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Kalhana's Rjatarangin: A Gender Perspective1

Department of History, University of Delhi, Delhi

This is a study of the treatment of gender in the Rjataragin, a twelfth century chronicle of Kashmir by the poet Kalhana. The significance of this text, not just as an exemplar of the Indian historical chronicle tradition, but, more importantly, as an indicator of gender norms and notions in early medieval Kashmir is stressed. The article shows that Kalhana treats women as historically relevant figures, revealing their power and presence in the royal court culture and in the non- royal milieu. To this end, he adopts a deliberately ambiguous attitude towards women in his work whereby he repeatedly juxtaposes accounts of their influence with stereotyped comments on them. The article also stresses the indifference displayed towards the gendered aspects of the Rjataragin in most studies on it, thereby rendering a crucial feature of the text invisible.

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