Siddha Siddhanta Paddhati

Author(s): Kalyani Mallik
Publisher: Poona Oriental Book House Poona

Page 36

If we accept the theory that the time between a guru and his disciple is about a hundred years, considering their longevity which was well-known, we may place Gorakh in the eleventh century on the following grounds :Nivrtti's date of birth
1273 A. D. Jñānesvar's date of birth
1275 A. D. Gainināth's time
- C. 1175 A. D. Gorakhnath
- C. 1075 A. D. If we accept this date for Gorakhnāth, Matsyendranāth can be placed a century earlier, i. e., in the tenth century and then the facts mentioned before as to the composition of Kaula-jnana and the salutation of Matsyendra by Abhinava in the eleventh century, can all be admitted.
Gopichandra was the king of Bengal, his father was Manikchandra Raja, the brother of Dharmapāla. The Pāla dynasty came to an end in Bengal in the eleventh century. The Yogis rose to power under the Pālas in Bengal; and Manikchandra's wife Maynāmati was a disciple of Gorakhnäth. So Gorakhnāth must belong to the eleventh century also.
Maynāmati is spoken of as the sister of Bharthari, who abdicated his throne in favour of his brother Vikramāditya (Chandragupta II. ) of Ujjain, Vikrama ruled from 1079 to 1126 A. D. Bhartshari became a Yogi. One of the sub-sects of Kanphātās is named after him. Bharthari was a disciple of Gorakhnath, so we can place Gorakh in the eleventh century.
The tradition in Bengal of Maynāmati's supporting Rāmāi Pandit in the worship of Dharma gives us the historical data of the eleventh century. The treatise on Dharma composed by Rāmãi and known as Sanya Purūna points to a sufficiently archaic language, determined by scholars as of the eleventh century.
Gorakhnāth accepted both Hindus and Mohammedans as his disciples. Baba Ratan Haji was probably a Mohammedan follower of Gorakhnāth and is said to have converted a number of Mohammedans to the Yogi's creed. In Kabul they are known as faqirs of Ratan Haji. Kafirbodha was perhaps written by Ratan Haji but was known as the work of Gorakhnāth. Ratan Haji belonged to the eleventh century by tradition, so Gorakhnath may be placed in the same century.