Kshemendra

Kshemendra (IAST: Kṣemendra; c. 990 – c. 1070 CE) was an 11th-century Sanskrit poet from Kashmir in India.

Biography

Kshemendra was born into an old, cultured, and affluent family.[1] His father was Prakashendra, a descendant of Narendra who was the minister to Jayapida.[2] Both his education and literary output were broad and varied. He studied literature under "the foremost teacher of his time, the celebrated Shaiva philosopher and literary exponent Abhinavagupta".[1] Kshemendra was born a Shaiva, but later became a Vaishnava.[2] He studied and wrote about both Vaishnavism and Buddhism.[3] His son, Somendra, provides details about his father in his introduction to the Avadana Kalpalata and other works. Kshemendra refers to himself in his works as Vyasadasa (IAST: Vyāsadāsa; Slave of Vyasa), a title which was perhaps won or adopted after the completion of his Bhāratamañjari.[2]

Kshemendra was in great demand as a skilled abridger of long texts.[2] His literary career extended from at least 1037 (his earliest dated work, Brihatkathāmanjari, a verse summary of the lost "Northwestern" Bṛhatkathā; itself a recension of Gunadhya's lost Bṛhatkathā — "Great Story") to 1066 (his latest dated work, Daśavataracharita, "an account of the ten incarnations of the god Viṣnu").[4]

Extant works

Around eighteen of Kshemendra's works are still extant while fourteen more are known only through references in other literature.[2] In addition to the genres listed below, he also composed plays, descriptive poems, a satirical novel, a history, and possibly a commentary on the Kāma Sūtra.[5]

Abridgements

Poetics

  • Auchitya Vichāra Charchā
  • Kavikanthābharaṇa
  • Suvrittatilaka

Satires

  • Kalāvilasā — "A Dalliance with Deceptions"
  • Samaya Mātrikā — "The Courtesan's Keeper" (Sanskrit)
  • Narmamālā — "A Garland of Mirth"
  • Deśopadeśa — "Advice from the Countryside"

Didactic works

  • Nitikalpataru
  • Darpadalana
  • Chaturvargasaṃgraha
  • Chārucharya
  • Sevyasevakopadeśa
  • Lokaprakāśa
  • Stūpavādana — See Saratchandra Das (ed.), 'Stupavadana', Journal and Text of the Buddhist Society of India, vol.11, pt.1, p. 15.

Devotional works

  • Avadānakalpalatā — Former lives and good deeds of Buddha (English)
  • Daśavataracharita — Ten incarnations of Vishnu (Sanskrit)

Notes

  1. 1 2 Haksar 2011, p. xv.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Warder 1992, p. 365.
  3. ↑ Haksar 2011, pp. xv–xvi.
  4. ↑ Haksar 2011, pp. xvii–xviii.
  5. ↑ Haksar 2011, pp. xvii, 153-154.

References

  • Kshemendra (2011). Three Satires: From Ancient Kashmir. Translated by Haksar, A. N. D. Penguin Books. ISBN 9780143063230.
  • Warder, Anthony Kennedy (1992). Indian Kāvya Literature: The art of storytelling. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass Publ. ISBN 9788120806153.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.