Agamadambara- Otherwise Called Sanmatanataka of Jayanta Bhatta (An Old And Rare Book)

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Dr V. Raghavan uudertook an edition of the Agamad- ambara on the basis of the two available manuscripts of the work. Subsequently he learnt that Prof. Anantalal Thakur of the Mithila Institute was also planning to bring out an edition of the same work. On a proposal which Dr Raghavan then made to Dr P. L. Vaidya, Director of Mithila Institute at that time, it was resolved that an edition of the text jointly by Profs. Raghavan and Thakur be brought out in the Mithila Institute Series. The text of the play as edited by them was printed quickly, but due to unforeseen circumstances, the Introduction, etc., took a long time for preparation and printing.

The author of the play edited here is the well-known Jayanta Bhatta who wrote the Nyayamanjari (NM). His son Abhinanda gives us much information about the family in his Kadambarikathāsāra". From the introductory verses in the last mentioned poem we learn that the family hailed from Gaudadeśa and belonged to the Bhäradvaja gotra. Sakti of this family migrated to Kashmir and settled as a married man at a place called Därvabhisara. He had a son named Mitra who was respected by the people; Mitra's son Šaktisvamin, well-versed in Veda, became minister of King Muktāpīda of the Karkotaka family of Kashmir. Of Saktisvamin was born Kalyāņa- svamin, comparable to Yajñavalkya and of high attainment in Yoga. His son was Candra, devotee of Siva and Candra's son was Jayanta, our author. That he was the son of Candra, Jayanta himself says at the end of his NM. Some more biographical information available from the NM. and the play may be added: Abhinanda's statement about the cultivation of the Vedic tradition in the family is attested by Jayanta's own observations.