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भारतीय क्षात्त्र परम्परा - Part 99

643 ईस्वी की शुरुआत से ही, अरबों ने सिंध में देबल बंदरगाह पर कई बार हमला करने की कोशिश की, जिसका परिणाम भी वैसा ही रहा। हर बार हिंदू राजाओं के हाथों मुस्लिम सैनिकों का संहार  हुआ। 663 में भी यही परिणाम फिर से हुआ। इन सभी लड़ाइयों में, इस्लामिक सेनाएं और उनके प्रमुख बुरी तरह पराजित हुए। लगभग 708 ईस्वी में, उबैद उल्लाह को जयसिंह (देबल के राजा के बेटे) ने न केवल बुरी तरह से हराया, बल्कि उसने अपने उपसेनापति, बुदैल को भी खो दिया।

Saṃskṛta-nāṭaka - Kṣemīśvara (Part 2)

The story of Hariścandra is quite old, and it dates back to the Vedic times; as it won the hearts of the people at large, it gathered more substance with time; a few recensions of the Mahābhārata also contain the tale, and are likely to be an interpolation; the tale, nevertheless, appears to have grown to large proportions. We cannot deny that the version of the story that occurs in such recensions of the epic is filled with exaggerations and elements that border on anaucitya. It is unlikely that Kṣemīśvara had that tale as the basis of his play.

Saṃskṛta-nāṭaka - Kṣemīśvara (Part 1)

Kṣemīśvara, also called Kṣemendra, is the author of a play called Caṇḍa-kauśika. The introductory segments of his play reveal to us his place and period to some extent. Kṣemīśvara was the great-grandson of Vijaya-prakoṣṭha; he penned the play upon the request of King Mahī-pāladeva. It is said that Mahī-pāladeva was Candra-gupta (Maurya) in his previous life and was responsible for the elimination of the Nanda dynasty. The Nandas of the past were now the kings of Karnataka, and it was important to eliminate them; Mahī-pāladeva was born for this purpose.

भारतीय क्षात्त्र परम्परा - Part 97

यहां भी दो प्रकार की समस्याए उपस्थित होती है – जब राज्य छोटा होता है तो बाह्य आक्रमण का भय बढ़ जाता है और यदि साम्राज्य अति विस्तृत है तो आंतरिक शत्रुओं से निपटना आवश्यक हो जाता है। इन दोनों ही दशाओं में ‘राग’ (आसक्ति, तृष्षा आदि) और द्वेष (शत्रुता, दुर्भावना आदि) के भाव मुख्य रूप से क्रियाशील होते हैं। आंतरिक शत्रुता की दशा में तो यह अत्यधिक प्रबलता से परिलक्षित होते है। किसी भी देश के प्राकृतिक संसाधन, आर्थिक सम्पन्नता, मैत्री भाव और आदर भाव के स्वभाव से युक्त रहवासी, बाहर के लोगों को वहां आने के लिए स्वाभाविक रूप से आकर्षित करते है किंतु अनेक प्रकरणों में लोग

Kṣāttra Rites - 8

Ekāha Category

In the Ekāha rites, the details will be provided only for the Śyēnayāga. The rest of the abhicāra rites only have differences in the śastras, stōmas and sāmans. Those details will not be dealt with here. After the performance of these rites, the yajamāna has to perform Jyōtiṣṭōma for peace or prāyaścitta[1] since violence is involved.

Saṃskṛta-nāṭaka - Rājaśekhara (Part 4)

The king finally marries not one, but two women of his antaḥpura with the help of his queen. One of them, as narrated before, was in the disguise of a man and proves to be a minor obstacle to the smooth flow of events. The poet might have the impression of having spiced up his story by the inclusion of this element; however, these segments make the play less natural. It is hard to believe that the queen’s maternal uncle’s daughter, her cousin, grew up in the royal quarters disguised as a man, without causing any suspicion to anyone around and not even to the queen.