1. Date and Literary Career of Kṣemendra

Like other Sanskrit scholars the biographical account of Kṣemendra is in obscurity. atṛṣṇā nijotkarṣe....ātmaslāghāśrutau lajjā^[1]—justifying this own statement it appears that most probably Kṣemendra has not mentioned in detail of his personal life. For him, it is improper for a poet to involve in self eulogising.^[2] Still, Kṣemendra is not completely silent in giving his biographical account. In the colophons of some of his notable works, he provides information about his ancestors, educational life, date etc. Kalhaṇa’s Rājataraṅgiṇī,^[3] Somendra’s Introduction to Bauddhāvadānakalpalatā also provide some data in this regard.

Kṣemendra is silent regarding his date. Still some of his works help in determining his date. On the other hand, it is not much difficult to determine the period of his literary activity, as Kṣemendra himself mentions the date of composition of some of his works.

In most of his works, Kṣemendra has mentioned the name of his ruling king. In the Narmamālā,^[4] the Suvṛttatilaka,^[5] the Kavikaṇṭhābharaṇa,^[6] and the Samayamātṛkā,^[7] Kṣemendra informs about the ruling king Ananta.

In the Aucityvicāracarcā^[8] he himself says that he composed the said work during the reign of king Ananta. Kṣemendra was actively involved in composing different works during the reign of King Ananta. King Ananta reigned Kashmir from 1028A.D to 1063 A.D.^[9] In the Daśāvatāracarita^[10] Kṣemendra mentions the name of King Kalaśa. Rājataraṅgiṇī^[11] informs that Kalaśa reigned Kashmir from 1063AD to 1089A.D. Most probably, Kalaśa was the king when Kṣemendra wrote the Daśāvatāracarita However, the name of King Ananta also is met with in the first verse of the colophon of the said work. But here Ananta is not addressed as a king.^[12] It is clear that Kṣemendra enjoyed the rule of both the kings namely Ananta and his son and successor king Kalaśa.

In the colophon of the Bṛhatkathāmañjarī^[13] Kṣemendra has mentioned that he composed it in the 12^th year of the Laukika era^[14], which corresponds to 1037 A.D. It seems to be the first work of Kṣemendra. All the scholars of modern time, like Dr. Suryakanta, Dr. V.P. Mahajan and others who have special interest in Kṣemendra, are of the opinion that the Bṛhatkathāmañjarī was composed in 1037 A.D.^[15] In the colophon to the Samayamātṛkā^[16] also, Kṣemendra gives information that he completed this work in the 25^th year of the Laukika era, which corresponds to1050 A.D. Somendra, son of Kṣemendra informs that his father composed the Bauddhāvadānakalpalatā in the 27^th year of the Laukika era^[17], the date of the work may be fixed in the year 1052 A.D.

A manuscript of the work called the Aucityālaṃkāroddhāra in the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute collection (No.578/1887-91) expressly states that the work, the Aucityavicāracarcā, was completed in the 34^th year of the Laukika era on the 8^th day of the first half of Jyeṣṭha for the benefit of students. This year corresponds to 1059 A.D.^[18]

The year in which Kṣemendra finished the Daśāvatāracarita has been given as 41 Saptarṣi era which corresponds to 1066A.D.^[19] It was the only available work which he composed during the reign of king Kalaśa. Kṣemendra’s literary career began under the rule of king Ananta, was prolonged and came to an end under his son Kalaśa. Kṣemendra started his literary career not earlier than 1028 A.D., the date of Ananta’s installation to the throne.^[20]

The date of the above mentioned works indicate that Kṣemendra’s literary activity span over 1037A.D. to1066 A.D. Therefore, Kṣemendra’s literary career may be assigned to the second and the third quarter of the 11^th century A.D.

On the other hand, Kṣemendra quotes two verses from Parimala in his work Aucityavicāracarcā^[21] He also quotes another verse in his work Suvṛttatilaka^[22] from Parimala. Parimala wrote the work Navasāhasāṅkacarita. Parimala is the another name of Padmagupta.^[23] Padmagupta alias Parimala belongs to the same period of Śrī Vākpatirāja and Sindhurāja.^[24] Both the kings ruled during the period between 980A.D. to 1010A.D. Therefore, literary career of Padmagupta may be assigned to the same period. Kṣemendra quotes the verses from Parimala in his works; therefore it is evident that the literary career of Kṣemendra begins from the second quarter of the 11^th century A.D.

In the colophon of the Bṛhatkathāmañjarī^, Kṣemendra says that he studied sāhitya from Abhinavagupta.^[25] Abhinavagupta wrote his bigger commentary on the Pratyabhijñāna Darśana in 1014 A.D.^[26] Kṣemendra happened to be his pupil. So Kṣemendra must have been born at least 20 or 25 years before this date so as to develop his comprehension in receiving the tuition from Abhinavagupta. Hence, his lower date of birth can roughly be placed in the last quarter of 10^th century A.D.^[27] Pādatāḍitaka M.K Shastri also opines that lower limit for the date of Kṣemendra’s birth must be found somewhere after 990A.D.^[28] Dr. Suryakanta also fixes the lower limit to his date somewhere between 990A.D. and 1010A.D.^[29]

Again Kṣemendra’s date can be fixed following another evidence. Somadeva composed the Kathāsaritsāgara because Kṣemendra’s Bṛhatkathāmañjarī was not understandable for all due to its long size.^[30] Somadeva belonged to the 11^th century A.D.^[31] Kṣemendra must have lived before Somadeva.

Kṣemendra’s date of death is also not certain. Expect Daśāvatāracarita, Kṣemendra has not mentioned about any other work which he composed during the reign of king Kalaśa. It is probable that later on he took retirement from his literary activity and went to the Tripureśa^[32] mountain to take rest. Kṣemendra might have lived further than 1066, the year of the composition of his Daśāvatāracarita^[33] He may breathed his last after 1066A.D. It may not be wrong to place the date at about 1070A.D.^[34] Hence, Kṣemendra’s date may be fixed between the last quarter of the 10^th century A.D. and the close of the third quarter of the 11^th century A.D.

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

Kavikaṇṭhābharaṇa , II.13.

[2]:

Ibid., I.20

[3]:

Rājataraṅgiṇī is the only work in ancient Indian literature that may be regarded as an historical text. Bamzai, Prithivi Nath Kaul, History of Kashmir,Political,Social,Culture.p.32

[4]:

trivikrama iva śrīmānananto balijinnṛpaḥ/ Narmamālā , I.3

[5]:

bhūbhṛdbharturbhuvanajayino’nantarājasya rājye/ Suvṛttatilaka , III.40

[6]:

rājye śrīmadanantarājanṛpateḥ kāvyodayo’yaṃ kṛtaḥ/ Kavikaṇṭhābharaṇa ,Upasaṃhāra

[7]:

tasyānantamahīpatervirajasaḥ prājyādhirājyodaye/ kṣemendreṇa subhāṣitaṃ kṛtamidaṃ satpakṣarakṣākṣamaṃ// Samayamātṛkā ,Upasaṃhāra,4

[8]:

stasya śrīmadanantarājanṛpateḥ kāle kilāyaṃ kṛtaḥ/ Aucityavicāracarcā ,Upasaṃhāra,5

[9]:

Rājataraṅgiṇī , Vol.1, p. 288

[10]:

rājye kalaśabhūbhartuḥ kāśmīreṣvacyutastavaḥ/ Daśāvatāracarita ,Upasaṃhāra,5

[11]:

On the sixth day of the bright half of Kārttika in the year (of the Laukika era–four thousand) thirty-nine (A.D.1063), the king had his son crowned. Having enjoyed life for forty-nine years, he reached his end on the sixth day of the bright half of Mārgaśīrṣa in the year (of the Laukika era four thousand-one hundred) sixty-five(A.D.1089). Rājataraṅgiṇī ,VII, p.723

[12]:

yo matsyakūrmādivicitrarupairāścaryakārī hṛdayastharatnaḥ/ śrīmānanantaḥ sphutaśaṅkhacakraḥ śriye’stu viṣṇurvibhavodadhirvaḥ// Daśāvatāracarita ,Upasaṃhāra,1

[13]:

kadācideva vipreṇa sa dvādaśyāmupoṣitaḥ/ Bṛhatkathāmañjarī ,Upasaṃhāra,9

[14]:

In Kashmir Laukika era is to be counted from 25^th year of the Kaliyuga while the Christian era has a difference of 1000 years+25 (Kaliyuga) with it, so Laukika would come to 1025+12=1037AD. Dhar, Prof. K.N.,Glimpses of Kashmiri Culture,fn.p.50

[15]:

Chakraborty, Uma,The Eleventh Century Kashmiri Poet,fn.p.2

[16]:

saṃbatsare pañcaviṃśe pauṣaśuklādivāsare/ śrīmatāṃ bhūtirakṣāyai racito’yaṃ smitotsavaḥ// Samayamātṛkā ,Upasaṃhāra,2

[17]:

asmatpitrāvadanānāṃ kṛte saptottare śate/ somendreṇa mayāpyekaṃ kṛtaṃ maṅgalapuraṇaṃ// Bauddhāvadānakalpalatā , Introduction,14

[18]:

iti śrīprakāśendrapaṇḍitasutaśrīkṣemendrakaviviracitaucityālaṃkāro-ddhāraḥ. niṣpannaścāyaṃ śrīmadanantarājanarādhirājasamaye-saṃvatsare catustriṅśe jyeṣṭhe śukle’ṣṭame’hani/ kāvyaucityavicāro’yaṃ śiṣyavyutpattaye kṛtaḥ// Nītikalpataru , Introduction, p.ii

[19]:

akādhike’bde vihitaścatvāriṅśe sakārtike/
rājye kalaśabhūbhartuḥ kaśmīreṣvacyutastavaḥ// Daśāvatāracarita ,Upasaṃhāra,5

[20]:

Chakraborty, Uma, A Critical Survey of The Life and Works of Kṣemendra, pp.43-44

[21]:

Aucityavicāracarcā , pp.8; p.20

[22]:

Suvṛttatilaka , II. P.106

[23]:

navasāhasāṅka caritākhyasya mahākāvyasya kartā padmagupto nāma mahākavi. asyaiva parimala ityaparaṃ nāma/
Suktimuktāvalī , P.39

[24]:

kaviḥ śrī vākpatirāja sindhurājasamakālīna iti viniścīyate/
ibid., p.39

[25]:

śrutvābhinavaguptākhyāt sāhityaṃ bodhavāridheḥ/
ācāryaśekharamaṇervidyāvivṛtikāriṇaḥ// Bṛhatkathāmañjarī , Upasaṃhāra,7

[26]:

Shastri, Pandit M.K.,The Deśopadeśa and Narmamālā of Kṣemendra,p.20

[27]:

Dhar,Prof. K.N.,Glimpses of Kashmiri Culture,p.7

[28]:

Shastri, Pandit M.K.,The Deśopadeśa and Narmamālā of Kṣemendra, pp.20-21

[29]:

Suryakanta, Dr., Kṣemendra Studies, p.7

[30]:

prakāśendrasūnurvyāsadāsāparanāmā kṣemendramahākaviranantarāja-rājyasamaye (1028-1080) kaśmīreṣu samutpannaḥ praṇināya sa bahūn-granthān. sa ava bṛhatkathā atīvavistīrṇeti piśācabhāṣāmayīti ca na- sarvahṛdayaṅgameti girvāṇagirā tatsāramācakarṣa/
Kathāsaritsāgara , Prākkathan.p.1

[31]:

kathāsaritsāgarsya kartā kāśmīramahārājasya samakālaḥ samaya- ścāsyakraistamekādaśaṃ śatakaṃ/
Suktimuktāvalī , P.63

[32]:

tena śrītripureśaśailaśikhare viśrāntisantoṣiṇā/ Daśāvatāracarita ,Upasaṃhāra,3

[33]:

Encyclopaedia of Indian Literature, Vol.III, P.2158

[34]:

Suryakanta,Dr., Kṣemendra Studies. P.8