282 Gaurdas Bysack — Presentation of " Gita Govinda." [Nov. 



The Philological Secretary read the following letter from Babii 

 Gaurdas Bysack, announcing the presentation to the Society of a copy 

 of Giridhara's translation of the " Gita Govinda." 



" In forwarding a copy of Giridhara's metrical translation of Jaya- 

 deva's immortal lyric the " Gita-Govinda ", which the editor Babii 

 Shamlal Bysack has handed me for presentation to the Asiatic Society, 

 I think the fact that the translation was made by Giridhara so long ago 

 as in the Bengali Sakabda 1658 (A. D. 1736) should be noticed. It 

 did not appear before the public till the editor Babu Shamlal published 

 it only the other day with copious notes and a sketch of Jayadeva's life. 



" The translation appears to be as literal as the language would 

 allow, and what is noteworthy in it is that the metre and the music of 

 the original Sanscrit idyll have beeu thoroughly preserved. Giridhara 

 appears to have had the true poetic genius, and he can fairly claim to 

 stand side by side with the best lyric poets of Bengal, such as Chandi- 

 dasa, Viclyapati and Govindadasa. The best living writers of the 

 Bengali language consider his translation by far superior to all existing 

 translations. It is truly a literary gem. But the wonder is that the 

 name of the poet Giridhara should have remained unknown so long to the 

 literary world. Who this Giridhara was, it is now difficult to trace. 

 The poet's last lines shew that he made the translation at the desire of 

 a Vaishnava, by which he means, though he does not say as much, that 

 as he himself was a Vaishnava, so was his patron. 



" The fact of the manuscript having hitherto been in the possession 

 of a single family, favours the supposition that a scion of that family had 

 had a hand in the production of the work. Seeing Giridhara gifted 

 with a poetic talent, he utilised him in effecting the translation. 



" As a rule, wealthy Hindus of the olden days considered it their 

 duty, and found special delight to encourage learned men, whether 

 Brahmins or Vaishnavas, and among them many a poet and many a 

 philosopher who have passed away unknown to fame, found support 

 and patronage. The practice with the old patriarchs, specially of Vaish- 

 nava families, to make their moiming prayers in hymns and songs 

 might have led to the Bengali translation. Jayadeva's sougs being 

 popular, it is probable that Bibu Bharat Chandra Bysack, an ancestor 

 of the editor by the maternal side who was known in his family as a 

 learned and pious man, desired Giridhara to translate them into Bengali 

 so that they might be set to music and sung by him in his own tongue. 



" The editor and publisher Babii Shamlal deserves the thanks of the 

 public for having unearthed the poet after the lapse of a century and 

 half." 



