महाराणा कुम्भा (हरविलास सारदा - मेवाड़ साम्राज्य के अद्वितीय विजेता, निर्माता व विद्वान्)

Maharana Kumbha The great Parmār sovereign, Raja Bhoja of Dhārānagri, who flourished in the eleventh century of the Christian era was a great general, a great scholar and a great sovereign.¹ ¹ The eminent orientalist, Mr. K. P. Jayaswal, in his article on the Udaipur temple of Malwa in the Modern Review for June, 1932, p. 604, says about Raja Bhoja :— "The most famous king of the eleventh century in India was Bhoja of the Parmār dynasty, who was king of Malwa from 1010 to 1050 A.D. His undertakings were gigantic: he surveyed the whole of Sanskrit and Prakrit literature and had encyclopædias on art and sciences compiled, books on literary art criticism written, vast anthologies prepared, books on the art of poetics, on astrology, astronomy, music and architecture composed, and Hindu law re-stated. In this survey of national culture, he took part personally more than what Napoleon did in the preparation of Code Napoleon. Bhoja was one of the greatest scholars of his time, he had his own theories on poetics. He was a very keen art-critic, and composed very fine verses extempore. "In the domain of kingship, he was the best general of his time. As in Napoleon so in Bhoja, literary taste and soldierly ability were united. In the history of Hindu law, Bhoja is a landmark : with him the Mitakshara law, which reigns to-day, arose. As an architect and builder, Bhoja was one of the greatest men. He conceived the idea of turning the parched hills of the Vindhayas in Malwa into a green paradise and succeeded in doing so. His lake which, on expert calculation, covered 260 square miles, changed the climate of Malwa. In Muhammadan times when the lake was still existing, there came into vogue the saying, 'I wish, I enjoyed the night of Malwa and the morning of Benares. The nights of Malwa have ceased to be of that charm with the destruction of the lake. The lake was named 'Bhoja- pala; pal, in the language of Malwa, even to-day means the embankment of an artificial lake. Bhoja-pal is now pronounced as Bho-pal." The well known Hindi couplet ताल तो भोपाल ताल और सब तलैयां हैं । गढ़ तो चित्तोड़ गढ़ और सब गदहैयां हैं ॥ "Lakes : There is only one lake, the Bhopal lake : others are ponds of water. Chitorgarh is the only fort; others are mere fortified places," shows that the people held the Bhopal lake to be the king of the lakes of the world. 197