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THE INDIAN ANTIQUARY.
[MAY, 1902.
extent of the Telugu country, and in taking up the subject we are sore afraid that we are treading on vory slippery ground. It is still wrapped in mystery, in spite of ingenious arguments advanced in favour of particular theories by modern writers.
The poet Bhima lived during the extreme end of the twelfth and the earlier part of the thirteenth century. He was born at a village called Vémulavada near Draksharama in the Godavari District. Many curious stories are told of him. In the village was a Niyogi Brahman, Somana by name, on whose demise, his wife, being poor and widowed, eked out a livelihood by singing songs at the houses of the rich. The story goes that on a certain Mahasivaratri day, she joined a company of other females and went to Draksha râma, and while the others were praying to the local god to bless them with good and useful offspring, she, feeling certain that she would have no more issue, vowed that, if she should have a son, she would light a lamp with a tubful of water to the deity, whereup on all the women assembled laughed in their sleeves. Sometime after, as Fate would have it, she Became pregnant. The village folk, though assured by her that her pregnancy was the result of her devout prayers to the deity, gave a deaf ear to her and excommunicated her. Not long after she gave birth to a son (nared Bhima after the local deity), whom she brought up with a great deal of love and care, and educated him as became him. As the boy grew older and joined with others of his class at play, they began to boycot him by calling him a widow's son.' Bhima, being unable to endure the insult, was sorely grieved at heart, and went to his mother and demanded an explanation from her. On being told the real facts, he immediately quitted the village. reached Drákshârâma, entered the temple and clasped the linga with both his hands. The god had mercy on him and said: "Whatover deeds you do, whatever expressions you utter will prove true." Sometime after, he reached his native village, but at a house where the Brahmans were being feasted, the gates were closed against him as being a widow's son, despite his earnest entreaties. He cursed them that the dal should become frogs and the rice chunnam. Immediately frogs began to jump from one leaf to another. The Brahmans were sore dismayed, and learning that it wwe due to Bhimana's mdhatmya, opened the
loor, promised to admit him if the frogs became rice and dál as usual. It was so, and thinking that he was the beloved of the god the Brâhmaņs admitted him into the sacerdotal order. After that he lived by telling impromptu stories. He is best known as a poet of abuse and was called by people generally Uddandakavi and Kavirakshasa. He used to visit the courts of kings, and proclaimed himself as the son of the god Bhirueśvara.
Three years afterwards Dananripala, the father of Vimaladitya, was ejected and his kingdom was occupied by the Kalingas. It is said that the poet Bhima abused the then reigning king, Kalinga Gangu, because he was refused an audience by the king, who was wholly immersed in the affairs of state and wanted the poet to see him after all the bustle and whirl was over. The poet grew very much enraged, and said that thirty-two days hence his kingdom would be occupied by his enemies. The words proved true, and the king was driven out of his kingdom. He wandered unknown from village to village and in the darkness of the night fell into a pit before Bhîmana's house and wept bitterly at his fallen position. The poet happened to come out of his house and enquired who he was and was told that it was the king, reduced to this state by the poet Bhimana. The poet took pity on him and said that he would yet defeat his enemy in battle and be crowned king at Sajjanagara on the sixth day of the dark fortnight in the month of Mina.
The king joined a band of Bhagavatas and went to Sajjanagara, and when the king of the place asked the band if they would undertake to play the part of his enemy, Kalinga Gangu, the unknown wanderer, forced them to accept the offer, played the part of Kalinga Gangu himself and for the pur poses of the play received the royal sword and horse from the king. He then mounted the horse and, sword in hand, approached the reigning king, cut off his head and ascended the throne. This Sajjanagare goes at present by the name of Sajjapura, a village near Peddapur in the Godavari District, and was the seat of the empire before the Peddapur fort was built. If what is stated above be the fact and if he was a contemporary of the Chalakya kings, we are obliged to infer that the poet
