Kavya Prakasha Khandana

Author(s): Siddharshi Gani, Rasiklal C Parikh
Publisher: Singhi Jain Shastra Shiksha Pith Mumbai

Page 33

KĀVYAPRAKĀŚAKHANDANA
In the Ullasa of Arthalamkaras, S. concerns himself mainly with showing how several Alamkaras can be included in others. For example he would include Vişama and Vyaghata in Virodha (<का. प्र. खं.). After explaining the definition of Vibhāvanā, he says, वस्तुतस्तु कारणप्रतिषेधेपि कार्यवचनं विभावनेत्यन्ये । ( ८५ का. प्र. खं).
14
The few points discussd above will suffice to give an idea of the character of Kavyaprakāśakhandana.
Siddhicandra.
Siddhicandra, the author of this work, is one of those notable Jain writers who have enriched not only the literature of their own faith but have also contributed to Sanskrit literature in general. He belongs to, what we might call, the last glorious period of Sanskrit literature or the period of Sanskrit renaissance in the times of the Mogul emperors Akbar, Jahangir and Shahjahan. In fact he is a luminary of the age of Panditarāja Jagannatha, who was his contemporary at the Mogul court.
As to the life and works of Siddhicandra, there is ample material which has been well exploited by the late Jain scholar Sri Mohanlal D. Desai in the introduction to his edition of BHANUCANDRA CARITA by our author, published in the S. J. S. In fact B. C. which is a sort of a biographical poem of his Guru Bhanucandra becomes in the fourth Prakasa after the verse sixty seven, what Acarya Jinavijaya Muni calls, the autobiography' of our author. Śri Desai, in the fourth section, viz., 'Summary of the Present Work', has given the substance of this portion at length and Acarya Jinavijaya has noted salient points of the same in his preface as the General Editor of the Series. I shall, here, therefore, touch only a few noteworthy incidents.
S. in the narration of probably the most important event of his life gives us a clue to the year of his birth. This event we shall discuss later on. Jahangir is represented as asking S. his age in the following verse
6
परब्रह्मप्रसक्तानां व्यतीतानि कियन्ति वः । प्रारभ्य जन्मतोऽब्दानि' प्रोचुस्ते 'पञ्चविंशतिः ॥ ( श्लो. २३६ प्र. ४, भा. व. च. )
The events of banishment and recall that happened as a result of the discussion that followed are placed by Sri M. D. Desai before the autumn of 1613 A. D.1 This would give us the year of S.'s birth as 1588 or 1587 A. D., if the banishment lasted for a year.
1. See his Introduction to B. C. p. 59 and footnote 90.