Mandaramanjari of Visvesvara Pandey (An Old and Rare Book)

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Mandaramanjari is a prose Romance planned at par with the muse of Bana represented by Kadambari in particular pays. According to Dr. V.V. Bhatta, Mandaramanjari like Kadambari deals with the two Romances of Puspupura. King Citrabhanu, son of Rajagekhara and Malaykavati and Mandaramanjari on the one hand and of the Demon Manasaketu and Madayantika like Bana's Candrapida and Kadambari, Vaigampayana and Mahagveta, like Dhanapala's Tilakamarijari also it may be compared to have two romances as it does of Harivahana, the Ayodhya prince and Tilakamarijari and of Samaraketu of Sirhhala dvipa and Malayasundari of Kanci. The entire Romance of Mandaramanjari displays the pots knowledge of philosophy and Puranas replete as it is with recondite vocabulary and some uncommon usages needing the consultation of dictionaries and lexicons. The author cf this work, Vigvegvara PandIta or Pandeya was a prolific writer and he probably lived in the 18th century. His nat, ve place was Pagya, a village near Almora in U.P. The present edition is the first ever English Translation with original text (and with various annotations) of the prose Mandaramanjari.

Mandaramanjari of Vigvegvara Pandeya, author of Aryasaptagati and many other works on Alarikaragastra is only in Purvabhaga, the Uttarabhaga said to have been written by his son not traceable, having a Sanskrit Commentary entitled "Kusuma" a comprehensive tIka helpful in interpreting many an obscure allusions Puuranika as well as Darganika by one Tara Datta Pandita, a teacher of Ranavira Sanskrit Pathagala, Banaras Hindu University. It has been edited by Gopal Datta Pandeya Shastri and has been published by Parvatiya Pustaka Prakashan Mandal 23/58 Dudha Vinayalca, Varanasi, in 1939.

The translation has been done with the help of Kusumatika aided by Laxicons such as Amarakoga Abhidhanacintamani of Hemacandra and Medinikoga of Medinikara with Sanskrit English Dictionaries V.S. Apte and Monier Williams playing a characteristic role. The Pauranika Koga by Ramaprasad Sharma published by Ramat:Idala Limited, Varanasi 221001, second edition 1986 has also been consulted for Pauranika allusions with Purana Visayanukramanika by Yashapala Tandon published by V.V.R.I. Hoshiarpur V.I. senes 3, 1952 also acting as an aid book.

I am extremely grateful to Sh. K. L. Joshi, Proprietor, Parimal Publications Delhi-110007, for having offered to publish the work.