A History of Sanskrit Literature c12.s2.1

c12.s2.1

Bhaṭṭi, the author of the *Rāvaṇavadha*,¹ more usually simply styled *Bhaṭṭikāvya*, tells us that he wrote in Valabhī under Çrīdharasena. But four kings of this name are known, the last of whom died in A. D. 641, so that we remain with nothing more secure than that as a *terminus ad quem*. The suggestion² that he is to be identified with Vatsabhaṭṭi of the Mandasor inscription lacks all plausibility, if only for the reason that Vatsabhaṭṭi commits errors in grammar. The name Bhaṭṭi is Prākritized from Bhartṛ, and it is not surprising that in tradition he has been either identified with Bhartṛhari or made a son or half-brother of that famed poet. There is, however, nothing but the name to support the suggestion. We know, however, that he was imitated by Māgha, and it is a perfectly legitimate suggestion that his work gave Māgha the impetus to show his skill in grammar to the extent that he does. More important still is the plain fact that he was known to Bhāmaha. In ending his poem he boasts that it needs a comment: