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THE INDIAN ANTIQUARY.
[DECEMBER, 1898.
favour. Such are some of the stories current in the Telugu country about the vagaries of Ramakrishna, more briefly known as Tenali Rama.
As to the evidence for fixing the date of the poet apart from all popular tradition, instances are on record to shew that Ramakrishna was a contemporary of Appayadikshita and Tâtâchârya and flourished at the court of Veikatapatirays of Chandragiri. This king flourished after Tirumaladêva, to whom the Vasucharitra is dedicated, changed the seat of his government from Vijayanagara to Chandragiri, and ruled from 1585 to 1614 A. D. If, therefore, Ramakrishna was alive at the time of Krishnaraya, he must have been quite young at the time, as there was an interval of more than balf a century between the demise of Krishnaraya and the accession of Venkatapati. This consideration controverts the story of the horoscope.
To reconcile the facts some have made Appayadikshita to be a contemporary of Kộisbņaraya. As Appayadikshita lived to a ripe old age, he might have been a contemporary of Kộishnaraya in his early days, but he is known to the world as the court poet of Venkatapatiraya.18 He was a Tamil Brahmana, an inhabitant at A daya pala agrahára, about forty miles south-east of Conjeeveram, in the Chinglepat district.14 He was the son of Narayanadikshita.16 It was current among his contemporaries that he was born of the spirit of Siva, on account of the learning he exhibited in divinity and theology, which they thought to be too great for an ordinary mortal. At twelve years of age he gained a mastery over the Vedas and several of the more abstruse and philosphical sciences. He was a Siva bhakta. In early life, he obtained the favor of Venkatapatirêya of Chandragiri, for he confuted all the king's poets, in open court, on religion and philosophy, especially in shewing the perfect parity between Siya and Vishnu. The king granted him & tract of land, rent-free, for the maintenance of himself and his pupils. He is the author of the Sivárchanachandriká, the Sivatattvavivéka, the Sivamanidipika, the Atmárpaņa, etc. The first three of these works were written after the author became a súmaydjin (i, e., a performer of sacrifices). It is said that just before he wrote the Atmárpana he partook of the seeds of a plant, which is said to possess the marvellous quality of keeping the brain clear and fitting the mind for divine contemplation. By its use, he became inspired and dictated to four scribes at once. The poem is very much admired throughont the Dekhan. In course of time, he visited the sovereigns of Tanjore, Trichinopoly and Madura, who gave him every encouragement on account of his talents and virtues, so that, being a strict observer and zealous advocate of ritual, he performed through the bounty of his numerous patrons, innumerable sacrifices on the banks of the Kaveri. He chanted forth verses in praise of Siva wherever he went, and made a good many converts to his faith from Vaishṇavism, Tatacharya, who had been vanquished and baffled by him at the court of Venkata patirêya in a religious controversy, cherished a mortal hatred against him, and was determined to destroy him. He consequently engaged raffians to waylay Appayadikshita and to put an end to him as he was wending his way through a wood. They acted as they had been directed, but at the critical moment a man of great strength, it is said, suddenly appeared on the scene and rescued the poet from danger. On this circumstance reaching the ears of the king, he made the poet valuable gifts for his firmness of faith in Siva. At the age of sixty, as he was concerting measures to go to Benares, the Brahmanas of Chidambaram, in the district of South
[19 Tirumala I. transferred for the first time the seat of government to Pennakonda in A. D. 1567, i. e., two years after the battle of Talikota. This town continued to be the residence of the kings of the third Vijayanagara dynasty even to the time of Vookata II, the third in descent from Tirumala L. It is therefore uplikely that Venkata L, the son of Tirumala I. and the patron of Appayadikshita could have changed the seat of his government to Chandragiri ; see Ep. Ind. Vol. III. p. 288 f.-H. K. 8.7
[13 For the exact date of Appayadicebita, see Ep. Ind. Vol. IV. p. 271.-H. K. 8.]
14 Adaya pala is a village belonging to the Ami Jagir in the North Aroot district. It is this village that is known as the birth-place of Appayadikshita.-H. K. S.)
[16 Appayadikshita was the son of Rri-Rangardjadikshita; see extracts from Nos. 1000, 1013, and 1056 of Dr. Hultzech's Reports on Sanskrit Manuacripts No. II.-H. K, 8.1
