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English Writings of D V Gundappa - 2

The problem of the Indian Native States occupied DVG’s mind for over three decades (1915 to 1945). Before independence, our country comprised two parts: 1. British India consisting of provinces under direct British rule, 2. Native States ruled by Indian Princes. The struggle for freedom was largely confined to British India during the early years of the twentieth century. The champions of independence, fearing unnecessary delay and complication, left out Native States from their campaign. This landed the Princely States in soup.

Mahāmahopādhyāya Vidvān N. Ranganatha - Elucidation of the Beauty of the Śāstras and Devotion to the Nation

Elucidation of the Beauty of the Śāstras

Sharma has helped us not only by unknotting difficult minutiae of vyākaraṇa, sāhitya, and vedānta śāstras but also by throwing light on the beauty of each of these streams. Because of this holistic approach, Sharma’s personality could come to the forefront and displayed its brilliance. Thoroughness in scholarship and maturity of personality – the confluence of the two is extremely rare to see. Sharma was one such person.

Chapter 1. Yoga of Inconsiderate Compassion (Part 2)

At this point, as an example of the severity of the result of one’s own experience, we can recollect the episode of the blind king Dhṛtarāṣṭra. Vyāsa offered to give him the capability to witness the scenes in the battlefield.

yadi tv-icchasi saṅgrāme draṣṭum-enaṃ viśāmpate।
cakṣur-dadāni te hanta yuddham-etan-niśamaya॥
(Bhīṣma-parva 2.6)

Dhṛtarāṣṭra replied –

ಸಂಸ್ಕೃತಕವಿಗಳ ಕಾವ್ಯಮೀಮಾಂಸೆ - 14

ಈ ಮಾತುಗಳು ಕಾವ್ಯದ ಸಂದರ್ಭಕ್ಕೆ ಎಷ್ಟು ಯುಕ್ತವಾಗಿವೆಯೋ ಕಾವ್ಯಮೀಮಾಂಸೆಯ ಸಂದರ್ಭಕ್ಕೂ ಅಷ್ಟೇ ಯುಕ್ತವಾಗಿವೆ. ಇಲ್ಲಿ ಭಾರವಿಯು ತನ್ನ ಕಾವ್ಯಾಭಿವ್ಯಕ್ತಿಯ ಆದರ್ಶವನ್ನೇ ಸೂಚಿಸಿರುವನೆಂದರೆ ತಪ್ಪಾಗದು. ಅವನು ವಶ್ಯವಾಕ್ಕಾದ ಮಹಾಕವಿ; ಆದುದರಿಂದ ಆತನ ವೈಯಕ್ತಿಕ ಅಭಿಪ್ರಾಯವೂ ಸಾರ್ವತ್ರಿಕವಾದ ಶಾಸ್ತ್ರಾಭಿಪ್ರಾಯವೆನಿಸುವ ಮಟ್ಟಿಗೆ ಅರ್ಥಗರ್ಭಿತವಾಗಿದೆ. ಭಾರವಿಯ ಪ್ರಕಾರ ಮಾತೆಂಬುದು ವಕ್ತೃವಿನ ಆಶಯವನ್ನೆಲ್ಲ ಚೆನ್ನಾಗಿ ಪ್ರತಿಬಿಂಬಿಸಲು ಸಮರ್ಥವಾದ ಕೊಳಕಿಲ್ಲದ ಹೊಳೆಹೊಳೆಯುವ ಕನ್ನಡಿಯಂತಿರಬೇಕು. ಅಂತೆಯೇ ಅದಕ್ಕೊಂದು ಸರ್ವಹಿತಕರವಾದ ಆಶಯವೂ ಇರಬೇಕು. ಇದೇ ಕನ್ನಡಿಯ ಮಾಂಗಲಿಕತ್ವದ ಸಂಕೇತ.

English Writings of D V Gundappa

DVG – These three letters evoke an image of a wise old man laughing a toothless laugh in the minds of the Kannada-speaking people. We are so accustomed to this image that any reference to a youthful DVG sounds and seems odd. We are startled by discovering that the author of Maṅkutimmana Kagga—a collection of verses capturing meditations on life in a “semi-philosophical vein”—wrote in English, mostly on such topics that resolutely maintain their distance from philosophy as law, politics, journalism, and economics.