33. Description of life in village and port

In the course of the description of the march of Samaraketu's forces to the sea-shore, Dhanapala has seized the opportunity to give a lively picture of rural life. The villages, like the cities and hermitages,were generally situated along sea-shore, lake, river or a mountain. Along the river banks the village merchants established small hotels where the river-farers could get cooked 404. rice, ghee, curds, sweet-balls and etc., Public wells for drinking water were situated at regular distances along the roads. The village consisted of a group of abodes, which were built of branches of trees, creepers, leaves and etc., all cemented together by clay and plastered with 405 406 dung. The poor labourers lived in grass huts.' The village house generally consisted of the living rooms which could be closed by fastening the doors, and the compounds at the back where the dung was stored and vegetables like 403. Tilakamanjari,pp.83-84. 404. ibid., p.117(12ff.) -- 3112700121149114 danajya dadhibhandakhanda modaka prayapanya prasarikabhih --- 1 tata itah prakaritau- 405. ibid,p.117 (16££) isadupajata sosa karisa sukhasancara visikhaih savarna- tarulata nivesa jatala vaisyapatalaih 406. ibid.,p.123 (22) trna kutira ko taradati kastamukta samstaresu kammakaresu-- 1

479 cucumber, gourd, Trapusa (Coloquintida), Karkkaru (Bevinkasa Cerifera), Karavella (gourd Memordica Charantia) and others were cultivated. The compound was secured by a fence of thorny plants. The household of the villagers consisted of bronze 400 vessels, blankets, ropes and etc., They domesticated wild dogs for guarding their houses and fed them with curds. 408 409 Dhanapala has given a vivid picture of villagers with turbans on their heads, with daggers tied to their waists by meand of worn out cloth belts, with staffs in their hands and carrying their children on their shouldere. 410 They were familiar with buffaloes and expert in evaluating the worth of bullocks, but were curious about elephants and camels. Due to their ignorance about city-life they easily mistook a good-looking harlots riding an elephant, ■■ for queens or princesses, a carana for a prince, and a well-dressed merchant for a king's favourite. They were vary of talking to city-dwellers. Out of curiosity they stood waiting for hours together hungry and thirsty to see the royal procession. 407. Tilakamanjari,p.119(23ff.). gorasaparipusta 408. ibid,p.117 (1711.) gorasa paripusta mahakaya dusta ko lekhakaih 409. ibid.,pp.118-120.. 410. ibid.,p.182(9ff.).

480 411 During the battles, the villagers gathered and witnessed the fights with shouts accordingly as they were frightened, astonished, angered, amused, tickled or bored. The chief agricultural produce seems to have been 412 rice of both 'Kalama' and 'Kedara' varieties in South India. There is a reference to the fields where sugercane was cul- 413. tivated. Vegetables were grown in the compounds of their 414 houses. The villagers seem to be exposed to harassment from various ■/quarters. Thus, hordes of robbers plundered their house- 415, holds, agricultural produce and vegetables. The revenue officers and village rogues also robbed the villagers of their grass and grains from the threshing-floors in the 416 fields. Village sentinels forcibly extracted bribe from 417 them. Money-lenders of the vilaage confiscated their houses and set them at large compelling them to pack off their belongings and roam from house to house for residence. 411. Tilakamanjari,p.83(15ff.). 412. ibid.,p.116(17ff.) - udarakalamakedara parimala modita ...! 21149129 ---> 413. ibid., p.182(14ff.) pundreksu vata parampara --- 1 414. ibid., p.119(15) ; 120 (1) pascadvaraka ...| 415. 1b 1d.p. 119(17) luntile ksupata duhkha durbala krsivala lokam-- 1 ibid.,p.119(17) gild 416. 1bid, p.119 (10ff.) -- labdhamahanidhanairiva khaladhanatah sadhani kalo kena nikhilamapi niyamana busa 1; 119 (14ff.) kaiscidanibaddha mas 22/411211459124): --- | 417. ibid.,p.119 (11)... artha lobhad bhilasita lencanam lancaya lakurikanam kalesamanubhavadbhih la 418. ibid., p.119(18ff.).

481 A glimpse is also provided of life on islands and 419 ports. The plants in the gardens had to be protected from sea-birds. There was no restriction on entry of seafarers in such villages. Even the poor people possessed jewels normally fit for royal families. Gold was here regarded as cheap as dust. The chief preoccupations of the people was to store materials like cumbustible oil and such other things for preparing collyrium useful for diving operations; to raise the masts for boats and ships%3B to manufacture sails, to carry the anchors; and to repair wooden drums for storing drinking water. They used palm leaf for engraving, in Karnataka and other scripts, poems in local languages abounding in Sanskrit vocabulary. Civilized people were but few among them; conduct in accordance with Varna and Asrama was rare; heresy was at its height; women dreesed gaudily; and the languages were generally unintelligible. The chief element in population was aboriginal sailos with frightening looks, variegated dress and external appendages, fond of kidnapping other's wives, steel-black in appearance, trimming variously shaved beards and mustaches, wearing tufts of palm-leaf in numerous holes pierced through their ears, carrying daggers, wearing iron bracelets in their hands, and picking up quarrels at the slightest provocation. 419. Tilakamanjari, pp.133-134.