Sanskrit Biography Sivaji

It is surprising and at the same time good news that Digital Library of India has a very good collection of Sanskrit biographies of Indian Saints and Heroes like Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa, Samartha Ramadas, Guru Gobind Singh, Sivaji, Gandhiji, Rana Pratap, Prithviraj Chauhan, etal. Though it is said that Sanskrit lags in the genre of biography, I could find plenty of books in this genre at the DLI. This post is an attempt to present before you a collection of biographies written in Sanskrit prose.

DOWNLOAD LINKS TO SANSKRIT BIOGRAPHIES OF INDIAN SAINTS AND HEROES

01. Sanskrit Biography of Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa
Vedamurti Sriramakrishna – Swami Apoorvananda Skt Biography

02. Sanskrit Biography of Sri Vallabhacharya
Shrimad Vallabhacharyacharitam – Shripad Shastri Hasurkar 1940

03. Sanskrit Biography of Samartha Ramadas
Ramadasaswamicharitam – SS Hasurkar

04. Sanskrit Biography of Sikh Gurus
Shree Sheekha Guru Charitamritam – Shripad Shastri Hasurkar 1933

05. Sanskrit Biography of Guru Gobind Singh
Sri Gurugovind Singh Bhagvat Padah Jeevnetivratham – SK Sharma 1966  (ALTERNATE LINK)

06. Sanskrit Biography of Gandhiji
Gandhicharitam – Charudev Sastri 1930

07. Sanskrit Biography of Banda Bairagi
Viravairagicaritam – Sudarshan Kumar Sharma (ALTERNATE LINK)

08. Sanskrit Biographies of Sivaji
Sivarajavijaya – Sanskrit – Ambikadatta(ALTERNATE LINK)

Shriishivajimaharajacharitam – Shripad Shastri Hasurkar

09. Sanskrit Biogrpahies of Rana Pratap
Veerpratapa Natakam – MP Dikshit   (ALTERNATE LINK)

Mivara Pratapam – Sanskrit Drama – HS Bhattacharya 1947

Pratapavijayam – Sanskrit Play – Mulshanker Maneklal Yajnik 1931

Maha Rana Pratapa Charitam – SS Hasurkar

10. Sanskrit Biography of Lokmanya Tilak
Shrilokmanyacharitam Sanskrit – SN Sastri

11. Sanskrit Biography of Prithviraj Chauhan
Shri Pruthviraj Chavhana Charitam – Shripad Shastri Hasurkar

Kavyamala Series of Sanskrit Books

Kavyamala Series of Books of Nirnaya Sagar Press, Mumbai published during late 19th and early 20th centuries. Kavyamala is a collection of ancient, very rare and previously unpublished Sanskrit works. There were two separate series – 14 volumes of Kavyamala anthologies of ancient Sanskrit works and 95 volumes of single books.

DOWNLOAD LINKS

KAVYAMALA ANTHOLOGY SERIES (14 VOLUMES)

Volume 01. Mahaganapatistotra of Raghavachaitanya, etc 1929
Volume 02. Vishnupadadikesantavarnana, etc 1932
Volume 03. Sivasatakam of Gokulanatha, etc 1899
Volume 04. Chandi Satakam-Bhava Satakam-etc 1937
Volume 05. Mukapanchasati-Kalividambanam-etc 1937
Volume 06. Sivapadadi Kesanta Varnana Stotram-etc. 1930
Volume 07. Bhaktamara Stotram, etc 1890
Volume 08. Sudarsanasatakam of Kuranarayana, etc 1891
Volume 09. Devisatakam of Anandavardhana, etc 1897
Volume 10. Lalitastavaratnam of Durvasa, etc 1915
Volume 11. Tripuramahima Stotram of Durvasa, etc 1895
Volume 12. Ramachapastava of Ramabhadra Dikshita, etc 1897
Volume 13. Varnamala Stotram-Pavanaduta Kavyam-etc 1916
Volume 14. Ardhanariswara Stotram of Kalhana, etc 1938

KAVYAMALA MAIN SERIES (95 VOLUMES)

Kavyamala Vol_ 01 – Aryasapatshati – Govardhana 1934
Kavyamala Vol_ 02 – Kavyalankara of Rudrata 1886
Kavyamala Vol_ 03 – Srikantha Charita of Mankhaka 1887
Kavyamala Vol_ 04 – Karpuramanjari of Rajasekhara 1887
Kavyamala Vol_ 05 – Anargha Raghava 1929.pdf
Kavyamala Vol_ 06 – Kamsavadha of Seshakrishna 1935
Kavyamala Vol_ 07 – Karnasundari of Bilhana 1932
Kavyamala Vol_ 08 – Dharmasarmabhyudayam of Harichandra 1933
Kavyamala Vol_ 09 – Subhadraharanam of Madhava Bhatta 1888
Kavyamala Vol_ 10 – Samaya Matrika – Kshemendra 1925
Kavyamala Vol_ 11 – Kadambarikathasara of Abhinanda 1925
Kavyamala Vol_ 12 – Rasagangadhara of Jagannatha 1888
Kavyamala Vol_ 13 – Sambapanchasika of Samba 1910
Kavyamala Vol_ 14 – Parijataharanachampu of Sesha Srikrishna 1926
Kavyamala Vol_ 15 – Kavyalankara Sutras of Vamana 1926
Kavyamala Vol_ 16 – Mukaundananda Bhana of Kashipati 1889
Kavyamala Vol_ 17 – Unmattaraghava of Bhaskara 1899
Kavyamala Vol_ 18 – Amarushatakam of Amarukari 1916
Kavyamala Vol_ 19 – Suryasataka of Tribhuvanapala (not found)
Kavyamala Vol_ 20 – Latakamelakaprahasanam of Sankhadhara 1923
Kavyamala Vol_ 21 – Gatha Saptasati of Satavahana 1911
Kavyamala Vol_ 22 – Haravijaya of Rajanaka Ratnakara 1890
Kavyamala Vol_ 23 – Stutikusumanjali – Jagadwar Bhatta
Kavyamala Vol_ 24 – Kavyapradipa of Govinda 1933
Kavyamala Vol_ 25 – Dhvanyaloka of Anandavardhana 1928
Kavyamala Vol_ 26 – Dasavataracharitam of Kshemendra 1891
Kavyamala Vol_ 27 – Jivanandana of Anandaraya Makhi 1891
Kavyamala Vol_ 28 – Dutangadanatakam of Subhatakavi 1900
Kavyamala Vol_ 29 – Bhartriharinirvedanatakam of Hariharopadhyaya (not found)
Kavyamala Vol_ 30 – Chandraprabhacharita of Viranandi 1892
Kavyamala Vol_ 31 – Vishnubhktikalpalata of Purushothama 1917
Kavyamala Vol_ 32 – Sahridayananda of Krishnananda 1930
Kavyamala Vol_ 33 – Srinivasavilasa Champu of Venkatadhwari 1886
Kavyamala Vol_ 34 – Prachina Lekhamala Part-1, 1892
Kavyamala Vol_ 35 – Alankarasarvasva of Rajanaka Ruyyaka 1893
Kavyamala Vol_ 36 – Vrittivartika of Appayya Dikshita 1892
Kavyamala Vol_ 37 – Rasasadana Bhana of Yuvaraja 1893
Kavyamala Vol_ 38 – Chitramimasa of Appayya Dikshita 1941
Kavyamala Vol_ 39 – Vidyaparinayana of Anandarya Makhi 1893
Kavyamala Vol_ 40 – Rukminiparinayanatakam 1894 (not found)
Kavyamala Vol_ 41 – Prakrita Pingalasutrani of Lakshmanabhatta 1894
Kavyamala Vol_ 42 – Natya Sastra of Bharata Muni 1894
Kavyamala Vol_ 43 – Kavyanusasanam of Vagbhata 1915
Kavyamala Vol_ 44 – Sringaratilaka Bhana of Ramachandra 1894
Kavyamala Vol_ 45 – Balabharata of Amarachandra Suri 1894
Kavyamala Vol_ 46 – Vrishabhanuja Natika Of Mathuradasa 1895
Kavyamala Vol_ 47 – Setubandha [Ravanavaha] of Pravarasena 1895
Kavyamala Vol_ 48 – Vagbhatalankara (not found)
Kavyamala Vol_ 49 – (Title not identified)
Kavyamala Vol_ 50 – Alankara Shekhara of Kesava Misra 1895
Kavyamala Vol_ 51 – The Patanjali-Charita – Pt Sivadatta 1895
Kavyamala Vol_ 52 – Mandaramarandchampu of Krishna Kavi 1895
Kavyamala Vol_ 53 – Vanibhushana of Damodara Misra (1925)
Kavyamala Vol_ 54 – Dhananjayavijaya of Kanchanacharya 1911
Kavyamala Vol_ 55 – Adbhutadarpana of Mahadeva (not found)
Kavyamala Vol_ 56 – Neminirvana of Vagbhata 1936
Kavyamala Vol_ 57 – Raghavanaishadhiya of Haradatta Suri 1926
Kavyamala Vol_ 58 – Shrangarbhushanam of Vamana Bhatta Bana 1896
Kavyamala Vol_ 59 – Amritodaya of Gokulanatha 1897
Kavyamala Vol_ 60 – Yudhishthiravijaya of Vasudeva 1930.pdf
Kavyamala Vol_ 61 – Haracaritacintamani, by Rajanaka Jayadratha 1897
Kavyamala Vol_ 62 – Raghavapandaviya of Kaviraja 1897
Kavyamala Vol_ 63 – Sahityakaumudi of Vidyabhushana 1897
Kavyamala Vol_ 64 – Prachina Lekhamala Part-2, 1898
Kavyamala Vol_ 65 – Bharatamanjari of Kshemendra 1898
Kavyamala Vol_ 66 – Alankara Kaustubha of Visweswara 1898
Kavyamala Vol_ 67 – Hira Saubhagya of Devavimala Gani 1900
Kavyamala Vol_ 68 – Ravanarjuniya – Bhatta Bhima 1900
Kavyamala Vol_ 69 – Brihatkathamanjari of Kshemendra 1901
Kavyamala Vol_ 70 – Yasastilakam of Somadeva Suri Part 1, 1916
Kavyamala Vol_ 70 – Yasastilakam of Somadeva Suri Part 2, 1903
Kavyamala Vol_ 71 – Kavyanusasana of Hemachandra 1901
Kavyamala Vol_ 72 – Kathakautukam of Srivara 1901
Kavyamala Vol_ 73 – Surathotsavam of Someswaradeva 1902
Kavyamala Vol_ 74 – Saugandhikaharana of Vishwanatha 1902
Kavyamala Vol_ 75 – Jayantavijaya of Abhayadeva. 1902
Kavyamala Vol_ 76 – Gangavataranam of Nilakantha Dikshita 1916
Kavyamala Vol_ 77 – Dela Rama Kathasara of Rajanaka Bhatta Ahladaka 1902
Kavyamala Vol_ 78 – Sringara Sarvasva Bhana of Nalla Dikshita 1911
Kavyamala Vol_ 79 – Karna Bhushana – Gangananda 1926
Kavyamala Vol_ 80 – Prachina Lekhamala Part-3, 1903
Kavyamala Vol_ 81 – Vidagdhamadhava of Rupa Goswami 1937
Kavyamala Vol_ 82 – Subhashitaratnasandoha of Amitagati 1903
Kavyamala Vol_ 83 – Ramayanamanjari of Kshemendra 1903
Kavyamala Vol_ 84 – Stavamala of Rupadeva 1903
Kavyamala Vol_ 85 – Tilakamanjari of Dhanapala 1938
Kavyamala Vol_ 86 – (Title not identified)
Kavyamala Vol_ 87 – Chaitanya Chandrodayam – Pansikar 1917
Kavyamala Vol_ 88 – Anyokti muktavali of Hamsavijaya Gani 1907
Kavyamala Vol_ 89 – Padyaracana of Lakshmanabhatta Ankolkar (not found)
Kavyamala Vol_ 90 – Yatra Prabandha of Samarapungava Dikshita 1936
Kavyamala Vol_ 91 – Chandas Sastra of Pingala 1938
Kavyamala Vol_ 92 – (Title not identified)
Kavyamala Vol_ 93 – Pandavacharitam Mahakavyam of Muralidaharadev 1911
Kavyamala Vol_ 94 – Saraswatikanthabharana of Bhoja 1934
Kavyamala Vol_ 95 – Ujjvala Nilamani of Rupa Goswami 1932

Mahakavi Kalidasa

KALIDASA, (kaalidaasa), India’s greatest Sanskrit poet and dramatist. In spite of the celebrity of his name, the time when he flourished always has been an unsettled question, although most scholars nowadays favor the middle of the 4th and early 5th centuries A.D., during the reigns of Chandragupta II Vikramaaditya and his successor Kumaaragupta. Undetermined also is the place of Kaalidaasa’s principal literary activity, as the frequent and minute geographic allusions in his works suggest that he traveled extensively.

Numerous works have been attributed to his authorship. Most of them, however, are either by lesser poets bearing the same name or by others of some intrinsic worth, whose works simply chanced to be associated with Kaalidaasa’s name their own names having long before ceased to be remembered. Only seven are generally considered genuine.

Kalidasa’s Life Time: There are eight hypothesis about his lifetime. The main logics, ecidences are as follows:

1. 6th century AD, Yashodharman defeated Mihirkul of HooN clan. Dr. Harnely says this Yashodharman is kalidas’s Vikramaaditya. Flaw: Y. never tok the title of Vikramaaditya

2. Fargusen says that 6th century AD, there was a king Vikramaaditya in Ujjayini (present day Ujjain). he defeated Shakas, started `Vikram-samvat’ calendar, starting it 600 years back 57BC. Prof. Max Muller basing on this said that Kalidasa was in the court of this Vikram. Flaw: There was no king by name VIkramaaditya in 600 AD in India. `Vikram-samvat’ calendar was in vogue since 1st century BC as `maalav-samvat’. This is clear from `mandasor’ `shilaalekha’ (stone writings) of VatsabhaTTi.

3. Kalidasa was familiar with Greek astronomy, using words like `jaamitra’. Greek astronomy/geometry was popularised by AryabhaTTa who was in 5th century AD. SO, Kalidasa was in 6th AD onwards. Dr McDonald refutes this saying `Romaka-siddhaanta’ was prevalant before AryabhaTTa, so he didn’t popularise Greek astronomy.

4. Mallinaath (the most famous commentrator on Kalidasa) gives two meanings to Meghadoot’s 14th verse. He says that `dinnaaga’ and `nichula’ words refer to Buddhist philosophers `dinnaaga’. Based on this some scholars put kalidasa in 6th century AD `coz kalidasa’s contemporary `dinnaaga’ was disciple of Vasubandhu who was in 6th century AD. Flaw: Vasubandhu was apparently in 400 AD `coz his books were translated in Chinese around 475-525 AD.

Finally this is what can be said about his lifetime: Kalidasa in his drama `Malvikaa-agni-mitra’ makes Agni-mitra his hero, who was the son of Pushamitra Shunga who was in 2nd century BC. This is his upper bound. Banabhatta in the preface of his Kadambari mentions Kalidasa. Banabhatta was in early 7th century AD. This is Kalidasa’s lower bound.

Kalidasa’s Life: Many tell tales are there for his life. Some call him native of Kashmir, some of Vidarbh, some of Bengal and others of Ujjain. It is said that he was a dumb fool to start with. The king’s daughter was a very learned lady and said that she will marry him who will defeat her in `shaastraartha’ (debate on the scriptures). Anyone who gets defeated will be black faced, head shaven and kicked out of country on a donkey. (The punishment part might be later aditions!) SO, the pundits took Kalidasa (whom they apparently saw cutting the tree branch on which he was sitting) for debate. They said that he (Kalidasa) only does mute debates. The princess showed him one finger saying `shakti is one’. He thot she will poke his one eye, so he showed her two fingers. She accepted it as valid answer, since `shakti’ is manifest in duality (shiv-shakti, nar-naaree etc etc). She showed her the palm with fingers extended like in a slap. He showed her the fist. She accepted it as answer to her question. She said `five elements’ and he said `make the body’ (earth, water, fire, air, and void). [ The debate explanations are also apparently later additions] So they get married and she finds he is a dumbo. So she kicks him out of the house. He straightaway went to Kali’s temple and cut his tongue at her feet. Kali was appeased with him and granted him profound wisdom. When he returned to his house, his wife (the learned) asked, “asti kashchit vaag-visheshaH” (asti = is; kashchit = when, as in questioning; vaag = speech, visheshaH = expert; i.e. “are you now an expert in speaking”).

And the great Kalidasa wrote three books starting with the 3 words:
with asti = asti-uttarasyaam dishi = Kumara-sambhavam (epic)
with kashchit = kashchit-kaantaa = Meghdoot (poetry)
with vaag = vaagarthaaviva = Raghuvansha (epic)

Another story says that he was the friend of Kumardas of Ceylon. He was killed by a courtesan once when he visited his friend in Ceylon.

(Courtesy: Shashikanth Joshi)

Works of Kalidasa:
Plays - There are three plays, the earliest of which is probably the Malavikaagnimitra ( Malavikaa and Agnimitra), a work concerned with palace intrigue. It is of special interest because the hero is a historical figure, King Agnimitra, whose father, Pushhpamitra, wrested the kingship of northern India from the Mauryan king Brihadratha about 185 B.C. and established the Sunga dvnasty, which held power for more than a century. The Vikramorvashiiya ( Urvashii Won Through Valor) is based on the old legend of the love of the mortal Pururavaas for the heavenly damsel Urvashii. The legend occurs in embryonic form in a hymn of the Rig Veda and in a much amplified version in the ShatapathabraahmaNa.

The third play, AbhiGYaanashaakuntala ( Shakuntalaa Recognized by the Token Ring), is the work by which Kaalidaasa is best known not only in India but throughout the world. It was the first work of Kaalidaasa to be translated into English from which was made a German translation in 1791 that evoked the often quoted admiration by Goethe. The raw material for this play, which usually is called in English simply Shaakuntala after the name of the heroine, is contained in the Mahaabhaarata and in similar form also in the PadmapuraaNa, but these versions seem crude and primitive when compared with Kaalidaasa’s polished and refined treatment of the story. In bare outline the story of the play is as follows: King Dushhyanta, while on a hunting expedition, meets the hermit-girl Shakuntalaa, whom he marries in the hermitage by a ceremony of mutual consent. Obliged by affairs of state to return to his palace, he gives Shakuntalaa his signet ring, promising to send for her later. But when Shakuntalaa comes to the court for their reunion, pregnant with his child, Dushhyanta fails to acknowledge her as his wife because of a curse. The spell is subsequently broken by the discovery of the ring, which Shakuntalaa had lost on her way to the court. The couple are later reunited, and all ends happily.

The influence of the AbhiGYaanashaakuntala outside India is evident not only in the abundance of translations in many languages, but also in its adaptation to the operatic stage by Paderewski, Weinggartner, and Alfano.

Poems - In addition to these three plays Kalidaaa wrote two long epic poems, the Kumarasambhava ( Birth of Kumara) and the Raghuvamsha ( Dynasty of Raghu). The former is concerned with the events that lead to the marriage of the god Shiva and Paarvatii, daughter of the Himalayas. This union was desired by the gods for the production of a son, Kumara, god of war, who would help them defeat the demon Taraka. The gods induce Kama, god of love, to discharge an amatory arrow at Siva who is engrossed in meditation. Angered by this interruption of his austerities, he burns Kama to ashes with a glance of his third eye. But love for Paarvatii has been aroused, and it culminates in their marriage.

The Raghuvamsha treats of the family to which the great hero Rama belonged, commencing with its earliest antecedents and encapsulating the principal events told in the Raamaayana of Valmiki. But like the Kumarasambhava, the last nine cantos of which are clearly the addition of another poet, the Raghuvamsha ends rather abruptly, suggesting either that it was left unfinished by the poet or that its final portion was lost early.

Finally there are two lyric poems, the Meghaduta ( Cloud Messenger) and the Ritusamhara ( Description of the Seasons). The latter, if at all a genuine work of Kalidasa, must surely be regarded as a youthful composition, as it is distinguished by rather exaggerated and overly exuberant depictions of nature, such as are not elsewhere typical of the poet. It is of tangential interest, however, that the Ritusamhara, published in Bengal in 1792, was the first book to be printed in Sanskrit.

On the other hand, the Meghaduta, until the 1960′s hardly known outside India, is in many ways the finest and most perfect of all Kalidasa’s works and certainly one of the masterpiece of world literature. A short poem of 111 stanzas, it is founded at once upon the barest and yet most original of plots. For some unexplained dereliction of duty, a Yaksha, or attendant of Kubera, god of wealth, has been sent by his lord into yearlong exile in the mountains of central India, far away from his beloved wife on Mount Kaildasa in the Himalayas. At the opening of the poem, particularly distraught and hapless at the onset of the rains when the sky is dark and gloomy with clouds, the yaksa opens his heart to a cloud hugging close the mountain top. He requests it mere aggregation of smoke, lightning, water, and wind that it is, to convey a message of consolation to his beloved while on its northward course. The Yaksha then describes the many captivating sights that are in store for the cloud on its way to the fabulous city of Alakaa, where his wife languishes amid her memories of him. Throughout the Meghaduta, as perhaps nowhere else So plentifully in Kalidasa’s works, are an unvarying freshness of inspiration and charm, delight imagery and fancy, profound insight into the emotions, and a oneness with the phenomena of nature. Moreover, the fluidity and beauty of the language are probably unmatched in Sanskrit literature, a feature all the more remarkable for its inevitable loss in translation.

(Courtesy: Walter Harding Maurer University of Hawaii at Manoe)

DOWNLOAD LINKS TO COMPLETE WORKS OF KALIDASA

1. Abhijnana Sakuntalam
Abhijnana Sakuntalam Of Kalidasa – Mr.Kale
Abhijnana Sakuntalam English Translation by CSR Sastri
Sakuntala – Sanskrit Text with English Translation by Monier Williams
Sakuntala – English Translation by JG Jennings
Kalidasa’s Sakuntala – English Translation by Richard Pischel

2. Malavikagnimitram
Malavikagnimitram of Kalidasa – Skt Commentary – KP Parab
Malavikagnimitram English Translation by CH Tawney

3. Vikramorvasiyam
Vikramorvasiyam Sanksirt Text with English Notes by SP Pandit
Vikramorvasiyam English Translation by EB Cowell

4. Kumarasambhavam
Kumarasambhava Cantos I-VII – Sanskrit Commentary, English Translation & Notes – MR Kale
Kumarasambhavam – Eng Translation by RTH Griffith
Kumarasambhavam with Mallinatha’s Sanskrit Commentary

5. Raghuvamsam
Raghuvamsa with Mallinatha’s commentary Hindi translation by Pt. Lakshmi Prapanna Acharya(DJVU)
Raghuvamsa with Mallinatha’s commentary Shankar Pandit Part 3
Raghuvamsa English Translation by De Lacy Johnston
Cantos 1 to 10 with Mallinatha’s commentary and Eng Translation by MR Kale

6. Meghasandesam (Meghadutam)
Meghasandesa with Dakshinavartanatha’s Tika – TG Sastri
Meghaduta with Sanjivani Vyakhya 1894
Kalidasa’s Meghaduta with Skt Commentary & English Translation – KB Pathak, 1916
Meghaduta English Translation by HH Wilson, 1814
Meghaduta English Translation by Col. HA Ouvry, 1868

1. Sanskrit commentary on Pancahtantra
2. Sanskrit text of Panchatantra with Hindi translation by JP Mishra
3. English translation of Panchatantra by AW Ryder

According to Indian tradition, the Panchatantra was written around 200 BCE by Pandit Vishnu Sarma, a sage. However, based as it is on older oral traditions, its antecedents among storytellers probably hark back to the origins of language. One of the most influential Sanskrit contributions to world literature, it is “certainly the most frequently translated literary product of India” and there are over 200 versions in more than 50 languages.

In the Indian tradition, the Panchatantra is a nitisastra, a treatise on political science and human conduct, or niti. It is said that Vishnu Sarma’s objective was to instruct three dull and ignorant princes in the principles of polity, by means of stories. Panchatantra consists of five books, which are called:

1. Mitra Bhedha (The Loss of Friends)
2. Mitra Laabha also called Mitra Samprapti (Gaining Friends)
3. Kakolukiyam (Crows and Owls)
4. Labdhapranasam (Loss Of Gains)
5. Aparikshitakaraka (Ill-Considered Action / Rash deeds)

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1. Panchatantra Sanskrit text with Hindi translation – JP Mishra

2. Panchatantra Sanskrit Commentary

3. Panchatantra English translation by AW Ryder

Panini, the great grammarian

Siddhanta Kaumudi is a celebrated Sanskrit commentary by Bhattoji Dikshita (early 17th century) on the Ashtadhydyi and is believed to be more popular than Panini’s work. It re-arranges the sutras of Panini under appropriate heads and offers exposition that is orderly and easy to follow.

The sutras are arranged in two parts – the first part deals with the rules of interpretation, sandhis, declensions, formation of feminines, case endings, compounds, secondary derivations and the second part with conjugation, primary suffixes, Vedic grammar and accents.

English commentary of Siddhanta Kaumudi by Saradaranjan Ray & Kumudranjan Ray is highly useful to  students of Sanskrit grammar who are not capable of studying the Ashtadhyayi or Siddhanta Kaumudi with the help of Sanskrit commentaries.

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Siddhanta Kaumudi English Commentary (6 Volumes)

Volume 1 Part 1
Volume 1 Part 2
Volume 2 Part 1
Volume 2 Part 2
Volume 3 Part 1
Volume 3 Part 2
Volume 4
Volume 5
Volume 6

Siddhanta Kaumudi with Sanskrit Commentary “Tattwabodhini” of Jnanendra Saraswati

Sanskrit Translation of Alibaba's tale

In presenting this rendering of the popular oriental tale of Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves (Chora Chatvarimsi Katha) into the Sanskrit language, to the student-world, and to the reading public, Mr. Modak has given evidence of his mastery over the classical language of India and has vindicated the claim of Sanskrit as an instrument of expressing in an incisive manner the most modern as well as the most ancient ideas. In true oriental style, he has supplied the usual framework of the story- the fiction of a master inculcating a moral lesson upon his disciples by means of a story.

Another excellent feature – entirely an innovation of the author – is the introduction in proper places of epigrams and pithy sayings in verse form which give to the translation the appearance of an original work modelled on the pattern of the Hitopadesa or the Pancatantra. The Sanskrit language is unequalled in its power of concise metrical argument, and in its precision and adequacy as an instrument of expression. A lover of Sanskrit, therefore, will be delighted to read these pages which will not fail to give him the impression that he is not reading a translation at all, but an original tale in Sanskrit.

In the hands of Mr. Modak, the language becomes a wonderfully facile and fluid instrument of expressing the thought in the simplest and most natural way. The language is simple, flowing and chaste; and I make no doubt that the book will serve as an excellent Sanskrit text not only in the class but outside it. Even a student who has learnt just the bare elements of the language will be able to follow the story unaided – for if in places he will not understand the meaning of a word or an expression, yet the story interest will ensure that he journeys to the end.

(From the forward to the book by Shri N.G. Suru)

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Smaller Sanskrit Grammar - MR Kale

“A Smaller Sanskrit Grammar is specially intended for the Matriculation and the ordinary College students. Its plan of arrangement is the same as that of the ‘Higher Sanskrt Grammar.’ In it the more intricate rules and matter which was thought quite unnecessary for the students for whom it is intended have been omitted. The chapter on the Conjugation of Verbs has been almost the same as in the ‘Higher Sanskrit Grammar‘, Frequentative verbs only being omitted. The last chapter contains but the commonest rules of Sanskrt Syntax.

“Those who desire a more thorough knowledge of Sanskrit Grammar may use ‘Higher Sanskrit Grammar.’ The wording of many rules has been the same in both, so that the two grammars may be used side by side.”

(From the author’s preface to the first edition of this book)

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Vaman Sivaram Apte (1848-1892)

Vaman Sivaram Apte (1858-1892) is an author well known to Sanskrit students. In spite of the short span of his life, i. e. 34 years, Apte’s scholarly output was remarkable. His Guide to Sanskrit Composition (1881) and his Sanskrit Dictionaries for use in schools and colleges hold the foremost place among books of their kind, even after the lapse of close upon 125 years and claim the respect of every student of Sanskrit, by their monumental wealth of learning.

His works: -

1. The Practical Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1890).
2. The Students’ English-Sanskrit Dictionary (1884).
3. The Students’ Sanskrit-English Dictionary.
4. The Students’ Guide to Sanskrit Composition (1881).
5. The Students’ Hand-Book of Progressive Exercises, Part I and, II.
6. Kusuma-mala (1891).

The ‘Guide To Sanskrit Composition’ had become very popular and Apte himself revised the third edition of the book in 1890. Since then many more editions have been out. A short biographical sketch of VS Apte is available here.

DOWNLOAD LINKS

Students Guide To Sanskrit Composition (English) Link – 1

Students Guide To Sanskrit Composition (English) Link – 2

Samskrit Nibandh Path Pradarsak (Hindi)

Samskrita Sabdartha Kaustubha by Dwarikaprasad Chaturvedi is perhaps the most comprehensive and largest Sanskrit-Hindi Dictionary ever to be published.

A good dictionary is an indispensable companion of a Sanskrit student (and of scholars). There are many popular Sanskrit-English dictionaries like those of Monier Williams, VS Apte, AA Mac Donell. But they could be of use only to those who know English. The great work known as Vachaspatya is a standard work and is very useful for scholars. But until a well edited edition of this work comes out, it could not be of much help to even an average Sanskrit student.

When the author of Samskrita Sabdartha Kaustubha compiled it, there were only three Sanskrit Hindi dictionaries available for the Hindi speaking students. They were all too small for much practical use, so the author compiled the present work with the hope of answering the needs of Hindi speaking Sanskrit students who are studying Sandkrit in a college or schoof or privately. Samskrita Sabdartha Kaustubha is designed to be an adequate guide to a knowledge of Sanskrit words. It contains as many explanations and details as are permitted by the limited space at the disposal of the compiler.

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Samskrita Sabdartha Kaustubha – Sanskrit Hindi Dictionary
Chaturvedi Sanskrit Hindi Kosh (smaller in content)

The Sanskrit Teacher - KP Trivedi

This 2 volume set is an introductory text to Sanskrit grammar & literature. The author has included the cream of Sanskrit literature in every lesson so as to elevate the mind of the students to a high plane of morality and devotion and inspire it with a spirit of respect and reverence for all that is great and good, respect for learning and wisdom, respect for power and authority, and reverence for God.

Special features of the book:

(a) The book winds up with a large selection of prose and poetic passages. The prose passages are taken from the Panchatantra, the Dasakumaracharita, the Kadambari, and the works of Sankaracharya. They thus supply the student with different specimens of style. The poetic passages are Selected from the works of Chanakya, Bhartrihari, Kalidasa, Bhavabhuti, the Ramayana, the Mahabharata, and various other works.

(b)  A language is best learnt by the study of its poetic literature which contains wise thoughts clothed in felicitous expression. The committing to memory such gems of literature ensures a command over the language and deepens a taste for it. The object of meeting this requirement is specially kept in view in the selection of verses in lessons and also at the end of the book, which has so many as about 200 of them.

(c)  The student is introduced to a knowledge of Sanskrit metres and figures of speech. The characteristics of the ganas are explained and the student supplied with definitions of a few leading metres such as Malini, Vasanta-tilaka, Hariri, and Sikharini. The leading features of a few figures such as the Upama, the Rupaka, the Arthantaranyasa, and the Anyokti are elucidated in lessons and notes at the end.

(d) The student is directly taken to literature, grammar being made subordinate as it ought to be. This object is attained in the following way. Every lesson opens with a few sentences which are translated into English and in which new grammatical forms are printed black to draw the attention of students. Then follows a paradigm of forms ready made and lastly come the rules which are deduced from them. The method followed is thus analytic. It will be educative and interesting both to the school student and to the person of advanced years who has a mind to acquire a knowledge of it. The former should first learn to recognise the forms and then study them. For the latter it will do if he only learns to recognise them.

Thus, the book comprehends in a small compass all the salient points of Sanskrit grammar, the knowledge of which is essential for the study of Sanskrit literature.

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Sanskrit Teacher Part 1

Sanskrit Teacher Part 2

Beloved of Yaksha

Meghaduta (literally meaning “cloud messenger”) is a lyric poem written by Kalidasa, considered to be one of the greatest Sanskrit poets in India. A short poem of only 111 stanzas, it is one of Kalidasa`s most illustrious works.

Meghaduta is separated into two parts – Purvamegha (Previous cloud) and Uttaramegha (Consequent cloud). According to the story, Kubera, treasurer to the Gods, possesses a band of celestial attendees working for him, named the Yakshas. One of these Yakshas was so besotted and preoccupied with his wife that he absolutely disregarded his duties. As a consequence, he was cursed and banished into the thickness of earthly woods. Wholly demoralised, he kept thinking about his wife and felt her absence terribly. His wife also kept reminiscing about him all day and all night.

Then one day, monsoons started to splash upon earth. The Yaksha saw a rain cloud pass by and requested it to carry a message to his wife, then languishing on Mount Kailash in the Himalayas. The Yaksha then commences to describe the route the cloud should be taking in the northward direction. The description is so enamouring and so pictorial, that one can actually experience the scenes are flashing in front of the eyes in a vision. The Yaksha makes the route seem as bewitching as possible, so that the cloud takes his message to his wife, in the city of Alaka (according to Hindu mythology, Alaka sometimes also referred to as Alakapuri, is a mythical city in the Himalayas.).

The emotions portrayed by Kalidasa in his lyric poem Meghaduta are extremely exquisite, giving rise to the poem first being translated into English by Horace Hayman Wilson in 1813.

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Meghasandesa with Dakshinavartanatha’s Tika – TG Sastri, 1919
Meghaduta with Sanjivani Vyakhya Skt 1894
Kalidasa’s Meghaduta with Skt Commentary & English Translation – KB Pathak, 1916
Meghasandesha with Vallabhadeva’s Commentary, 1911
The Meghaduta or Cloud messenger – English Translation by HH Wilson, 1814
The Meghaduta or Cloud messenger – English Translation by Col. HA Ouvry, 1868

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Parvati immersed in Tapasya

Kumarasambhava is a legendary Sanskrit poem written by Mahakavi Kalidasa. It is one of the most foremost and substantial examples of `Kavya` poetry. Kumarasambhava literally stands for “Birth of the War-god”, i.e. Kartikeya, Shiva`s first son.

Kumarasambhava essentially talks about the courtship of Lord Shiva and Parvati. The bulk of chapters have enormous details about the love and romance between Shiva and Parvati. It is stated that a powerful demon named Tarakasura was blessed with the boon that only the child of Lord Shiva could vanquish him and no other. Likewise, Shiva had cut short the desire for love through passionate meditation. Due to Parvati`s brilliant efforts and after much penance, she won the love of Lord Shiva.

After sometime, Shiva and Parvati were blessed with a son whom they named Kartikeya. He grew up and slew the demon Tarakasur and re-established peace and glory of Lord Indra and the divine world.

It is said that Kalidasa had left home to attain worldly knowledge and turn the ‘enlightened one’. On his return, his wife asked, “Asti Kashchit Vagvisheshah”, standing for, “Have you attained any palpable knowledge that should make me give you a special welcome?” Kalidasa gave her a fitting reply and spanning a period of few years, he wrote three great epics based on three letters spoken by his wife. From “Asti” he produced “Kumarasambhava”; from “Kaschit” he penned “Meghaduta” and from “Vagvisheshah” he wrote “Raghuvansha”.

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Kumarasambhava Cantos I-VII – Sanskrit Commentary, English Translation & Notes – MR Kale

Kumarasambhavam – Eng Translation by RTH Griffith

Kumarasambhavam with Mallinatha’s Sanskrit Commentary

The term Sriramodantam is composed of two words ‘Srirama’ and ‘udantam’ meaning ‘the story of Srirama’. Sriramodantam is a ‘laghukavyam’ (minor poetical composition) that has been in use as the first text in old Sanskrit Curriculum of Kerala for last five centuries. As per this curriculum the students were taught this text along with Amarakosa and Siddharoopam immediately after they had learnt the Sanskrit alphabets (Varnamala). This Kavya, which is a highly abridged version of “Valmiki Ramayana”, was used as a tool to teach effectively Vibhakti, Sandhi, Samasa, etc to young pupils.

There will hardly be a Sanskrit knowing person from Kerala who does not know by-heart at least a few verses of this work, which begins with the verse “श्रीपतिं प्रणिपत्याहं श्रीवत्साङ्कितवक्षसं श्रीरामोदन्तमाख्यास्ये श्रीवात्मीकिप्रकीर्त्तितम्”. Though the traditional style of teaching Sanskrit exists no more in Kerala, the ‘balakanda’ of  Sriramodantam found a place in the Sanskrit text books prepared by the State board till a few decades back. This shows how significant a role this work had played in imparting basic lessons of Sanskrit to the young minds.

It is a great pity that the author of Sriramodantam is unknown. The author, in his inimitable and simple style, has narrated, in just 200 verses, the seven kandas of Ramayana that was expounded by sage Valmiki in 24000 verses.

Any suggestion for improving this translation is welcome.

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Proverbs in Modern Sanskrit by Jagannatha

Proverbs are coherent and lively documents of human experiences in succinct manner. These give vigor to language. Some proverbs are for shock treatment to the stupid ones. Some are drumbeats to the slumbering lethargic! Proverbs are strong pulses of folklore. Citing proverbs in daily conversation is age-old practice of people. Collection and study of these wonderful aphorisms is made several times in hundreds of languages of the world. We do not know original creators of these by name. But we do know modern authors by name who have produced proverbs afresh inspired by the old ones.

Abhanakajagannatha, a compilation of new proverbs in Sanskrit is authored by S. Jagannatha, a free thinker. This work is permeated with new maxims, imaginations, teeny-weeny sketches of author’s own experience and imitation of old adages.The number of proverbs is one thousand, three hundred and twenty two(1322). All proverbs are classified and arranged alphabetically in every classified group. Meanings of difficult words in footnotes and introduction of proverbs are in Sanskrit itself. Contents of the subjects are provided at the beginning.Alphabetical lists of all the proverbs, subjects and the words shown in the footnotes are given at the end for quick reference.

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