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Ratnākara
Ratnākara () was a Sanskrit poet in ancient India. His magnum opus, the '' Haravijaya'', containing 4,351 verses, is the longest extant ''mahākāvya''. His work has been praised in many Sanskrit anthologies and works on rhetorics. Life Very little is known about Ratnākara's life. He is referred to as a dependent of Bālabṛhaspati—generally assumed to be an epithet of Cippaṭajayāpīḍa—in the colophons of the ''Haravijayas cantos. In the '' praśasti'' of the ''Haravijaya'' he speaks of himself as the son of Amṛtabhānu, a descendant of Durgadatta from Gangāhrada in the Himalayas. Kalhaṇa's '' Rājataraṅgiṇī'' lists him as one of the poets active at the court of Avantivarman (). Works ''Haravijaya'' The ''Haravijaya'', described as Ratnākara's magnum opus, is the longest extant Sanskrit ''mahākāvya'', containing a total of 4,351 verses in fifty ''sarga''s (cantos). The poem narrates Śiva's victory over Andhaka and also describes Śiva's iconogra ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Haravijaya
''Haravijaya'' () is a Sanskrit ''mahākāvya'' written by Ratnākara. The poem narrates Śiva's victory over Andhaka. It also describes Śiva's iconographic features and gives an exposition of Śaiva philosophy. ''Haravijaya'' is the longest extant Sanskrit ''mahākāvya'', containing a total of 4351 verses in fifty ''sarga''s (cantos). Authorship In the '' praśasti'' of ''Haravijaya'', Ratnākara, its author, speaks of himself as the son of Amṛtabhānu, a descendant of Durgadatta from Gangāhrada. According to Kalhaṇa's '' Rājataraṅgiṇī'', he gained fame during the reign of Avantivarman (), but the colophons of ''Haravijaya'' suggest it was composed during the reign of Cippaṭa Jayāpīḍa, between 826 and 838 CE. From the theme of his poem, it can be assumed that he was a practitioner of Kashmiri Śaivism; Alexis Sanderson states that the poem's hymns to Śiva and Pārvatī in canto 6 and 47 respectively are the earliest dateable evidence of the presence of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Karkota Dynasty
The Karkota dynasty (c. 625 − 855 CE) ruled over the Kashmir valley and some northern parts of the Indian subcontinent during 7th and 8th centuries. Their rule saw a period of political expansion, economic prosperity and emergence of Kashmir as a centre of culture and scholarship. The Karkota rulers constructed several shrines to Vishnu in their dominions. They however also allowed Buddhism to flourish under them. Stupa, Chaitya and Vihara can be found in the ruins of their capital. Martand Sun Temple in the Anantnag district was built by Lalitaditya. It is the oldest known Sun temple in India and was also one of the biggest temple complexes at the time. Avanti Varman ascended the throne of Kashmir in 855, establishing the Utpala dynasty and ending the rule of Karkota dynasty. Sources Literature The Nilamata Purana, believed to have been commissioned by Durlabhavardhana, the first ruler of the dynasty, provides information on contemporary affairs. However, not onl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Magnum Opus
A masterpiece, , or ; ; ) is a creation that has been given much critical praise, especially one that is considered the greatest work of a person's career or a work of outstanding creativity, skill, profundity, or workmanship. Historically, a "masterpiece" was a work of a very high standard produced by an apprentice to obtain full membership, as a "master", of a guild or academy in various areas of the visual arts and crafts. Etymology The form ''masterstik'' is recorded in English or Scots in a set of Aberdeen guild regulations dated to 1579, whereas ''masterpiece'' is first found in 1605, already outside a guild context, in a Ben Jonson play. ''Masterprize'' was another early variant in English. In English, the term rapidly became used in a variety of contexts for an exceptionally good piece of creative work, and was "in early use, often applied to man as the 'masterpiece' of God or Nature". History Originally, the term ''masterpiece'' referred to a piece of work ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ānandavardhana
Ānandavardhana (c. 820 – 890 CE) was a Kashmiri court poet and literary critic, honored with the title of Rajanak during King Avantivarman's reign. Anandavardhana authored the ''Dhvanyāloka'', or ''A Light on Suggestion'' ('' dhvani''), a work articulating the philosophy of "aesthetic suggestion" (''dhvani'', ''vyañjanā''). Ānandavardhana is credited with creating the ''dhvani'' theory. He wrote that ''dhvani'' (meaning sound, or resonance) is the "soul" or "essence" ('' ātman'') of poetry ('' kavya'')." "When the poet writes," said Ānandavardhana, "he creates a resonant field of emotions." To understand the poetry, the reader or hearer must be on the same "wavelength." The method requires sensitivity on the parts of the writer and the reader. The complete ''Dhvanyāloka'' together with Abhinavagupta's commentary on it has been translated into English by the Sanskritist Daniel H.H. Ingalls and his collaborators. Ānandavardhana is mentioned in Kalhana's Rajatarangini ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sanskrit Poets
Sanskrit (; stem form ; nominal singular , ,) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in northwest South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late Bronze Age. Sanskrit is the sacred language of Hinduism, the language of classical Hindu philosophy, and of historical texts of Buddhism and Jainism. It was a link language in ancient and medieval South Asia, and upon transmission of Hindu and Buddhist culture to Southeast Asia, East Asia and Central Asia in the early medieval era, it became a language of religion and high culture, and of the political elites in some of these regions. As a result, Sanskrit had a lasting effect on the languages of South Asia, Southeast Asia and East Asia, especially in their formal and learned vocabularies. Sanskrit generally connotes several Old Indo-Aryan language varieties. The most archaic of these is the Vedic Sanskrit found in the Rigveda, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Epic Poets
In poetry, 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. With regard to oral tradition, epic poems consist of formal speech and are usually learnt word for word, and are contrasted with narratives that consist of everyday speech where the performer has the license to recontextualize the story to a particular audience, often to a younger generation. Influential epics that have shaped Western literature and culture include Homer's ''Iliad'' and ''Odyssey''; Virgil's ''Aeneid''; and the anonymous ''Beowulf'' and ''Epic of Gilgamesh''. The genre has inspired the adjective ''epic'' as well as derivative works in other mediums (such as epic films) that evoke or emulate the characteristics of epics. Etymology The English word ''epic'' comes from Latin , which itself comes from the Ancient Greek adjective (), ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hindu Poets
Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for people living in the Indian subcontinent. It is assumed that the term ''"Hindu"'' traces back to Avestan scripture Vendidad which refers to land of seven rivers as Hapta Hendu which itself is a cognate to Sanskrit term ''Sapta Sindhuḥ''. (The term ''Sapta Sindhuḥ'' is mentioned in Rig Veda and refers to a North western Indian region of seven rivers and to India as a whole.) The Greek cognates of the same terms are "''Indus''" (for the river) and "''India''" (for the land of the river). Likewise the Hebrew cognate ''hōd-dū'' refers to India mentioned in Hebrew BibleEsther 1:1. The term "''Hindu''" also implied a geographic, ethnic or cultural identifier for people ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Universität Hamburg
The University of Hamburg (, also referred to as UHH) is a public research university in Hamburg, Germany. It was founded on 28 March 1919 by combining the previous General Lecture System ('' Allgemeines Vorlesungswesen''), the Hamburg Colonial Institute ('' Hamburgisches Kolonialinstitut''), and the Academic College ('' Akademisches Gymnasium''). The main campus is located in the central district of Rotherbaum, with affiliated institutes and research centres distributed around the city-state. Seven Nobel Prize winners and one Wolf Prize winner are affiliated with UHH. History Founding At the beginning of the 20th century, wealthy individuals made several unsuccessful petitions to the Hamburg Senate and Parliament requesting the establishment of a university. Senator Werner von Melle worked towards the merging of existing institutions into one university, but this plan failed. Much of the establishment wanted to see Hamburg limited to its role as a trading center, and wer ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sūktimuktāvalī
''Suktimuktavali'' (IAST: Sūktimuktāvalī, 1257 CE) is an anthology of Sanskrit-language verses composed in the Seuna (Yadava) kingdom of present-day India. It was either authored or commissioned by the Yadava general Jalhana. Date and authorship One of the concluding verses of the text mentions that it was composed in the year 1179 of the Shaka Era, which corresponds to the year 1257 of the Common Era. The authorship of the text is not clear. One of its introductory verses name its author as Jalhana (IAST: Jalhaṇa), the commander of the elephant force of the Yadava ruler Krishna. The introductory portion of the text provides following account of Jalhana's family: Dada, a man of the Vatsa gotra, served the Yadava chief Mailugi (Mallugi). He led Mallugi's elephant force against the Kalachuri ruler Vijjana. Dada had four sons - Mahidhara, Jahla, Samba and Gangadhara - who contributed to the growth of the Yadava power. Mahidhara succeeded his father as the commander of t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rajashekhara (Sanskrit Poet)
Rajashekhara (; ) was a Maharashtri Prakrit and Sanskrit poet, dramatist and critic. He was the court poet of the Pratiharas of Kannauj. Rajashekhara wrote the ''Kāvyamīmāṃsā'' between 880 and 920 CE. The work is essentially a practical guide for poets that explains the elements and composition of a good poem. He is most noted for the ''Kārpūramañjarī'', a play written in Maharashtri Prakrit. Rajashekhara wrote the play to please his wife, Avantisundarī, a woman of taste and accomplishment. Rajashekhara is perhaps the only ancient Indian poet to acknowledge his wife for her contributions to his literary career. Life In his ''Bālarāmāyaṇa'' and ''Kāvyamimāṃsā'', Rajashekhara referred himself by his family name ''Yāyāvara'' or ''Yāyāvarīya''. In ''Bālarāmāyaṇa'', he mentioned that his great grandfather Akalajalada belonged to Maharashtra. In the same work, he described his father Durduka as a ''Mahamantrin'' (minister) without providing any detai ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Abhinavagupta
Abhinavagupta (Devanāgarī अभिनवगुप्तः; c. 950 – 1016 CE) was a philosopher, mystic and aesthetician from Kashmir. He was also considered an influential musician, poet, dramatist, exegete, theologian, and logicianRe-accessing Abhinavagupta, Navjivan Rastogi, page 4 – a polymathic personality who exercised strong influences on Indian culture. Abhinavagupta was born in a Kānyakubja Brāhmin family of scholars and mystics whose ancestors immigrated from Kannauj on invitation by the great king of Kashmir, Lalitaditya Muktapida. He studied all the schools of philosophy and art of his time under the guidance of as many as fifteen (or more) teachers and gurus. In his long life he completed over 35 works, the largest and most famous of which is '' Tantrāloka'', an encyclopedic treatise on all the philosophical and practical aspects of Kaula and Trika (known today as Kashmir Shaivism). Another one of his very important contributions was in the field ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pārvatī
Parvati (, , IPA: / pɑɾʋət̪iː/), also known as Uma (, , IPA: /ʊmɑː/) and Gauri (, , IPA: / gə͡ʊɾiː/), is one of the principal goddesses in Hinduism, revered as the goddess of power, energy, nourishment, harmony, love, beauty, devotion, and motherhood. Along with Lakshmi and Sarasvati, she forms the trinity, known as the Tridevi. From her first appearance as a goddess during the epic period (400 BCE – 400 CE), Parvati is primarily depicted as the consort of the god Shiva. According to various Puranas, Parvati is the reincarnation of Sati, Shiva's first wife, who relinquished her body to sever familial ties with her father, Daksha, after he had insulted Shiva. Parvati is often equated with the other goddesses such as Sati, Uma, Kali and Durga and due to this close connection, they are often treated as one and the same, with their stories frequently overlapping. In Hindu mythology, the birth of Parvati is primarily understood as a cosmic event meant to lure Shi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
