Page Text
________________
The king Siddharaj was attracted by the qualities of Hemcandracharya. He first met Acharya whilst ceremoniously parading the streets of Patan (then capital of Gujarat) The king was seated on an elephant and the Acharya was coming from the opposite direction. On seeing the king, Acharya praised the king in a beautifully composed sanskrit lyric. This spontaneous response from the Acharya and the masterpiece of his poetry won the king's heart. The king invited Acharya to the Palace the very next day and from that day onwards the bond between them was unbroken. Acharya's political wisdom, religious strength and immense knowledge gave him a special place in the king's court.
King Siddharaj had fought and won many battles . His greatest victory was the victory of Malva ( A town in Central India). Malva was won but every one knew that Malva was superior than Gujarat because Malva had its own strong, unmatched literary tradition. Malva had the best Sanskrit grammar, whilst Gujarat had none. The king wanted Gujarat to be at the vanguard of literature and it was Hemchandracharya who came to his rescue. Scholarly knowledge of grammmar was essential for any writer or poet which was a point of prestige in the kingdom.
The king requested that Acharya compose a grammar which would lift Gujarat's prestige. Acharya agreed to undertake this mammoth task. After gathering
161
Jain Education International
For Private & Personal Use Only
www.jainelibrary.org
| SR No. | 005252 |
| Book Title | Hemsiddhi |
| Original Sutra Author | N/A |
| Author | Vinod Kapashi |
| Publisher | Zaveri Foundation |
| Publication Year | |
| Total Pages | 180 |
| Language | Gujarati |
| Classification | Book_Gujarati |
| File Size | 6 MB |