Bilhana

Who is Bilhana?

Kavi Bilhana was an 11th-century Kashmiri poet. He is known for his love poem, the Caurapañcāśikā.

According to legend, the Brahman Bilhana fell in love with the daughter of King Madanabhirama, Princess Yaminipurnatilaka, and had a secretive love affair. They were discovered, and Bilhana was thrown into prison. While awaiting judgement, he wrote the Caurapâñcâśikâ, a fifty-stanza love poem, not knowing whether he would be sent into exile or die on the gallows. It is unknown what fate Bilhana encountered. Nevertheless, his poem was transmitted orally around India. There are several versions, including ones from South India which had a happy ending; the Kashmiri version does not specify what the outcome was. The Caurapâñcâśikâ was first translated into a European language, French, in 1848. Subsequently it was translated several other times. Notable translations are those of Sir Edwin Arnold and Edward Powys Mathers titled Black Marigolds. This latter version was quoted extensively by John Steinbeck in Cannery Row.

Bilhana is also known for writing a eulogy of the Western Chalukyan king Vikramaditya VI titled Vikramankadevacharita.