The Budhabhusana of King Sambhu (An Old and Rare Book)

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The present edition of the Budhabhusana is based upon a single manuscript in the MSS. library of the B.B.R.A Society of Bombay. The manuscript is incorrect in many places and has let some gaps here and there. From the writing and paper &c., the MS. appears to have been written before 150 years, or so. I am greatly indebted to the B.B.R.A Society for allowing me to make use of their manuscript for this edition.

I feel glad to express my obligations to Mr. C.A. Kincaid, C.I.E, and also to the late Rao Bahadur Parasnis, both of whom gave me valuable information regarding Sambhajhi.

I further acknowledge with gratitude, the assistance which I received from Mr. Puroshottam Vishram Mavji J.P., of Bombay. He showed me his own copy of a few selections from Sambhaji's Hindi poems and permitted me to print them. These selections, however, have not been printed in this book as it is so desired by the Executive Board of the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute.

Lastly, I think my friend Mr. G.B. Bapat, M.A., who much helped me in preparing the press-copy and others who similarly helped me in bringing out this edition.

In 1920 I was entrusted with the work of preparing a descriptive Catalogue of Sanskrit and Prakrit manuscripts of the Bombay Branch Royal Asiatic Society. While doing this I came across an incomplete Sanskrit manuscript which on close inspection, was found to contain a Sanskrit work called "Budhabhusana", claiming for its author King Sambhu, popularly known as Sambhaji, son of Shivaji the Great. This was rather striking since nothing but vicious deeds, at the most brave and daring are usually connected with the name of Prince Sambhaji. On going through the whole work, however, I found that it scarcely contained anything of either literary or historical importance. Nor could it decisively prove that Sambhaji was a man of letters. However, the mere fact that Sambhaji's name was connected with a literary work, has induced me to bring out an edition of the work.

The work is apparently divided into three chapters, not clearly distinguished from each other. The first contains 194 verses, mostly Subhasitas, which are quotations from well-known authors, rendered popular owing to their strikingness, but often the sources of which are unknown. The first seventeen verses are introductory; they contain a brief history of the author's family, written in good easy Sanskrit and, together with the next eleven stanzas containing a hymn to Goddess Bhavani, are the only few lines, which are directly from the author's pen. The first six of these contain praises offered to Gajanana, Siva, Guru and Parvati. The next ten are rather important. I subjoin an English translation of these.

(7) There was a king called Shaha (Shahaji), who was the Indra of the earth, who was skilled in Politics and Fine Arts, whose deeds were brave and noble, whose fame was extensive and who was the Moon rising from the midst of the ocean in the form of the family of Bhrsabalas ;

(8) Who worshipped the earth with an offering of the multitudes of the heads of hostile princes, which were severed (from their trunks) by a volley of arrows discharged from his bow, which was drawn right upto the ear-to him, the lofty crest jewel of numerous princes, was born the primeval Lord (i. e. Visnu) as his son, known widely by the name 'Siva'.

( 9) Victorious is Siva, the invincible Chatrapati, lord of umbrella, who is (none but ) the lord of the world ( i. e. God Visnu ) who has assumed a partial incarnation, having seen the whole religion in distress, as it was bitten by the venomous serpent in the form of the Kali age.

( 10 ) [Siva]-who in the course of the Buddha incarnation of Gopala, while Kali was yet in his full strength on earth, ( lit. had not yet declined) set up the Brahmans and other castes on a firm foundation in" their respective walks of life, by vanquishing the enemies of the gods,-with a view to protect and revive the caste religion, which had been violently disturbed by the Mlechhas.

( 11) Having built fortresses for the protection of the earth on the best of the mountains inaccessible to the enemies, though called ' Sahya " between Karnataka, on the one hand and Bagalana on the other and between-the river Krsna and the ocean (western), the foremost among the kings, reigns victorious in the inaccessible fort called Rairi (or Raigad ).

( 12) He conquered the whole of the earth from the eastern mountain to the western ocean and from the Setu ( Adam's Bridge) to the mountain of cold ( i. e. the Himalayas), and made all princes pay tribute to him. Having learnt the duties prescribed by the Srutis, declared to him by the learned, he shines, day by day, on his throne, after tie Coronation ceremony, by means of such symbols of royalty as the Chatra etc.

(13) Who being a victorious prince, satisfied, on the festive occasion of his coronation, the Brahmans, who had come from different places, with countless gifts of coins, garments, elephants and horses; and thus spread in all directions his fame, fit to be sung by gods and resembling in its purity, the lustre, which shoots out from the Moon.

(14) He it is whose fort shines with palaces and mansions in which princes dwell, with arches and beautiful market-squares; with new lakes filled with water all around,' with learned priests, physicians and astrologers, with honest hereditary ministers and with the numberless brave armies of foul' kinds.

(15) His son who is the crest jewel of all the fudatory chiefs and who is well versed in (lit. has crossed the ocean in the form of) Poetry, Rhetoric, Puranas, Music and Archery, is famous by the name Sambhu.

(16) That King Sambhuvarman is compiling this excellent book, having carefully read the works of the ancient writers and having taken his material from them.

(17) May the wise accept what is good and give up what is bad, having carefully gone through our work; Rajahamsas indeed accept milk having abandoned water mixed with it.