History of Orissa from the Earliest Times to the British Period v1.c30.28

v1.c30.28

The religion of equality and love preached by Chaitanya brought in its train a false faith in men and thereby destroyed the structure of society and government in Bengal and Orissa, because, in reality, no two men are born equal and government depends upon brute force specially in a country like India in the 14th, 15th, and 16th centuries A. D. A wave of religious fervour passed over the country, and during this reformation Orissa not only lost her empire but also her political prestige. The effect of Vaishṇavism on the society and government of Orissa was far more destructive than in Bengal, because in the latter country militant Saktism was not destroyed totally and the effect of Neo-Vaishṇavism was beneficent to the extent of bringing within the pale of society a number of decadent Buddhists who had been outcasted by orthodox Brahmanism. In Orissa, on account of its acceptance by royalty, Neo-Vaishṇavism became fashionable, and powerful officers of Pratāparudra, like Rāmānanda Rāya, the governor of Rājamahendrī before its final loss and Gopīnātha Baṛajenā, that of the Maljyāthā Daṇḍapāṭa or Medinipur, were the most notable converts after the king himself. The result was corrosive, though Tāranātha, the Buddhist historiographer, has recorded that some form of Buddhism lingered in Orissa till the end of the 16th century, gradually stamping out all other sects of Hinduism from the country.