The Quotidian Revolution by Novetzke Christian Lee;

Author:Novetzke, Christian Lee;
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: REL032010, RELIGION/Hinduism/History, SOC002000, Social Science/Anthropology/General
Publisher: Columbia University Press
Published: 2016-10-17T16:00:00+00:00

Chakradhar and the Yadava State

Pollock’s argument that literary vernacularization deeply involved the engagement of the royal court may have some parallel in the case of Maharashtra through the portrayal in the Līḷācaritra of the relationship between Chakradhar and the early Mahanubhavs, on the one hand, and the Yadava state and the Brahminic ecumene, on the other. While it is not the case that Marathi literary materials emerge at the Yadava court or through courtly patronage, it is clear that the benign ambivalence about Marathi evinced by the Yadava court is a vital aspect of the history of Marathi vernacularization, as chapters 1 and 2 suggested. At the same time, the Līḷācaritra amply records that the Yadava kings,65 as well as key figures of the Brahminic ecumene, took great interest in Chakradhar and the early Mahanubhavs. The Līḷācaritra also makes fascinating comments about the machinations of the state politics in its age. This interest in governmental-political affairs, the “political field,” to use Bourdieu’s term, hints at the vitality of the range of subjects within the nascent Marathi public sphere. Whether or not such interactions record historical fact, the emphasis on them in the Līḷācaritra suggests that vernacularization occurred at the intersection of state and public culture, which is the location of the public sphere in general.66

Chakradhar first attracts the interest of the Yadava state early in the Līḷācaritra when the king Krishna hears from a temple Gurav of the wondrous beauty and luster of Chakradhar, a story already discussed in this book.67 Krishna sends messengers with gifts of gold coins to Chakradhar, who refuses them. When Chakradhar does not touch a bag of gold coins that the king and his younger brother Mahadev attempt to give him,68 the king then donates the funds to a temple for the repair of a wall, which is perhaps represented in an unreadable Sanskrit inscription at the temple of Lonar.69

Following this encounter, another political figure named Ramdrana, a regional governor in Amravati, near the town of Achalpur, hears of Chakradhar’s majesty. Ramdrana entices Chakradhar to stay for ten months in his palace.70 During this time, it appears as if Chakradhar takes on the position of the guru of Ramdrana, and even accepting, as the lila says, a temporary role as a political adviser or minister (rājyadharma svīkarile). It is curious that though Chakradhar refuses the funds of the Yadava king, he responds to the invitation of Ramdrana, serving as his political guru and surrogate ruler. The lila implies that the instruction Ramdrana received from Chakradhar was in governance, not solely religious matters. These two unusual interactions with political power, it should be noted, come quite early in Chakradhar’s life in Maharashtra.

Shortly after this encounter, we meet one of the key figures of the Līḷācaritra, Sarang Pandit, who, though he appears throughout the text and is vital to the narrative of Chakradhar’s life, is not a follower; indeed, Sarang Pandit struggles to assert his peer status with Chakradhar.71 Sarang Pandit will follow Chakradhar throughout the Līḷācaritra, appearing at times to be his admirer and worshipper, at others as a skeptic and potential enemy.

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