रामचरितम् /23
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2.
4.
5.
xxiii
कवीनां किं दत्तैर्नृपपशुभिरन्यैरवसरे परं पृथ्वीपालः क्षणमपि स कर्णो वितरतु ।
अनात्तं तत्त्वज्ञैरपि सुविपुलार्थव्ययभिया प्रतिष्टां येनोच्चैः जगति गमितं रामचरितम् ॥ III.
3. तस्यैकस्य निकामदानरभसप्रोल्लासिनः शोभते
इलाध्ये वस्तुनि यत्र तत्र पृथिवीपालस्य कौतूहलम् ।
रुवा सर्वदिशो मनोरथपथातीतर्द्धिभिः पुस्तकैः
सत्काव्याभिरतेन रामचरितं येन प्रतिष्ठापितम् ॥ XXVIII.
त्यागस्य पालमियमल्पतरा त्रिलोकी etc.
एकः स पालतिलकश्चिरमस्तु सम्राट् कोटिव्ययो न गणितः प्रतिपाठकालम् ।
येनास्य रामचरितस्य समं सदस्यैरेकैकसूक्तिपरिंभावनगदेन ॥ XXIV
These verses are so remarkably similar that on the strength of this
alone the identity of Devapala and Hâravarsa may be established.
The question may be raised as to how a king of the Pâla Dynasty
instead of bearing a name ending in Pâla should prefer to be called by the
name of Hâravarsa which appears to be quite foreign to the Pâla tradition.
The reason for this is not difficult to discover. It is well-known that
Dharmapala married a Râstrakûta princess known by the name of Rannadevi.
The Rastrakuta princes were very fond of adopting names ending in "Varșa "
and it is very probable that king Devapâla during his stay in his maternal
uncle's householt was known by the name of Haravarsa while his elder
brother Tribhuvanapâla was Yuvarâja in the court of his father Dharmapala.
II. THE POEM.
Bhámaha and Dandin, two early writers on poetical science have defined
the nature of the Mahakavya or the classical poem in their
respective treatises ². These definitions are drawn from the
general characteristics of well-known poems of Kalidāsa,
Bharavi, Pravarasena and many others, who had previously composed
lengthy classical poems. Other famous poems of the authors such as Magha,
Ratnakara, Bilhana and Mankhaka also come under the same category. It is
generally believed that the poems which are composed in accordance with the
rules laid down in the Alankara Sastra are slightly inferior to the early
poems on which the rules of definition were based. There is, of course, some
truth in this assertion as the later poets were somewhat handicapped by the
rules in making use of their free thinking, which is essential in all forms of
creative poetry. The higher class of poets, therefore, do not always conform
Mahakavya.
1.
Indian Antiquary Vol. XXI. P. 257.
2. Kavyalankára. 1, 19-21.
Kavyâdars'a 1, 14-19.
4.
5.
xxiii
कवीनां किं दत्तैर्नृपपशुभिरन्यैरवसरे परं पृथ्वीपालः क्षणमपि स कर्णो वितरतु ।
अनात्तं तत्त्वज्ञैरपि सुविपुलार्थव्ययभिया प्रतिष्टां येनोच्चैः जगति गमितं रामचरितम् ॥ III.
3. तस्यैकस्य निकामदानरभसप्रोल्लासिनः शोभते
इलाध्ये वस्तुनि यत्र तत्र पृथिवीपालस्य कौतूहलम् ।
रुवा सर्वदिशो मनोरथपथातीतर्द्धिभिः पुस्तकैः
सत्काव्याभिरतेन रामचरितं येन प्रतिष्ठापितम् ॥ XXVIII.
त्यागस्य पालमियमल्पतरा त्रिलोकी etc.
एकः स पालतिलकश्चिरमस्तु सम्राट् कोटिव्ययो न गणितः प्रतिपाठकालम् ।
येनास्य रामचरितस्य समं सदस्यैरेकैकसूक्तिपरिंभावनगदेन ॥ XXIV
These verses are so remarkably similar that on the strength of this
alone the identity of Devapala and Hâravarsa may be established.
The question may be raised as to how a king of the Pâla Dynasty
instead of bearing a name ending in Pâla should prefer to be called by the
name of Hâravarsa which appears to be quite foreign to the Pâla tradition.
The reason for this is not difficult to discover. It is well-known that
Dharmapala married a Râstrakûta princess known by the name of Rannadevi.
The Rastrakuta princes were very fond of adopting names ending in "Varșa "
and it is very probable that king Devapâla during his stay in his maternal
uncle's householt was known by the name of Haravarsa while his elder
brother Tribhuvanapâla was Yuvarâja in the court of his father Dharmapala.
II. THE POEM.
Bhámaha and Dandin, two early writers on poetical science have defined
the nature of the Mahakavya or the classical poem in their
respective treatises ². These definitions are drawn from the
general characteristics of well-known poems of Kalidāsa,
Bharavi, Pravarasena and many others, who had previously composed
lengthy classical poems. Other famous poems of the authors such as Magha,
Ratnakara, Bilhana and Mankhaka also come under the same category. It is
generally believed that the poems which are composed in accordance with the
rules laid down in the Alankara Sastra are slightly inferior to the early
poems on which the rules of definition were based. There is, of course, some
truth in this assertion as the later poets were somewhat handicapped by the
rules in making use of their free thinking, which is essential in all forms of
creative poetry. The higher class of poets, therefore, do not always conform
Mahakavya.
1.
Indian Antiquary Vol. XXI. P. 257.
2. Kavyalankára. 1, 19-21.
Kavyâdars'a 1, 14-19.