Pākadarpaṇa 1

% Mahārājanalaviracitam
% Pākadarpaṇam

% \B = "Pâkadarpanam by Mahârâja Nala",
% Kashi Sanskrit Series no. 1, pākavibhāge saṃkhā 1,
% ed. Vâmâcharana Bhattâchârya, Benares 1915
% \C = "Pākadarpaṇam of Mahārāja Nala",
% ed. Vāmācaraṇa Bhaṭṭācārya with the Mādhurī Hindi Commentary by Indradeva Tripāṭhī,
% Varanasi, vi. saṃ. 2040.
[[Seems to be a reprint with some erroneous emendations]]

ekākī naiṣadhaḥ prāpya & kadācit kalināśanaḥ |
ṛtuparṇasya nagarīṃ & rājānam idam abravīt ||1||
svadeśaṃ hi parityajya & bāhukākhyo 'ham āgataḥ |
aśvānāṃ vāhane rājan & pṛthivyāṃ nāsti matsamaḥ ||2||
arthajñānasya caivāhaṃ & draṣṭavyo naipuṇena ca |
annasaṃskāram api ca & jānāmi piśitasya ca ||3||

% pañcavidhabhojanasya bhedāḥ, classification of the five kinds of food
% 1) bhakṣya, 2) bhojya, 3) lehya, 4) coṣya, 5) peya
% \cf Suśrutasaṃhitā 6.65.40 lists four kinds of food: caturvidhaṃ cānnam upadiśyate bhakṣyaṃ bhojyaṃ lehyaṃ peyam iti
% \cf Bhagavadgītā 15.14d: pacāmy annaṃ caturvidham ||
% \cf Harivaṃśa 60.12ab: bhakṣyaṃ bhojyaṃ ca peyaṃ ca tat sarvam upanīyatām |
% \cf Mahābhārata 1.119.043d@073_0010 bhakṣyaṃ bhojyaṃ ca peyaṃ ca coṣyaṃ lehyaṃ tathaiva ca
% \cf Mahābhārata Śāntiparvan 12.184.16A: api cātra mālyābharaṇavastrābhyaṅgagandhopabhoganṛttagītavāditra- śrutisukhanayanābhirāmasaṃdarśanānāṃ prāptir bhakṣyabhojyapeyalehyacoṣyāṇām abhyavahāryāṇāṃ vividhānām upabhogaḥ svadāravihārasaṃtoṣaḥ kāmasukhāvāptir iti
% \cf Mahābhārata Śāntiparvan 12.158.11ab: bhakṣyaṃ bhojyam atho lehyaṃ yac cānyat sādhu bhojanam
% \cf Mahābhārat Indices, (after 1.119.30ab, K4 N B D ins. (cf. No. 73 below): 01_071_0001 bhakṣyaṃ bhojyaṃ ca peyaṃ ca coṣyaṃ lehyam athāpi ca
% \cf Rāmāyaṇa 2.044.015a bhakṣyaṃ bhojyaṃ ca peyaṃ ca lehyaṃ cedam upasthitam(NB: in light of the following, consider emending the weak cedam to coṣyam)
% \cf Rāmāyaṇa 2.085.017c bhakṣyaṃ bhojyaṃ ca coṣyaṃ ca lehyaṃ ca vividhaṃ bahu

bhakṣyaṃ bhojyaṃ tathā lehyaṃ & coṣyaṃ peyaṃ payogatam |
bhedaṃ rasānāṃ ṣaṇṇāṃ ca & śuddhasaṃskārabhedataḥ ||4||
sarveṣāṃ vyañjanānāṃ ca & saṃskāraṃ lavaṇādibhiḥ |
ebhir vinā ca toyaiś ca & citrapākaṃ rasāvaham ||5||
yāni śilpāni loke 'smin & yac cānyad api durlabham |
mayā kṛtarasaḥ kiṃ ca & sudhātubhyaś ca durlabhaḥ ||6||

% diseases that are avoided

bhujyate yena yatnena & tasyārogyaṃ bhaved dhruvam |
vātajaṃ pittajaṃ rogaṃ & śleṣmajaṃ hanti sarvadā |
sakṛnniṣevaṇenaiva & tripuraṃ tryambako yathā ||7||
ajīrṇadoṣād utpannaṃ & jvaraṃ māheśvarādikam |
hṛdrogaṃ rājayakṣmādi- & -rogaṃ śūlādikaṃ tathā||8
bhagandarātisāraṃ ca & saṃnipātādikaṃ tathā |
ityevamādikam sarvaṃ% \var{ityevamādikam\lem \B, ittham evādikaṃ \C} & rogajālaṃ nihanti saḥ ||9||
sarvaṃ yatiṣye tat kartum & ṛtuparṇa bharasva mām |
ity uktvā vasatīṃ cakra% \var{cakra\lem \em, cakre \B\C} & ṛtuparṇasya veśmani ||10

% origin of pākaśāstra

taṃ kadā cit samāhūya & sa rājā rājasattamaḥ |
etāḥ kalāḥ kuto labdhās & tvam asmākaṃ vada priyam ||11||
śrutvā tadvacanaṃ sādhus & tad vaktum upacakrame |
śṛṇu rājendra vidyāyā & nidānaṃ mama tattvataḥ ||12||
svayaṃvarārthaṃ vaidarbhyāḥ & samāyātāḥ sureśvarāḥ |
aham apy āgatas tatra & dṛṣṭyā dṛṣṭaś ca taiḥ pathi ||13||
mām ūcus tatra vai devā & vañcanārtham idaṃ vacaḥ |
asmān va puruṣavyāghra & yathā bhaimī variṣyati ||14|
tathā kuru batety ukte & svasti te 'stv iti cābruvan |
dūtarūpaṃ samābhṛtya & māmakārthī yathārthataḥ |
te naiṣadhaṃ samālokya & varān dadur anuttamān ||15

% Indrādilokapālapradattavaranirūpaṇam
% the boons given to Nala by the gods

adṛśyasiddhiṃ prathamam & indras tuṣṭo ‘dadāt svayam |
tato havvirbhujaḥ prādād & agnisiddhiṃ nirindhanīm ||16
tato ‘nnarasasiddhiś ca & sūryaputraś ca laukikim |
varuṇo jalasiddhiṃ ca & vinā yatnena sattama ||17
iti vidyāḥ surā te tu & dattvā nijapadaṃ yayuḥ |
iti tasya vacaḥ śrutvā & rājā ta[ṃ] vismito ‘vadat ||18
iyaṃ tv alaukikī vidyā & tvadgatā naradurlabhā |
ato narahitārthāya & nidarśanamukhena tām ||19
darśanaṃ kuru tattvena & dṛṣṭeḥ kautūhalaṃ hi naḥ |
ity uktavati rājendre & naiṣadhaḥ punar abravīt ||20

% nalena svanirmitagranthaviṣayavarṇanam
% the purpose and nature of the work

asminn arthe mayākāri & grantho lokahitāya ca |
lokapālaprasādena & pākadarpaṇanāmataḥ ||21 %title of work: Pākadarpaṇa
tasyāvalokanenaiva & dṛśyante vividhāḥ kriyāḥ |
sūdasya lakṣaṇam tāvad & vakṣye saṃkṣepataḥ prabho ||22

% sūdasya lakṣaṇam
% the cook

svadeśasaṃbhavo prājñaḥ & sarvalakṣaṇalakṣitaḥ |
sadācārasamāyukto & viśiṣṭakulasaṃbhavaḥ ||23
śānto dānto dānaśīlo & rājapūjyo śucismitaḥ |
svadāranirataḥ śuddhaḥ & paradāravivarjitaḥ ||24
mitabhāṣī sadā dātā & dayāluś ca subhāṣitaḥ |
dhātujño deśakālajño & vayovasthādivid budhaḥ ||25

% pariveśakasya lakṣaṇaṃ vidhiś ca
% the waiter

prakṣālya caraṇau hastau & kṛtaśaucavidhis tadā |
saṃpūrṇakāmo niṣṭhātmā & rājabhojanakālavit ||26
rājñaś cāvasaraṃ jñātvā & pākādīṃś ca pradāpayet |
yadā pathyaṃ bhaved rājñaḥ & krameṇa prakṣipec ca tān ||27

% granthasyopakramaṇikā
% table of contents

odanasya prabhedo ‘tra & prathamaṃ kathyate mayā |
dvitīyaṃ sūpabhedaś ca & sarpiṣaś ca tṛtīyakam ||28
vyañjanasya ca bhedaś ca & caturthaḥ saprapañcakaḥ | % \em, sa prapañcakaḥ \B pañcamo māṃsaśāko ‘tra & saprabhedaś ca kathyate ||29
ṣaṣṭo ‘tra bhakṣyabhedaś ca & saptamaḥ pāyasasya ca |
rasāyanaś cāṣṭamo ‘tra & navamaḥ pānabhedataḥ ||30
daśamaṃ yūṣabhedaś ca & ghṛtādyannaprabhedakaḥ |
ekādaśaś ca lehyasya & bhedo dvādaśakas tathā ||31
trayodaśaṃ tu pānīyaṃ & kṣīrabhedaś caturdaśaḥ |
dadhibhedaḥ pañcadaśaḥ & ṣoḍaśaḥ takrabhedakaḥ ||32
ṣoḍaśo mukhyabhedaś ca & dṛṣṭāntena pradarśitaḥ |
mṛgyo ‘vāntarabhedaś ca & tatra tatra mahaddhiyā ||33
tatra tatra yathāyogyo & vādas tu kathito mayā |
pānīyanāmadeśe hi & pānīyasya samudbhavaḥ ||34
punaś citraṃ ca kathitaṃ & pāyasaṃ cāmlasaṃbhavam |
evamādīni citrāṇi & kāryāṇi vividhāni ca ||35
pākotthitāny apākāni & kartavyāni manīṣibhiḥ |
kim atra bahunoktena & yuktaṃ caikaṃ śṛṇu prabho ||36
yasmin kāle deśakāle & dayābhāvo hi bhūmipa |
tathā tasminu upāyena & kathitas tasya samṃbhavaḥ ||37

% annasya prāśastyanirūpaṇam
% praise of food

sarveṣāṃ prāṇināṃ prāṇam & annaṃ prathamam ucyate |
brahmarūpam idaṃ samyak & triṣaṣṭirasarūpakam ||38
doṣāṣṭakena rahitam & āhared annam uttamam |

% annagatadoṣāṇāṃ vivecanam

doṣasvarūpam ajñātvā & tadrāhityaṃ kathaṃ labhet ||39
anindyatvād adoṣatvād & doṣo nāsti tadāśrayaḥ |
ato ‘ṣṭarūpo doṣo hi & nāsty atra śrutimānataḥ ||40

% anne ‘ṣṭadoṣasaṃbhavanirūpaṇam
% the eight defects: 1) asṛta, 2) picchila, 3) aśuci, 4) kvathita, 5) śuṣka, 6) dagdha, 7) virūpa, 8) anṛtuja

vidyate hy aṣṭadoṣo hi & pratyakṣeṇa pramādataḥ |
ke te doṣāḥ sadāviṣṭāḥ & pratyakṣeṇa balīyasā ||41
iti praśnakṛte j[ñ]ātum & uttaraṃ jyeṣṭhamānataḥ |
ye te tadāśritā doṣā & asṛtaḥ picchilo ‘śuciḥ ||42
kvathitaḥ śuṣkato dagdho & virūpo nartujas tathā |
svarūpalakṣaṇaṃ caiṣāṃ & kathyate kramaśo guṇam ||43

% annagatadoṣavicārasya prayojananirūpaṇam

kiṃ tasya hāsarūpasya & vicārasya prayojanam |
payastvāt tyajyate sadbhir & dravatve tu viśāradaiḥ ||44
idaṃ sadoṣaṃ nirdoṣam & idaṃ ceti vivekitum |
vikārārthaṃ na doṣeṇa & yuktadravyaṃ prayatnataḥ ||45
kiṃ tv aduṣṭavaśaṃkartur & etad eva prayojanam |
annasya nāsti vā doṣā & na bhavanti kadācana ||46
te tasya saṃbhavanty eva & pācakasya pramādataḥ |
krameṇa vakṣye doṣāṇām & aṣṭāṇāṃ lakṣaṇaṃ guṇam ||47

% 1) asṛtānnalakṣaṇaṃ doṣāś ca

aśrāvitayavāguṃ yad & annam asṛtam ucyate |
tad annaṃ yena bhuktaṃ cet & tasya vyādhikaraṃ bhavet ||48

% 2) paicchilānnasya lakṣaṇaṃ doṣāś ca

annam āśrayate jīrṇam & atipākena paicchilam |
tad bhaktaṃ bhujyate yena & taṃ tyajed audaro ‘nalaḥ ||49

% 3) aśucyannasya lakṣaṇaṃ doṣāś ca

kṛmikeśādisaṃyuktaṃ & yad annam aśuci smṛtam |
tadbhakṣaṇād arucīrasanā sravate jalam ||50 %metrical problem, yatibhraṣṭa

Verner’s law

Verner’s law 1 Verner’s law 2 Verner’s law 3

upāstiḥ

Kīrtikaumudī 1.6:
Sarasvatīṃ sadā vande &
  yadupāstiṃ samucchritāḥ /
kāvyāni kusumānīva &
  suvate kavipādapāḥ //

Ever I worship
  the Goddess of Speech ⁛ river Sarasvatī.
Poet-trees
  absorbed ⁛ raised
  in her worship ⁛ presence
sprout poems
  as if they were flowers.

cakrāṇi vaktum upakramate 1

The account of the cakras in the Saṃgītaratnākara of Śārṅgadeva Edited by Pandit S. Subrahmanya Sastri, revised by Smt. S. Sarada, Adyar Library and Research Centre, Madras, second edition 1992. This is a dateable, significant passage for the history of the evolution of the system of seven cakras. Makoto Kitada has been working on this material for a while (and will hopefully continue), see: ‘Embryology, Ascetism and Music: Yājñavalkyasmṛti and Saṅgītaratnākara,’ in Traditional South Asian Medine, 7 (2003), Das, Rahul Peter (ed.). Dr. Ludwig Reichert Verlag, Wiesbaden pp. 111–113.

1. ādhāra

Between the anus and genitals is the ādhāracakra. It has four petals. In these four petals, arranged in the intermediate points of the compass, are located four blisses (ānanda): [1] “supreme bliss” in the north-east, [2] “innate bliss” in the south-east, [3] “hero bliss” in the south-west, [4] “union bliss” in the north-west. Kuṇḍalinī resides in this lotus structure. When she is raised to the cranial aperture she bestows liberation.

SaṃRa_2.120ab: gudaliṅgāntare cakram & ādhārākhyaṃ caturdalam /
SaṃRa_2.120cd: paramaḥ sahajas tadvad & ānando vīrapūrvakaḥ //
SaṃRa_2.121ab: yogānandaś ca tatra syād & aiśānādidale phalam /
SaṃRa_2.121cd: asti kuṇḍalinī brahma&śaktir ādhārapaṅkaje //
SaṃRa_2.122ab: ā brahmarandhram ṛjutāṃ & nīteyam amṛtapradā /

Kallinātha: gudaliṅgāntara iti / guḍaliṅgayor madhye sthitasyādhāracakrasyaiśānādidalacatuṣṭaye janmakāle jīvasthityā paramānandādayaḥ phalāni / ādhārapaṅkaje tasminn evādhāracakre / kuṇḍalinīty anvarthatayā sarparūpiṇī brahmaśaktiḥ, brahmaṇo 'saṅgodāsīnasya paramātmanaḥ kartṛtvādyupahitākārakāriṇy avidyāśaktiḥ / saiva mūrtimayī kuṭilākāratayā kuṇḍalinīty ucyate / ā brahmarandhraṃ, brahmarandhraṃ nāma suṣumnāyā agraṃ śirasi sahasradalacakramadhyagaṃ, tatparyantam / ṛjutāṃ nīteti / gurūpadiṣṭaprakāreṇa yamaniyamādikrameṇa vāyor iḍāpiṅgalayoḥ saṃcāraṃ nirudhya tena vāyunā savaninā brahmagranthau suṣumnāmūlarandhragranthīnāṃ kuṇḍalinīphaṇam apasārya tatra praveśitena tena brahmaviṣṇurudragranthīnāṃ kramād bhede sati kuṇḍalinī svārjavād brahmarandhravinirgatena svavālāgreṇa sudhādhāraṃ sahasradalacakraṃ vibhidya tato 'mṛtaṃ drāvayatīti tathoktā //

Siṃhabhūpāla: evam aṅgapratyaṅgāny uktvā cakrāṇi vaktum upakramate—gudaliṅgāntara iti / guḍaliṅgayor antare madhya ādhārasaṃjñakaṃ cakraṃ caturdalaṃ padmākāram āste / tasya catūrṇāṃ dalānāṃ phalaṃ kathayati—parama iti / aiśānadale paramānanda āgneyadale sahajānandaḥ, nairṛtadale vīrānandaḥ, vāyavyadale yogānandaḥ / tataś cādhārakamalasya vidiksthitāny eva catvāri dalānīti labhyate / astīti / kuṇḍalinīsaṃjñikā brahmaśaktiḥ, brahmaprāptikāraṇatvāt, ādhārapaṅkaje vidyate / seyam ābrahmarandhraṃ brahmarandhraparyantam ṛjutāṃ nītā satī amṛtapradā mokṣapradā //

2. svādhiṣṭhāna

At the “root” (base) of the genitals is located the six-petalled svādhiṣṭhānacakra (Kallinātha adds that it is six finger-breadths above the ādhāracakra). In its petals, beginning with the east (subjectively the front) are found: [1] modesty, [2] cruelty, [3] destruction of pride, [4] stupefaction, [5] disrespect [6] suspicion. [As Siṃhabhūpāla explains, this means that when the soul rests in these respective petals it takes on these respective states (tatrāvasthita ātmā praśrayavān bhavatītyarthaḥ)]. This cakra is the abode of the power of infatuation.

SaṃRa_2.122cd: svādhiṣṭhānaṃ liṅgamūle & ṣaṭpatraṃ cakram asya ca //
SaṃRa_2.123ab: pūrvādiṣu daleṣv āhuḥ & phalāny etāny anukramāt /
SaṃRa_2.123cd: praśrayaḥ krūratā garva&nāśo mūrcchā tataḥ param //
SaṃRa_2.124ab: avajñā syād aviśvāsaḥ & kāmaśakter idaṃ gṛham /

Kallinātha: svādhiṣṭhānam iti / ādhāracakrād ūrdhvaṃ liṅgamūle svādhiṣṭhānākhyaṃ ṣaḍaṅgulaṃ dvitīyaṃ cakram / tasya pūrvādidaleṣu kramāt praśrayādīni phalāny āha—asya ceti / avajñā syād iti / dharmaparo 'yaṃ nirdeśaḥ //

Siṃhabhūpāla: svādhiṣṭhānasaṃjñitaṃ cakraṃ kathayati—svādhiṣṭhānam iti / ṣaṭpatraṃ ṣaḍdalaṃ kamalākāram / etasya ṣaṇṇāṃ dalānāṃ phalāni kathayati—asya ceti / praśrayo vinayaḥ pūrvadigavasthitasya dalasya phalam / tatrāvasthita ātmā praśrayavān bhavatītyarthaḥ / krūratā duṣṭakarmābhiniveśaḥ / garva ātmotkarṣabhāvanam, tasya nāśaḥ / mūrcchā mohādhikyam / avajñāvagaṇānā / aviśvāsaḥ sarvatra saśaṅkatvam anāśvāso vā / idaṃ svādhiṣṭhānacakraṃ kāmotpattikāyāḥ śakter gṛham āśrayaḥ //

Gaṇacakram

Vikramaśīla Workshop. 

http://jasas.info/2012-09-05%20news1.html

http://www.ioc.u-tokyo.ac.jp/news/upimg2009/VikramasilaWorkshop2012.pdf

“Think like the few, speak like the many” (Gaufrei de Vinsauf)

“There are some people who wish to learn, but not to work or to suffer study and pain. That is the way of a cat: it wants a fish but does not want to go fishing. I do not speak to them, but only to any there may be whom the labor of getting knowledge rejoices as much as the knowledge itself does.”

Gaufrei de Vinsauf

Poetria Nova of Geoffrey of Vinsauf. Trans. Margaret F. Nims. Toronto: Pontifical Institute of Medieval Studies, 1967.*

Geoffrey of Vinsauf, Poetria nova (c. 1210 AD) trans. Jane Baltzell Kopp, in Three Medieval Rhetorical Arts ed. James J. Murphy (Berkeley: Univ. Calif. Press, 1971).

शास्त्रसद्भावः

कृत्स्नं हि शास्त्रमिदमिन्द्रियजयः ।

मार्गदेशीविचारः ३

The following is a description of India and the deśī (vernacular) languages spoken in various polities. More on the placement of Prākrits etc. later. It is taken from the tenth chapter of the Bhāvaprakāśana of the 12th century Kashmirian author Śāradātanaya:

The land of Bhāratavarṣa measures 9000 yojanas from Adam’s bridge, Rama’s bridge or Nala’s bridge (or whatever is the currently acceptable designation for the island bridge linking India and Śrīlaṅkā) to the Himalayas:

deśo bhāratavarṣākhyo & navasāhasrayojanaḥ
ā setor ā himagirer & āyāmaḥ parikīrtitaḥ/


Decrease of inhabited area (from north to south) out of fear from encroaching snow (a quasi-ice-age paranoia) as cyclical time progresses:


tāraḥ pūrvāparādyantaḥ & saptasāhasrayojanaḥ
vasanti martyāḥ sarvatra & prāpte kṛtayuge sukham/
tretāyuge dvāpare ca & himākrāntibhayāj janāḥ
pādaṃ pādaṃ visṛjyaite & śrayante dakṣiṇāpatham/
yojanānāṃ sahasre dve & sapañcāśacchatadvayam

In the Kali age humans walk the earth, yakṣas, vidyādharas, siddhas, gandharvas, maharṣis sport with their wives in the uttarāpatha:


prāpte kaliyuge martyāś & caranti vasudhātale/
yakṣā vidyādharāḥ siddhā & gandharvāś ca maharṣayaḥ
krīḍanti strīgaṇaiḥ sārdham & uttarāpathabhūmiṣu/
asya bhāratavarṣasya & caturtho dakṣiṇāpathaḥ
catuḥṣaṣṭibhidābhinno & nānājanapadāśrayaḥ/

List of 64 lands. This passage seems defective, I cannot make it 64 without further MS evidence, Kārūśa and Yavana seem to be repeated:


[1]pāṇḍyāḥ [2]sakeralāś [3]colāḥ & [4]sindhu[5]siṃhala[5]pāmarāḥ
[6]kaliṅga[7]yavana[8]mleccha&[9]pārasīka[10]śakāhvayāḥ/
[11]gauḍa[11]lāṭa[12]vidarbhāś ca & [13]kāmarūpa+[14]āndhra[15]koṅkaṇāḥ
[16]karṇāṭa[17]suhya[18]kāmbhoja&[19]hūṇa[20]kārūśa[21]gurjarāḥ/
sa[22]saurāṣṭra[23]mahārāṣṭra&[24]himmīra[25]āvanty[26]anūpajāḥ
[27]aṅgā [28]vaṅgāś ca [29]vaṅgālāḥ & [30]kāśī[31]kosala[32]maithilāḥ/
[33]kirāta[34]vardhraka+[35]āraṭṭa&[36]kuru[37]pāñcāla[38]kekayāḥ
[39]auḍhra[40]māgadha[41]sauvīra&[42]daśārṇa[43]magadhāhvayāḥ/
[44]nepāla[45]jaina[46]bāhlīka&[47]pallava[48]kratha[49]kaiśikāḥ
s{u}[a][50]śūrasenakājāna&[51]kārūśa[52]yavanādayaḥ/
[53]yadavaś [54]cakra[55]kurava&[56]pārvatīyāḥ sa[57]haimanāḥ
[58]kāśmīra[59]maru[60]k{e}[o]ṅkāṇa&[61]nagrāś ca saha[62]maṅkaṇāḥ/
mahendraduhitus setor & ete madhyam upāśritāḥ
ete ‘ṣṭādaśabhir bhāṣā&bhedair vyavaharanti ca/


18 deśī languages.

tā bhāṣās teṣu keṣāñ cid & deśānāṃ nāmābhiḥ kṛtāḥ
[1] dramiḍāḥ [2] kannaḍa+[3]āndhrāś ca & [4]hūṇa[5]himmīra[6]siṃhalāḥ/
[7]pallavā [7]yavanā [8]jaināḥ & [9]pārvatīyāḥ sa[10]pāmarāḥ
[11]kaṣa[12]vardhraka[13]kāmbhoja&[14]śaka[15]nagrāḥ sa[16]vākaṭāḥ/
ete 'ṣṭādaśabhāṣāṇām & āśrayāḥ saha[17]koṅkaṇāḥ
etā bhāṣāś ca sarvatra & [18] mlecchabhāṣety udāhṛtāḥ/
tattaddeśeṣu saṅgītaṃ & tattadbhāṣābhir anvitam
deśīti deśikam api & kathayanti manīṣiṇaḥ/

Some unusual saṃketas

In paricchedas 5–11 of the Nāgarasarvasva of Padmaśrī (ca. 1100–1300 A.D.), a work on erotics, is preserved an elaborate code-language of conventions (saṃketa) designed entirely to facilitate the management of clandestine love-affairs. These conventions are of six kinds: [1.] bhāṣāsaṅketa, [2.] aṅgasaṅketa, [3.] poṭalīsaṅketa, [4.] vastrasaṅketa, [5.] tāmbūlasaṅketa, [6.] puṣpamālāsaṅketa, sarvasaṅketakathana. Here is the aṅgasaṅketa, which allows two concerned parties to state their interest and fix place and time of an assignation by means of innocuous looking hand-gestures. Click for more...

So far I have consulted the following sources for this text:
1) Nāgarasarvasva Wellcome Inst. Q 20 II. 131-B, ff. 102, Nepalese yellow paper, Nevar lipi.
2) Nāgarasarvasvam of Mahāmati Padmaśrī with the commentary of Jagajjyotirmalla, ed. Babulal Shukla Shastri, Delhi 1994.
3) Lienhard, Siegfried: Observations concerning a Buddhist text on erotics: the Nāgarasarvasva of Padmaśrī. In: CAJ 23(1979), S. 96–103.


Nāgarasarvasva 6 with the Commentary of Jagajjyotirmalla:

6.1ab: kṣemapraśne karṇalatā& kathitā kathane 'pi sā /
6.1cd: kacadaṃśas tu kāmārttāv & uraḥ snehe śiro 'rcane // 1//

kṣemapraśne kuśalapraśne karṇalatā hastena sparśanīyā, sā karṇalatā kathane api kathitā / kāmārttā kacadaṃśaḥ keśaḥ sparśanīyaḥ, snehe uraḥ vakṣaḥsthale sparśanīyam / ete patākayā kāryāḥ /

6.2ab: madhyamā 'vasarapraśne& tarjanīpṛṣṭhayojitā /
6.2cd: avasare 'ñjalir jñeya& āhvāne kuñcitāṅguliḥ // 2//

avasarapraśne madhyamāṅgulī tarjanīpṛṣṭhayojitā / avasare sati añjalir jñeyaḥ āhvāne ākāraṇe sa eva añjaliḥ viparītaḥ kuñcitāṅguliḥ /

6.3ab: aṅguṣṭhatarjanīmadhyāḥ& pūrvadakṣiṇapaścimāḥ /
6.3cd: uttarā 'nāmikā ceti& diśo jñeyā anukramāt // 3//

pūrve aṅguṣṭhaḥ, dakṣiṇe tarjanī, paścime madhyamā, uttare anāmikā, evaṃ krameṇa catasro diśaḥ jñeyāḥ /

6.4ab: kaniṣṭhamūlam ārabhya& rekhāḥ pañcadaśa kramāt /
6.4cd: aṅguṣṭhasyordhvarekhāntaḥ& smṛtāḥ pratipadādiṣu // 4//

kaniṣṭhāmūlaṃ ārabhya aṅguṣṭhasya ūrdhvarekhāntaṃ aṅguliṃ prati rekhātrayaṃ kramāt pañcadaśa rekhāḥ bhavanti, tena pratipadādyāḥ pañcadaśa tithayo bhavanti /

6.5ab: śukle vāmakare jñeyā& asite dakṣiṇe kare /
6.5cd: yad yat spṛśanti kāminyas& tasyārthe nipuṇaḥ sma //5

śuklapakṣe vāmakare rekhā kartavyā / kṛṣṇapakṣe dakṣiṇakare rekhā kartavyā / kāminyaḥ yad yat spṛśanti tat sthānaṃ nipuṇaṃ sma // iti aṅgasaṅketam //

मार्गदेशीविचारः २

Another definition of mārga and deśī music this time from the Saṃgītaratnākara of Śārṅgadeva Edited by Pandit S. Subrahmanya Sastri, revised by Smt. S. Sarada, Adyar Library and Research Centre, Madras, second edition 1992. Click for more...

[saṃgītalakṣaṇam]

saṃgīta comprises three things: gīta (song), vādya (instrumental music) and nṛtta (dance):

SaṃRa_1.21cd: gītaṃ vādyaṃ tathā nṛttam & trayaṃ saṃgītam ucyate

[mārgadeśīvibhāgaḥ]

It is divided twofold, into mārga, “classical” and deśī “regional”:

SaṃRa_1.22ab: mārgo deśīti tad dvedhā & tatra mārgaḥ sa ucyate

Mārga was “sought after” or “perceived” (mārgito) by Viriñca (=Brahmā) and employed by Bharata etc.:

SaṃRa_1.22cd: yo mārgito viriñcādyaiḥ & prayukto bharatādibhiḥ
SaṃRa_1.23ab: devasya purataḥ śambhor & niyatābhyudayapradaḥ

Kallinātha ad loc: mārgita iti “mārga anveṣane” ity asmād dhātoḥ karmaṇi niṣṭhāyāṃ rūpam / mārga iti tu tasmād eva dhātoh karmaṇi ghañantam /
Siṃhabhūpāla ad loc: mārgito 'nveṣito dṛṣtaḥ /

SaṃRa_1.23cd: deśe deśe janānāṃ yad & rucyā hṛdayarañjakam
SaṃRa_1.24ab: gītaṃ ca vādanaṃ nṛttaṃ & tad deśīty abhidhīyate

Kallinātha ad loc: deśaśabdena tatratyā janā lakṣyante, tair yatheccham kriyamānāyāṃ gītādikriyāyāyām ācāryakṛtā saṃjñā /

[teṣāṃ prādhānyavicāraḥ]

Vocal music is predominant as instrumental music and dance follow it:

SaṃRa_1.24cd: nṛttaṃ vādyānugataṃ proktaṃ & vādyaṃ gītānuvarti ca
SaṃRa_1.25ab: ato gītaṃ pradhānatvād & atrādāv abhidhīyate

Friedrich Rückert’s “Anrufung Śiva’s”

I chanced upon a volume of Friedrich Rückert’s (1788–1866) “virtuoso” translation of the Amaruśataka in the Berkeley University Library and could not resist spending some time reading through it. Rückert seems largely forgotten by posterity, most will probably only be familiar with a few of Rückert’s (allegedly jinxed) Kindertotenlieder set by Mahler. Click for more...

On the face of it, Rückert’s attempt to write German translations imitating the metrical patterns of Sanskrit is so fantastic that one is indeed tempted simply to repeat the unkind slur based on his name (verrückert!) and forget about the matter. But in fact, some of his verses struck me as being rather brilliant. The non-casual reader, familiar with the original Sanskrit, will probably concede that this translation of the famous second maṅgala verse of the Amaruśataka is really quite successful:

2. Anrufung Śiva’s

Der weggeschleudert and die Hand sich hangende,
Zurückgestoßen schmiegende sich ans Gewand,
Haar fassend weggedrängte, Fuß-umfangende,
Nicht mehr gesehen dann, weil die Besinnung schwand;
Der von den Mädchen Tripura’s mit Schaudermut
Umarmend abgeschüttelte, mit Tränenflut
Zurückgewiesne Werber, ungedämpfter Glut,
Verbrenn er eure Sünden, Śiva’s Rohrpfeilbrand!

सांराज्यलक्ष्मीपीठिका ३५ उपसाललक्षणम् ॥

(Sāṃrājyalakṣmīpīṭhikā 35: upasālalakṣaṇam) The short thirty-fifth chapter (paṭala) of the Sāṃrājyalakṣmīpīṭhikā describes the construction of the “secondary wall” (upasāla) and moat beyond the main wall (sāla). It seems this is intended as a subsection of the koṣṭhadurga. This type of fortress is perhaps best not called a “hall-fortress” but rather a “walled-compound-fortress”. Click for more...

atha pañcatriṃśaḥ paṭalaḥ

upasālalakṣaṇam

pārvatī—
SāṃLaPī_1.1ab: śiva sarvajña bhagavaṃl & lokarakṣaṇatatpara
SāṃLaPī_1.1cd: svarūpam upasālasya& vada me 'dya dayānidhe

śrīśivaḥ—
SāṃLaPī_1.2ab: śṛṇu devy upasālasya & vakṣyāmi tava sādaram
SāṃLaPī_1.2cd: lakṣaṇaṃ śilpaśāstrokta&mārgeṇa śubhalakṣaṇe

A space of twenty cubits (= 9 meters) beyond the sāla is left clear:
SāṃLaPī_1.3ab: pūrvoktasālāt parito & bahirdeśe samantataḥ
SāṃLaPī_1.3cd: viṃśaddhastamitāṃ bhūmiṃ & tyaktvā pūrvavad eva hi

Then another wall is built, complete with merlons and a moat. The wall measures eight cubits (3.6 meters) in height. It is furnished with many watchtowers (aṭṭāla):
SāṃLaPī_1.4ab: aṣṭahastāyataṃ śṛṅga&paṅktyā vapreṇa śobhitam
SāṃLaPī_1.4cd: upasālaṃ kalpayitvā & bahvaṭṭālasamanvitam

Beyond this secondary wall a space of three cubits (1.5 meters) is left clear. Then a rampart (parighā) is built (1 kara = breadth of 24 thumbs):
SāṃLaPī_1.5ab: tatas tasyopasālasya & paritaḥ padmalocane
SāṃLaPī_1.5cd: hastatrayamitāṃ bhūmiṃ & tyaktvātha kaṭisūtravat
SāṃLaPī_1.6ab: tadbahirviṃsatikara&nimnāṃ tāvat karāyatām
SāṃLaPī_1.6cd: parighāṃ kārayitvātha & bandhayet tattaṭadvayam
SāṃLaPī_1.7ab: śilābhir iṣṭakābhir vā & tasya dārḍhyatvasiddhaye

Gates in the cardinal points:
SāṃLaPī_1.7cd: evaṃ sālaṃ vinirmāya & dikṣu dvārāṇi kārayet
SāṃLaPī_1.8ab: kecit sālatrayaṃ kheya & trayam icchanti bhūmipāḥ
SāṃLaPī_1.8cd: atyasādhyatvasiddhyartham & etad durgasya bhāmini
SāṃLaPī_1.9ab: ity evam upasālasya & kathitaṃ mayā
SāṃLaPī_1.9cd: saṅgraheṇa tavāparṇe & kim anyac chrotum icchasi

ityākāśabhairavākhye mahāśaivatantre sāmrājyalakṣmīpīṭhikāyām upasālasvarūpanirūpaṇaṃ nāma pañcatriṃśaḥ paṭalaḥ ||

मार्गदेशीविचारः १

The evolution of the categories of mārga and deśī has interested me for some time now, so I will post some relevant sources. Incidentally, it demonstrates that the idea of a “vernacular” is actually one of considerable antiquity in Sanskrit śāstric discourse (more on this later).

Here is what remains of the first chapter of the Bṛhaddeśī of Mataṅgamuni, as reedited by Prem Lata Sharma assisted by Anil Bihari Beohar, IGNCA, New Delhi 1992. Sharma’s text is occasionally heavily, and in my opinion unnecessarily, emended (no new MS evidence was used) to remove any trace of Purāṇic or Aiśa syntax, sandhi etc. Therefore I add the TSS 92 readings on the lines immediately following. The missing opening section might have contained a formal definition of what Mataṅga understood by mārga. Click for more...

prathamo ’dhyāyaḥ

...lacuna of one folio...

deśīprakaraṇam

[mataṅga uvāca]

nānāvidheṣu deśeṣu & jantūnāṃ sukhado bhavet
tataḥ prabhṛti lokānāṃ & narendrāṇāṃ yadṛcchayā
deśe deśe pravṛtto ’sau & dhvaner deśīti saṃjñitaḥ

[granthakṛt]

mataṅgasya vacaḥ śrutvā & nārado munir abravīt

[nārada uvāca]

nanu dhvanes tu deśītvaṃ & kathaṃ jātaṃ mahāmune ?
amūrtatvāc ca tasyeti & satyaṃ me vaktum arhasi
TSS: amūrtatvāc ca teṣāṃ hi & iti me vaktum arhasi
mataṅga uvāca

yathādeśānubhūtatvād & dhvaneḥ sthānānugatvataḥ
TSS: yathānubhūtadeśāc ca & dhvaneḥ sthānānugād api
...lacuna?...
tato bindus tato nādas & tato mātrās tv anukramāt
varṇas tu mātṛkodbhūtā & mātṛkā dvividhā matāḥ
svaravyañjanarūpeṇa & jagajjyotir ihocyate
svaryate deśabhāṣāyāṃ & kādikṣāntaṃ yathāvidhi
TSS: svaryate deśabhāṣāyām & ādikṣāntaṃ yathāvidhi
tena svarāh samākhyātā & anye ṣaḍjādayaḥ svarāḥ
vyañjanatvaṃ tu sarveṣu & kādivargeṣu saṃsthitam
TSS: vyañjanatvaṃ tu sarveṣāṃ & kādivargeṇa saṃsthitam
śaktyabhivyaktimātreṇa & vyajjanaṃ śivatām gatam
padavākyasvarūpeṇa & vākyārthavahanena yat
varṇayanti jagat sarvaṃ & tena varṇāḥ prakīrtitāḥ
TSS: varṇā yatra jagat sarvaṃ & tena varṇāḥ prakīrtitāḥ
varṇapūrvakam etad dhi & padaṃ jñeyaṃ sadā budhaiḥ
padais tu nirmitaṃ vākyaṃ & kriyākārakasaṃyutam
tato vākyān mahāvākyaṃ & vedāḥ sāṅgā hy anukramāt
vyaktās te dhvanitah sarve & tato gāndharvasaṃbhavaḥ
dhvanir yoniḥ parā jñeyā & dhvaniḥ sarvasya kāraṇam
ākrāntaṃ dhvaninā sarvaṃ & jagat sthāvarajaṅgamam
dhvanis tu dvividhaḥ prokto & vyaktāvyaktavibhāgataḥ
varṇopalambhanād vyakto & deśīmukham upāgataḥ

iti deśyutpattiḥ

[deśīmārgalakṣaṇam]

abalābālagopālaiḥ & kṣitipālair nijecchayā
gīyate yānurāgeṇa & svadeśe deśir ucyate
TSS: gīyate sānurāgeṇa & svadeśe deśir ucyate
nibaddhaś cānibaddhaś ca & mārgo ’yaṃ dvividho mataḥ
TSS: nibandhaś cānibandhaś ca & mārgo ’yaṃ dvividho mataḥ
ālāpādinibaddho yaḥ & sa ca mārgaḥ prakīrtitaḥ
TSS: āplāpādinibandho yaḥ & sa ca mārgaḥ prakīrtitaḥ \var{or: \conj alpālāpanibaddho yaḥ}
evaṃprakārā deśīyaṃ & jñjātavyā gītakovidaiḥ
TSS: evaṃprakāro deśī yaḥ & jñātavyā gītakovidaiḥ
evam etan mayā proktaṃ & deśyā utpattilakṣaṇam

iti deśīlakṣaṇam

Sāhib Kaul's Śyāmāpaddhati

Continuing the post of Tuesday, April 04, 2006.

1.20ab: hṛdaye mātaraḥ kaṇṭhe & śiraḥ pīṭhopapīṭhayoḥ
1.20cd: cibuke yasya devāś ca & tasya śrīpādukāsmṛtiḥ
1.21ab: yajñāḥ kapolayugme ca & jihvāgre ca sarasvatī
1.21cd: yasya danteṣu mantrāś ca & tasya śrīpādukāsmṛtiḥ
1.22ab: skandhe ca khecarā devā & netre ca tejasāṃ trayam
1.22cd: liṅgatrayaṃ lalāṭe ca & tasya śrīpādukāsmṛtiḥ
1.23ab: iḍāpiṅgalayor antar & gaṅgā ca yamunā tathā
1.23cd: madhye sarasvatī yasya & tasya śrīpādukāsmṛtiḥ
1.24ab: śuklaraktapadadvandvaṃ & mastake yasya rājate
1.24cd: śāṃbhavaṃ ca tayor madhye & tasya śrīpādukāsmṛtiḥ
1.25ab: guruḥ śivo gurur viṣṇur & gurur brahmā guruḥ paraḥ
1.25cd: gurur agnir gurur mantro & bhānur indras tathaiva ca
1.26ab: anyat sarvaṃ saprapañcaṃ & niṣprapañcā guroḥ stutiḥ
1.26cd: tasmāc chrīpādukādhyānaṃ & sarvapāpanikṛntanam
1.27ab: pālanād duritacchedāt & kāmitārthaprapūraṇāt
1.27cd: pādukāśabdamātrārthaṃ & vimṛṣan mūrdhni pūjayet
1.28ab: iti śāstrārthasaṅketa&rahasyaṃ kulaśāsane \testim{\cf Kulārṇava 12}
1.28cd: śaktyullāsavaśād uktam & asmābhir gurvanugrahāt
1.29ab: śrīguro<ḥ> pādukāstotraṃ & prātar utthāya yaḥ paṭhet
1.30a: naśyaṃ\fol{3\recto}

Pālitta meets Hāla Sātavāhana

From the Pādaliptaprabandha of Rājaśekharasūri Śrīrājaśekharasūriviracitaś caturviṃśatiprabandhāparanāmā Prabandhakośaḥ, ed. Jina Vijaya, Singhi Jaina Series 6, Ahmedabad 1931.

§5.22. atha Śrīpādaliptācāryāḥ Pratiṣṭhānapuraṃ dakṣiṇāśāmukhabhūṣaṇaṃ Godāvarītaraṅgajjalakaṇahṛtapānthaśramabharaṃ jagmuḥ / tatra Sātavāhano rājā viduṣāṃ yodhānāṃ dānaśauṇḍānāṃ bhogināṃ ca prathamaḥ /

§5.22. Next the illustrious Pālitta went to the city of Pratiṣṭhāna, the face-ornament of the guardian [Goddess] of the Southern quarter, which dispelled the weariness of travellers with spray from the turbulent water of the Godāvarī river. There ruled the Sātavāhana king, foremost among the learned, the heroes of charity, the men of luxury.

Click for more...

tasya sabhāyāṃ vārtābhūd, yathā—Pādaliptācāryāḥ sarvavidyāvanitāvadanaratnadarpaṇāḥ samāgacchanti prātaḥ / tataḥ sarvaiḥ paṇḍitaiḥ sambhūya styānaghṛtabhṛtaṃ kaccolakam arpayitvā nijaḥ puruṣa eka ācāryāṇāṃ sammukhaḥ preṣitaḥ / ācāryair ghṛtamadhye sūcy ekā kṣiptā; tathaiva ca pratipreṣitaṃ tat /

There was a rumour in his court, that the teacher Pālitta, a jewelled hand-mirror for the muses of all of the sciences, will arrive in the morning. Then all of the scholars conferred and sent one from their midst to meet the teacher with a kaccolaka filled with congealed ghee. The teacher stuck a single needle into the ghee and sent it back.

rājñā sa vṛttānto jñātaḥ / paṇḍitāḥ pṛṣṭāḥ—ghṛtapūrṇakaccolakapreṣaṇena vaḥ ko bhāvaḥ ?

The king learnt of this event. He asked the scholars: “In sending the kaccolaka full of ghee, what was your intention?’’

tair uktam evam etan nagaraṃ viduṣāṃ pūrṇaṃ āste, yathā ghṛtasya vartulakam; tasmād vimṛśya preṣṭavyam iti bhāvas naḥ /

They replied: “Our intention was this: ‘This city is this full of wise men, just like this ball of ghee, so consider this and move on.’ ’’

rājñā nigaditam—tarhy ācāryaceṣṭāpi bhavadbhir jñāyatām /—yathā nirantare 'pi ghṛte nijatīkṣṇatayā sūcī praviṣṭā, tathāham api vidvannibiḍe nagare pravekṣyāmi—iti dadhvanuḥ /

The king said: “Then you also understand the teacher’s gesture.’’ They answered: “Just as a needle may enter even into dense ghee through its sharpness, so I may enter into this city crowded with scholars.’’

paṇḍitāḥ sarve rājendro 'pi saṃmukhaṃ gatāḥ / surasarillaharihariṇyā vāṇyā tuṣṭuvuḥ / nagaramānito guruḥ / NirvāṇakalikāPraśnaprakāśādiśāstrāṇi sandadarbha / ekāṃ ca Taraṅgalolāṃ nāma campūṃ rājño 'gre navāṃ nirmāya sadasi vyācakhye prabhuḥ / tuṣṭo rājā—bhavaty ayaṃ kavīndraḥ /

All the scholars and even the king went out to greet the teacher. They praised him with words as enthralling as ripplets on the celestial river Ganges. The guru was fêted by the city. He composed treatises such as the “Bud of Enlightenment” and the “Illumination of the Questions” etc. He also composed a Campū-style poem called the “The Play of the Wave” and read it out before the king in the assembly. The king was delighted: “He is a prince among poets!”

Dīrghāgama fol. 291

वनादिदुर्गाणां लक्षणम्

Here is the chapter giving the Sāṃrājyalakṣmīpīthikā’s definitions of the other seven types of durgāṇi. I have often wondered about the high concentration and great variety of thorny plants around Senji. Could these be more than the accidental result of the eating habits of the actually quite sparse goat population? Click for more...

atha trayastriṃśaḥ paṭalaḥ
vanadurgasvarūpakathanam

śrīśivaḥ–
2. vanadurgalakṣaṇaṃ
thorny thickets, jungles, hidden paths,
ferocious animals

SāṃLaPī_33.1ab: athocyate mayā devi & vanadurgasya lakṣaṇam
SāṃLaPī_33.1cd: yad etat sarvadurgāṇām & adhikaṃ varavarṇini
SāṃLaPī_33.2ab: nānākaṇṭakavṛkṣaugha&latāgulmādisaṅkule
SāṃLaPī_33.2cd: gūḍhamārge duṣpraveśe & sūryāṃśūnām api priye
SāṃLaPī_33.3ab: siṃhavyāghravarāhādi&duṣṭajantuniṣevite
SāṃLaPī_33.3cd: pulindapulkasamleccha&śabarādibhayaṅkare
SāṃLaPī_33.4ab: agādhajalasambādha&taṭākāndhusamanvite andhu = well
SāṃLaPī_33.4cd: prakalpitaṃ puraṃ yad vai & vanadurgaṃ tad ucyate

3. gahvaradurgalakṣaṇaṃ
in a chasm, surrounded by piles of scree

SāṃLaPī_33.5ab: vistīrṇe viṣame śvabhre & girigahvarasannibhe
SāṃLaPī_33.5cd: śiloccayair atikṣudraiḥ & paritaḥ pariveṣṭite
SāṃLaPī_33.6ab: antikasthair api janair & avijñātāyatānvite
SāṃLaPī_33.6cd: tṛṇakāṣṭhajalair yuktaṃ & puraṃ yad upakalpitam
SāṃLaPī_33.7ab: tat tu gahvaradurgaṃ syād & asādhyam amarair api

4. jaladurgalakṣaṇaṃ
built as an island

SāṃLaPī_33.7cd: nadīnāṃ devakhātānām & aśoṣyāṇāṃ jalāntare devakhātānām = natural reservoir
SāṃLaPī_33.8ab: mahatāṃ vā taṭākānām & agādhajalamadhyame
SāṃLaPī_33.8cd: dvīpīkṛtaṃ puraṃ yat taj & jaladurgam itīritam

5. paṅkadurgalakṣaṇaṃ
geysers, quicksand

SāṃLaPī_33.9ab: mahītalaviniryadbhir & duṣpraveśe jaloṣmabhiḥ
SāṃLaPī_33.9cd: pracchanaghanasusnigdha&mṛdukardamasaṃvṛte
SāṃLaPī_33.10ab: yasmin kasmin mahībhāge & madhyame 'tyunnatasthale
SāṃLaPī_33.10cd: kalpitaṃ nagaraṃ yat tat & paṅkadurgam udāhṛtam

6. miśradurgalakṣaṇaṃ
combinaton of all

SāṃLaPī_33.11ab: giriṇā vipinenāpi & saṃyutaṃ jalasaṃvṛtam
SāṃLaPī_33.11cd: paritaḥ paṅkabhūmyā ca & sahitaṃ yat puraṃ śive
SāṃLaPī_33.12ab: tan miśranāmakaṃ durgaṃ & asādhyaṃ devadānavaiḥ

7. nṛdurgalakṣaṇaṃ
a protective circle of ever-alert, well-armed warriors

SāṃLaPī_33.12cd: khaḍgatomarakuntāsi&bāṇakārmukadhāribhiḥ
SāṃLaPī_33.13ab: bhaṭair asaṅkhyair virādhi&vīrair aniśam uddhataiḥ
SāṃLaPī_33.13cd: parito valayākāra&racitāgāravartibhiḥ
SāṃLaPī_33.14ab: rakṣitaṃ yat puravaraṃ & tan nṛdurgam itīritam

8. koṣṭhadurgalakṣaṇaṃ
a large hall with some warriors

SāṃLaPī_33.14cd: sālena mahatā yuktaṃ & vīraiḥ katipayair yutam
SāṃLaPī_33.15ab: yat puraṃ tat pṛthuśroṇi & koṣṭhadurgam itīritam
SāṃLaPī_33.15cd: ity evaṃ vanadurgādi & durgāṇām lakṣaṇaṃ mayā
SāṃLaPī_33.16ab: kathitaṃ tava deveśi & kim anyac chrotum icchasi

ityākāśabhairavākhye mahāśaivatantre sāmrājyalakṣmīpīṭhikāyām vanadurgādyaṣṭakasvarūpanirūpaṇaṃ nāma trayastriṃśaḥ paṭalaḥ ||

नागेश्वरस्वामिने नमः

The small but perfect Nāgeśvara (or Nāgasvāmī) temple is for the visiting Sanskritist easily the most thrilling sacred site to see in Kumbakonam, a city noted for the superabundance of its temples. Here “small” refers to the original structure supposedly completed early in the reign of Parāntaka Coḷa (reg, 907–940 AD). After passing through what seem like never-ending bombastic (and dilapidated) enclosures of more recent design the visiting Sanskritist (sahṛdaya) cannot help but be speechless when faced with the remains of the original Cola masterpiece.


Sure, the Bṛhadīśvara temple may be imposing, but the aesthetically aware Sanskritist must on no account fail to receive darśanam of Nāgeśvara and his consort Bṛhannāyakī as well. The sacred well located here is called Nāgatīrtham, Ādiśeṣa is believed to have done penance here. Another attraction is the elegant and early Coḷa inscription covering almost the whole of the early temple.


As if this were not enough, the best time to visit this temple are three days in the month of Caitra (11th, 12, and 13th lunar days, though it is the only time of the year it ever approaches being crowded). These are the only days of the year when the sun’s rays fall through an ingeniously fashioned opening to bathe the central liṅgam in light.


The images posted are Ardhanārīśvara in the west, the wife of the donor (?) dānapati, Brahmā in the south, and probably the dānapati and his wife. Use your imagination to eliminate some of the more hideous modern accretions to the Cola structure to perceive the subtle original design.

दुर्गलक्षणम् (fort classifications)

Some more background to the unusual eightfold classification of durgāṇi (forts) given in the (well-titled) Sāṃrājyalakṣmīpīṭhikā of the Ākāśabhairavakalpa. I cannot date the text yet though with a bit more work it should be possible with quite some precision. The first 30 of its 139 chapters are concerned with the Tantric cult of the Goddess embodying the welfare of the polity: Sāṃrājyalakṣmī.

Chapters 31–38 I will discuss in the next few posts, they are concerned with fortresses, and I had ample opportunity to make use of them while exploring Senji. I quote from the editor’s introduction:

“We have in the Saraswati Mahal the personal copies of this work inscribed with the names of some of the Mahratta kings of Tanjore, and it is clear that this work has been regularly studied and practised by every prince and heir-apparent in our country.”

I tried on several occasions to see these MSS in the Sarasvatī Mahal Library in Tanjore but was denied every single time (the reasons varied). I will of course try again on my next visit. It should be self-evident that this is a text of great importance to all serious historians of South India (that is, those who still bother with that “antiquarian pursuit” of trying to make sense of primary sources…). Click below for more...

That there should be eight basic types of durga appears to be somewhat unusual. A common list gives six types:

[1.] dhanvadurga (desert-fort),
[2.] mahīdurga (earth-fort),
[3.] abdurga (water-fort),
[4.] vārkṣadurga or vanadurga (tree-fort),
[5.] nṛdurga (man-fort),
[6.] giridurga (mountain-fort).

Many thanks to Peter Bisschop for sending me these references for the sixfold classification:

Manusmṛti 7.70–71:
dhanvadurgaṃ mahīdurgam abdurgaṃ vārkṣam eva vā |
nṛdurgaṃ giridurgaṃ vā samāśritya vaset puram ||
sarveṇa tu prayatnena giridurgaṃ samāśrayet |
eṣāṃ hi bāhuguṇyena giridurgaṃ viśiṣyate ||

Mahābhārata: 12.87.4–5:
ṣaḍvidhaṃ durgam āsthāya purāṇy atha niveśayet
sarvasaṃpatpradhānaṃ yad bāhulyaṃ vāpi saṃbhavet
dhanvadurgaṃ mahīdurgaṃ giridurgaṃ tathaiva ca
manuṣyadurgam abdurgaṃ vanadurgaṃ ca tāni ṣaṭ

Viṣṇudharmottarapurāṇa 2.26.06–7:
tatra durgaṃ nṛpaḥ kuryāt ṣaṇṇām ekatamaṃ budhaḥ/
dhanvadurgaṃ mahīdurgaṃ naradurgaṃ tathā^eva ca//
vārkṣaṃ caivāṃbudurgaṃ ca giridurgaṃ ca bhārgava/
sarveṣāṃ eva durgāṇāṃ giridurgaṃ praśasyate//

Ibid 3.323.15cd–16
tatra durgāṇi kurvīta svadurgaṃ ca viśeṣavat//
dhanvadurgaṃ mahīdurgaṃ giridurgaṃ tathaiva ca/
abdurgaṃ vṛkṣadurgaṃ ca naradurgaṃ tathaiva ca//

A further text giving this six-fold classification is Agnipurāṇā 2.221B.1–5.

Compared with this ancient, very theoretical, list the account of fortresses given in the Sāṃrājyalakṣmīpīṭhikā is much more detailed. Even at first reading it gives the impression that it is more practical, and after attempting to apply some of it to Senji this seems justified.

The Sāṃrājyalakṣmīpīṭhikā is, however, not the only text to expand this inherited classification scheme. Nine types of durga (fort) are discussed in the Abhilaṣitārthacintāmaṇi or Mānasollāsa of the Cālukya emperor Someśvaradeva (Someśvara III), composed in the Śaka year 1051 = 1129 AD. We do not really have a reliable text of this monumental work, both of the published editions can differ substantially, so reading them in concert is a must. Someśvaradeva classifies fortresses as follows:

[1.] jaladurga (water-fort),
[2.] giridurga (mountain-fort),
[3.] pāṣāṇadurga (stone-fort),
[4.] iṣṭikādurga (brick-fort),
[5.] mṛttikādurga (earthen-fort),
[6.] vanadurga (forest-fort),
[7.] marudurga (desert -fort),
[8.] dārudurga (wooden-fort),
[9.] naradurga (man-fort).

It is easily evident hat some of these might simply be duplicates based on double interpretations of the ancient terms. Thus the vārkṣadurga could mean “fort made of trees” (= Someśvara’s dārudurga) or “fort built in a thorny thicket” (= Someśvara’s vanadurga).

1. Mānasollāsa, ed. R. Shama Sastry
Oriental Library Publications, Sanskrit Series No. 69
Mysore 1926

2. GOS = Gaekwad Oriental Series 28, Mānasollāsa Vol. 1, ed.
Gajanan K. Shrigondekar, Baroda 1925. Continued in GOS 84 138

From the Mānasollāsa, Prakaraṇa 1, Durgādhyāya 5, navavidhadurgalakṣaṇam:

jaladurgaṃ giridurgaṃ & durgaṃ pāṣāṇanirmitam
iṣṭikābhiḥ kṛtaṃ durgaṃ & durgaṃ syān mṛttikāmayam
vanadurgaṃ marudurgaṃ & durgaṃ dāruvinirmitam
naradurgaṃ ca navamaṃ & teṣāṃ vakṣyāmi lakṣaṇam
agādhenātha toyena & veṣṭitaṃ jalajaṃ bhavet
durārohaṃ ca śailāgram & udakena samanvitam
giridurgaṃ samākhyātaṃ & nayaśāstraviśāradaiḥ
pāṣāṇaghaṭitaṃ durgam & aśmadurgam udiritam
iṣṭikābhiḥ kṛtaṃ samyak & sudhāliptaṃ samujjvalam
iṣṭikādurgam ākhyātaṃ & parikhāveṣṭitaṃ mahat
mṛdā viracitaṃ yat tu & tad durgaṃ mṛttikāmayam
vanadurgaṃ samākhyātaṃ & ghanaṃ kaṇṭakaśākhibhiḥ
antaḥsthaiḥ sañcitaṃ toyaṃ & bahiḥsthānāṃ ca durlabham
marudurgaṃ samākhyātaṃ & marudeśasamaṃ yataḥ
dārubhir veṇubhiḥ kḷptaṃ & durgaṃ dārumayaṃ smṛtam
śastrahastair mahāyodhair & nirmitaṃ naradurgakam
eteṣām uttamaṃ durgaṃ & girijaṃ jalajaṃ tathā
madhyamanītarāṇy āhuḥ & kaniṣṭhaṃ syāc ca dārujam

iti navavidhadurgalakṣaṇam