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Nov. 1, 1872.]
various kinds nor a poem with a subject invented by himself. To remove this reproach Kâlidâsa, it is said, wrote Nalodaya and Meghasandesa. Who the opponent of Kalidasa was, we cannot ascertain, but there is one stanza in the Meghasandeśa which runs
Adreḥéringam harati pavanah kimsvidityunmukhibhih Dristotsâhaśchakita chakitam mugdha siddhânganabhih Sthânâdasmât sarasanichulâdutpatodanmukhaḥ kham Diñnâgânâm pathi pariharan sthula hastâvalepân.
From this it follows that the banishment of Yaksha from the court of Kubera, and his residence in Râmagiri was a pure invention of Kâlidâsa's, but the Kathâsaritsagara alludes to a Yaksha doomed by Kubera to live in the Vindhya Mountains. As the author of this book flourished in the eleventh century A.D., he may have borrowed it from Kâlidâsa and consequently there is no inconsistency in the tradition. Besides the ordinary meaning there is one which the commentator gives at the end of his commentary on that stanza, from which it is learnt that Nichula was a friend, and Diñnâga an opponent of Kâlidâsa's, that the latter out of envy condemned this work notwithstanding its merit, and that the poet addressing himself to Megha, i. e., (the Megha Sandeśa) says "you go abroad from this place in which there is a friend of mine called Nichula and spread in the world putting down, as you proceed, the gestures which Diñnaga makes with his hands, expressive of his pride and his disapproval of you and other works of mine."
SANSKRIT AUTHORS.
There is a work in the Oriental Manuscript Library in Madras called Nânârthaśabdaratna, the 'Gem of Homonymous words.' It is diviled into three nibandhanas, and at the end of each it is said to have been written by Kâlidása. Iti érikâlidâsavirachite nâuârthaśabdaratne kâdikshân tavarṇâdyântarthavachchhabdaprakarane ekaikadhâtvarthavichâraramanîye prathamam nibandhanam samâptam. "Thus ends the first nibandhana in the Gem of Homonymous words" composed by Kâlidasa, a great poet, which contains words that have (all) the letters from ka to ksha (arranged in order) at their end and which is interesting on account of its discussing (or more properly referring to) the meaning of each dhátu or root. There is also another book called Tarala. This is a commentary on the above book. The author says that his name is Nichula Yogîndra, and that he wrote the work at the request of the king Bhoja.
If this be genuine it will no doubt reduce Kâlidâsa's antiquity and place him at the court of Bhoja, and thus authenticate all the accounts given of him and the king in the Bhojacharitra. From a philological point of view it will be a very important work demanding the attention of literary students. Now if this had been the work of Kâlidâsa who is believed to have been versed in every branch of Sanskrit literature, we might expect that it would be quoted as the Amara, the Viśvaprakasa, the Sabdârnava,
and other lexicons. But if we look into the various commentaries of Amara, and Mallinâtha's commentaries on the Raghuvansa and other poems, we nowhere find the name of this book; nor is Kâlidâsa ever quoted as a lexicographer. If he was an author of a Kosha surely his name, or the name of his work would be mentioned by Mediníkâra in his list of lexicographers, for Medinîkâra mentions the name of each lexicon which he knew or the name of its author. The following is a list enumerating nearly all the authors that have written lexicons :
Names of their works.
Author's names. Katyayana Vyâli
Utpallari.
Vaguri.. Vararuchi...
Vikramaditya Amara........ Dhananjaya...
Dhanvantari Sâswata
Vopálita Rantideva
.......................
Hara...
Subhanga Halayudha Pratapa Mahendra Ardhanâriswara.
*********..
...
Bhoja
Bhaṭṭachandra. Vâchaspati. Madanapâla.. Govardhana...
Rabhasapâla Rudra
Amaradatta.. Ajaya...... Gangadhara.......... Dharanidhara
********.
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Samsaravarta. Namalingans sanam.
Nânamâla.
Abhidhanaratnamálä.
************
Śabdárṇava.
Nánarthasangraha.
