Indian Antiquary Vol 41

Author(s): Richard Carnac Temple, Devadatta Ramkrishna Bhandarkar
Publisher: Swati Publications

Page 13

JANUARY, 1912)
DAKSHINI PANDITS AT BENARES
a gift of elephants, horses, etc., to him, but Rameśvara knew that a gift of elephants and horses is not allowed in Sastras. Unwilling to accept it, he left the place one fine morning for a pilgrimage to Dvaraka. On the way a son was born to him in the month of Chaitra in the Saka year 1435, i. e., March 1514. This boy later on became famous as Narayana-Bhatta. Râmesvara fived for four years at Dvaraka, teaching Mahdbhdshya and Sureśvara cártika. Then he came back to Pratishthana where he was given a great ovation. He lived there for four years and then left it for good for Kasi. A second son Sridhara was born on the way and a third at Benares All the three were married at Benares. Rameśvara was advanced in yuars when Narayana was born; so when he came to Benares, he was a pretty old man,
His principal students were :(i) Ananta Bhatta, Chittala of Konkan. (ii) Damodara Sarasvati. (iii) Madhava Sarasvati.
The last two were great travellers and great teachers. Madbara was the teacher of Madhusůdana Sarasvati.
(iv) Mahesa Thakkur, an inhabitant of Tirhoot or Mithila, wrote a commentary on Pakshadharamišra's works entitled Tattra-chintámany-dlóka-dar-pana He is the founder of the present Darbhanga Raj family. It is said that he got the Raj as a gift from the last king of Mithila belonging to the Brahman dynasty of which the first king was Kameia. The grant is said to have been confirmed by Sher Shah and Akbar. A letter written by Mahesa Thakkur to Tarkika Chudamani, which is another name of Raghunatha Siromaņi, is to be found in a copy of Vaivastata siddhanta, composed at Nadia in A.D. 1529 now deposited in the library of the Asiatic Society of Bengal. His mother was Dhira, his father was Chandrapati, and his elder brothers were Mahadeva Bhagiratha, and Damodara. He was the leading spirit of Mithila in the 16th century.
(v) Govinda Dvivedi of Gajarât. He studied the Mahabhúshya along with Sridhara, second son of the teacher.
(vi), (vii) Acharya Bhatta Talasi and Visvanatha Talasi. Both became teachers of Vedanta, in Southern India.
(viii) Sankara Misra Sarma of Kanauj. Commented upon the Gila-Govinila at the request of Salinatha, perhaps another commentator. Tae commentary was entitled Rasamajjari. (See Aufrecht's Cat, Cat.)
Besides these, Râmesvara had students from Dravida, Gurjara; Kanyakubja, Western India, Mälava, Braja, Mithila, Himalayan regions, Karnata, Utkala, Kaumkaņa, Gauda, Andhra, Mathura, Kanarúpa, and other parts of India.
Rimesvarn died in good old age and his wife became a Sati.
Narayana-Bhatta had now become a great teacher. He learned all the Sastras : -Sruti, Smriti, and the six Darsanas from his father. He wrote the Tristhali-Setu for the conduct of worship in the three places of pilgrimage: Gaya, Kisi, and Prayfiga. Ho held constant disputations with the Pandits of Eastern India on points of religious interest, and be was always successful in supporting the ideas of Southern India. An instance is given in the manuscript :
योत्तरेश्वरसमीरितपत्रपूर्य विज्ञापनादग्रहणवीक्षगानर्णयार्थ ।। प्राच्यविवादमानशं प्रविधाय
मासं श्रीदाक्षिणात्यमतमूर्जिततां निनाय ॥ १३ ॥ At a Sraddha ceremony at Dehli in the house of Todar Mal, he worsted in disputation all the Pandits of Gauda and Mithila with Vidyinivasa at their head. Todar Mal was a patron of Sanskrit literature, having caused excellent compilations in Smriti, Jyotisha, Vaidyaka, and ther Sástras. He was long the Sabahdar of Bengal. It is not uonatural, therefore, that he should invite Bengal Pandits at a Sraddha. Vidyânivasa was then the leading Pandit at Navadvipa.