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Gunadhya Legend
Guṇāḍhya is the Sanskrit name of the sixth-century Indian author of the ''Bṛhatkathā'', a large collection of tales attested by Daṇḍin, the author of the ''Kavyadarsha'', Subandhu, the author of ''Vasavadatta'', and Bāṇabhaṭṭa, the author of the '' Kadambari''. Scholars compare Guṇāḍhya with Vyasa and Valmiki even though he did not write the now long-lost ''Brihatkatha'' in Sanskrit; the loss of this text is one of the greatest losses of Indian literature. Presently available are its two Kashmiri Sanskrit recensions, the ''Brihatkathamanjari'' by Kshemendra and the ''Kathasaritsagara'' by Somadeva. Date Guṇāḍhya could have flourished during the reign of a Satvahana king of Pratishthana (modern-day Paithan, Maharashtra). According to D. C. Sircar, he probably flourished between the 1st century BCE and 3rd century CE. An alternative account, mentioned in the ''Nepala Mahatmya'' of the Skanda Purana, states that Gunadhya was born in Mathura, and wa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Brihatkatha
''Bṛhatkathā'' (Sanskrit, "the Great Narrative") is an ancient Indian epic, said to have been written by Gunadhya, Guṇāḍhya in a poorly-understood language known as Paiśācī. The work no longer exists but several later adaptations — the ''Kathasaritsagara, Kathāsaritsāgara'' (''कथासरित्सागर''), ''Bṛhatkathāmañjarī'' (''बृहत्कथामंजरी'') and ''Bṛhatkathāślokasaṃgraha'' (''बृहत्कथाश्लोकसंग्रह'') in Sanskrit, as well as the ''Peruṅkatai'' and ''Vasudevahiṃḍi'' in vernaculars — make commentary on the piece. The date of its composition is uncertain. According to testimonials by later Sanskrit poets such as Daṇḍin, Subandhu, and Bāṇabhaṭṭa, Bāṇa, the ''Bṛhatkathā'' existed in the 6th century CE. According to other estimates it predates that period by several more centuries. For example, if the story of Udayana (king), Udayana by poet Bhāsa (and als ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Skanda Purana
The ''Skanda Purana'' (IAST: Skanda Purāṇa) is the largest ''Puranas#Mahapuranas, Mukyapurana'', a genre of eighteen Hindu religious texts. The text contains over 81,000 verses, and is of Kaumaram, Kaumara literature, titled after Kartikeya, Skanda, a son of Shiva and Parvati, who is also known as Murugan. While the text is named after Skanda, he does not feature either more or less prominently in this text than in other Shiva-related Puranas. The text has been an important historical record and influence on the Hindu traditions related to the war-god Skanda. The earliest text titled ''Skanda Purana'' likely existed by the 8th century CE, but the ''Skanda Purana'' that has survived into the modern era exists in many versions. It is considered as a living text, which has been widely edited, over many centuries, creating numerous variants. The common elements in the variant editions encyclopedically cover cosmogony, mythology, genealogy, dharma, festivals, gemology, temples, g ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
History Of Literature In India
History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbrella term comprising past events as well as the memory, discovery, collection, organization, presentation, and interpretation of these events. Historians seek knowledge of the past using historical sources such as written documents, oral accounts, art and material artifacts, and ecological markers. History is not complete and still has debatable mysteries. History is also an academic discipline which uses narrative to describe, examine, question, and analyze past events, and investigate their patterns of cause and effect. Historians often debate which narrative best explains an event, as well as the significance of different causes and effects. Historians also debate the nature of history as an end in itself, as well as its usefulness to give perspective on the problems of the p ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Epic Poets
An epic poem, or simply an epic, is a lengthy narrative poem typically about the extraordinary deeds of extraordinary characters who, in dealings with gods or other superhuman forces, gave shape to the mortal universe for their descendants. Etymology The English word ''epic'' comes from Latin ''epicus'', which itself comes from the Ancient Greek adjective (''epikos''), from (''epos''), "word, story, poem." In ancient Greek, 'epic' could refer to all poetry in dactylic hexameter (''epea''), which included not only Homer but also the wisdom poetry of Hesiod, the utterances of the Delphic oracle, and the strange theological verses attributed to Orpheus. Later tradition, however, has restricted the term 'epic' to ''heroic epic'', as described in this article. Overview Originating before the invention of writing, primary epics, such as those of Homer, were composed by bards who used complex rhetorical and metrical schemes by which they could memorize the epic as received in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ancient Indian Poets
Ancient history is a time period from the beginning of writing and recorded human history to as far as late antiquity. The span of recorded history is roughly 5,000 years, beginning with the Sumerian cuneiform script. Ancient history covers all continents inhabited by humans in the period 3000 BCAD 500. The three-age system periodizes ancient history into the Stone Age, the Bronze Age, and the Iron Age, with recorded history generally considered to begin with the Bronze Age. The start and end of the three ages varies between world regions. In many regions the Bronze Age is generally considered to begin a few centuries prior to 3000 BC, while the end of the Iron Age varies from the early first millennium BC in some regions to the late first millennium AD in others. During the time period of ancient history, the world population was already exponentially increasing due to the Neolithic Revolution, which was in full progress. While in 10,000 BC, the world population stood at ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shalivahana
Shalivahana (IAST: Śālivāhana) was a legendary emperor of ancient India, who is said to have ruled from Pratishthana (present-day Paithan, Maharashtra). He is believed to be based on a Satavahana king (or kings). There are several contradictory legends about him. Most legends associate him with another legendary emperor, Vikramaditya of Ujjain, in some way. In some legends, he is presented as an enemy of Vikramaditya; in other legends, he is named as a grandson of Vikramaditya; and in a few legends, the title Vikramaditya is applied to the ruler of Pratishthana. According to some historically inaccurate legends, his birth or one of his battle victories marked the beginning of the Shalivahana calendar era, which is another name for the Saka era. Legends ''Viracharita'' Ananta's heroic poem ''Viracharita'' (12th century CE) mentions Shalivahana as a rival of the king Vikramaditya of Ujjain. According to it, Shalivahana defeated and killed Vikramaditya, and then ruled from ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Budhasvamin
Budhasvamin (बुधस्वामिन, also transliterated as Budhasvāmin and Budha·svamin), was a Sanskrit poet, known as the author of the ', or ''The Compilation of Verses from the Long Story''. Nothing is known of his life. Budhasvamin was a masterful poet. His Sanskrit is polished and easy to understand; although he occasionally shows off his virtuosity by using obscure words and archaic verb forms, he never lets his mastery get in the way of the story. He deliberately eschews elaborate description in favour of a fast-paced narrative and deft characterization. He displays a keen interest in all aspects of ancient Indian society: despite the poem being the story of a divine prince, the stories within the narrative have a wide range of protagonists, from artisans and seafaring traders to courtesans and forest-dwellers. About the ''Budhasvamin’s : A Literary Study of an Ancient Indian Narrative'' by E.P. Maten, Leiden, Netherlands: E. J. Brill, 1973. English transla ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bṛhatkathāślokasaṃgraha
' (Brihat-katha-shloka-sangraha, बृहत्कथाश्लोकसंग्रह), ''"Verse Abridgment of the Great Story"'', is Budhasvāmin's abridgement into Sanskrit verse of the now lost ''Great Story'' ('). It tells the legend of the youthful exploits of prince Naravāhanadatta (Nara-vahana-datta). Story The main story narrates Naravāhanadatta’s progress culminating in his destined enthronement as the emperor of the vidhyādharas, celestial beings with magical abilities, winning twenty-six wives along the way. The surviving manuscripts of the text break off while he is in pursuit of his sixth wife. The narrative is fast-paced and eschews lengthy description. It is also unusually homogeneous and hasn’t suffered the intrusion of interpolation: Budha·svamin’s laconic style remains consistent throughout. ... Occasional allusions show that Budha·svamin had a thorough grounding in the various sciences that made up the traditional brahmin education ... nda ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Paiśācī
Paishachi or Paisaci () is a largely unattested literary language of the middle kingdoms of India mentioned in Prakrit and Sanskrit grammars of antiquity. It is generally grouped with the Prakrits, with which it shares some linguistic similarities, but is still not considered a spoken Prakrit by the grammarians because it was purely a literary language, and because of its archaicism. Identity The etymology of the name suggests that it is spoken by piśācas, "ghouls". In works of Sanskrit poetics such as Daṇḍin's ''Kavyadarsha'', it is also known by the name of , an epithet which can be interpreted either as a "dead language" (i.e. with no surviving speakers), or as "a language spoken by the dead" (i.e. ghouls or ghosts), the former interpretation being more realistic and the latter being the more fanciful. Evidence which lends support to the former interpretation is that literature in Paiśācī is fragmentary and extremely rare but may have been once common. The Siddha-H ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Prakrit
The Prakrits (; sa, prākṛta; psu, 𑀧𑀸𑀉𑀤, ; pka, ) are a group of vernacular Middle Indo-Aryan languages that were used in the Indian subcontinent from around the 3rd century BCE to the 8th century CE. The term Prakrit is usually applied to the middle period of Middle Indo-Aryan languages, excluding earlier inscriptions and the later Pali. ''Prākṛta'' literally means "natural", as opposed to ''saṃskṛta'', which literally means "constructed" or "refined". Prakrits were considered the regional spoken (informal) languages of people, and Sanskrit was considered the standardized (formal) language used for literary, official and religious purposes across Indian kingdoms of the subcontinent. Literary registers of Prakrits were also used contemporaneously (predominantly by śramaṇa traditions) alongside Classical Sanskrit of higher social classes. Etymology The dictionary of Monier Monier-Williams (1819–1899), and other modern authors however, interpret ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gaha Sattasai
The Gāhā Sattasaī or Gāhā Kośa ( sa, गाथासप्तशती Gāthā Saptaśatī) is an ancient collection of Indian poems in Maharashtri Prakrit language. The poems are about love. They are written as frank monologues usually by a married woman, or an unmarried girl. They often express her unrequited feelings and longings to her friend, mother or another relative, lover, husband or to herself. Many poems are notable for describing unmarried girls daring for secret rendezvous to meet boys in ancient India, or about marital problems with husbands who remains emotionally a stranger to his wife and bosses over her, while trying to have affairs with other women. ''Gatha Saptasati'' is one of the oldest known Subhashita-genre text. It deals with the emotions of love, and has been called as "opposite extreme" to ''Kamasutra''. While ''Kamasutra'' is a theoretical work on love and sex, ''Gaha Sattasai'' is a practical compilation of examples describing "untidy reality ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gautamiputra Satakarni
Gautamiputra Satakarni (Brahmi: 𑀕𑁄𑀢𑀫𑀺𑀧𑀼𑀢 𑀲𑀸𑀢𑀓𑀡𑀺, ''Gotamiputa Sātakaṇi'', IAST: ) was a ruler of the Satavahana Empire in present-day Deccan region of India. He was mentioned as the important and greatest ruler of Satavahana Dynasty. He ruled in the 1st or 2nd century CE, although his exact period is uncertain. His reign is dated variously: 86-110 CE, c. 103-127 CE, 106-130 CE, or more recently and specifically ca. 60-85 CE. The information available about Gautamiputra Satakarni comes from his coins, the Satavahana inscriptions, and the royal genealogies in the various Puranas. The best known of these is the Nashik ''prashasti'' (eulogy) inscription of his mother Gautami Balashri, which credits him with extensive military conquests. Historical evidence suggests that Gautamiputra revived the Satavahana power after a decline caused by Saka invasions. Ancestry Except the '' Brahmanda Purana'', all the Puranas that contain the gene ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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