Studies in the History of Sanskrit Poetics v1.c22.3

v1.c22.3

Bhaṭṭa Tauta, together with Bhaṭṭendu-rāja, who is extravagantly praised in the *Locana* and whose relation to Abhinava we have already discussed, were probably his preceptors in Kāvya and Alaṃkāra. His references to his instructors in philosophy, like Sidhicela², Lakṣmaṇagupta and others, in his philosophical works possess no interest for us; but it may be noted that Abhinava, in his *Pratyabhijñā-vimarśinī* *laghu-vṛtti*, refers to Utpala as his *parama-guru*, the teacher of his teacher. This description of Utpala is repeated in his *Locana* (p. 30), where Abhinava discusses the term *pratyabhijñā*, used in the text (i 8), and refers to what is said on this point by Utpala. This Utpala is well known in the history of Kashmir Śaivaism as the author of the *Īśvara-pratyabhijñā* (on whose *sūtra* and *Vṛtti*, Abhinava wrote a *laghuvṛtti* and a *bṛhatī vṛtti* respectively) and is assigned by Bühler (*op. cit.* p. 79) to the first half of the 10th century. From what Abhinava himself says in his numerous works of Kashmir Śaivaism, we may indicate the line of spiritual succession (*guru-paramparā*) thus: Somānanda→Utpala→ Lakṣmaṇagupta→Abhinavagupta ; Somānanda being probably a pupil of Vasugupta who is taken as the earliest founder of the Pratyabhijñā-śāstra.