madhusudan Kaul
and Weber do not consider it to be the work of Ksemendra. But
Buhier confirms that the book is from the pen of Ksemendra
Vyasadasa. Buhier writes; "This work gives a great amount of
information on the daily life of the Hindus which elsewhere we
seek in vain. He gives forms of hundia or letters o!f exchange
bonds, and the like, the titles of most of the Kashmirian officials,
(

in some cases with explanations, a list of the: paraganas into

which Kashmir was divided. The importance of such an information
cannot be over-rated, as all the Kosakaras live too high in the
t_
clouds of the Sastras and poetry to care about such trivial
matters as the geography, administration, commerce of the country,
6o
etc. etc."

19 • Avadanakalpalata (Bauddhayadanakalp alata = Bauddhavadana-

latika - Bauddhavadanalata = Kalpalatika = Bodh 1 s attvavadana-
6o. Quoted by Suryakanta in his book op. cit.. pp .25 and 41-42.
 - 53 -

kalpalata) •

20. Nrpavali: This is a chronicle of the kings of Kashmir.

Unfortunately the work is r.ot available. Kalhana mentions the
name of Nrp avail of Ksemendra in his Rajatarangini and comments
that Ksemendra has very carelessly composed the chronicle. This
was otherwise known as Raj avali and it was composed in: verse.

Besides the works mentioned above, many other works of

.Ksemendra are known by name only. Works mentioned in the
Kavikanthabharana are:
1 /‘ f
Sasivamssmahakavya (under Sandhi III, verse 2).
b. P adyakadamb ari (- Do -)
c. Citrabhar at anataka (- Do -)
i *

d. Lavanyavati (- Do -)
e. Kanaka j anakl' (- Do -) , '
f. Muktavali (under Sandhi V, verse 1).
and g. Amrt at ar ang a-m ah ak avy a (-Do-)

Works mentioned in the Aucityavicara are;

a. Vinayavalli (under verse 12)

b. Munim at amim am a a (under verse 16 etc.)
c. Nitilata (- Do -)
d. Avasarasara (under verse 2o).
e. Lalitaratnamala (under verse 21)
f. Kavikarnika
*

and g. Vatsyayanasutrasar a (under verse 39).

Work; mentioned in the Suvrttatilaka is*

a. Ravanapancasika (under verse 22).
 - 5^ -

Ksemendra*s literary style;

*“ 4 , '

It is very difficult to riiakd piop'er assessment of

Ksemendra's literary style. His style is sometimes very simple

/ t — —
as in the cases' of Desopadesa. Narmamala etc., and again it is

very terse as in the cases of Suvrttatilaka, Aucityavicaracarca

and Kavikant h abharana. About the style what he considers to be.

ideal, he clearly mentions in his Kavik anth abh ar ana and Aucitya-
r

vicaracarca. But that does not mean that Ksemendra himself

could follow the ideal style in eCll his works. ■ As he finds

faults in the verses of Kalidasa, Bhavabhuti and others,

Ksemendra criticises his own verses, in many instances.

i 1
•W* — - ^^

The study of the Ramayana and the Mahabharata in his youth

left an indelible impression on Ksemendra and he, therefore, tried

his best to imitate the epic style. His style appears to follow

the Vaidarbhi style which has been characterised by Dandin;

/ _ __ _
"Slesah prasadah samata madhuryam sukumarata /

Arthavyaktir udaratvam ojah kanti-samadhayah //n

— Kavyadaraa, I. 41.

Ksemendra's style is replete with the above-mentioned ten

excellences or Gunas of; the Yaidarbhi style. He had a rich

A
vocabulary in his possession and he had the ability to use the

right word at the right moment. His description of Gautama

'———2---------- — ---------- Z- \
seeing the dead body ready to burn in the Av adanak alp al at a 1
(Story No- 24) is a masterpiece of narration. Ksemendra’s taste

in the use of wit and humour is commendable . His humour springs

out of satire. He had an intention to. bring moral reformation

 - 55 -

in the society. He had a sharp eye to see the loopholes of the

society. He tried to remove them by criticising them with satire

A"
or sarcastic ridicule of men and manners. So his satire is

constructive-. He suggests means of reform. This is evident

from his Kalavilasa (Canto X).

Ksemendra used very simple figures of speech, viz. simile,

metaphor, pun and alliterations; but he used numerous' metres. , His

favourite metres were Sloka, Anustup and, qardulavikrjdita.

'

Ksemendra'a contribution to Sanskrit Literature;

*

Ksemendra was a versatile genius, a polymath. As a poet,

* •>?

dramatist, rhetorician, lexicographer and historian he occupies

an unparallel position in the history of Sanskrit literature. In

bis works, Ksemendra displays a depth and originality peculiarly

his own. Almost every important branch of Sanskrit literature

has been enriched 'by the facile pen of his versatile genius*.

He'was quite popular even In hid youth for. his epitomes of the

epics and the Brhatkatha of Gunadhya. For providing moral teach­

ings, his Came ary as at aka, Caturvargasamgraha and Se vy as e yak op a-

des'a deserve attention of the moralists. His real contribution

to didactic literature Is found in his works of satire, viz.

Desopadesa. Harm am ala, Darpadalana, Samayamatrka and Kalavilasa.

His Avadanakalpalata is of great importance as Ksemendra has

gathered together the important Jataka-stories and narrated them

here in verse. In the words of Suryakanta; "It was a very arduous

task and only a man of Ksemendra's untiring industry could attempt

61 _
it." His Dasavataracarita is a great evidence of his religious

61. Op . cit., p. 36
 - 56 -

tolerance, by which he tried to reconcile the two rival parties

of the day — the Buddhists and the Brahmanas.^ -His Kavikantha-
bharana is unique for his course of training a budding poet.
Prom his Aucltyavicaracarca one can imagine how comprehensive
and practical his Theory of Aucitya is. Criticism for the
Sanskrit poetry ought to have been recast in the light of this
theory. His Suvrttatilaka is an important contribution to the
science of-metrics. Here some rare features of metres are i-

brought out and discussed. His Nrpavail .or Ra.iavali throws a

flood of light on contemporary India in general and on Kashmir
in particular. Ksemendra's contribution to Sanskrit literature
is, therefore, considerable, varied and important. He widened
the scope of nearly every branch of Sanskrit literature.

I. Date and place of composition of the books

The Bodhisat t vhvad.an.a-kalpalat a was composed by Ksemendra,

the court-poet of the KAshmirian king Ananta who ruled between
1028-1063 (or 1o29-1o64). According to Somendra, son of Ksemendra,
his father has finished the composition of the Kalpalatika i.e.
Bodhisattvavadana-kalpalata in the 27th.Laukika year i.e. 1052
r** " *---------------------------- —--------------——" 1 "T r—
A.D. on the Pull moon day of Vaisakha when the Buddha's birthday
62
was.being observed in a great festival.

62. "Samvatsare saptavimse Vaisakhasya sitodaye /

Krteyam Kalpalatika Jlnajanoia-mahotsave //" — Verse No.16,
Somendra*s introduction, to the
Bodhis attvavadana-kalp alata.
 - 57 -

It is,true that Ksemendra has not left any biographical

account of himself. But at the colophons to the various works
he has mentioned the name of the king under yhose ruling period
he has completed his particular work. In his case king Ananta
was the sovereign of Kashmir when Ksemendra composed most of
his works.,. Only his last work, i.e. Dasavataracaritam was com­
pleted during the reign of king ICalasa, son and successor of
63
king Ananta, in the Laukika year 41 i.e. 1066 A.D. He has
given also the Laukika era in which each of the works was
finished. The Laukika era starts on 1025 a.D#

Conclusion:

It is a fact that Ksemendra has not left any regular

biographical account of himself. But the concluding verses of
his works are infoimative. There he has given the date (iri
Laukika era) and the name of'the king ,of Kashmir under whose
reign .:e has completed a particular work. There is, however,
one difficulty that the centuries are not mentioned. In this
regard, Kalhana's .Rauiatarahginl helps us bearing evidence that
the Laukika eya begins in 1g25 A.Eh Some more informations
r

could be gathered about Ksemendra's date, genealogy, private

life, religion and identity from Somendra's introduction to his
father*s work Bodhisattvavadana-kalpalata as well as from
Kalhana's RanataranginlThe period of his literary activity

63. "Ekadhike *bde vihitaicatvarimse sakartike /

Raj ye Kalaiabhubhartuh Kasmlresvacyutastavah //"
— Das ava.t arac arit am. Colophon, verse 5 .
64. Kalhana was a historian of Kashmir in the 12th century.
 • • ’■ ■ T ' • ' .

r 58 -

* ,

fallB roughly "between 1037 and 1o66 A.D. The Brhatkathamafc]arl

*1 t* ' M

was his first work, composed in 1037. A.DV,While the Dasayatara-

carita was his last work, composed in 1o66 a.D. He was horn
.6 . •

roughly between 990-1010 A.D. apd died at abopt 1070 AfD.

About 42 works are ascribed; to Ksemendra of which some

have been published, some are still in manuscripts and some are
yet to be discovered. Ksemendra is a known figure^* among the
Sanskritists • But his works are not widely studied And save
and ekcept Kavikanthabharana. Auoityavicaracarca and Suvrtta-
tjlaka. no critical edition of his works has yet been done.
*
Nevertheless credit goes to Pandurahg JawajI, proprietor of the
■ - t i,-
"Nirnaya Sagar" Press, Bombay, who has most generously included
“ h
about 15 of Ksemendra^ works in his Kavvamdla Series at the
beginning of the loth century. Others who deserve mention for1'
publishing some works of Ksemendra are the proprietors of the
/ • *■
Bibliotheca Indica. Calcutta, Harldas Samskrta Granthamala (also
1, / .
known as the Chowkhamba Sanskrit Series), Poona Oriental Series.
... t -r-

Kashmir Series of Texts and Studies and the The Mlthlla Institute.
Darbhanga.1 *

Ksemdndra's works deal with diverse subjects and provide'

rich material for study from the religious, sociological, literary
and other points of view. His vocabulary was rich. He was a
master in using the right word at the right moment as a result of
which he was at his best when describing something. In his.works
a curious, modernity is noticed. His wit and humour arejof high
taste and originality. Ee had his intension to bring moral

5>
 , - 59

reform in the .society and so he used satire i.e. sarcastic

ridicule of men and manners.. In the words of Suryakanta:
"Ksemendra is far from beirg a misanthrope;* he, in fact, is a
• ‘ i*

benefactor of human society. His satire is, therefore, construc­

tive. He does not believe in just condemning a class; on the
65
other hand, he suggests means of reform.,,

In the history of Sanskrit literature Ksemendra is famous

not only as a poet but also as a great critic of poetry. He has
' A

written four books on literary criticism,’ viz. the Kavikantha-

• " * i\

bharana. the Kavikamika. the Aucityavicaracarca and the Suvrtta-

tilaka, of which the Kavikamika. is not available. He lays down
a course of training for the budding poets, whether a professional
or an amateur. According to him, a poet must keep himself healthy,
)

both physically and mentally, because there is a relation between

the mindf the body and the practice in writing poetry. He
propounds his theory of Aucitya (^^propriety) which, • according
to him, pervades every limb of the body of poetry — the word,
the sentence, the purport of the piece, the merit of excellence
(= guna), the figure of Speech (- alamkara). the sentiment,
the verb, the gender, number and case, the adjective, preposition,
particle, the time, place, lineage, vow, truth,, substance, opinion,
character, collecting the essential, genius or inspiration,enquiry,
name and wish — in every one of these limbs of poetry (= Kavya-
sarira) does Aucitya i asvi^s aoul?;.pervade. andperaeate:; It may be
Imagined :bow- practical and - opaprehe na ive la the Aucitya theory of Koemehdra.
Suryakanta is'of opinion that Sanskrit criticism ought to hare been recast
ih-the light of this' -tbeory, but oa we are'a conservative race and do not

65. Suryakanta, op. cit.. p. 31.

 - 60 -

like sudden changes, Aucitya was .not considered of supreme

i' . ■ £■ ^ ’ i,

consideration in poetry.0 i. " ' (

t ‘ f

' 1 , . ’ r/
Ksemendra was a religious benef actor too1. What he attempted
for this was carried on by Nanak and Kabir after some centuries.
s . ,
He was not happy seeing the constant rivalry between the Buddhist
monks and the Hindu Brahmanas, and he tried to reconcile the
two parties.' He wanted to show that the Hindus and the Buddhists
are the brothers and they are the offsprings of the same mother
\

India. The devices he adopted for theireconciliation between the

two are unique in character. Being a non^Buddhist he composed
such a voluminous treatise, on the Buddhist fables; and at the
just and of his life he composed his Daiavataracarita in which
he included Buddha as /the ninth Avatara (= incarnation) of Visnu **
and gave a full biography of Buddha. For this sort of religious .
tolerance and sympathy for the religions, which had their' origin
in Indian soil, will make Ksemendra immortal iri the history of
human civilization. '
’ , • .
^ ; %

-............... I---- 7.............. ■*"* i ‘

66• Op• cit ♦ | p• 4o* *

v
67. He describes Buddha as Hari and Vi4vagu.ru:
"Mayabhidhana narariathapatnl
garbhe Harim vi4vagurum vahantI'«.-» Buddhavatara,
Verse 3.