2022-10-18 08:40:30 by sanskrit_hitaay
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PREFACE
My first acquaintance with the exquisite poem of Mahisha Satakam was
some decades ago when the late revered Kunigal Rama Sastrigal,
Dharmadhikari of the Mysore Palace, recited some stanzas from it when we
were journeying together in a car and some buffaloes blocked the way. The simplicity
of the style, the fine humour, the facility of expression and the magnificent use of
double meaning words without the slight trace of rain or artificiality made a very great
impression upon me and, when I desired to have a copy of the entire poem, he told
me that it had not been printed but the Mysore Pandits were very familiar with the
stanzas as its commentator was once a Pandit of the Palace and was a very popular
figure respected and loved by all. It gives me very great pleasure to find that a copy
of the poem and of the commentary thereon has been obtained from a direct descend-
ent of both the author and the commentator and that he has been kind enough to
furnish such information as is available to him about them. Brahmasri Venkatarama
Sastrigal has with his characteristic flow and clearness given in his Sanskrit Intro-
duction a succinct account and I cannot do better than summarise it in English.
King Sahaji who ruled Tanjore from 1684 to 1710 A. D. was a great
patron of learning and was himself a very learned scholar and poet. It was he
that founded the village of Sahajirajapura also known as Tiruvisanallur in the Tanjore
District and granted it to several eminent scholars one of whom was the father of our
author. He seems to have held a responsible post as a minister of the king.
When the king went to Madura and stood in the presence of Goddess Minakshi he
sang forth this extempore verse
पुरि मधुरं गिरिमधुरं गरिमधुरंधरनितम्बभारद्वयम्।
स्थूलकुचं नीलकचं वालकचन्द्राङ्कितं तेजः ॥
Our poet who was then quite a young boy and had accompanied his father in the
royal camp was struck with the rare poetical skill of the king and immediately said
My first acquaintance with the exquisite poem of Mahisha Satakam was
some decades ago when the late revered Kunigal Rama Sastrigal,
Dharmadhikari of the Mysore Palace, recited some stanzas from it when we
were journeying together in a car and some buffaloes blocked the way. The simplicity
of the style, the fine humour, the facility of expression and the magnificent use of
double meaning words without the slight trace of rain or artificiality made a very great
impression upon me and, when I desired to have a copy of the entire poem, he told
me that it had not been printed but the Mysore Pandits were very familiar with the
stanzas as its commentator was once a Pandit of the Palace and was a very popular
figure respected and loved by all. It gives me very great pleasure to find that a copy
of the poem and of the commentary thereon has been obtained from a direct descend-
ent of both the author and the commentator and that he has been kind enough to
furnish such information as is available to him about them. Brahmasri Venkatarama
Sastrigal has with his characteristic flow and clearness given in his Sanskrit Intro-
duction a succinct account and I cannot do better than summarise it in English.
King Sahaji who ruled Tanjore from 1684 to 1710 A. D. was a great
patron of learning and was himself a very learned scholar and poet. It was he
that founded the village of Sahajirajapura also known as Tiruvisanallur in the Tanjore
District and granted it to several eminent scholars one of whom was the father of our
author. He seems to have held a responsible post as a minister of the king.
When the king went to Madura and stood in the presence of Goddess Minakshi he
sang forth this extempore verse
पुरि मधुरं गिरिमधुरं गरिमधुरंधरनितम्बभारद्वयम्।
स्थूलकुचं नीलकचं वालकचन्द्राङ्कितं तेजः ॥
Our poet who was then quite a young boy and had accompanied his father in the
royal camp was struck with the rare poetical skill of the king and immediately said