Vidyakara

Vidyakara (c. 1050–1130)[1] was a Buddhist scholar and poetry anthologist, noted for the Sanskrit poetry compilation Subhashita-ratna-kosha (IAST: Subhāṣitaratnakoṣa), which has been considered the "most celebrated" anthology of Sanskrit verse.[2] Most of the verses, where authorship is noted, range over the two centuries prior to compilation; hence it may be thought of as a compilation of "modern verse" for the period.

Little is known about Vidyakara himself. D. D. Kosambi has argued compellingly that Vidyakara was a senior monk at the Jagaddala Vihara monastery in North Bengal, based on evidence including markings on the palm-leaf manuscript of an earlier edition of the work, claimed to be Vidyakara's original, of what may have been shelfmarks from the library in Jagaddala.

Subhashitaratnakosha

Two different versions of Subhashita-ratna-kosha ("Treasury of Well-Turned Verse") exist. The manuscripts were lost in Bengal during the Islamic period. Late in the 19th century, a palm leaf manuscript was located in Ngor monastery in Tibet. This is now considered to be the first edition, compiled in the later years of the 1090s. Kosambi has argued that this manuscript may even be the original of Vidyakara, and that it constitutes the first edition of the compilation. Vidyakara's first edition was published by F. W. Thomas in 1912 under the title Kavindra Vachana Samucchaya. Some of the verses in the palm leaf contain some additional annotations, and Kosambi has argued for these being shelfmarks, possibly from the library at Jagaddala, where Vidyakara may have done the research to locate the verses.

A second manuscript, in paper, was located in the private collection of the Nepalese rajaguru (royal priest), Pundit Hemaraja. This is believed to be the second edition, compiled by no later than 1130. A second version, with 1,732 poems, was located later in a paper manuscript in Ngor monastery in Tibet. The first version is considered to be an earlier edition of the final compilation; it is felt that Vidyakara may have devoted many years to creating this compilation. The definitive text of this second edition was edited by D. D. Kosambi and V. V. Gokhale, as Volume 42 of the Harvard Oriental Series in 1957.[3] Kosambi prepared a long introduction regarding the provenance of the collection, though he critiqued the poetry as being inferior, having come from a stagnant period without class struggle.[1]

Daniel Ingalls translated the verses into English over six years,[4] with suggestions from Kosambi and Gokhale.[5] The translation was published as Volume 44 of the Harvard Oriental Series in 1965.[4]

Poets

Many of the authors in the Subhashitaratnakosha are not identified. Of the 275 identified names, only eleven seem to be earlier than the 7th century.[6] Based on other sources, Ingalls' translation includes the names of several authors, both confirmed and probable, not named by Vidyakara.[4]

Thus, the selection has a distinctly modernist tenor. Though the most popular are well-known poets from recent centuries: Rajashekhara, Murari, and Bhavabhuti. Many of the favoured authors - Vallana, Yogeshvara, Vasukalpa, Manovinoda, Abhinanda were all Bengalis or at least easterners of the Pala kingdom, the core of which comprised Bengal and Bihar. These authors are all more or less contemporaneous or just preceding Vidyakara. Among the less frequently quoted authors are many Pala princes of state and church whose verses are not found in any other extant work. Among them are Dharmapala, Rajyapala, Buddhakaragupta, Khipaka, and Jnanashri. Though Vidyakara quotes verses of classical authors like Kalidasa, Rajashekhara, and Bhavabhuti, according to Ingalls, he shows a "special predilection for eastern or Bengali poets".[7]

Some of these authors were contemporaries of Vidyakara, and it is possible he may have known them. In addition to the Jagaddala Vihara, he is certain to have had access to the libraries at the five major viharas across Eastern India, since there was considerable mobility among scholars between these state-managed campuses.

The most frequently quoted authors in the text are:[6]

Poet Approximate period (CE) Number of stanzas
Rajashekhara 900 101
Murari 800-900 56
Bhavabhuti 725 47
Vallana 900-1100 42
Yogeshvara 800-900 32
Bhartṛhari 400 25
Vasukalpa 950 25
Manovinoda 900-1100 23
Bana 600-650 21
Achala(simha) 700-800? 20
Abhinanda 850-900 20
Dharmakirti 700 19
Viryamitra 900-1100 17
Lakshmidhara 1000-1050 16

Themes

Although Vidyakara may have been a Buddhist monk, the dominant theme in the collection is that of love poetry, many of them decidedly erotic in tone. The book is compiled into thematic sections. Opening with verses on the Bodhisattvas (most of them composed by professors and others at the Viharas, near contemporaries), the text also includes several sections on Hindu topics (Shiva, Vishnu). Vidyakara included more verses in praise of the Hindu gods than he did of the Buddha. Subsequent sections quickly slip into the romantic mode, with several chapters dealing with the seasons, messengers, different periods of the day.[6]

A later compilation, Shridharadasa's Saduktikarnamrta (1205), also from the Bengal region, has considerable overlap with Vidyakara (623 verses out of 2377). Though it is larger, the aesthetic discernment of Vidyakara has been greatly admired.

The volume of translations by Ingalls is the most complete version in English;[1] the poetic quality of the translations is high. Selected poems in the collection have also been translated by many others.

Following is a list of 50 section titles from Ingalls' translation:[8]

  1. The Buddha
  2. The Bodhisattva Lokeshvara
  3. The Bodhisattva Manju-ghosha
  4. Shiva
  5. Shiva's Household
  6. Vishnu
  7. The Sun
  8. Spring
  9. Summer
  10. The Rains
  11. Autumn
  12. Early Winter
  13. Late Winter
  14. Kama
  15. Adolescence
  16. Young Women
  17. The Blossoming of Love
  18. Words of the Female Messenger
  19. Love in Enjoyment
  20. The Evidence of Consummation
  21. The Woman Offended
  22. The Lady Parted from her Lover
  23. The Lover Separated from his Mistress
  24. The Wanton
  25. The Lady's Expression of Anger at her Messenger
  26. The Lamp
  27. Sunset
  28. Darkness
  29. The Moon
  30. Dawn
  31. Midday
  32. Fame
  33. Allegorical Epigrams
  34. Breezes
  35. Characterizations
  36. Greatness
  37. Good Men
  38. Villains
  39. Poverty and Misers
  40. Substantiations
  41. Flattery of Kings
  42. Discouragement
  43. Old Age
  44. The Cremation Ground
  45. The Hero
  46. Inscriptional Panegyrics
  47. Mountains
  48. Peace
  49. Miscellaneous
  50. Praise of Poets

References

  1. ^ a b c Vidyākara (1968). Sanskrit poetry, from Vidyākara's "Treasury". Translated by Daniel Ingalls. Harvard University Press. pp. 346a. ISBN 0-674-78865-6.
  2. ^ Mohan Lal. Encyclopaedia Of Indian Literature (Volume Five (Sasay To Zorgot), Volume 5. Sahitya Akademi. p. 4480.
  3. ^ Daniel H. H. Ingalls 1965, p. v.
  4. ^ a b c Daniel H. H. Ingalls 1965, p. vi.
  5. ^ Daniel H. H. Ingalls 1965, p. viii.
  6. ^ a b c Daniel H. H. Ingalls 1965, p. 32.
  7. ^ Daniel H. H. Ingalls 1965, pp. 32–33.
  8. ^ Daniel H. H. Ingalls 1965, pp. vi, ix–x.

Bibliography

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