A Critical Study on Narayana Pandita and His Works

Narayana Pandita and his Works is an elaborate critical study on the works of a well known Keralite Scholar of 17th century A.D. Narayana Pandita, the great commentator of Kalidasa's Mahakavyas, deserves to be treated on an equal par with Mallinatha and Arunagirinatha. He has also contributed to several branches of Sanskrit learning. The author and his works have not been taken up for detailed study so far. In this book I have made a serious attempt for a critical and elaborate study on the available works of Narayana Pandita with an enquiry into his personal life. This book is divided into six chapters and seeks to highlight the importance of Narayana Pandita as a great Poet, Mimamsaka, Critic and Commentator.

The present work, substantially is my Doctoral thesis. I am deeply indebted to Dr. N.V.P. Unithiri, Professor and former Head of the Department of Sanskrit, University of Calicut for his sincere help and valuable guidance for the completion of the thesis, the revised form of which is the present book.

I am profoundly grateful to all my colleagues in the Department, especially to Dr. K.N. Neelakanthan Elayath and Dr. C. Rajendran for their help and co-operation. My heart-felt thanks are also due to Prof. M.P. Sankunni Nair, Dr. P.V. Ramankutty, Prof. P. Gangadharan and Dr. C.R. Subhadra for their valuable suggestions and help. I express my sincere gratitude to all my friends and well-wishers for their constant encouragement.

Substantial contributions have been made by Kerala authors to the vast lore of Sanskrit literature. A few studies on individual authors and separate branches of literature have already come out. Many more similar studies are yet to come on light. In this core of studies there are many works comprising subjects like creative literature, Darsanas and technical literature. From the works like The Contribution of Kerala to Sanskrit Literature (CKSL) by Dr. K. Kunjunni Raja, Kerala Sanskrit literature - A Bibliography (KSLB) by Dr. S. Venkatasubramonia lyer, Dr. E. Easvaran Nampoothiri's Sanskrit Literature of Kerala (SLK), Ullur S. Paramesvara lyer's Kerala Sahitya Caritram (KSC), and Vatakkumkur Rajarajavarma Raja's Keraliya Samskrta Sahitya Caritram (KSSC), we can have a clear idea about the contribution of Kerala to Sanskrit.

In the area of specialized study on Kerala contribution we have some works like Astronomy and Mathematics in Kerala by Dr. K. Kunjunni Raja, History of Kerala School of Hindu Astronomy? by Dr. K. V. Sarma and Contribution of Kerala to Sanskrit Sastra Literature by Dr S. Venkitasubramonia lyer. They are worthy of special mention.

A few studies on individual authors and their works also have come out. Studies on some works of Sankara and his philisophy, Melputtur Narayana Bhatta, Kulasekhara, Purnasarasvati etc. are a few among them."

**Contents and Sample Pages**