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Draft:P. K. Narayana Pillai (born 1910)

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File:Appupan WikiPhoto.jpg
P.K. Narayana Pillai in regalia

P.K Narayana Pillai was a scholar and poet of Sanskrit and Malayalam literature.[1][2] He is noted for his two Sanskrit mahakavyas (epics), Vishvabhānu[3] and Dharmasāgara, on the lives of Swami Vivekananda and Sri Ramakrishna, respectively.[4] Vishvabhānu was the recipient of the 1982 Sanskrit Sahitya Akademi award.[5] He also translated the Mayūrasandesam of Kerala Varma Valiya Koil Thamburam.[6] He also authored many other scholarly monographs, including the Malayalam devotional poet, Ezhuttachan and the classical Sanskrit poet, Kālidāsa.[7]

He was born in Tiruvalla, Kerala on 25th December 1910 to Sri T. Goda Varma of Paliyakkara Palace and Smt. Lakshmi Amma.[8] In 1940, he was married to Smt. J. Kamalamma, daughter of the Dewan Peshkar, Sri N.S. Raman Pillai and Smt. Janaki Amma. He had three daughters, Jayashree, Manjushree, and Rajashree.[9]

He received his M.A. in Sanskrit in 1935 and his M.A. in Malayalam in 1936 from University of Madras.[10] He received his Ph.D. in Sanskrit in 1944 from the University of Mumbai.[11] Sanskrit scholars, V.M. Apte and V.S. Sukthankar, were his guides.[12] His thesis focused on non-Rgvedic mantras in marriage ceremonies.[13]

He was Curator of the Oriental Research Institute and Manuscripts Library[14] (then the Manuscripts Library of Thiruvananthapuram), one of the largest manuscripts collections and leading centers of Indology in India, which holds substantial collections of extant palm-leaf manuscripts of ancient Sanskrit and Malayalam literature.[15] He was appointed Professor and Head of the Department of Sanskrit[16] in the University College, Thiruvananthapuram in 1952. In 1956 he established the Mahakavi Ulloor Memorial Library in honor of the famed Malayalam poet, Ulloor S. Parameswara Iyer in Jagathy, Thiruvananthapuram.[17] In 1957, he was appointed Principal of the Government Sanskrit College. In 1963, he was appointed Professor and Head of the newly created Malayalam Department of the University of Kerala, establishing its foundations. He was also Dean of the Faculty of Oriental Studies.[18] In the culminating decades of his life, he sought to establish a Sanskrit University in Kerala, serving as the One-Man Commission for Sanskrit University from 1971-72 and Special Officer for the Sanskrit University at Kalady, Kerala from 1985-87 under the Government of Kerala.[19] Due in large part to his efforts, the Sree Sankaracharya University of Sanskrit in Kalady (the birthplace of The Hindu sage and exponent of the Advaita tradition in Vedanta, Adi Shankaracharya) was established in 1993.[20]

Pillai passed away on March 20, 1990 preceded by his wife's death in September 1989.[21]

References

  1. ^ Subramonia Iyer, S. Sanskrit Dramas. India: Sundeep Prakashan, 1984.
  2. ^ Nampoothiri, Easwaran. Sanskrit Literature of Kerala. Trivandrum: Nindi Punj, 1972.
  3. ^ "The author of this poem is my esteemed friend Dr. P.K. Narayana Pillai who is a reputed teacher of Oriental languages with high University qualifications and distinctions. He is well known in the world of scholars as the author, editor, and publisher of many books of a high standard." Swami Vimalananda, "Introduction: English Version of the Sanskrit Avatarinika." The Universal Light. Sri Ramakrishna Ashrama, 2022. Reprint. See also Raja, K. Kunjunni. “Sanskrit: Continuing Inspiration.” Indian Literature 23, no. 6 (1980): 130–34. http://www.jstor.org/stable/23330267. p. 131
  4. ^ Swami Tapsyananda, "Introduction." Dharmasāgarah: The Spiritual Sea: A Poem on Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa in Sanskrit with English Translation. P.K. Narayana Pilla. Trivandrum: St. Joseph's Press, 1990.
  5. ^ Raja K. Kunjunni. “The Sanskrit Scene: A Broad Spectrum.” Indian Literature 28, no. 6 (110) (1985): 138–43. http://www.jstor.org/stable/24158216. p. 142.
  6. ^ "Mayuraduta by Dr. P.K. Narayana Pillai of Kerala, whose Mahakavya Visvabhanu on the life and teachings of Swami Vivekananda received the Sahitya Akademi Award two years ago, is a translation from the Malyalam Mayurasandesam of Kerala Varma Valia Koil Tampuran (1893). Raja K. Kunjunni, “The Sanskrit Scene: A Broad Spectrum.” Indian Literature, vol. 28, no. 6 (110), 1985, pp. 138–43. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/24158216. Accessed 18 Mar. 2024. p. 142.
  7. ^ Chunder, P.C. "Foreword." The Universal Light. Trivandrum: V.V. Research Institute Press, 1990. p. 11-12; Nair, Ramachandran. "About the Author." P.K. Narayana Pillai. The Universal Light. Sri Ramakrishna Ashrama, 2022. p. 18.
  8. ^ Nair, Ramachandran. "About the Author." P.K. Narayana Pillai. The Universal Light. Sri Ramakrishna Ashrama, 2022. p. 19.
  9. ^ Nair, Ramachandran. "About the Author." P.K. Narayana Pillai. The Universal Light. Sri Ramakrishna Ashrama, 2022. p. 20
  10. ^ Nair, p. 19.
  11. ^ Nair, p. 19. ibid.
  12. ^ Pillai, P.K. Narayana (2022). Vishvabhānu [The Universal Light] (2nd ed.). Thiruvananthapuram: Sri Ramakrishna Ashrama. p. 20.
  13. ^ See Raghavan, V. “Sanskrit Literature.” Indian Literature 3, no. 1 (1959): 95–99. http://www.jstor.org/stable/23333648. "In the field of critical research studies and monographs on Sanskrit subjects as well as editions of Sanskrit texts, individual scholars produced some works which should be mentioned: P.K. Narayana Pillai, Trivandrum, published a thesis on Non-Rgvedic Mantras in Marriage Ceremonies."
  14. ^ "ORIMSS – Oriental Research Institute and Manuscripts Library". 2023-01-17. Retrieved 2024-03-17.
  15. ^ Vijayan, K. Rāmāyaṇa in Palm Leaf Pictures = Citrarāmāyaṇa. Trivendrum: Oriental Research Institute & Manuscripts Library, 1997.
  16. ^ "Department of Sanskrit – University College, Thiruvananthapuram". Retrieved 2024-03-17.
  17. ^ Handbook on Cultural Institutions in Kerala. ed. Babu John. India, Department of Culture, Government of Kerala, 2009. p. 46
  18. ^ Nair, p. 21
  19. ^ Nair, p. 23
  20. ^ Nair, p. 23
  21. ^ Nair, p. 22
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