Prithviraja Vijaya
| Author | Jayanaka |
|---|---|
| Original title | पृथ्वीराज विजय |
| Country | India |
| Language | Sanskrit |
| Subject | Biographical epic poem |
| Genre | Epic, Eulogy |
|
Publication date
|
12th century |
Prithviraja Vijaya (IAST: Pṛthvīrāja Vijaya, "Prithviraja's Victory") is an eulogistic Sanskrit epic poem on the life of the Indian Chahamana king Prithviraja III (better known as Prithviraj Chauhan in the vernacular folk legends). It is believed to have been composed around 1191-1192 CE by Jayanaka, a Kashmiri poet-historian in the court of Prithviraja.
Some portions of the poem are now lost. Besides Prithviraja's biography, the poem also gives an account of his ancestors.
The only known manuscript of Prithviraja Vijaya is a birch bark manuscript written in Sharada script. It was discovered by Georg Bühler in 1875, when he was searching for Sanskrit manuscripts in Kashmir. The manuscript is highly mutilated, and several parts of the text (including the author's name) are missing from it.
Although the author's name is missing from the manuscript, Har Bilas Sarda theorized that the text was composed by Jayanaka, who was a court-poet of Prithviraja. This theory is based on the following points:
The poem is quoted by the Kashmiri scholar Jayaratha in his Vimarshini (c. 1200 CE), so it was definitely composed before this date.
The poem mentions Prithviraja's victory over Muhammad of Ghor in the first Battle of Tarain, but does not cover his defeat in the second battle. This indicates that it was most probably written during 1191-1192 CE, in the period between the two battles. Thus, Prithviraja Vijaya is the only extant literary text from the reign of Prithviraja.
The first canto praises the ancient poets Valmiki, Vyasa and Bhasa. It also mentions the contemporary poets Krishna and Vishvaroopa. The poem eulogizes Vishvaroopa, a native of Ajmer, and a friend and guide of the author.
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