2023-02-17 20:21:50 by ambuda-bot
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INTRODUCTION
In the course of the following pages the above his-
torical details have been examined with reference to
other sources in some detail. There are, however, cer-
tain aspects which take away from its purely historical
nature; e.g., Cantos 6 and 7 do not seem to contain any
historical information. They describe only the amors
of the prince and his sports with the queens. Of course,
one explanation is possible, i.e., that a chronological
gap is intended between the occupation of the Sambu-
varāya territory and the conquest of Madhurai; and this
gap is conveyed through the two cantos in which there
is absolutely no reference to politics and all reference
is to the private life of the prince. Perhaps it was also
the intention of the poet to convey the idea that after
the conquest of Kānci, Kampaña endeared himself to
his subjects by his just and benevolent rule. The fact
that he could enjoy his life in Kāncipuram without any
fear of coup d'etat must show that his rule was popu-
lar and when he started on his campaign against
Madhurai he had the fullest support of the people of
Tondaimandalam.
The introduction of the supernatural element in
the biography luckily does not affect the accuracy of
the main details. The appearance of the goddess was
a poetic convention. In Harsha's Nāganandam there is
the episode of a goddess presenting a sword to Jimūta-
vāhana. In the Madhurāvijayam the episode may be
taken to be symbolic. The goddess that appeared before
him may be taken as the personification of Dharma
which had been so much put to trial during the inter-
regnum of the Sultanate in Madhurai, and her exhorta-
tion might be taken to mean that it was incumbent on
2
INTRODUCTION
In the course of the following pages the above his-
torical details have been examined with reference to
other sources in some detail. There are, however, cer-
tain aspects which take away from its purely historical
nature; e.g., Cantos 6 and 7 do not seem to contain any
historical information. They describe only the amors
of the prince and his sports with the queens. Of course,
one explanation is possible, i.e., that a chronological
gap is intended between the occupation of the Sambu-
varāya territory and the conquest of Madhurai; and this
gap is conveyed through the two cantos in which there
is absolutely no reference to politics and all reference
is to the private life of the prince. Perhaps it was also
the intention of the poet to convey the idea that after
the conquest of Kānci, Kampaña endeared himself to
his subjects by his just and benevolent rule. The fact
that he could enjoy his life in Kāncipuram without any
fear of coup d'etat must show that his rule was popu-
lar and when he started on his campaign against
Madhurai he had the fullest support of the people of
Tondaimandalam.
The introduction of the supernatural element in
the biography luckily does not affect the accuracy of
the main details. The appearance of the goddess was
a poetic convention. In Harsha's Nāganandam there is
the episode of a goddess presenting a sword to Jimūta-
vāhana. In the Madhurāvijayam the episode may be
taken to be symbolic. The goddess that appeared before
him may be taken as the personification of Dharma
which had been so much put to trial during the inter-
regnum of the Sultanate in Madhurai, and her exhorta-
tion might be taken to mean that it was incumbent on
2