Mahavidya Vidambanam

Author(s): Vadindra Bhatt, Anandpurna, Bhuvansundarsuri, Mangesh R Telang
Publisher: Central Library

Page 18

with the father of Righava.11 He has deducted 27 years from Bhatta Rághava's date A.D. 1352 on account of the difference between the ages of the pupil and his preceptor and held Vádîndra to have flourished about A.D. 1325.
But owing to some fresh evidence revealed in Vádîndra's Mahavidyavidambana itself we shall have to accept the first interpretation of Bhatta Rághava's verse mentioned above and push back Raghava's date to A.D. 1252. For, Vádîndra says that he was a religious councillor of the king Śrisimha." Now, we do not find any king of this name among the several Dynasties of the North or the South between A. D. 1250-1350. But from the history of the Dynasty of the Yadavas of Devagiri (Modern Doulatábad) we find that king Singhana (Reigned A. D. 1210 to 1247) of that Dynasty was also named Simha. The very name Srisimha mentioned by Vádîndra occurs as the name of king Singhaņa in a verse (eulogizing his conquests) in the first out of the two Rájapraśastis composed and included in his Chaturvarga-Chintámaņi by Henádri who was the minister of Singhana's grandson Mahadeva (A, D, 12601271). We quote the verse here:
यद्रम्भागिरिकेसरी विनिहतो लक्ष्मीधरः क्षमापतिः
यद्वाहावलिभिः प्रसह्य रुरुधे धाराधराधीश्वरः । बल्लालक्षितिपालपालितभुवां सर्वापहारश्च यः
श्रीसिंहस्य महीपतेर्विजयते तद्वाललीलायितम् ॥ ४४ ॥ Again the name Simha as another name of Singhaņa is mentioned by Jahlaņa in his Saktimuktávali. Jahlasa was the commander of troops of elephants in the reign of King Krishna (A.D. 1247-1260) who was a grandson of Singhaņa and occupied the throne after him. In the following verses of his Suktimuktavali Jahlaņa says that Janárdana, a commander of troops of elephants taught Simha i. e. Singhana the art of managing elephants:
तस्याभवत्सूनुररनूनसत्त्वो
जनार्दनाव्हः करिवाहिनीशः । समुद्रवद्यो भुवनं बभार
सह श्रिया चित्रमशेषमेतत् ॥ १९ ॥ सिंहोऽप्यध्यापितस्तेन गजशिक्षां तदद्भुतम् ।
__ सूक्तिमुक्तावलि 1 Vide Introduction to Anandajnána's Tarka-sangraha p. XVIII (Gaekwad's Oriental series No. III). 2 तेषामेष विशेषेण निराकरणसंभ्रमः । श्रीसिंहधर्माध्यक्षेण वादीन्द्रेण विधीयते ॥ ३ ॥
महाविद्यावि० पृ. ९९ a Vide Bombay Gazetteer Vol. I, Part II P.522. 4 Vide Bombay Gazetteer Vol. I, Part II p. 272.
5 These verses are quoted in the History of the Dekkan, Bombay Gazetteer Vol. I, Part II, p. 239,