New Light on Saint Poet Sri Jayadev and Gitagovinda

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Orissa Review # May - 2008

New Light on Saint PoetSri Jayadev and Gitagovinda

Ajit Kumar Tripathy

Historical Perspective of Saint Poet SriJayadev

The Ganga King ruled over Kalinga fromthe 6th Century to 11th Century A.D. At that timeKalinga was restricted by river Rusikulya in thenorth and Simhachal hills in the south. At the centreof Kalinga was the Mahendragiri range of hills.The Mathar Kings who ruled over Kalinga before

the Gangas had Singhapur as their Capital. Butafter the fall of Mathar dynasty the Ganga kingsestablished their Capital at Kalinga Nagar on thebank of river Vamsadhara. To-day it is locatedin Srikakulam district of Andhra Pradesh knownas Nagari Katak.

Very close to this place is a place knownas Mukhalingam in which the Madhukeswar Siva

temple was constructed in the 10th century A.D.by Madhukamarnava Deva a Ganga king. His sonVajrahasta Deva did quite a lot of developmentworks for the temple and laid down all the ritesand rituals for worship of the deity. From copperplate issued by him it is known that he had broughta number of families adept in dance fromBaidumba kingdom which was the home of thematernal uncle of Vajrahasta Deva. These families

gradually increased in number and the king settledthem in a village called Srikurumapatak at thedistance of 19km from Kalinga Nagar on the seacoast. There is a Vishnu temple there enshriningSrikuruma Avatar (Tortoise incarnation of Visnu).The Vaishnavites who came from southern Indiataught Sanskrit literature, philosophy and religioustexts to the students in this place. There was alsoa school for music and dance at Srikurumapatak

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for the dancing girls and boys. The temple dancerswere called Sani.

The Ganga Kings ruled over Kalinga forabout 400 years and then Chodaganga Deva wasborn to Maharaja Devendravarma Rajaraja Devaand queen Rajasundari who was the daughter ofthe Chola King of Kanchi named MaharajaKulatunga Rajendra Chola the Second.Rajasundari had two sons namely, CholagangaDeva and Pamardy. When Rajrajara Deva diedprematurely in 1077 A.D., Cholaganga Deva wasonly 5 year old and Paramardy, the second sonwas only 3 year old.

Kalinga was thus without a ruler. Theneighbouring states wanted to occupy Kalinga.In order to save the kingdom and the two kidsfrom the enemies Rajasundari the widowed queendesperately sought the help of her brotherVirachoda who was ruling over the BengiKingdom. Virachoda accepted the request, cameto Kalinga Nagar and organised the coronationof the child Cholaganga Deva. He got his ownkid daughter Gundichodi, later on known asKasturikamodini, married to Cholaganga Devaand proclaimed that Kalinga was not without aruler. Virachoda was a brave and intelligent kinghimself. He engaged teachers of high caliber forthe education of his daughter and the son-in-law.Cholaganga Deva, later led a huge army andstarted a series of campaign against theneighbouring enemy kingdoms.

Situated to the east of Kalinga was Utkalwhich was ruled at that time by the Somavansiking Karnadeva. Cholaganga attacked Utkal.With this battle for the conquest of Utkal, theSomavansa got eliminated. Cholaganga thendefeated Chalukya King of Bengi and alsodefeated Pala King of Bangal at Mandargada andArmyanagar, at present known as Arambag. Heextended his Kingdom Kalinga from Godavari in

the south-west to Ganga in the north-east. In 1112A.D. he shifted his capital from Kalinga Nagar toVaranasi Katak which is at present known asBidanasi. From Deopara copper plate inscriptionit is known that Vijayasena prided himself as afriend of Cholaganga.

Since it took some time to bring about peaceand stability in the conquered territories of Utkaland Banga, Cholaganga alongwith his familystayed in Kalinga Nagar upto 1126 A.D. and thenshifted to Varanasi Katak after restoration ofpeace and stability. In 1050 Sakabda (1128 A.D.)his first year of reign was declared to be countedas found from an inscription in Nrusingha templenear Mukti Mandap at Srimandir. Cholagangaassumed the title of Parama Maheswara,Parama Vaisnava and Parama Brahmanya.He was initially a Saiva and later on becameVaisnava. His Saiva Guru was a Sadhu inMadhukeswar temple and his Vaisnav Guru wasfrom Vishnu temple of Kurumapatak.

Cholaganga Deva organised the coronationof his eldest son Sri Kamarnava Deva at SriPurusottama Temple of Puri and stayed in hispalace at Puri for the rest of his life. This was inthe year 1142 A.D. Cholaganga Deva started theconstruction of the present Jagannath Temple atPuri. At the coronation function temple dancersfrom Sri Kurumapatak were called to performdance at the Lord Jagannath Temple. This sectwas known as Sani sect. As found out from thetemple inscriptions at Madhukeswar temple andSimanchal Temple, the Ganga Kings hadencouraged this tradition of temple dancers in thekingdom of Kalinga, and then in the Kalingaempire.

As recorded in an inscription in the LingarajTemple, Bhubaneswar, during the reign ofRaghava Deva, the second son of Chodaganga

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Deva, all the land rights for a region calledBaheda Khanda were purchased from SadhuPradhan Jayadeva of Kurmapataka and donatedto Kirtivaswar (Lord Lingaraj) by Medam Devi,her father Komi Nayaka and her mother. Thethree of them had donated three Akhanda Dipas(arrangements for non-stop burning of oil-lamps)to the temple. They belonged to the Sani sect.

A similar inscript ion appears onMadhukeswar temple at Mukhalingam whereKomi Nayak, father of Medam Devi and his wifeNagama Devi (Title ofGudisani meaning TempleDancer) arranged for offering an akhanda deepain the temple in 1113 A.D.

There is yet another inscription in the saidMadhukeswar temple inwhich they had offeredakhanda deepa in 1128 A.D. The system ofproviding Akhanda Dipa and donating rights ofland to the deities appears to be common in thethree events in 1113, 1128 and 1156 A.D. Thepresence of Jayadeva and his description asKurmapataka Pravara establishes that he hadclose lineage with the dancing families ofKurmapataka who had come to Orissa duringthe period of Chodaganga Deva. had the GudiSanis (temple actors and dancers) been sociallylooked down upon, then their donations totemples could not have been accepted andimmortalized in inscriptions. The two inscriptionsat Madhukeswar temple and the one at Simhachaltemple were discovered, read and interpreted byDr. Satyanarayan Rajaguru, the Pitamaha Bhismaof historians and linguists of Orissa. Read withthe inscription at Lingaraj temple, it leads to theconclusion that Jayadeva had been a member ofthe teaching faculty of the school atSrikurmapatak. He might have studied there aswell. After his childhood education he must havegone to Srikurmapataka and gained experiencein composition of poetry and music and in dancing.

He perhaps came back to Orissa alongwith thegroup and performed in the Puri temple.

Sri Jayadeva, the celebrated Poet ofGitagovinda was born in the village KenduvilvaSasan or Kenduli Sasan in Balipatna P.S. inKhurda district, a part of the earlier Puri district.He was most likely born in the first part of 12thCentury A.D. during the reign of CholagangaDeva. Kenduli Sasan close to the river Prachi thenwas inhabited mostly by Brahmins. The presidingdeity in the village is Ambika and there is aNrusingha temple as well. Jayadeva must havegone for higher education in Sanskrit literature andmusic to Kurmapataka and after education he musthave become a tutor there. That is why the twotitles Kurmapataka Pravara and SadhuPradhan have been mentioned against him inthe Lingaraj Temple inscription. Read togetherthe three inscriptions indicate to the fact of closeassociation of Jayadeva to the family of KomiNayaka and to the institution at Kurmapataka.

Prachi valley witnessed the rise and spreadof Jainism, Buddhism, Saivism, Saktism, Sun cultand Vaisnavism. Kenduvilva and many othervillages nearby are full of religious monumentsdedicated to different cults. Numerous templeswere erected by Bhaumas, Somavanshis and theGangas in the Prachi valley. Village Kenduli Sasanhas rich relics of brick and stone temples andsculptures of Saiva, Vaisnav and Sakta cults aswell as Buddhism belonging to the period between9th and 13th Century A.D. In Prachi Valleywhether the temple has a Sakta or Saiva deity,Gitagovinda is recited on festive occasions whichsymbolise the influence of Vaisnavism overSaktism and the immense popularityof the text ofGitagovinda.

The copper plate grant of Nrusingha Devathe 4th which was recovered from a tank nearthe Nrusingha temple of Kenduli village, was

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originally issued from Varanasi Katak in A.D.1383. It refers to establishment of NarasinghpurSasan donated to one Mahapatra Narahari DasPraharaj who was the minister of NarasinghaDeva. This Sasan is located very close toKenduvilva on Prachi valley. This grant alsocontains the names of Olatapura and AttahaspuraSasan adjacent to Kenduli established byAttahasdeva, the youngest son of CholagangaDeva.

To quote Dr. Harish Chandra Das

While discussing about the historicalbackground of Jayadeva it will perhaps not beout of place to glance through how he introducedRadha and Mahava and dasavatara cult in themost popular manner breaking the stylizedtradition. From this point of view Gitagovinda isvirtually a historical text unfurling the historicaltruth through his poetic narration. The cult ofMadhava which is historically proved to be inexistence in Orissa from seventh or eighth centuryA.D. gained great momentum from the time ofJayadeva. The first epigraphical evidence ofMadhava, we come across in the copper plategrant of Madhavaraja of the Sailodbhava dynasty,where the scribe has particularized the epithet ofChakrayudha Madhava. The image ofNilamadhava installed by the Bhanja monarch atGandharadi (ninth century A.D.) comes next inorder of chronology. The image of SantosaMadhava recorded to in the copper plate grantof Indravarman Codaganga, Madhava in the pillarinscriptions of Rellivalasa at Srikakulam,numerous Madhava sculptures and temples inPrachi valley are clear revelation of the long-continued tradition of Madhava worship in Orissawith wide distribution in Prachi valley, the birthplace of Jayadeva who in course of his wanderingsand as a devout worshipper of Madhava infusedexuberantly in his Gitagovinda the lucid

description of Madhava, his deity of love andadmiration.

Sri Jayadeva introduced the cult of Radhaand Krishna through his Gitagovinda and due tothe influence of Shrimad Bhagavata andGitagovinda and the composite figure of Krishnaand Vishnu as Gopinath became very popular inOrissa. When Vaisnavism became the statereligion of Orissa the composite sculpture ofKrishna and Vishnu with upper two hands in thepose of playing the flute, standing in Tribhangaassociated with Astagopi and cattle which is thecharacteristic feature of Krishna, indicates theamalgamation of two cults at a time. The longcontinued tradition of Dasavatara had a deepimprint on Sri Jayadeva who popularised the 10Avatars of Vishnu in lucid language, which wouldbe put to music and dance.

To quote Dr. Harish Chandra Das againThat the concept of ten incarnations of

Visnu was widely prevalent in Orissa sinceseventh century A.D. is substantiated by literaryand archaeological evidences. In this connectionmention may be made of Varaha worship referredto in the copper plate of Dharmaraja of theSailodbhava dynasty and other individual andcollective images particularly in coastal Orissawhich speak in short the prevalence ofdasavatara worship in Orissa before the adventof Jayadeva. Jayadeva in his composition(dasakrtikrte) has shown the greatness of LordVisnu in his ten incarnations individually.

It was Sri Jayadeva who institutionalisedthe Devadasi system introduced from the time ofSomavansi Kings. Devadasis or Maharis werewomen dedicated to the deity in the temple forperformance of dance and music. The importanceof this dancing service became so great that aspecial structure called Natamandir was addedto the Viman and Jagamohan.

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Madhava Patnaik a Vaishnavite poet wasa contemporary of Panchasakha and SriChaitanya. As is well known, Panchasakha refersto Balarama Das, Jagannatha Das, Achyuta Das,Ananta Das and Yashovanta Das, the saint poetsof Orissa. Madhava Patnaik has described indetail the events in the later part of life of ShriChaitanya in Puri. In this book is given a graphicdescription of the development of Vaishnavismin Orissa.

The following are the facts from this bookwhich clearly mentioned that (i) Chodaganga Devaactually renovated an old temple and startedconstruction of the present Jagannatha temple,and he had conducted in the temple itself theAbhishek of crown prince Kamarnava Deva, (ii)On this occasion dancers were called from theSouth to perform dance and drama in the Puritemple. (iii) A smallNatamandir was constructedand arrangements were made for presentation ofregular dance and drama by Maharis (Templedancers) in the honour of Lord Jagannatha in thetemple during the time of Chodaganga Deva andhis son. (iv) Chaitanya after he had arrived at Puriwas advised by Pandits to go to Rajamahendri tomeet Raya Ramananda who was Governor of thissouthern province of Orissa. There Chaitanyacame to know about Dvaitavada andAdvaitavada from Raya Ramananda (v) BipraJayadeva was born in Kenduli Sasan on the bankof river Prachi. He worshipped Madhava at Niali.He was an expert in the Shastras and Puranas,music and dance. He was a saint poet whocomposed the Geeta Govinda in the temple ofJagannatha at Puri and his wife Padmavati dancedto the tunes of Geeta Govinda before Jagannath.(vi) Chaitanya and Panchasakha were going onSankirtan Trips to different parts of Orissa for anumber of years. One such annual trip startedfrom Ananta Vasudeva temple of Bhubaneswar

and ended at Puri touching Balakati-Kenduli-Niali, Madhav, Adaspur, Kakatpur and Konark.

Madhav Patnaik has described as to howSrichaitanya and Panchasakha were dancing inSankirtan singing Gitagobinda at Kenduli villagewhich was the birth place of Jayadeva. This bookwas discovered and compiled from three Palmleaf manuscripts collected in Orissa from threeplaces in the early 1980s.

Gitagovinda of Sri Jayadev, therefore, isaccepted as a historical text in addition to its greatliterary and religious significance. Sri Jayadevinitially highlighted and systematised the traditionalcults but also introduced his own ideologies, poeticimagery and music. Both Cholaganga Deva andhis son Kamarnav were disciples of Ramanujaand devotees of Sri Jagannath and his consortLaxmi. Jayadeva was influenced by Ramanuja sideology of Jagannath and Laxmi. In GitagovindaKrishna tells Radha that formerly she as Laxmichose Him as her consort on the sea shore on theoccasion of Samudra Manthana. As a result ofthis incident Siva swallowed poison out of despair.Gitagovinda was composed before 1150 A.D.and Gitagovinda dance drama was enacted inPuri temple during the rein of Cholaganga Devaand Kamarnavadeva. The earliest reference toJayadeva outside Orissa was made by poetChandabaradai, the Court poet of PrithvirajChauhan who was defeated and killed in 1192A.D. by Md. Ghori in the battle of Tirori. Thenext earliest reference is found in an inscription ofRaja Sarangadev in the year 1201 A.D.Therefore, it is established that Gitagovindabecause of its regular performance in SriJagannath temple of Puri assumed popularitythroughout India within a brief perid of 30-40years of its composition. It combined the best inthe rich traditions of philosophy, literature, musicand dance in Kalinga and Utkal. The philosophy

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was developed later into Achintya Bheda BhedaTatwa, so ably propounded by Raya Ramanandaand accepted and immortalized by Sri Chaitanya,Pancha Sakha and the Shad Goswamis.

References :

1. Gita Govindam Sacred Profanities : AStudy of Jayadeva s Gita Govinda - Dr.NSR Ayengar.

2. Mahakavi Jayadeva O Gita Govinda -Satyanarayan Rajaguru.

3. Shri Gita Govinda Mahakavyam KavirajaJayadeva - Dr. Bhagaban Panda.

4. Jayadeva and Gita Govinda in theTradition of Orissa - Dr. Pathi, Dr. Panda& Dr. Rath.

5. Alochana - Pandit Nilamani Misra.

The Gitagovinda in the History of ShriJagannath Temple

The Gitagovinda of Jayadeva, divinelyadorned and devotionally oriented, acquires aunique place among the famous scriptures of theworld. As a sublime and spontaneous display ofdevotional romantic poetry centring around loveepisodes of Radha and Krsna, it was the first ofits kind to be included in the ritual service of LordJagannath as an essential component of worship.Besides its scholastic value, its sweet flow andthe intensely musical verses have attracted theattention and spontaneous regard of millions ofpeople through centuries. The singing of theGitagovinda alongwith the accompaniment ofmusic and lovely dance of the devadasi in theSrimandira was the most fascinating daily serviceof Lord Jagannath, which had attracted manydevotees from all parts of India.

In the absence of authentic historicalevidence, it is difficult to say whether there already

existed specific arrangements for ceremoniousworship of Lord Jagannath by the devadasisbefore the inauguration of the present temple orwas introduced thereafter. The practice of templedances was there in Orissa during the time ofSomavamshi kings as well.

It is ascertained from the Madala Panji(temple chronicle) that as introduced by theGanga emperor Ananga Bhimadeva-II (1211A.D. - 1228 A.D), the rituals and services ofLord Jagannath were performed by a number offunctionaries (sevakas). Their duties, rights andresponsibilities had been codified. The sevakasbelonged to different castes and were all more orless equal in importance in relation to LordJagannath. They were inter-dependent and weremutually connected by a vast network of ritualsand services. As the worship of the lord wasconducted by 36 different communities, it wastermed as Chhatisa niyoga. This niyoga orcollective service comprised of three classes ordivisions. These were :

(i) Pratihari Niyoga

(ii) Suara and Mahasuar Niyoga and

(iii) Bhitarachhu Niyoga

It was the responsibility of therepresentative of a niyoga to supervise the conductof worship of Lord Jagannath. The Gajapati asthe head of the niyoga had the right to inflictsuitable punishment if any sevak neglected in hisduties. For centuries, in spite of many nationaland political calamities, this mode of worship tothe Lord has been continuing for generations.Orissa came under the Mughal rule whichcontinued till 1751 A.D. i.e. till the beginning ofMarhatta rule. During the Muslim rule, the templeof Lord Jagannath was subjected to many

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assaults. As a result, the Deities had to be carriedmany a times for safe to dense forests and oftenburied underground for protection from theMuslim intruders a number of times. Needless tosay that during these days of external attacks,the usual ritualistic services were disturbed. But,the Deities were repeatedly restored. After theMarathas took over, no deviation from thespecified mode of service to the Lord has evercome to notice.

In 1751 A.D. the Marhattas occupiedOrissa including Puri, the abode of LordJagannath. They appointed officials to supervisethe day to day conduct of worship of LordJagannath. In 1803 after Orissa came under theBritish rule, an English officer Mr. C.Gromprepared a report on the rituals of service to LordJagannath in Srimandira basing it on the practicethen in vogue. This report speaks of 36 distinctunits of service with 250 persons engaged inday to day conduct of worship to the Lord. Inthis list of elaborate rituals of service, mentionhas been made of recital of the Gitagovinda beforethe sanctum of Lord Jagannath accompanied bythe dance of devadasi (unmarried young girlsdedicated and married to the Lord). For this,many artistes adept in the art of music and dancehad been appointed. They were treated asemployees of the State and were granted all rightsand privileges meant for royal officers. Thispractice has started from the time of EmpererChodaganga Deva.

The service of singing of the Gitagovindato the accompaniment of the dance of thedevadasi has been duly recognised as anindispensable phase of worship codified in the'Record of Rights'. The Gitagovinda was sungevery evening in the inner shrine called Jaya-Vijaya Dvara (guarded on both sides by imagesof celestial guards Jaya and Vijaya).

After nocturnal offering of arati, LordJagannath, the Lord of Universe, puts on the mostattractive Badasinghara Vesa gorgeouslyattained in costly apparel and decorated lavishlywith flowers and garlands. Then, the Gitagovindawas sung with a devadasi dancing before theLord. Thereafter the deities are covered withsilken scarfs which are known as Gitagovindakhandua (the sevaka rendering this service isknown as the Changuda Mekap). The devadasisare named maharis and their dance is calledmahari- dance or rahasa. In course of time, themahari dance has evolved into Odisi dance.

According to the Madala Panji, the Gangaemperor Narasingha Deva II (1278 A.D. - 1307A.D) better known in the history as the poetNarasingha Dev had for the first time introducedsinging of the Gitagovinda in the service of LordJagannath. "E uttaru kavi Narasingha Devaraja hoile, Gitagovinda siloukale." (MadalaPanji, Prachi Edition, page.36)

But, at the same time, it has also beenrecorded in the Madala Panji that emperorKamarnava Deva (1146 A.D. - 1156 A.D.)better known in historical accounts as EkajataDeva, the eldest son of Chodaganga Deva, thefounder of the Ganga empire, did not touch evena drop of water without hearing the Gitagovinda.It, therefore, goes without saying that theGitagovinda had been composed much earlierthan the reign of Narasingha Deva II and hadalready earned royal attention and patronage.Had it not been so, the recitation of theGitagovinda before Kamarnava Deva would havebeen out of question. It is quite apparent that theGitagovinda had already acquired a conspicuousplace in the ritual service of Srimandira, but forsome reason or other, this practice was

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discontinued and was revived again byNarasingha Deva II.

After 'Sri Jagannath Temple Act' waspassed by the Government of Orissa in 1956, theritual services were brought into the zone of legaljurisdiction. According to the provision of the Act,there are 119 services instituted and they arerecorded on hereditary basis in the 'Records ofRights'. Before the enforcement of 'Sri JagannathTemple Act-1956' hereditary rights of seva(service) used to be recorded in the ChhamuChitau. The hereditary rights of seva are :

(1) Gajapati Maharaja, (2) Parichha orRajaguru, (3) Chhatisa Niyoga Nayak Seva(4) Pattayosi Mahapatra Seva, (5) Bhitarachhu,(6) Talichha (7) Mudrahasta, (8) Deula Purohita,(9) Pujapanda, (10) Badapanda, (11) Pasupalakaor Puspalaka Seva, (12) Mudra, (13) Khuntia,(14) Bhandara Mekap Seva, (15) Palia MekapSeva, (16) Akhanda Mekapa Seva,(17) Changada Mekapa Seva, (18) Khata SejaMekapa Seva, (19) Pratihari Seva, (20) DaitaSeva, (21) Pati Mahapatra Seva, (22) PatribaduSeva, (23) Garabadu Seva, (24) Suarabadu,(25) Khuri Nahaka, (26) Mukha PakhalaSevaka, (27) Ghatuari, (28) Gochhikara Seva,(29) Suna Gosvami Seva, (30) Muduli Seva,(31) Alati Balita Seva, (32) Purana Panda,(33) Datta Mahapatra Seva, (34) Lugadhua andPanikunda Seva, (35) Ballabha Yogania Seva,(36) Bimana Badu Seva, (37) AnasaraSuddhasuara and Suddhasuara, (38) HadapNayak (39) Bidia Yogania, (40) Khatuli Sevaka,(41) Asthana Pratihari, (42) Kothabhoga Yogania(43) Pradhani, (44) Paika, (45) Lenka Sevaka,(46) Suar Niyoga Nayak Seva, (47) SuaraNiyoga and Mahasuara, (48) Jagia Mahasuaraor Rosa Amina, (49) Badu Suara Seva, (50) Panti

Badu, (51) Amalutodali Purakharadi,(52) Tolabadu (53) Rosapaika (54) Bahara DeuliSuara, (55) Bahara Deula Yogania, (56) RosadhoPakhalia, (57) Handi Yogania and Tolabadu Seva,(58) Biribata Samartha Seva, (59) Kotha BhogaPania, (60) Panikipata, (61) Nikapa or GandhanaNikapa Seva, (62) Biribuhia, (63) Daudibata,(64) Chunara Garuda Sevaka, (65) SabataNiyoga, (66) Paniapata, (67) Mandani Seva,(68) Chaka Apsara Sevaka, (69) Mulia Suansia,(70) Binakara Seva, (71) Darpania or Bairakhia,(72) Kotha Suansia, (73) Mahabhoi,(74) Gitagovinda Sevaka, (75) BhitaragaaniDevadasi, (76) Samprada Niyoga,(77) Dayanamali, (78) Madeli, (79) Prasadabadu,(80) Badu Mahapatra (81) Tatua,(82) Patarabandha, (83) Chhatara Niyoga Seva,(84) Kahalia, (85) Sankhua, (86) ParvayatraYogania, (87) Chitrakara, (88) Rupakara,(89) Bania Sevaka, (90) Tamara Bisoi,(91) Karatia, (92) Benta Bindha Paika,(93) Patara Bisoi, (94) Kalabethia, (95) DarajiSeva, (96) Kumbhara Bisoi, (97) Ratha Bhoi,(98) Malachula Seva, (99) Banua, (100) ChakraDihudia, (101) Ojha Maharana Seva,(102) Ghanta Seva, (103) Ghantua,(104) Rathadakua, (105) Badhei Sevaka,(106) Baidya, (107) Amunia Chhatara,(108) Chhamu Dihudi, (109) Chapa Behera,(110) Chapa Dalai, (111) Mapasaita Karana orMahaprasastha Seva, (112) Tadau Karana,Bhandara Karana, Changada Karana,(113) Deula Karana, (114) Bethi Karana,(115) Kotha Karana, (116) Charcha Karana,(117) Dayanapatri, (118) Chaula Bachha Karana,(119) Matha and Byaktigata Seva.

Among the sevas and the sevakasmentioned above, the Gitagovinda seva (Sl. No.74), Devadasi Seva (Sl. No.75) and Samprada

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Niyoga (Sl. No.76) can be taken note of forfurther discussions :-

1. The Gitagovinda Seva :

The functionaries engaged in this serviceare known as the Sadhibandha Sevaka. They singthe Gitagovinda daily close to the inner shrine atthe time of Chandanalagi (smearing the deitieswith sandal paste).

2.Devadasi Seva (Bhitara Gaani) :

The devadasi used to sing the Gitagovindaand perform dance at different times of the day.Besides, she used to sing and dance at the timeof Baladhupa (first morning offering of food tothe deities) every morning in the month ofKartika. She used to attend the chandanayatraof the Lord which continued for 42 days, singingand dancing in the chapa (rowing boats) for 21days. In addition to this, the devadasi used tosing and dance at Rukmini vivah (marriage ofRukmini Devi), at the temple of Laksmi, on theday of Niladri Vije while accompanying Laksmito bheta mandapa. She also used to attend to16 phases of worship of Bimala in the month ofAsvina and also join the ritual procession. Thedevadasis were Sadhibandha sevikas, whichindicates their superior rank of service to the Lord.According to the prevalent rules of the temple,they were forbidden either to marry or indulge insexual activities. But they could adopt a daughterof a touchable caste, who could be enlisted as aSadhibandha Sevika after she was trainedadequately in music and dance. At the time ofany inconvenience, such as the monthly periodsthe Samprada Niyoga is to manage the serviceassigned to the Devadasi.

3. Samprada Niyoga :

The Samprada Niyoga is to sing and danceat the time of first morning offering of food andsandal paste daily. During the Chandana Yatra,

they dance on the chapa (rowing boats) and inBahuda, Rukmini marriage. At jagmohan theyused to sing and dance.

Emperor Bhanu Deva II of Ganga dynasty(1306/1307 A.D.-1328 A.D.) ruled the countryin the name of Purusottam Jagannatha andhence, he was termed in history as PurusottamaDeva. According to the copper plate inscriptionof the Punjabi Matha in Puri, he was a devoteeof Govinda and Sripati. He attempted tocompose another Gitagovinda following theoriginal one and introduce it in the daily worshipof srimandira. He had to face strong oppositionby the sevakas engaged in temple service. Thiswas said to be the royal edition of the Gitagovinda.Some verses of this royal edition of theGitagovinda found place in the copies of theoriginal Gitagovinda which are called theinterpolated verses of the Gitagovinda. KavirajNarayan Dasa, the famous Oriya commentatorhas not furnished in his Sarvangasundari Tikathe explanatory notes on these interpolated verses.

During the reign of Gajapati emperorPurusottam Deva (1467-1497 A.D.) of Suryadynasty, Kavichandra Ray Dibakar Misra hadcomposed Abhinava Gitagovinda in the name ofPurusottam Deva in imitation of the originalGitagovinda. The Gajapati included the AbhinavaGitagovinda in the daily ritual service of LordJagannath and withdrew the Gitagovinda ofJayadeva. The priests were opposed to it but theycould not raise their voice in fear of the Gajapati.After Purusottam Deva, his son Prataprudra Deva(1497-1540 A.D.) ascended the throne. In theVaisnava Lilamrta, Madhava Patnaik hasdescribed this episode in a very interestingmanner, as described earlier.

The commands of Gajapati emperorPrataprudra Deva embodied in the inscription are

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engraved on the temple wall in old Oriya scriptand style as follows :

"Vira sri gajapati gaudesvara navakotikarnata kalavargesvara birabara sri Prataprudramaharajankara samsta 4 anka srahi kakada su10 budhabare abadharita agyan pramane Badathakuranka sri Gitagovinda thakuranka bhogabelee nata hoiba. Sanjhadhupa Sarilatharu e natahoiba. Badathakura samparada Kapilesvarathakuranka bandha nachunimane purunasamparada telengi samparada emane savihenbadathakuranka Gitagovindahun ana gita nasikhibe. Ana gita na gaibe ana gita hoiparamesvaranka chhamure na haba. E natabitarake Vaisnava gaana charijana achhanti, emaneGitagovinda gitahi gaibe. Ehankatharu asiksitamane ekasvarare suni Gitagovinda gitahin sikhibe.Ana gita na sikhibe. Eha je pariksa ana gita natakaraile jani se Jagannathanka droha karai"-(Journal of Asiatic Society of Bengal -Vol. LXII,1893, pp 96-97, quoted in Sri Jayadeva O SriGitagovinda, pp 89.

The meaning of the above inscription is as follows :

1. At the time of every offering of Bhoga, andfrom evening worship till the Badasinghara atnight, only the Gitagovinda is to be recitedaccompanied by dance before the Lords.

2. The followers of Lord Balabhadra, thepermanent dancing girls engaged by kingKapilesvar Deva, the old followers shall not learnor sing anything other than the Gitagovinda, andat the time of dance before the sanctum sanctorumof Lord Jagannath, no song other than theGitagovinda would be sung.

3. Besides these four units of singers anddancers, four Vaisnava singers speciallyappointed would only sing the Gitagovinda. They

shall train the illiterate devotees to sing theGitagovinda only and no other scripture.

4. Any sevak who disobeys this and allowssinging from any scripture other than theGitagovinda or permit with any other song toaccompany a dance shall be treated as a sinneragainst Lord Jagannath.

This announcement dates back to the 10thday of the lunar fortnight of the month ofKakadain the 4th regnal year of Gajapati emperorPrataprudra Deva which was a Wednesday.According to astrological calculation this was the10th day of the lunar fortnight of Asadha that isthe 6th July, 1500 A.D. It was the day ofcelebration of Bahudayatra of Lord Jagannath.

This stone inscription may be attributed tothe following causes :

1. Some men of higher rank engaged in thedaily service of the Gitagovinda or some learnedpandits or revered saints might have attemptedto substitute the Gitagovinda with their ownwritings. Such an attempt must have caused greatprovocation to the sevak community who mighthave revolted to safeguard the sacred tradition ofthe srimandira service. This might be the reasonof issue of royal commands by the Gajapatiemperor Prataprudra Deva during his reign.

2. It is also possible that the singing of theGitagovinda of Jayadeva which had been in voguefor generations was discontinued for some reasonor other in worship of Lord Jagannath and theinscription was meant for reintroducing the same.The fact that such reintroduction was made in 1500AD makes it clear that it was not due to SriChaitanya's advent in Orissa. A set of historianspresumed earlier that revival of Vaishnavism andpopularity of Gita Govinda after Sri Chaitanya's

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visit compelled Shri Pratap Rudra Dev to issuethe royal edict. There cannot be a worse distortionof history than the concept that Radha wasintroduced to Orissa by Sri Chaitanya.

3. The withdrawal of the Gitagovinda ofJayadeva for sometime and introduction of theAbhinava Gitagovinda had caused a lot ofdissatisfaction in the temple. In order that suchadventures should not be repeated, the stoneinscription was issued.

4. There is a fascinating legend prevalent inOrissa regarding this incident. It is said that thepalm leaf scripture of the Gitagovinda by Jayadevaand the Abhinava Gitagovinda by the king wereplaced in the sanctum of Lord Jagannatha andthe door of the shrine was bolted. The nextmorning on reopening the door, it was found thatthe Gitagovinda of Jayadeva was on the thronewhereas the Abhinava Gitagovinda had fallen off.The pride of the king was thus curbed and whilesinging the glory of the Gitagovinda of Jayadeva,he reintroduced it in the daily service of the Lord.This legend finds place in the book VaisnavaLilamrta by Madhava Patnaik.

The above discourses bear ample testimonyto the fact that in the history of Srimandira nodeviation whatsoever from the establishedtraditional rituals has been recorded. The sevakcommunity did not meekly submit to nor didblindly accept out of fear any arbitration of theGajapati emperor if that was not in conformitywith the age-old convention of Srimandira

The poet Madhava Patnaik, in the VaisnavaLilamrta, has given some personal indications atthe beginning of his work from which it is learntthat he had completed the book in 1535-36 A.D.i.e. during the 48th regnal year of Gajapatiemperor Prataprudra Deva. From this scripture

it is known that he had the privilege of associatinghimself with Srichaitanya. It was in Puri that in1533 A.D. Srichaitanya breathed his last. Duringlong 18 years of his stay in Puri, Madhava Patnaikhad become a favourite of Srichaitanya Deva.

The Vaisnava Lilamrta contains ninechapters only. In these chapters he has mentionedthe names of many holymen, saints and kings notonly of his own time but also of an earlier period.Among them appear saints like Sridhar Svami,Madhavendra Puri, Isvar Puri, Raghavendra Puri,Kabir, Guru Nanak and kings like ChodagangaDeva (1078-1147 A.D.), Kamarnava Deva(1147-1168 A.D.), Bhima Deva (1211-1238A.D.), Bhanu Deva (1352-1378 A.D.),Kapilendra Deva (1435-1467 A.D.), PurosottamDeva (1467-1497 A.D.) and Prataprudra Deva(1497-1535 A.D.).

It is learnt from the scripture thePrapannamrta (Chapters 35 and 36) written byAnantacharya that Chodaganga Deva hadintroduced nama sankirtana (singing of God'sname) in Srimandira. Ramanuja had transformedhim from 'Parama Mahesvara' (great devoteeof Siva) to 'Parama Vaisnava' (great devoteeof Visnu) as depicted in Korny copper plate ofChodaganga (vide JAHRS-vol-IV, p-113). AfterChodaganga, his eldest son Kamarnava Devaascended the throne as recorded by the poetMadhava Patnaik in his scripture. It is learnt fromthe Madala Panji that Kamarnava Deva did nottake a morsel of food or a drop of water withoutlistening first to the sacred verses of theGitagovinda (Madala Panji, Prachi Edition,1940,p-36).

The Vaisnava Lilamrta of the poetMadhava Patnaik records that the devadasi dancewas already in vogue in Srimandira which was

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further developed in the reign of KamarnavaDeva. The Devadasi dance has been mentionedas Rahasa dance.

"Nachuni mahari jogaila,Nata hoila hari lila.Maharimane nrtya kale,Rahasa nrtya e boile."

(Vaisnava Lilamrta, Ch.-II)

The tradition of Rahasa dance and namasankirtana had its beginning since the reign ofChodaganga Deva. It is said that ChodagangaDeva celebrated the coronation of his sonKamarnava Deva on the day of inauguration ofthe inner chamber of Srimandira. AnangaBhimadeva, described as Bhimadeva in the bookstarted the Gitagovinda seva.

"Gitagovinda nata sabha,Mandire pratyaha hoila.

Raja se seva bhiaila,Kenduli sadhi jogaila.

Sri Gitagovinda rasa eSrijagannathara priya e.

Boli kalaka e bhianaBhagate hele tosamana.

Gitagovinda nata punaNata mandira kala bhiana.

Rahasa nrtyara nimittaGitagovinda kale nrtya.

Bhimadevara e kiratiKale se gala kirti thapi."

(Vaisnava Lilamrta, Ch.-II)Meaning:- Gitagovinda dance and music as aSeva got performed daily in the temple. The kingintroduced this Seva and provided Kenduli sareeto the Lord. This Seva was very dear to LordJagannath. A dance hall (Nata Mandir) wasconstructed by the king for the performance ofGitagovinda music and dance. Gitagovinda dancewas introduced as Rahas Nrtya. Introduction of

this Seva and construction of Nata Mandir madeBhima Deva, a name to remember for ages.

It has been mentioned in the VaisnavaLilamrta that before the coronation of Bhima Deva,Jayadeva had passed away at Puri. Bhima Devaof the Vaisnava Lilamrta may be either emperorAniyanka Bhima Deva (1190-1198 A.D.) orAnanga Bhima Deva of Ganga dynasty, who ruledfrom 1211-1238 A.D. The possibility of his beingthe earlier Anyanka Bhimadeva (1190-1198A.D.) is more because Chand Bardai of thedurbar of Prithviraj Chowhan of Delhi hadmentioned about Jayadeva and Gitagovinda in hisbook Prthviraj Rasa much before 1192 A.D., theyear of death of Prithiviraj and fall of the last Hinduking of Delhi.

According to the Vaisnava Lilamrta, BhimaDeva, at the request of the Sevakas, had built theNatamandira for recital of the Gitagovinda. Ofcourse it was about three centuries after theintroduction of the Gitagovinda in the templeworship that the poet Madhava Patnaikcomposed the Vaisnava Lilamrta. If it is takenthat Jayadeva was living at that time, he must havereceived royal recognition and patronage. In thewords of Madhava Patnaik :

"Vipra se Jayadeve namaKsetrabaraku agamana.

Kenduli sasana ta gramaPrachi nadire tate puna.

Niali Madhava samipeBhagati kala nana rupe.

Sastra purane vichaksnaKavitva marge tara mana.

Gita se rachivi boilaKsetravaraku mana dela.

Sri Jagannathara samipeSuddha satvika mati bhave."

(Vaisnava Lilamrta, Ch. - II)

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Meaning:- Jayadeva, a Brahmin by caste, cameto Puri (Sriksetra). He belonged to KenduliSasana on the bank of the river Prachi. Heworshipped Madhava at Niali. He was a verytalented person in the scripture and took to writingpoetry. He wrote the Gitagovinda at Sriksetra inthe temple of Lord Jagannath. While writing aboutthe life of Jayadeva, he has mentioned about thecomposition of the Gitagovinda in Srimandira infornt of Lord Jagannath. Madhav Patnaik hasgone on to further describe as follows:-

Padmavati was adept in Rahasa dance andwas dancing to the sweet and immortal verses ofthe Gitagovinda. The melodious recital of theverses of the Gitagovinda through the voice ofJayadeva accompanied by the elegant dance ofPadmavati fascinated the hearts and soul of thedevotees. As a result of this, singing of theGitagovinda and display of this dance werecodified by the then king in the daily ritual servicesof Srimandira.

It is a custom to cover the body of the Lordat the time of the Badasinghara with a scarfcontaining the verses of the Gitagovinda woveninto it. These scarfs or sarees were broughtespecially from the weavers of Kenduli on thePrachi river. Now these sarees are made in avillage Nuapatna in Tigiria Block of Cuttackdistrict. This seva has been continuing since thenin the services of Lord Jagannath. After callingof the identified neem tree for navakalevara ofthree deities, the logs are usually brought to thetemple of Jagannath by covering them with theGitagovinda khandua through huge man-drawncarts. The clothes prepared by the weavers ofKenduli called Kenduli saree was very famous atthat t ime according to the scriptureKanchanalata of the 17th century A.D.

"Sahaje dvija nandini tejodhama kanaka kantiKala Kenduli sadhi bhidi pindhichhi motidanti"

The poet Bhupati Pandit of 17th centuryA.D. had composed the scripture PremaPanchamrta dedicated to Lord Krsna. It hasbeen calculated that this scripture was completedby 29th January, 1694 wherein there has been amention of the dance of Devadasis accompaniedby singing of the Gitagovinda.

"Sri Jayadeva kavikrtaGayani gaile basanta.

Bina mrdanga tala nadeNachuni nachanti anande.

E rupe sanamana kariTa pachhe karana pachari."

(Prema Panchamrta, Ch III, Prachi Edition, p. 94)

Seikh Subhodaya and Jayadeva

The Gita Govinda by Sri Jayadeva wasregularly sung and danced in the temple of LordJagannath at Puri as part of the Lord s nocturnalliturgy. The Seva has started from the days ofJayadeva during the period of Kamarnava Deva,son of Ganga emperor Chodaganga Deva.Suryavansi Gajapati Pratap Rudra Devapromulgated an order through a temple inscription,dt. 8.7.1500 which ordained that the singing ofGita Govinda would henceforward be acompulsory daily ritual in the temple for whichthe king even appointed singers and dancers forthe purpose as mentioned by historian KedarnathMohapatra.

As mentioned by Sri NilamadhavPanigrahi, an eminent musicologist, the GitaGovinda surpasses all other preceding works ofthe great master poets by dint of its lyricality, bothfrom the view points of inspiration and expression,if not by its poetic greatness. But by its threedimensional appeal of music, poetry and mystic

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spiritual content it has earned unsurpassedpopularity tantamount to adoration as mentionedby Kedarnath Mahapatra, an eminent historian.

Its popularity has led to controversies inthe last century regarding the birth place of poetJayadeva. As clearly said by Devi Prasad Das -"The Gita Govinda which has created aworldwide sensation in the field of the art andliterature of the country is believed to be theproduct of Jayadeva and Padmavati in Jagannathtemple of Puri where its recital is an importantritual since several centuries."

The controversy regarding the nativity ofJayadeva, according to Late Pandit NilamaniMishra is hardly one hundred year old. AfterOrissa had lost its identity towards the beginningof the 19th century, its social and cultural life wasvitiated by a number of economic and politicalfactors. Therefore, its cultural materials werewrongly used by the scholars from outside. Thesetypes of cheap controversies gained ground as aresult of such uses. A story in Seikh Subhodayais cited as evidence of Jayadeva belonging to theCourt of Laxman Sena.

Seikh Subhodaya is actually a recent workbut it is said to be a work of the 2nd half of 16thcentury AD. It was edited by Dr. Sukumar Senand published by Asiatic Society of Bengal in1963. It is narrated in this book that Budhan Misra,the court singer of Kapilendra Deva Gajapati ofOrissa went to the court of Laxmana Sena ofBenga1 and he had challenged Jayadeva. Thisdoes not hold historically because KapilendraDeva and Laxman Sen are not contemporaneousto each other. While Laxmana Sen ruled from1170 to 1250 AD, Kapilendra Deva belongedto the 15th Century AD.

This book narrates fanciful stories aboutUmapati Dhara. Govardhana Acharya, Dhoyi and

Jayadeva, all of whom are mentioned in the GitaGovinda. The story on Jayadeva is as follows -

A certain Brahmin called Budhan Mishraappeared in the assembly hall of Raja LaxmanaSen and claimed that he had attained great heightsin composition of music, for which he had beenhonoured by Gajapati Kapilendra Deva of Utkal.He had obtained a "Writ of Victory" from Gajapatiof Utkala. He then started singing in Patta ManjariRaga and all the leaves of a nearby Aswasthatree fell down. All the courtiers started praisingBudhan Mishra. The King decided to honour himwith a Writ of Victory. It may be mentioned herethat Patta Manjari is not known to be anestablished Raga. It is difficult also to believe thatKing Laxmana Sen was holding his openassembly (durbar) under a Aswastha Tree on theshore of river Ganga.

Just at that time Padmavati, wife ofJayadeva was coming back from her bath in riverGanga. Hearing sounds of joy in the royal court,she entered the hall and announced that "Unlessanyone defeats her in music in a competition, noone should be awarded a Writ of Victory.

Seikh, a Muslim saint was present in theking's court. He asked Padmavati to sing a songand create some miracle. Padmavati startedsinging a melodious song in Gandharva Raga. Allboats floating in the river came back on their ownto the shore. All courtiers were amazed.

Budhan Mishra was reluctant to enter intoa contest with a woman. Seikh ordered thatPadmavati's husband Jayadeva be called to theroyal court. Jayadeva came to the Court. Seikhtold Budhan Mishra to sing so that new leavescame out in the Aswastha tree. Budhan Mishraexpressed his inability to sing like that.

Poet Jayadeva then started singing inBasanta Raga and immediately new leaves started

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sprouting in the Aswastha tree which had lost allleaves earlier. As ordered by the Seikh no Writof Victory was given to Budhan Mishra. He wasonly given some small gifts and asked to leavethe court.

Since the name of Kapilendra Deva wasmentioned in this story, the book obviously hasbeen written during or after the 16th century,describing events during the rule of Laxmana Senin the 12th century A.D. Famous historian Dr.Rakhal Das Banerjee has written about this bookas follows, "The book does not contain a singlepassage which may be taken as historicallyaccurate."

According to Dr. Suniti Kumar Chatterjee"Although it is a forgery, its date certainly is notlater than the 16th century and is sufficiently oldfor it to retain its importance as a valuable workon early Bengali history and culture." This hasbeen quoted by Dr. Prasanta Kumar Dasguptain his book 'Jayadeva and his Contemporaries' atpages 99 to 100.

Dr. Sukumar Sen has written that thoughthis book does not contain any historical event, insome of the myths one can notice some historicalevidence.

According to Dr. Bhagaban Panda, thisbook as its very title indicates, was written tocelebrate the auspicious coming of a Muslim Pir(saint) to a country which first knew Islam, wherehe was highly honoured. All prominence was givento the Seikh and, Laxmana Sen and his ministershave been described as thieves, corrupt and lusty.

Shri Jayadeva and Padmavati were greatdevotees of Sri Krushna and had no lust forwealth. It can never be imagined that they appearin a humiliating manner and sang in the Court ofLaxmana Sen competing with one Budhan Mishraand receiving presents of a pair of golden earrings

and a pair of bracelets. The book which waswritten to sing the glory of a Muslim saint andhad credited all the traditional glories of LaxmanaSen to the Muslim saint cannot be cited as anevidence to establish the connection of Jayadevawith the Court of Laxmana Sen.

It is really strange as to how scholars ofBengal have accepted all the insults heaped onLaxmana Sen, his queen, Umapati Dhar andKaviraj Dhoyi by the Seikh. Dhoyi has beendescribed in this book as an illiterate man comingto possess divine gift of high poetry. The Kinghad been described as being jealous of UmapatiDhar and competing with him for the company ofprostitutes. The queen of Laxmana Sen is narratedto have assaulted Madhavi, the daughter-in-lawof a merchant at the bathing ghat and that shesnatched away the bangles from her wrist. Thetwo earrings worn by the husband of Madhaviwere forcibly taken away by the servants of thequeen as per her order. On hearing the story ofcomplaint from Madhavi and her husband, theSeikh brought the king and his wife to a trial in hiscourt. The queen was found herself wearing thesnatched bracelets of Madhavi, and her son wasfound wearing the earrings of Madhavi's husband.Laxmana Sen, it is described in the book, had tobear all the insults with his face down cast. Whatcompelled Laxmana Sena before his defeat in thehands of Muhammad Bakhiyar to be sosubservient to the Seikh is not known. HadLaxmana Sen ruled as a vassal king under anIslam Nawab, he would perhaps becomesubservient to a Muslim Pir. But history recordsthat Laxmana Sen escaped after defeat and camewith a few followers to Puri and sought refugeunder the Ganga emperor Raja Raja Deva.

Such is the book "Seikh Subhodaya"whose stories are paraded to provide "historical"evidence of saint poet Jayadeva's association with

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the Court of Laxmana Sen and his birthplace inBengal.

References :1. Gita Govindam Sacred Profanities : A Study of

Jayadeva's Gita Govinda - Dr. NSR Ayengar.

2. Mahakavi Jayadeva O Gita Govinda - Dr.Satyanarayan Rajguru.

3. Shri Gita Govinda Mahakavyam Kaviraja Jayadeva- Dr. Bhagaban Panda.

4. Jayadeva and Gita Govinda in the Tradition ofOrissa - Dr. Pathi, Dr. Panda and Dr. Rath.


The Five Jewels of Laxmana Sena

Jayadeva was one of the greatest poets ofIndia and an unrivalled master of erotic religiouslyrical poetry. The poet himself abstained frommentioning anything about his birth place exceptthat he was born at a place called Kenduvilwa.As Dr. N.S.R. Ayengar has said The ancientIndian Poets never recorded anything about theirage, place of birth and time. This, one feels, waspartly because of their modesty and partlybecause they perhaps never thought it worthwhile,since they never had such narrow, parochialattitude of life. Perhaps they consideredthemselves as sons of India writing in the best ofIndian languages-Sanskrit. We are proud of themas they are to the exclusion of their provincialidentities. But distortions of history need criticalscrutiny.

One of the hypothesis on which the wholesuperstructure of the arguments in favour of thebirth place of poet Jayadeva s being in Bengal isthat a stone or wooden slab bearing the names ofGovardhana, Sarana, Jayadeva, Umapati andDhoyi was said to have been fixed on the wall ofLaxmana Sena s assembly hall. This wasdiscovered by two Vaishnava saints Rupa andSanatana in the first part of sixteenth century.

The discovered verse is quoted belowGovardhanasca Sarano Jayadeva Umapatih.

Kavirajasca Ratnani SamitauLaksmanasyaca.

Shri Harekrishna Mukhopadhyaya in hisbook Birbhum Vivarana has mentioned that ShriRupa and Sri Sanatana had seen this slokainscribed in the assembly hall of Laxmana Senaat Shridhama Navadwipa. Laxmana Sena s rulein a part of Bengal had come to an end in the year1205 A.D. when Mohammad-i-Bhaktiyar hadoccupied his capital and he had fled to Puri, takenrefuge in Orissa, where a powerful Hindu GajapatiKing of the Ganga dynasty was ruling at that time.The report of this discovery by the two Goswamiscomes to us after four more centuries. Accordingto Prof. Dr. Banamali Ratha, this verse lackedauthenticity of any kind and it has been acceptedby the scholars as a spurious one or a hearsay.

According to Prof. Thomas E Donaldsonthere is no contemporary epigraphic or literaryevidence to prove that Nadiya was ever the capitalof Laxmana Sena or his forefather and successors.The grants of land and villages by the Sena Kingswere always issued from Vikramapura or in thecase of the later ones from Dharyagrama andPhalgugrama. No Sanskrit work written duringthe Sena period mentions Nadiya as the capitalof Laxmana Sena.

In Pavanadutam, Dhoyi has called thecapital of Sena Kings as Vijayapura. OnlyTabaquet-i-Nasiri written in 1260 A.D., fifty fiveyears after the collapse of the Sena rule in Nadiya,mentions Nadiya as the seat of Sena sGovernment. This book Tabaquat is not ahistorical creation as it has given Laxmana Senaa rule of eighty years and narrates fanciful storiesabout his birth and about the destruction ofNadiya.

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Mohammad-i-Bhaktiyar destroyedthoroughly the city of Nadiya (or whichever wasthe capital of Laxmana Sena) and left it in totalruins. There was no trace of the palace standing.The verse was supposedly discovered in one ofthe gates some three hundred years later by thetwo Goswamis, Rupa and Sanatana.

According to Kendarnath Mohapatra anoted historian, The story of the connection ofthe five poets with Sidhama Navadwipa originatedand perhaps was circulated in the post-Chaitanyaperiod when Nadiya came to prominence due tothe birth of the great reformer Sri Chaitanya inthat holy place. There is little evidence, literary orarchaeological that the Gita Govinda was popularin Bengal in the period prior to the advent of SriChaitanya. In fact Sri Chaitanya first discoveredthe jewel of Gita Govinda when he visited Puri in1509 A.D and came to realise the religioussignificance of the work from Raya Ramananda,Gajapati s administrator of Rajamohendri on thebanks of the Godavari when he went onpilgrimage to the south.

According to Dr. Bhagaban Panda theverse is written in very poor Sanskrit and is aspurious one like the famous traditional verse citeddescribing the nine jewels of the court ofVikramaditya, also called Chandragupta-II.

The entrance of the Assembly Hall ofLaxmana Sena could not have existed till the timeof Rupa and Sanatan Goswami. Dense vegetationmust have covered the ruins of this palace duringthese three hundred years. The two greatGoswamis nowhere in their numerous works havementioned anything about this so called discoveryof the inscription. Their biographies never mentionthis discovery. Neither the contemporaries of SriChaitanya who came from Nadiya nor SriChaitanya himself ever mentioned anything aboutLaxmana Sena once ruling over Navadwipa or

about any historical ruins of his palace. NoVaishnava literature written after Sri Chaitanyahas ever mentioned about this grand discoveryby the two Goswamis.

This verse was most probably composedby some Pandit of poor competence in Sanskritin the first part of 20th century on the basis of theverse Vacha Pallavayati which itself was aPrakhipta (Interpolated) sloka of Gita

Govinda, mentioned the four poets Dhoyi,Umapati, Dhara, Sarana and GovardhanaAcharya.

To quote Dr. Bhagaban Panda, the namesof these two learned Goswamis were cleverlyassociated with the discovery of this so calledverse in Nabadwipa in order to give an air ofantiquity and gain the confidence of the people.So the story of seeing this inscription on theentrance of Laxman Sena s assembly hall atNadiya is simply imaginary and as suchunacceptable.

Nowhere in the history of India oranywhere else in the world the names of courtpoets are inscribed on stone or wooden slabs fixedat the entrance of a durbar (assembly hall).

Pandit Ramakanta Tripathy in the year1935 edited and published in Calcutta the famousbook of Govardhan Acharya called AryaSaptasati . In the introduction to this book SriTripathy has written that this sloka LaxmanasyaPancharatna was found quoted in the bookRaja Tarangini written by the famous KashmiriPoet Kallahana. Kallahana had written RajaTarangini in 1148 A.D. Laxmana Sena ruled apart of Bengal from 1170 to 1205 A.D. Howcould Kallahana know either about the five poetsor about Laxmana Sena in 1148 ? This questionhas been asked by learned scholar M. Winternitz.Therefore Pandit Tripathy has told a white lie

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when he said that this sloka was quoted in RajaTarangini by Kalhahana.

Thus it is established that PanditRamakanta Tripathy like HarekrishnaMukhopadhya was creating false evidence insupport of the theory that Jayadeva belonged tothe Court of Laxmana Sena of Bengal.

References :1. Gita Govindam Sacred Profanities : A Study of

Jayadeva s Gita Govinda. Dr. N.S.R. Ayengar.



4. Jayadeva and Gita Govinda in the Tradition ofOrissa - Dr. Pathi, Dr. Panda & Dr. Rath.


The Interpolated Stanza of Gitagovinda

In the second stanza of Sri GitagovindaJayadeva invokes the Goddess of Speech,Saraswati to come to his aid in writing the poemwhich will depict the love frolic of Radha andKrishna. Jayadeva also introduces his wifePadmavati who danced to the tunes of hiscomposition in the temple of Lord Jagannath atPuri. Padmavati incidentally was a celebrateddancer in her own right as can be seen in the stoneinscriptions in two temples of South India. Thebook was written in the Lord Jagannath Templeof Puri.

The fourth stanza, according to Dr. N.S.R.Ayengar, lends insight into what kind of readersJayadeva was writing for only those whose heartsare sweetened and enriched remembering Hariand those who are curious about the art of divineluxurious enjoyment, should read Jayadeva whois writing the poem, couched in sweet, tender andlilting lyrical language.

The third stanza starting with the followingwords however, is intriguing.

Vacah pallavayatyumpathidharahSandarbha Suddhim Giram;

According to Dr. Satyanarayan Rajguruand Dr. N.S.R. Ayengar it is an obviousinterpolation and, therefore, contentious. It servesvery little purpose in the poem. To quote Dr.Ayengar "In its tune, texture, content and diction,it does not fit into the architectonic of the poem.It creates a jarring note which is veryuncharacteristic of Jayadeva. After the invocationand the proposal in the second stanza, the thirdone seems utterly out of context."

As translated by Prof. Barbara StolerMiller, the stanza reads as follows -

"Umapathidhara is prodigal with speech,Saran is renowned for his subtle flowing sounds.But only Jayadeva divines the pure design ofwords. Dhoyi is famed as a kind of poets for hismusical ear. But no one rivals poet Govardhanafor poems of erotic mood and sacred truth."

Both Dr. Rajguru and Dr. Ayengar are ofthe opinion that this stanza could never have beenthere where it is now for it rends the total textureof the poem. It is a later interpolation into the poemby some commentator, perhaps with some ulteriormotive. First of all it is not harmoniously fusedinto the body of Jayadeva's poem and secondlyit does not exhibit the felicity of the diction whichis so characteristic of Jayadeva's style. The thoughtcontents are also quite out of context.

In this stanza are mentioned the names offour poets, Umapatidhara, Sarana, AcharyaGovardhana and Dhoyi. The stanza has fivedifferent things to say about each of the five poets.Umapatidhara is known for his free flowingspeech. Sarana is known for his subtle sounds.Dhoyi, the king of poets is known for his music.Jayadeva is known for his felicity of diction and

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Acharya Govardhana remains the unrivalledmaster of erotic art.

Two different meanings have been readinto the stanza. One view which was held by LateKedarnath Mahapatra was that Jayadeva had onlyestablished his superiority over four othercontemporary poets and not the superiority orGovardhana Acharya over the rest four. He hasbased this interpretation on the book SarvangaSundari Tika by Narayana Das.

The other and more widely acceptablemeaning is that the stanza was written to clearlyestablish the superiority of Govardhana Acharyaover the rest of the poets including Jayadevahimself. It appears highly improbable thatJayadeva in his own words would denigrate hisown status.

Whichever meaning one accepts, nothinghas been said in it on the association of eitherJayadeva or any one of these poets to havebelonged to the court of Laxmana Sen.

Dr. Satyanarayan Rajguru has developedand established a hypothesis that this stanza wascomposed by Udayana, younger brother ofGovardhana and he perhaps interpolated it intoGita Govinda in his Bhava Bivatria Tika. Thiswas perhaps done deliberately so that Arya SaptaSati compiled by Govardhana Acharya withassistance from Balabhadra and Udayana, his twobrothers, got a better introduction and circulation.Sovoneswara temple in Niali and Megheswartemple contain two stone inscriptions wherecompositions of Udayana appear and have beenpreserved till today. The three brothers belongedto Niali in Cuttack district. Rana Kumbha in hisRasika Priya Tika has clearly declared this stanzato be an interpolation.

Arya Saptasati contained only a very fewstanzas of Shringara Rasa. It is highly unlikely

that Govardhana could be the model in this regardfor Jayadeva to emulate. Jayadeva had beforehim the great models of Kalidasa, Bhatrihari,Sriharsha and Bhababhuti. Jayadeva could havepaid tributes to these luminaries rather than toGovardhana Acharya describing him as the bestexponent of Sringara Rasa. Though AcharyaGovardhana was a later contemporary ofJayadeva, he composed Arya Saptasati muchafter the writing of Gita Govinda.

What poetry did Umapatidharah and Saranwrite is not known to posterity. Obviously thisUmapathidhara is not the poet Umapati of 13thcentury of Orissa who was an Army General anda poet in one of the Ganga king's court.Umapatidhara perhaps served in the courts of twoor three Sena kings Vijaya Sena, Vallala Senaand Laxman Sena. Even if this is true, what hewrote is not known as is the case with Sarana.

Dhoyi had written the Pavanaduta Kavyawhich is an imitation of Meghaduta by Kalidasa.Dr. Rajguru has placed the period of compositionto the time of Vijaya Sena (1072-1119) becauseDhoyi had urged the wind messenger to touchKalinga Nagari on his way as it was the capital ofKalinga. Emperor Cholaganga Deva had shiftedhis capital from Kalinganagar to Varanasi Katakaon Mahanadi in 1112 A.D. Dhoyi who wrotebefore 1112 A.D. was not alive up to the reign ofLaksmana Sena.

Jayadeva was the contemporary of VallalaSena, father of Laksmana Sena (1119-1169).The time of composition of Gita Govinda is inbetween 1146 to 1150, as calculated by Dr.Rajguru. Thus there is no question of all thesepoets working as court poets of Laksmana Sena.

Scholars who are bent on proving thatJayadeva belonged to Bengal depend squarelyon this 3rd stanza. They take it for granted that

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Dhoyi, Sarana, Umapatidhara and GovardhanaAcharya were court poets of Laksmana Sena andjump to the conclusion that Jayadeva also wasthere as he mentioned them in the 3rd stanza inGita Govinda. First of all the premises is wrongand conclusion based on that obviously is wrong.None of these five poets in their works has evermentioned the name of Laksmana Sena.

Those scholars who maintain that thewords "Senakulatilaka Bhupatireko RajaPradosacha" in sloka number 39 of AryaSaptasati by Govardhana Acharya refers toLaksmana Sena are sadly mistaken. AryaSaptasati is mostly a Sanskrit translation of 'SattaSai' composed by Mahakavi Hala in Prakrit in3rd century A.D. In the 'Satta Sai' also the wordsSenakulatilaka Bhupati appear. Obviously 17thdescendant of Satavahana dynasty Sri Halobelonging to 3rd century A.D. could not havereferred to Laksmana Sena of 12th CenturyBengal. He had referred to Maharaja PravaraSena II belonging to Vakataka dynasty whichruled over Deccan. R.G. Bhadarkar in his book'Early History of Deccan' has determined theperiod of Hala in 3rd century A.D.

A commentator of Arya Saptasatibelonging to Maharastra has clearly mentionedthat this Senakulatilaka referred to a king namedPravara Sena as "Tilaka Bhupati Setu KaraPrabara Sena Name Raja - Purnamasi

Pradosheka Prabhut." This commentary ispublished in "Choukhamba Sanskrit Series." Thewords Senakulatilaka therefore do not stand forLaxmana Sena at all. There is no indication in thewritings of Govardhana Acharya about any Senaruler other than these words. So it is not true thatGovardhana Acharya belonged to the court ofLaksmana Sena. Had that been so, Sridhara Daswho actually belonged to the court of LaksmanaSena would have quoted from the book byGovardhana in his own works.

Research by Dr. Satyanarayan Rajguru hasdemolished the entire edifice built around thisinterpolated 3rd stanza in Gita Govinda toestablish Jayadeva as a court poet of LaksmanaSena and therefore belonging to Bengal. It hasalso established that Govardhana Acharyabelonged to Niali in Cuttack district in Orissa andwas never a court poet of Laksmana Sena.

References :1. Gita Govindam Sacred Profanities : a study of

Jayadeva's Gita Govinda. - Dr. NSR Ayengar.



4. Jayadeva and Gita Govinda in the Tradition ofOrissa - Dr. Pathi, Dr. Panda & Dr. Rath.


The widely acclaimed lyrical composition of Gita Govinda of Sri Jayadev, the 12th CenturyA.D. saint poet, has been a powerful influence on several genres of creative and performingarts in various parts of India. It is perhaps the most lyrical Sanskrit composition of themedieval era.

A book titled, The Gitagovinda of Sri Jayadev is authored by Sri Ajit Kumar Tripathy andShri P.C. Tripathy. Shri Ajit Kumar Tripathy is a senior bureaucrat, columnist and author ofseveral books in Oriya. This book highlights the living traditions of Gita Govinda in presentday Orissa, besides giving a host of historical and cultural references on the life and times ofthe saint poet in and around the Temple City of Puri and his claimed native place nearby. Thisbook is published by the Publication Division, Ministry of Information & Broadcasting,Government of India.

Documents

New Light on Saint Poet Sri Jayadev and Gitagovinda