History of Dharmashastra (Ancient and Mediaeval Religious and Civil Law in India) v2.c24.s1.435

v2.c24.s1.435

There is a famous historical example of the application of these rules. Gāgābhaṭṭa, a profound scholar of Benares, officiated at the coronation of Shivaji, the founder of the Maratha Empire, in 1674 and performed the upanayana of Shivaji before the coronation, when Shivaji was about 45 years old and had even two sons. Some eminent scholars like the late Mr. Justice Telang⁹²³ have found fault with Gāgābhaṭṭa and the other brāhmaṇas of that time; but these scholars are wrong and Gāgābhaṭṭa had behind him weighty and ancient authorities like Āp., Pāraskara, Viśvarūpa and Haradatta as shown above.