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The Bengali text Śrīḳṛṣṇakīrtana palaeorgaphic and textual problems
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 24 December 2009
Extract
The manuscript now known as Śrīkṛṣṇakīrtana was discovered by Basanta Ranjan Ray in 1909 in the village of Kakilya in west Bengal. The manuscript, which is incomplete, undated, and without title, consists of 418 songs on the Rādhā-kṛṣṇa theme. The songs, which are arranged so as to form a continuous narrative, each contain a bhaạitā giving the name of the author. In the majority of cases, but not in all, the name in Baḍu Caṇḍidasa. On the evidence of these bhaṇitās Basanta Ranjan Ray ascribed the whole work to Baḍu Caṇḍīdāsa. He also gave it the title ŚrīkṛṢṇakīrtana, hereafter abbreviated as ŚKK. The MS is probably the work of two hands. Some scholars allege that there were three scribes, but in view of the close similarity between the third hand and the first, this is doubtful.
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- Information
- Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies , Volume 31 , Issue 2 , June 1968 , pp. 315 - 329
- Copyright
- Copyright © School of Oriental and African Studies 1968
References
1 srikrsnakirttana by Badu Candidasa, ed. Basanta Ranjan Ray, Calcutta, Bangiya Sahitya parisat,1917
2 R.D., Banerji, 'srikrsnakirttan puthir lipkal', included in the introduction to ray's edition of SKK, p. 30.Google Scholar
3 R.D., Banerji,The origin of the Bengali script, Calcutta, 1919,4.Yogesh chandra ray, Candidasa',Bangiya sahitya parisat patrika(short reference BSPP)XLII,1,1935, 22.Google Scholar
4 BSPP, XLII,1,1935,22. What is generally referred to as Basak's opinion (see M. Shahidullah BSPP, LX,2,1953,40)is no more than a conjecture verbally communicated to friends.Having faide to find any publication in which Basak expressed his opinion, I wrote to my dried Dr. Bhabatosh Datta who at my request personally approached Basak and informed me that Basak did study the script of the ŔKK MS but did not publish his findings. I am grateful to Dr. Bhabatosh Datta for this information.
5 BāṅGāīā sāhityer itihās, I, pt. l, fourth ed., Calcutta, 1963, 135.
6 Bauddha gān o dohā, ed.H.P.Shastri, Clecutta, 1910.
7 The origin and development of the Bengali language, I, calcutta, 1926, 127.
8 Second edition, 1936, third edition, 1943, fourth edition, 1950.
9 Sukumar Sen,'Śrīkṛṣṇakīrttaner byākaraṇ 'BSPP, XLII, 3,1935,147. Shahidullah, M., 'Śrīkṛṣṇakīrttaner kaijekti pāth bicār,' BSPP, XLVIII, 4, 1941, 201–4Google Scholar.
10 Catterji, op. cit., passin;Sen, op.cit., passim.
11 The first two numbers occurring before a citaion from the MS refer to the folio number and the third number to the line of the folio, i.e.40.2/7=folio 40 verso, 1.7.
12 The text is now in its eighth rdition. The last four editions are posthumous reprints of the fourth edition. Asterisks after quotations from the MS readings are quoted in the footnotes of the fourth edition.
13 The first number ahter a quotation from the printed text refers to the page-number of the fourth edition (1950). Unless otherwise states page references are to this edition. The capital letters and the two numbers appearing in parentheses refer respectively to the name of the canto(khanda), the number of the song in a particular canto, and the number of the line in that song. The following abbreviations are adipted: J=Janma-khanda, T = %Tāmbula-kh., D = Dāna-kh., N = Naukā-kh., Bh.= %Bhāra-kh., C =%Chattra-kh., Vr. =Vrndāvana-kh., k = Kāīijadamana-kh., Y =Yamunā-kh., H = Hāra-kh., Bā. = Bāṇa-kh., Bam. = BaṃŚī-kh., B = %Biraha-kh. e.g. 4(j.4.8)= p.4, fourth song of Janma-khaṇḍa, 1.8.
14 The word beṇābaīī is the name of a rāga, and is inserted in the headings of all poems which are composed to this rāga. The MS regularly has beṇābalī(see12.1∕4, 51.1∕6, 59.1 59.1∕6, 76.2∕ 4, 138.2∕ 6, 159.1∕ 3, 166.1∕ 4, 180.1∕1, 180.2∕6, 190.2∕3, 200.2∕3). The fourth edition regularly has belābalī (PP. 9,40,45,58,99,109,113,123,124,131,139), though in only one instance (see ŚKK, 99)is reference made to the change in a footnote.
15 Folios 6 and 115. see introduction, 8.
16 Shahidullah, M., 'Arikṛṣṇakīrttaner kaijek pāth bicār, ' BSPP, XLVIII, 4, 1941, 201.Google Scholar
17 'Śrīkṛṣṇakīrtan pūthir pāṭher saṃŚodhan o sampādanā,' visuabhāratī Patrikā, 1963, 10. voL. XXXI. PART 2.
18 S.K. Chatterji, The origin and development of the bengali language, Calcutta, 1926, 990; Sukumar Sen, 'Śrikṛṣ ṇakurttaner byākaraṇ,' BSPP, XLII, 3, 1935, 141.
19 ibid., 147.
20 art. cit., 201.
21 A Sanskrit-English dicjionary, s.v. kuruvinda.
22 kariba bilāsa, p. 83(vṛ.12.14); karila bilāse, p. 86 (vṛ19.10); karila bana-bilāse, p. 90 (vṛ.30.17);%bilāsa kaila, p. 80 (Vṛ.8.2); bilāsa karilō, P. 91 (K.1.4); karae bilāse, p. 149 (B.48.26).
23 e.g. cāhileka, p. 153 (B.60.12); dharileka, p. 151 (B.52.3); īsibeka, p. 134(B.8.37); gaḍhileka, p. 15(D.6.9.); dileka, p. 9 (T.15.18); rākhileka, p. 11 (T.21.10); phuṭibeka, p. 155 (B.64.16); phalibeka, p. 156 (B.66.37); tulieka, p. 83 (Vr.13.19).
24 Sukumar Sen, art. cit., 141.
25 Chatterji, op. cit., II, 990.
26 In parallel with kelāsa< Sk. kāilāsa there occurs in prakrit kavilāsa. seth quotes one occurrence from R. L. Tessitori's edition of Uvaesamālā (see Pāia-sadda-mahaṇṇavo, 1963). kauilāsa is, however, found more frequently in Hindi and Bengali. In the sense of ' heaven' kavilāsa is found in any standard Hindi dictionary. Its first occurrence is noted in Jayasī's work, Sāta sahasa hasthī janu kavilāsa durāvata vali Gorkṣa-vāṇi(ed. pitambar Baḍathval, 1946);pavana goṭika rahaṇi akāsa amiari gagana kavilāsaTwo occurrences of kabilāsa, other than the one in, hava been noticed in Bengali. The word occurs in a Bengali play from Nepal entitled Gopicandra nāṭaka:satya dharati salya ākāŚa satya meru maṇḍala kabirāsar∕atlernation is common in this work, and kabirāsais thereforw equivalent to kabilāsa. The word has also been found in Gopicandrer gān, Calcutta, University of Calcutta, 1922:mātāra maṭuka bāḍe dile Śri kabilāsa
27 Chatterji, op. cit., I, 546.
28 I am indebeted to Professor T. W. Clark for his valuable guidance in the presentation of this article.