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ŚRUTAVARMĀ OF BĀNA
A Critical Review
SUDARSHAN KUMAR SHARMA
Manu", Kautilya4 and Somadeva sūris have categorically mentioned the role of birds such as parrots and starlings and animals in divulging the secret counsels of Kings before the enemies to effect their dooms. They have, however quoted no practical happenings in these regards. Mahābhārata śāntiparva 82.3.226 pp 408.409 and 139.4.15 pp 469 allude to the role of a crow in helping the King of Kośala named Ksemadarśī the crow reared by sage Kālavrksiya and a female bird named Pūjanī reared by Brahmadatta of Kämpilya.
RE
Bāna Bhatta? in his Harsacarita VIth Ucchvāsa referes to three such factual incidents such as the doom of Nāgasena born in a Nāga lineage killed by the enemy with his secret overture passed on to the enemy by a starling (Sārikā bird) and that of śruta Varmā of Śrāvasti by a parrot who passed on his secret overture to the enemy having heard it as such and that of Svarnacūda of Mrttikāvati by the divulgence of the secret overture of Svarnacüda talking in sleep.
R. D. Karmarkar and K. Krishnamūrthy take Nāgasena as a contemporary of Samudragupta, Sanketākhyā sīkā of Sankara ascribes the death of Nāgasena at the hands of a minister who was anxious to usurp half of the kingdom in Padmāvati and who heard from the talk of starling divulging the secret of his overthrow by Nāgasena, So does. Amalātikā of JNVSE'. Dr. A. S. Altekarlo quotes Sankara's Commentary referring to the death of Nāgasena at the hands of the minister GVA P36. The Historians however, refer to this Nāgasena as the Kin mentioned in Allahabad Praśasti of Samundra Gupta, written by Harisena L.L. 13 and 21" Regarding the Nāga lineage Dr. A. S. Altekar12 counts the ten nāgas as per evidence of coins as Bhimanāga, Prabhākaranāga, Skandanāga, Bșhaspatināga, Vyāghranāga, Vasunāga, Devanāga, Bhavnāga and Ganapatināga and Nāgasena as the 11th as per evidence of Harsacarita and the 12th Nāga as per evidence of API line 21, as Nāgadatta of Padmăvati and Mathurā being 125 miles
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