The Buffalo Century: V?che[vara D+kcitas Mahica[atakam: A Political Satire for [Paperback]

The Buffalo Century is a keen exploration of satire and its role in society and politics. Written in praise of a buffalo, V
?che[vara D+kcitas Mahica[atakam is timeless in its treatment of power, and its subversion. In resurrecting eighteenth-century Tanjore for the modern reader, Kesavan Veluthat lifts the poem beyond its immediate literary context and situates it in a contemporary global political setting.

Presenting a modern English translation along with the Sanskrit text, this work provides a fare that is as rich in double entendre as it is in its onomatopoeic metaphors. A literary triumph and the voice of an age, this book will be a key text for students and scholars of history, political science, sociology, literature, especially Sanskrit and comparative, and cultural studies.

Preface

Introduction: laughter in the time of misery 

Mahica[atakam: text and translation

Appendix 1

Appendix 2 Zlec
rthacandrik
, a commentary

This book presents a critical analysis and English translation of the Sanskrit epic, the Mahica[ataka, A Hundred Verses in Praise of a Buffalo. It was one of the first text on political satire, which heavily criticises the king, the bureaucracy, the nobility and society.

Kesavan Veluthat is Director of the Institute for the Study of the Heritage of Coastal Kerala. He was educated in Calicut and New Delhi. He taught history in different Indian universities including Calicut, Mangalore and Delhi, and he has been a visiting professor in many Indian and foreign universities. His publications include Brahman Settlements in Kerala, The Political Structure of Early Medieval South India, The Earllˆ