Introduction: Socio-cultural study of the Śrīkaṇṭhacarita

Literature is the mirror of society. Through literature, one can gather information and have a glimpse of the then society. The society encompasses within it the relations or contacts of people living in it. The study of society is indispensable for the study of the cultural history. It is constituted of the study of the habits and customs, dress and decoration, food and drink, beliefs and superstitions, recreations and pastimes, caste system and occupation, flora and fauna, religious data, political, historical data, geographical information, philosophical idea etc. For the study of Indian culture of the past times, various sources are there, like the literary treatises of the writers of different times, archaeological remains, inscriptions etc. These sources, along with some unwritten, hence oral traditions, provide ample data for reconstruction of socio-cultural history of medieval times.

Again, religion and art are the two factors, which are found invariably related to the early history of humanity; that religious faith has invariably found expression in art, which in turn has derived inspiration of its highest achievement from religion^[1]. The Śrīkaṇṭhacarita of Maṅkhaka is a pioneering literary monument in this regard. Besides its literary value, it is of much importance for the study of the socio-cultural history of Kashmir also. In this chapter, it is intended to study the socio-cultural and various other aspects reflected in the Śrīkaṇṭhacarita and thereby to reconstruct the history of medieval India.