-] BENGALI LANGUAGE & LITEKATURE. 563 ‘the 16th century. . The learned compiler affixed nskrit annotations to the Bengali fadas in his lection thereby showing great scholarship. The inotations are named as the Mahabbavanusari- ka. There are many smaller collections some ‘which enjoy great popularity, such as Padakalpa- tika by Goura Mohana Das, Gita Chintamani, by [ari Vallabha, Gita Chandrodaya by Narahari hakravarti, Pada Chintamanimala by Prasada Das, asainanjari by Pitamvara Das, Lila Samudra, adarnavasaravali, Gita Kalpalatika and other orks by unknown compilers. But we have not yet named the collection which the best of them all, and deservedly enjoyes the reatest popularity. It is Padakalpataru by Vais- iva Das. Vaisnava Das, lit. servant of the alsnavas, is the title which the compiler adopted 1 token of humility. His name was Gakulananda en aud he was a Vaidya by caste. He was an habitant of Teha Vaidyapura in the district of urdwan and he compiled his work early in the 8th century. It would be difficult to recover Padasamudra hich is by far the greatest collection of the Vais- ava songs. Of the rest Padamritasamudra by adha Mohon Thakur is a much smaller collection man Padakalpataru; but the compiler has inserted it more than 400 fpadas composed by himself hice is too large a number to find place in the ollection if we consider their poetic excellence. n the larger collection by Vaishava Das we find nly 27 padas of his own and these he was bound © insert as preliminary padas in honour of the Smaller collections. 1১215911927 taru. Its relative merit,
