उत्तररामचरितम् (महाकवि भवभूति - संस्कृत मूल एवं हिन्दी व्याख्या)

ii INTRODUCTION. of the Dravida country (vide text pp 39, 64, 130) The poet seems to have been quite familiar with the Godavari from his descriptions of it in the 9th Act of the Malatīmādhava and in the Uttararāmacharita He seems to have been also familiar with the Vindhya mountain (Act V 14 of the Uttararāmacharita) About the name of the poet there is a controversy In all his three dramas occur the words "srīkaṇṭhapada- lāñchanaḥ Bhavabhūtir nāma One would naturally expect from the position of the word 'nāma' that the poet's name was Bhavabhūti and that later in life he received the title of Srīkaṇṭha But most of the commentators say that his name was Srīkaṇṭha and that later on he was called Bhavabhūti in consequence of a certain benedictory verse in honour of Pārvatī 3 It seems to us that the commentators had no certain knowledge on the subject and that they were guided probably by the etymologies to which the word Bhavabhūti lent itself We are confirmed in this opinion by the fact that the commentators are not in agreement as to the verse on account of which the poet earned the epithet Bhavabhūti 4 Moreover there is another story mentioned by the commentator Ghanaśyāma that the god Siva manifested himself to the poet in the form of a Brāhmaṇa and gave him riches 5 Bhavabhūti came of a learned family Bhavabhūti himself seems to have been a profound scholar He had made a thorough study of the Vedas of the Vedānta, Sānkhya and 3 Vide p 2 com वीरराघव on महावीरचरित says "श्रीकण्ठपदला- ञ्छन । विदूषणनामेदम् । भवभूतिनाम 'साम्बा पुनातु भवभूतिपवित्रमूर्ति' इति श्लोकरचनामृतेन राजा भवभूतिरिति ख्यातिन " वीरराघव on the उत्तररामचरित says the same जगद्धर commenting on the मालतीमाधव says 'नाम्ना श्रीकण्ठ प्रसिद्धया भवभूतिरित्य ' while त्रिपुरारि on the मालतीमाधव says 'भवभूतिरिति व्यवहारे तस्यैव नामान्तरम्' 4 घनश्याम and वीरराघव say that it was on account of the verse 'साम्बा पुनातु भवभूतिपवित्रमूर्ति' that the poet was called भवभूति But जगन्नाथपण्डित commenting on गाथासप्तशती (I 36) says 'श्रीधर इति कवि नाम । भवभूतिरिति 'गिरेर्जाया । कुचौ वन्दे भवभूतिसिताननौ' इति पद्यकरणोत्तरं पदवीनाम" 5 Vide p 4 com. Following this, वीर० says 'के चान्ते वचये ईश्वर एव विप्ररूपेणागत्य भूरि दत्तवानिति वदन्ति । श्व च भवाद्ब्राह्मणतो भूतिर्यस्येति भवभूतिरित्यभ्य इत्याहु ।'