In Sri Jaya Devanka Baisi Pahacha, the first ever authentic attempt to free Sri Jaya Dev from concocted legends and to put him on perspective of history, Sri Pattanayak has translated his Astapadi love lyrics in matchless poetic forms in Oriya.
Sri Jaya Devanka Baisi Pahacha
Sri Jaya Dev had not authored Sri Gitagovinda; he had composed the astapadee lyrics only. The 12th Century poet of Orissa was not a Baishnav as he is being propagated; he was a follower and proponent of Sahajajana sect of Buddhism. He had authored his love lyrics to provide a supportive literature to this cult which was essential in his time to check spread of Brahminic apartheid in his land, that is Orissa.
His lyrics were banned from the temple of Lord Jagannath by Emperor Purushottamdev, but the said emperor was compelled after a short spell of time by the people of Orissa to withdraw his own order and to restore reading of the lyrics before the Lord. His son and successor Emperor Prataprudradev had to promulgate an ordinance to the effect that no other poem, but Sri Jaya Dev's, can ever be recited in the temple. Unable to write off Sri Jaya Dev's Buddhist impacts, Brahminism in Orissa has interpolated 72 verses on the poet's original works and given it a misleading title called Gita Govinda, editing the same in a style to usurp him for Brahminic Vaishnavism. Without knowing the truth on Jaya Dev, the Bengalis have joined the bandwagon of claiming him for Vaishnavism as well as for their homeland. In the process, the immortal love lyricist has been buried under baseless legends.
