Cosmic pūjā. Śivabhakti in Śrīkaṇṭhacarita V

The Śrīkaṇṭhacarita by Maṅkha (XII CE) can be considered as one of the last mahākāvya composed in a Hindu context in Kashmir – the reign of Jayasiṃha (1128-1155) – before the Muslim Sultanate. The author states from the very beginning that his mahākāvya is aimed at celebrating not his patron Jayasiṃha, but “that king whose court is Mount Kailāsa”, namely Śiva (ŚKC I 56). This and other loci have led the scholars to discuss about the metamorphosis of the kavi’s rolewithin the court entourage and his ideological conflict with the king. So far, such observations have not considered the subject of the praśasti itself, Śiva, whose connection with the poet may be demonstrated by conclusive textual evidence: whilst the whole work is pervaded by the poet’s bhakti, it is in the v sarga, the bhagavadvarṇana, “description of the Lord”, that Maṅkha displays entirely his full devotion. Throughout this section, in fact, the veneration for Śiva assumes the features of a macrocosmic ritual: not only the human devotee, but also Indra, Viṣṇu, Brahmā, and all the Hindu pantheon identify the god as deus optimus maximus. Maṅkha combines thereby elements of a daily pūjā with ritual actions of celestial devotees, creating the new image of a divine ceremony: what else is the devadeva worth of, if not of an everlasting supreme offer, the one made by the gods?