Raja Bhoja : The Scholar King

Introduction:

Raja Bhoja was an Indian king from the Parmar dynasty, whose kingdom was centered around the Malwa region in central India in the 11th century AD.

His grandfather, Shri Harsha, who was also known as Singhbhatta. Shri Harsha had two sons, the elder one was Munj or Vakpatiraj and the younger one was Sindhul or Sindhuraj. Bhoj was the son of Sindhu. As Munj had no son, he adopted Bhoj as his son and made him the heir of his throne.

His kingdom extended from Chittor in the north to upper Konkan in the south, and from the Sabarmati River in the west to Vidisha in the east.

It is said that Bhopal, the capital of Madhya Pradesh was once called "Bhojpal" which was made "Bhopal" later (removed the letter 'j').

There may not be many people in India who have not heard the name of Bhoj. He died nearly a thousand years ago, but his name is immortal. Indian people often talk about him at their homes. However, we talk of him not only because of his power and greatness as a ruler but also because he was a humble person and respected all other individuals. He excelled as a great scholar and a poet.

In the Indian history of the middle ages, Raja Bhoj holds an eminent place. Next to Vikramaditya, he has greatly influenced the minds of the Indian people. His power, influence, religious and philanthropic deeds, and his practice of showering honors and gifts on poets and scholars have come down to posterity in folklore, folk tales, literature, and stone engravings throughout the country. His talent and valor have placed him in the galaxy of great literary and historical figures of India.

He was a supporter of art, literature, and science. He was renowned as a 'Scholar King'.

Sheldon Pollock describes him as "the most celebrated poet-king and philosopher-king of his time, and perhaps of any Indian time".

Reasons for Greatness:

1. He is best remembered for his intellect and patronage of cultural activities. He enthusiastically rewarded good poets and writers. He was an expert in poetry.

2. He built the upper lake in Bhopal by constructing an earthen dam across the Kolans river.

3. He invaded and captured Konkana sometime between 1018 and 1020 AD. He celebrated this victory in a big way by making generous donations to Brahmins.

4. There are about 84 texts attributed to him. Some of them are Saraswati Kanthabharana (a treatise on Sanskrit grammar for poetic compositions) and Charucharya (a text on personal hygiene).

5. During his reign, the Bhojeshwar temple was built. It is a massive temple of Lord Shiva which boasts to be the largest Shivling in India.

6. He had no ill-will against the people of other faiths and beliefs. In his court, many Jain scholars used to be treated with reverence. Nearly 500 scholars adorned his court.

7. He was a great polymath and he worked on architecture, poetry, medicine, yoga, and science.

8. He created a great Sanskrit center of learning called Sarasvatisadana. Today it is popularly called Bhojshala (shown in the figure).

LITERARY and SCIENTIFIC Works:

1.Bhujabala-Bhima: A Book on Astrology.

2.Charucharya: A Book on personal hygiene.

3.Malhotra:  A Book on veterinary medicine.

4.Patanjali-Yogasutra-Bhashya:  A Book commenting on Yoga Sutras of Patanjali including the various form of meditations.

5.Vidvajjana-Vallabha:  A Book on Astronomy.

6.Yukti-Kalpataru:  A Book including statecraft, politics, city- the building, jewel-testing, characteristics of books, ship- building.

7.Tattva-Prakasha:  A Book on detailed literature of the Siddhanta Tantras.

8.Sarasvati-Kanthabharana:  A Book on Sanskrit grammar for poetic and rhetorical compositions.

9.Shringara-Prakasha:  A Book on poetics and dramatic composition.

10.Raja-Mriganka-Karana:  A Book on Chemistry, especially dealing with the extraction of metals from ores, and production of various drugs.

11.Vyavahara-Manjari: A Book on Hindu Law.

12.Samarangana-Sutradhara: A Book on Architecture and Iconography. It details the construction of buildings, forts, temples, idols of deities and mechanical devices including a so-called flying machine or glider.

13.Sringara-Manjari-Katha: A Poem composed in Akhyayika form.

14.Nama-Malika: A compiled treatise on lexicography.

Story Of Their Clan:

There is a story about the birth of the Parmar clan: Once Rishi Vashistha used to live in an ashram on the Arbuda mountain (Mount Abu). Vishwamitra and Vashistha were sworn enemies.

The sage Vishwamitra forcibly took a wish-granting cow from another sage Vashistha. He chanted a mantra from Atharva Veda and with that put an offering in the havan kund (receptacle for sacrificial fire).

In an instant, a brave man appeared out of the fire. On Vashistha's command, he killed Vishwamitra's men and rescued the cow. Vashistha was pleased and gave this brave man the name of Parmar, which means 'one who kills the enemy' ('Par' -enemy, and 'mar'- killer).

It was one of the descendants of this brave man-Raja Upendraraj, who laid the foundation of the Parmar clan of Malwa.

Story Behind The Saying: "Kahan Raja Bhoj, Kahan Gangu Teli":

There are two interesting stories behind this saying.

The First Story is:

In this proverb, it isn't Gangu Teli but "Gangaye Telang". Both Gangu i.e. 'Ganga Kalachuri Naresh' and Teli i.e. 'Chaluka Naresh Telayya' could not defeat King Bhoja.

Each of them has been the king of south India. They had attacked the town of Dhar, but both of them had to face defeat; then the people of Dhar found a different way of making fun of both defeated kings and kept saying "Kahan Raja Bhoj aur Kahan Gangaye Telang". The deformed form of Gangaye Telang is "Gangoo Teli". Which is famous these days as "Kahan Raja Bhoj aur Kahan Gangu Teli".

The Second Story is:

Raja Bhoj had a fort in Maharashtra, which was called Panhala, but the wall of this fort kept falling repeatedly. Then the astrologers told Raja Bhoj that if a newborn child and his mother were sacrificed at this place, the wall would stop falling, after which a person named 'Gangu Teli' (oil seller), he sacrificed his wife and child, but later he became proud of his work and people used to call him arrogant and stating that 'Kahan Raja Bhoj aur Kahan Gangu Teli', which later changed into the proverb.


Writer :  ASHUTOSH POKHRIYAL