The Date of Krtyaratnakara

The Date of Krtyaratnakara, a rare Dharmasastra work by Mudikara Siri, is preserved in a Government manuscript at the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute in Poona, the only known copy recorded in Catalogus Catalogorum. The text begins with verses detailing Mudikara's lineage and credentials. He was the son of Gopana Tripachi and Muktassi, with his father serving as a priest (purohit) under King Virasimha of the Baghel dynasty. Mudikara belonged to the Vasistha gotra and held the surname Tripathi. King Virasimha, who reigned from approximately 1500-1540 CE, patronized Mudikara's father, suggesting the author likely composed the work between 1500 and 1540. Further evidence from the manuscript's fol. 387b, dated Samvat 1617 (1561 CE), indicates the copy was made later, supporting the conclusion that Mudikara lived before 1561. Scholars like Prof. A.V. Kane initially placed the work before 1700 CE, but this revised dating narrows the timeline significantly. The manuscript's provenance and internal evidence collectively establish Mudikara's activity within the early 16th century, aligning with the reign of Virasimha and the Vaghela dynasty's patronage of Sanskrit scholars.

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