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Kshemendra (IAST: Kṣemendra; c. 990 – c. 1070 CE) was an 11th-century Sanskrit polymath-poet, satirist, philosopher, historian,[1] dramatist, translator[2] and art-critic[3] from Kashmir[4].
Kshemendra was born into an old, cultured, and affluent family.[5] His father was Prakashendra, a descendant of Narendra who was the minister to Jayapida.[6] Both his education and literary output were broad and varied. He studied literature under "the foremost teacher of his time, the celebrated Shaiva philosopher and literary exponent Abhinavagupta".[5] Kshemendra was born a Shaiva, but later became a Vaishnava.[6] He studied and wrote about both Vaishnavism and Buddhism.[7] His son, Somendra, provides details about his father in his introduction to the Avadana Kalpalata and other works. Kshemendra refers to himself in his works as Vyasadasa (IAST: Vyāsadāsa; Slave of Vyasa), a title which was perhaps won or adopted after the completion of his Bhāratamañjari.[6]
Kshemendra was in great demand as a skilled abridger of long texts.[6] His literary career extended from at least 1037 (his earliest dated work, Brihatkathāmanjari, a verse summary of the lost "Northwestern" Bṛhatkathā; itself a recension of Gunadhya's lost Bṛhatkathā — "Great Story") to 1066 (his latest dated work, Daśavataracharita, "an account of the ten incarnations of the god Viṣnu").[8]
Around eighteen of Kshemendra's works are still extant while fourteen more are known only through references in other literature.[6] In addition to the genres listed below, he also composed plays, descriptive poems, a satirical novel, a history, and possibly a commentary on the Kāma Sūtra.[9]
Abridgements
- Ramāyaṇamanjari — Verse abridgement of the Ramayana (Sanskrit)
- Bhāratamanjari — Verse abridgement of the Mahabharata (Sanskrit)
- Brihatkathāmanjari — Verse abridgement of the Brihatkatha (Sanskrit)
Poetics
- Auchitya Vichāra Charchā
- Kavikanthābharaṇa
- Suvrittatilaka
Satires
- Kalāvilasā — "A Dalliance with Deceptions"
- Samaya Mātrikā — "The Courtesan's Keeper" (Sanskrit)
- Narmamālā — "A Garland of Mirth"
- Deśopadeśa — "Advice from the Countryside"
Didactic works
- Nitikalpataru
- Darpadalana
- Chaturvargasaṃgraha
- Chārucharya
- Sevyasevakopadeśa'
- Lokaprakāśa
- Stūpāvadāna — See Saratchandra Das (ed.), 'Stupavadana', Journal and Text of the Buddhist Society of India, vol.11, pt.1, p. 15.
Devotional works
Historical Work
- Nrpavali[10]
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