Ksanda-gita-cintamani

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Hare Krsna dear devotees!

Does anyone knows something about Srila Visvantha

Cakravarti Thakura's Ksanda-gita-cintamani?

Thank you in advance.

your servant

Nina

 

 

 

 

 

 

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[Guest guest]

On Sun, 30 May 2004, nina wrote:

> Hare Krsna dear devotees!

> Does anyone knows something about Srila Visvantha

> Cakravarti Thakura's Ksanda-gita-cintamani?

> Thank you in advance.

> your servant

> Nina

 

There are multiple books named Ksanada-giti-cintamani (KGC). You're probably

interested in the one compiled by Srila Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura (under his

nom de plume “Harivallabha”). It's an anthology of a few hundred

padavali-kirtana songs by various Vaisnava poets, mostly in Bengali.

Unfortunately, it seems either unfinished or incomplete, since only the

purva-bhaga (i.e., part one) is extant. To my knowledge, it’s never been

translated into English. The Brajabuli scholar Sukumar Sen says that the two

Indian editions published in his time were quite poorly edited. Dating the KGC

at about 1700 CE, he adds that it is the oldest source collection of (implicitly

Gaudiya) Vaisnava poetry (A History of Brajabuli Literature, Calcutta: Univ. of

Calcutta, 1935, pg. 4).

 

However, there are 16th century CE poets who praise “Mahaprabhu” and His

sankirtana in Nilacala (Jagannatha Puri), etc., in their Braja-bhasa poetry. If

such oblique references make these Braja poets Gaudiya Vaisnavas, then perhaps

the KGC, or even other songs by contributing poets like Narahari Thakura, aren’t

the oldest Gaudiya Vaisnava lyrics after all.

 

I hope this is heplful.

 

MDd