Bhattoji Dikshita was a 17th-century Maharashtrian Sanskrit grammarian, author of the, literally "Illumination of the established (position)". He was active in a revival of the grammatical methods of Pāṇini, in his work arranging Pāṇini's sutras with a commentary for teaching purposes. It has been described as "an encyclopedia of the opinions and views of the great Sanskrit grammarians of antiquity" (Suryakant Bali). The work was edited in three abridged versions by his student Varadarāja. He belonged to the Deshastha Brahmin Community.

Early life and education

Bhattoji was born into a Brahmin family from the southern part of India, possibly from Maharashtra or Andhra Pradesh. Bhattoji settled in Varanasi before 1600 C.E. Varanasi, a major hub for Sanskrit learning, provided Bhattoji the opportunity to master and contribute to the tradition of Pāṇinian grammar. In Varanasi, Bhattoji and his family received financial support from local rulers belonging to the Keladi royal family, Venkatappa Nayaka I and Virabhadra of the Ikkeri Kingdom, which allowed Bhattoji to focus on scholarly pursuits. Bhattoji learned from distinguished scholars, notably Shesha Krishna (Śeṣa Kṛṣṇa). Shesha Krishna was a grammarian known for his commentray on Ramachandra's Prakriyakaumudi called Prakasha (Prakāśa).

Notable works

Bhattoji's contributions to Sanskrit grammar are seen in his works:

Siddhānta Kaumudī

Siddhānta Kaumudī is a celebrated Sanskrit treatise by Bhaṭṭoji Dīkṣita (early 17th century) on the Aṣṭādhyāyī and is believed to be more popular than Pāṇini's work. It re-arranges the sūtras of Pāṇini under appropriate heads and offers exposition that is orderly and easy to follow. The sutras are arranged in two parts – the first part deals with the rules of interpretation, sandhis, declensions, formation of feminines, case endings, compounds, secondary derivations and the second part with conjugation, primary suffixes, Vedic grammar and accents.

Commentaries on Siddhānta Kaumudī

Bālamanoramā

Bālamanoramā of Vāsudeva Dīkṣita's is one of the most celebrated commentary on Siddhanta Kaumudi. He goes into great detail explaining derivations and is thereby most useful to beginners (bāla, lit. "child").

Prauḍhamanoramā

Prauḍhamanoramā is an auto-commentary on Siddhānta Kaumudī by Bhaṭṭoji Dīkṣita. Both the Siddhānta Kaumudī and Prauḍhamanoramā are commented on by many others also.

Tattva Bodhinī

Tattva Bodhinī by Jñānendra Sarasvatī is a terser, more scholarly and demanding commentary, essentially a distillation of the Prauḍhamanoramā.

Laghuśabdenduśekhara

Shabda Kaustubha

Editions: