Indian Antiquary Vol 27

SR No.: 032519
Original Sutra Author: N/A
Author: Richard Carnac Temple
Publisher: Swati Publications
Publication Year: 1984
Total Pages: 404
Language: English
Classification: Book_English
File Size: 15 MB

Page 329

December, 1898.)
THE TELUGU LITERATURE.
323
poet, embraced him, fed him and his family sumptuously for three or four days, took him to the king's presence, and spoke in glowing terms of his abilities, so much so that he was immediately enrolled as a poet of the court. The verse, in question, was afterwards amalgamated by Râmarajabhushana in his Vasucharitra in honour of the new poet, or, as others say, was purchased and plagiarised. But before the Sakalakathásárasargraha reached its completion, the demise of Krishnaraya left Ramabhadra once more on the world, and he therefore, associated himself with Guti Appalaraja and others, and then finally settled himself at the court of Gobbûri Narasaråja, the nephew of the son-in-law of Krishnaraya. It was to this Narasarâja that he dedicated his later poem, the Rámábhyudaya.
The friendship between Râmabhadra and Râmarajabhúshana did not last long, as the story goes that the latter grew jealous of the reputation that the former enjoyed at the court of Kirshnaraya. Râmabhadra remained indifferent until one day the king received Râmarajabhushaņa into his good graces and seated him on his throne. This made him lose his head and laugh at Râmabhadra, and so the latter in his rage, wrote a verse to this effect :-"Of what avail is the elevation of a mean despicable wretch while the best poets are kept down ? Do not lions remain quiet under the shadows of trees, while monkeys are skipping from one branch to another?” This be tied to the throne, and went his way. Bhûshana read it, was overcome by shame, and kept silence, but the enmity between the two poets waxed high. Some time afterwards, a literary discussion took place between them, which ended in their laying a wager as to which of them was the better poet. They accordingly entered into an anderstanding that one of them should write a poem, and the other should point out the blemishes in it, and if the mistakes were proved, the winner should kick the forehead of the loser. The king as arbitrator settled that Ramabhadra was to compose the poem in six months, The poet went home and thought over a subject to write upon, and of the rough outlines of it, bat all to no purpose. The time at his command had pretty nearly expired, but not a syllable of the poem was writton. But when there were but three days left, he went and closeted himself, and prayed to his tutelary deity, Râma, who, it is said, wrote a poem for him, and went his way. The poem was then taken and read before the king, and Ramarajabhushana ,aised an objection, but it afterwards proved to be irrelevant. The two poets were then called upon to satisfy the terms agreed upon. Râmaraja bhushana, therefore, removed his head-dress and put it down, and Râmabhadra kicked it instead of the rival's forehead. Thus the quarrel terminated.
The story must, however, be apocryphal, as it does not appear anywhere that Râmarajabhúshana had begun to compose verses during the lifetime of Krishnarâye, and so it is highly improbable that he should have a retinue of students at the time. For aught we know, the Vasucharitra was not composed till about thirty-five years after the demise of Krishṇaraya.
Dharjați was a Niyogi Brâhmaņa of Pakanâqu.10 Ho belonged to the Bharad vaja gótra, Åpastamba sútra. He was born and bred up at Kalahasti, in the North Arcot district, and was a good Saiya. As he lived at the time of Kệishnaraya, we may fix his date as probably about 1520-1530 A. D. He has written a work entitled Kalahastimdhátnya, a Sthalapurana, and dedicated it to the local god, Kalahastiśvara. His style is elegant and chaste. It is said of him that he yielded to the weaknesses of the flesh and the peculiar temptations of lust. It is a pity that the common folk generally pride themselves in attributing such conduct even to the most righteous. The same thing was attributed to Tikkanasomayaji, that celebrated writer of the later fifteen Parvas of the Mahábhárata. Such a thing is highly
. This mode of solving puzzles by blending the natural and the supernatural has taken possession of the Telugu mind to such an extent, that the ordinary Telugu fully believes that there can be no gloomier form of infidelity than that which questions tho moral attributes of that Great Being in whose hands are the final destinies of us all.
19 [As regards the situation of this ancient division of the Telugu country see. Epigraphia Indica, Vol. IIL p. 81.-H, K. S.]