द्वितीय राजतरङ्गिणी (जोनराज - कल्हणोत्तर मध्यकालीन कश्मीर का प्रामाणिक इतिहास)

2 KINGS OF KASHMÍRA.
ing kings that no one since then has revived the suc-
ceeding kings by the nectar like words of a poet. Now
the spotless king ShriJainollābhadena reigns, and
Jonarāja is ready to describe the royal line. As a
tree which promiseth fruits is planted to remove the
wants of the traveller, so is this poem composed to re-
move the grief of kings lest their glory be forgotten.
And as the tree is grown by water, and without any
artificial heat, so should this poem be carefully cher-
ished by the good with the cool nectar of mildness.
These past kings were sunk in the sea of oblivion, and
ShriJainollābhadena wished, out of a tender regard,
to rescue them. He employed for the purpose the
noble hearted ShriShiryyabhaṭṭa, chief of all the
courts of justice. I received orders from him, and I
have now ventured to complete the story of the kingly
line. My attempt is not dictated by a desire to obtain
the fame of a poet ; for, vast is the difference between
my words, poor and meagre as water in dried ginger,
and the flowing waves of poesy. Can a reed, imitat-
ing only the shadow of a lotus, equal the lotus ? My
poor sense is like a gourd, hollow and light, and relying
on it, alas ! I am attempting to cross the river of the
story of kings. My feebleness in describing the merits
of kings should not be blamed, for do not women,
devoid of beauty, walk in pride when bedecked with
jewellery ? My subject, worthy of a poet, sustains and
purifies me, even as the water of the Ganges, though it