216. 216 HISTORY OF SANSKRIT POETICS

216 HISTORY OF SANSKRIT POETICS

The date of राज शेखर does not present much difficulty. He quotes स्द्रट's काव्यालक्कार (on काव्यमी.p.31), आानन्दवर्षन's वृत्ति (on p. 16) and the school of Udbhata (pp. 22, 44) and the school of Vamana (pp. 14, 20); hence he is certainly later then 875 A. D. The Yaśastilaka, composed in 959-960 A. D., mentions in the 4th SINRH (K.M. ed. part II. p. 113) numerous poets of whom राजशेखर is one. The तिलकमजरी of धनपाल composed about 1000 A. D. praises the poetic passages of यायावर (समाषिगुरशा- लिन्यः प्रसन्नपरिपक्त्रिमाः। यायावरकवेर्वाचो मुनीनामिव वृत्तयः॥ verse 33). Soddhala, author of उदयसुन्दरीकथा (8th उच्छूवास p.558), praises राज० ('यायावरः प्राश्वरो गुणनैराशंसितः सूरिसमाजव्यैंः'). Soddhala composed his work between 1026-1050 A.D. (vide Intro.). So राजशे० flourished before 950 A. D. Here Inscriptions come to our help. The Siyadoni stone inscription (E. I. vol. I. pp. 162-179) refers to संवद् 960 (903-4 A. D.) and a king ०पालदेव (p. 173) of महोदय (p. 178, line 40) and I. A. vol. 16 pp. 175-178 the Asni Inscrip- tion of महीपाल (dated विक्रमसंवद् 974, 917 A. D.) speaks of a king महीपाल who succeedcd महिषपालदेव. They are taken by Dr. Fleet to refer to महीपाल and his predecessor निर्मयनरेन्द्र. The result is that राजशेखर flourished towards the end of the 9th century A.D. and the first quarter of the 10th. This is further corroborated by the fact that अभिनवगुप्त expressly mentions the कपरमन्जरी of राज- शेखर 'तथाहि श्रकाररसे सातिशयोपगिनी प्राकृतभाषेति सट्ृकः कपरमजर्याख्यो राज- शेखरेण तन्मय एव निबद्:' (on chap. 19 verse 130 p.72 of vol. III.of GOS ed. of नाट्यशाख). The बालरामायण is mentioned by name on भरत 16. 39 (vol. II. p. 320 G.O.S. ed.) by अरभिनवगप्त. Vide p. 50 above where it is shown that a verse attributed to लोलट by हेमचन्द्र is quoted by the काव्यमी. (p. 45) as आपराजिति's. The Bilhari stone Inscription of युवराजदेव II, the ruler of Gedi (E. I. vol. I. p. 251) contains a verse at the end in praise of Rajasekhara 'सुश्िष्टबन्ध वटनाविस्मितकविराजशेसरस्तुत्या। भास्तामियमा- कल्पं कृतिश् कीर्तिश्व पूर्वा च ।I' (at p. 262). The dateis effaced, but the editor of the Inscription conjectures from the script and the contents that it belongs to the 10th century. This Inscri- ption has been re-edited by Prof. V. V. Mirashi in C. I. I. vol. IV pp. 204-224, the verse occurring on p. 215.

is not prepared to hold that राजशेखर was a ब्राह्मण. He does not pay sufficient attention to the ancient smrti meaning of rar and to the word यायाबरकुल.