YASHODHARACHARITE
- ಯಶೋಧರಚರಿತೆ
(Yashodharacharite)
- yashODharacarite
- The Exalted Story of King Yashodhara
- Janna (janna)
- Second half of the 12th Century and the first half of the 13th
century
- Halebeedu region in Hassan district. A disciple of Nagavarma-2(? Disputed
by Dr M.M.Kalburgi) and a maternal uncle of Keshiraja
- Jaina (Ramachandradeva Muni was his mentor) He has built Jaina
temples including the one at Pannaladurga (Ananthanatha Basadi) and
renovated the Vijaya Parshvanatha Basadi at Dorasamudra.
- Hoysala Ballala (1173-1220) and a minister with Narasimha Ballala
(1220-1235)
- Kavi Chakravarthi
- Poetry
- Kanda Padya
- Palm leaf and Manuscript
- 1894
- Padmarajapandita
- Svakeeya Sri Bharathibhavana Mudraksharashale, Bangalore.Karnataka
Kavyakalanidhi, Mysore
- 1. Ramanuja Iyengar M.A. and S.G.Narasimhachar
- 1. 1899-02(Magazine), 1911, (Book form) Ed by Ramanuja Iyyengar and
S.G.Narasimhachar, Karnatala Kavyakalanidhi Maale, Mysore 2.
Yashodharachariteya Sangraha, K.V.Raghavachar, 1941, Mysore 3. S.Bommarasa
Pandita, 1951, Jainasahitya Pracharasangha, Mysore 4. Yashodharacharite
(With Vadiraja’s work in Kannada translation) C.P.Krishnakumar,1994 5.
Yashodharacharite (with prose translation, Tekkunja Gopalakrishna Bhat,
1976, Kannada Sahitya Parishattu, Bangalore. 6. Janna Samputa,
C.P.Krishnakumar, Kannada University, Hampi.
- ‘Yashodharacharite’ by Janna is one of
literary texts which have received serious critical attention through out
twentieth century, by critics belonging to different schools. They have
thrown light on the text from various angles. Some have subjected it to an
interdisciplinary study. The characters of the main protagonists have
undergone a close scrutiny. Not to be out done many creative writers have
tried to restructure the story with a different perspective. ‘Hittina
Hunja’ by Girish Karnad is an important attempt. Even Yakshaganas are
written making use of this theme. In spite of these discussions one is
still left with a feeling that many problems are yet to be resolved.
‘Yashodharacharite’ is the story of a king and his mother who
breach the tenets of Jainism by deciding to sacrifice a cock made of flour
to satisfy the irate gods. This unfortunate decision by Yashodhara and
Chandramathi was caused by the infidelity of his wife Amritamati. She
falls in love with Ashtavanka who is portrayed as abhorrently ugly and
beastly. The mother and the son are exposed to a cycle of births as
animals that destroy one another in fits of frenzy. Finally they are
liberated from this cycle by the grace of a Jaina saint. This short
summary does not do justice to the complex work.
Yashodharacharite is based on
two different sources. They are ‘Yashastilaka Champu’ by
Somadeva and ‘Yashodharacharite’ by Vadiraja. Apparently these two have
borrowed the story from folk literature and molded it to suit their purposes.
Janna composed this work when Jainism was in a state of flux in Karnataka. It
was facing serious challenges from Veerashavism and Vaishnava religion. The
poet wanted to re assert the tenets of his religion and capture the situation
in his geographical region. However he was an artist of rare caliber and he was
besieged with some fundamental problems related to human existence. The problem
of crime and punishment and the problem of freedom of choice given to human
beings were uppermost in his mind. Sexuality and cruelty two themes that are
not really nuclear to his religion are chosen as the areas of human behavious
that he wants to delve in to. Amritamathi with her independent spirit adds
another dimension to the story by asserting her rights. The feminist critics of
modern times have taken up her cause quite appropriately. This plurality of
themes and the ease with which the poet handles them make the work an absorbing
study. The poet has kept the text quite open in spite of his own preferences. These
thematic preoccupations should not make us blind to the poetic merits of
‘Yashodharacharite’. For one thing the descriptions of nature and the material
world are always in tune with the tempo and tenor of the situation. The work
does not restrict itself to the mode of chronological narration. The story
begins with the last incarnation of Yashodhara and his mother and meanders back
to past. The work is full of metaphors and images related to hunting and
cruelty to animals and the atmosphere is virtually suffocating. The language is
a nice mixture of medieval Kannada and Sanskrit. ‘Yashodharacharite’ is a perennial favourite
of Kannada readers and critics because of these reasons.
19. References and Criticism: 1. Janna,
C.P.Krishnakumar, 1965, Prsaranga, Mysore University, Mysore. 2. Yashastilaka
and Indian Culture, K.K.Handiqui, 1949, Jain Samskriti Samrakshak Sangha, Sholapur 3. Janna – Kavi Kavya Parampare, Ed. V.Seetharamaiah,
1975, I.B.H.Prakashana, Bangalore.
4. Janna- ondu adhyayana, K.Y.Shivakumar, 1999, Chethana Bookhouse, Mysore. 5. Yashodharachariteya Kavyatantra, Keerhinatha
Kurthakoti, 1982, Bangalore University, Bangalore.
5. Janna (ondu maruchintane) Ed. Giraddi Govindaraja, 2008, Karnataka Sahitya Academy, Bangalore
6. Masterpieces of Indian Literature, Ed. K.M.George, Published by the National
Book Trust, Kannada Editor: G.S.Shivarudrappa
7. Jannana Kavyagalalli Pranaya Nirupane, T.N.Srikantaiah, Kavyasameekshe
8. Yashodharachariteyalli Kamavikara Nirupaneya Uddesha, Kuvempu, (BAgina) 7.
G.Rajashekhara. 8. Giraddi Govindaraja, Navyavimarshe, 1965. 9.
Yashodharacharite (An article in English by C.P.Krishnakumar, Masterpieces of
Indian Literature, Ed. K.M.George, Pub.: National Book Trust, Kannada Editor:
G.S.Shivarudrappa
20. Links:
21. Translations 1. ‘The Glory Bearer’s
Tale’, T.R.S. Sharma, Penguin Classics, New Delhi
2. Janna by T.R.S. Sharma in Ancient Indian
Literature volume 2, Ed. T.R.S. Sharma, Sahitya Academy, 2000
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