Sunday, December 20, 2015
Saturday, June 6, 2015
Monday, May 4, 2015
Jaina Traditions in Rajavali Katha
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| Jaina Goddess Ambika |
Rajavali
Katha of Devachandra is a work completed in 1841 A.D. and its value lies in the
traditions about Jainism, its history in Karnataka, the literature in Samskrit
and Kannada, incidental references to ruling dynasties and contemporary
religions. Its historical value.is extremely open to doubt, but it furnishes a
starting point for further research and hence cannot be dismissed as entirely
fanciful.
Devachandra
and his elder brothers Chandayya and Padmaraja were the descendants of a Jaina
Brahmana Bommanna, an accountant of Giripura.
Devachandra
was born in 1770 A.D, and from his Fourteenth year he began to write poems. In
his 22nd year (1772 4.1) he wrote Pujyapada Charita in Kannada.
Since his elder brother Padmaraja is also said to have written that work, both
brothers must have co-operated in the production. Since Devachandra presented
the Rajavali Kathe to Mummudi Krishna Raja Wodeyar in 1841 he must have lived
for more than 70 years. Rajavali Kathe was his last work and before that he
wrote Ramakathavatara, Sumeru Sataka, Bhaktisara, Satakatraya, Sastrasara,
Laghu Vritti, Pravachana Siddhanta, Dravya Samgraha Dvadasanupreksha Katha,
Dhyana Samrajya, Dvadasanupreksha Katha, Dhyana Samrajya, Adhyatma Vichara,
Karnataka Samskrta Balanudi, etc. He says that when Mackenzie with Sardar
Lakshman Rao came to Kankagiri, he asked for local records, Devachandra showed
him his pujyapada charita. Mackenzie took the poet along with him from
Kamaraballi to Nagavala and giving him 25 Rupees asked him to send a written account
of all the old traditions. Devachandra began his Rajavali Katha in 1804 and
completed it in 1838 A.D. Therefore he took nearly 35 years in compiling it. In
1841 Deviramba, Queena of Chamaraja heard of the work and asked the author to
complete it by adding the history of the Mysore Kings. Perhaps this was
submitted to Krishna Raja Wodeyar III in 1841-42.
To read full text, Click here.
Sunday, March 29, 2015
'Sulakas and Mulakas' by Dr S. Srikanta Sastri
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| Prominent Mulukanadu Personalities |
The
identification of Sulakas with Cholikas put forward by Rev. Mr. Heras seems to
me untenable. Mere word resemblances unsupported by other facts, cannot be
accepted as conclusive. As instances of this deceptive method we can put
forward the resemblances between Sulakas and Salikis, Salkis etc. Salki,
Chalukya, Salikya etc., are used as variants of the same word Chalukya e.g. the
Bezwada inscription of Yuddhamalla; speculations as to the origin and exact
connotation of the term mulaka as found in the name of an Andhra community
“Mulaka Nadu”, are too numerous to mention. Reference might be made to two of
such theories put forward to show the futility of such linguistic gymnastics.
One theory is that it derives its name from “Mulks”, Ibrahim Mulk and his
descendents; the other is that it ought to be Munikula Nadu, Both of these, to
put it mildly, are fanciful.
Mulaka
is mentioned in the Jatakas along with Assaka. The Assakas again must be
differentiated from Aswakas, a term sometimes applied to the western Kshatrapas
as Skandasishya is said to have taken the Ghatika of Kanchi from one Satyasena
an Assaka. Asmaka was one of the eighteen earliest Janapadas mentioned in
Buddhist literature. Panini mentions Asmaka (iv. 1. 173). In the Baveru Jataka,
we are told that the disciples started from the Asmaka country to Mahissati,
Ujjeni, Paithana of Mulaka country, Gonaddha, Vidisa, Vanasa, Havya, Kosambi,
Saketa, Savatthi, Setavya, Kapilavatho, Kusinara, Pava, Vesali, and finally to
Asmaka Chetya where the Buddha was residing. Avanti was evidently North of
Assaka as they are spoken of together in Anguttara Nikaya and Sona Nanda
Jataka. To the south there was the Mulaka country. Assaka and Mulaka like Kasi
and Kosala were probably tribal names which gradually became identified with
the country the tribes occupied from time to time. At the time of Alexander’s
invasion, the Assakeni were to be found in the North-west also.
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| Fr. Heras |
To read the complete article, Click here.
Sunday, February 8, 2015
'The Votary of Truth' - Transcript of Interview with Dr S. Srikanta Sastri by Prof S. Ananthanarayan (1973)
A Personal Note:
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| L - R: Prof S. Ananthanarayan, Dr. S. Srikanta Sastri |
In Sanskrit there is the word (Sanskrit: Ekasandigrahi) which denotes a learner who takes in everything at the very first hearing and reading. Such people, though rare, have been always there. Dr. S. Srikantha Sastry belongs to this category of people blessed with a mind that grasps everything worthwhile even at first sight. He has a phenomenal memory which enables him to remember and quote passages after passages without a single mistake or moment’s hesitation. “My memory feeds me and sustains me in my life’s work” is what he said to me once. Genius is said to consist of very hard work. Dr. Sastry works very hard and has an emotional and imaginative understanding of what he works on. Added to his unique memory and capacity to take in all material at the first glance, it has given him a vast range of achievement. The wide sweep of knowledge reaped by him is astounding. Knowing more than 15 languages in and out, contributing more than 400 research papers on a wide and varied range of subjects and the writing of a score of scholarly books on History, Archaeology, Music, Literature and such other subjects is really monumental. Dr. Sastry’s work is the greatest monument to Dr. Sastry’s own life.
I have been twice blessed that I have known Dr. Srikantha Sastry ever since 1941 and he has showered his affection on me all these sears. In those days when we lived in the same street in Mysore, near the college, I had just joined the Maharaja’s College as a student. I used to see him—with a graphite grey coat, check trousers, whitish round face slightly pock-marked and short hair parted in the middle. He always wore brown canvas shoes and it appeared as if he dragged his left foot as he walked rather fast even for us.
To read the complete transcript, Click here.
Monday, January 12, 2015
Prof D. Javare Gowda on Dr S. Srikanta Sastri (1973)
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| D. Javare Gowda |
The greatness of a University is gauged not by its
quantitative strength in terms of buildings, teachers and students, but by the
quality of research work done and the intellectual pursuits attained by the
research scholars and teachers. From this point of view the Mysore University
can proudly claim a place of distinction among many other Universities in
India. The devout votaries of knowledge and the intellectual luminaries like
Dr. S. Srikanta Sastri are mainly instrumental for the reputation of this great
University. Scholarship is nothing but intellectual ability coupled with
industry and devotion to duty. Srikanta Sastri has been really the embodiment
of these qualities. His whole life has been dedicated to the pursuit of truth
and the acquisition of knowledge.
Even before I entered the Maharaja’s College as a student of
the Honours Class in the year 1938 Srikanta Sastri had reached the pinnacle of
glory as a great scholar. His knowledge of History was phenomenal and
encyclopædic in character. A good number of books both in English and Kannada
and as many as four hundred articles on Indian History, Culture, Language and
Literature bear ample testimony to his varied interest, profound scholarship
and recondite erudition. He treaded the entire gamut of Karnataka
history and culture
like a colossus. Sincerity, honesty and truthfulness are the hallmark of his
scholarship. One may reverentially disagree with the views expressed by him,
as, for example, on the original home of the Aryans, the Aryan Civilisation and
even on Purandaradasa. Nobody disputes his intellectual abilities or sincerity
of purpose. His scholarship is neither a shadow nor an imitation of some great
personality. He is undisputedly an original thinker and a meticulous and
austere seeker of truth.
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| Maharaja College, Mysore |
Though he is a person who shuns publicity he permits anybody
without any reservation to unlock the store-house of his vast knowledge. Nobody
returns from him disappointed. He has a ready answer to any doubt lurking in
the minds of scholars or students. If a person needing solutions to his
problems happens to be far away from him he need only spend twenty five naya
paise for a stamp. The reply is there within three or four days. This is my
experience too.
It is really very fitting that a man of his stature who has
spent the long years of his life at the
altar of the Goddess Saraswati should
be honoured by presenting a Commemoration Volume. I am extremely happy to find
that all the articles published in this volume relate to Karnataka History and
Culture which are very dear to Prof. Srikanta Sastri. All the articles are
decidedly the result of deep study, long research and fieldwork. They present a
very useful material for the research worker as well as the student of History.
In a way it can be said that it is an encyclopædia of Karnataka History. I
should congratulate the editors and the contributors for having taken lot of
pains to bring forth this volume in as short a period as possible.
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| At Felicitation Function |
For Full Text, Click here
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