Dhoyi

Dhoyi (12th century) sanskrit poet and one of the five talents of Laksmanasena's royal court, the other four being jaydev, sharan, umapatidhara and govardhan acharya. Dhoyi was born in Navadwip. He has been variously described as being a brahman, a physician, and a weaver. His poem Pavanaduta is believed to be the oldest of Bangla 'emissary' poems. Written in mandakranta rhyme, it has104 couplets. In couplet 101, the poet mentions Laksmanasena, the King of gauda, as his patron. The poem narrates the tale of a Gandharva maiden who falls in love with Laksmanasena when he is leading an expedition to South India. The forlorn maiden makes the wind her emissary to carry her messages of love to the king.

The poem contains a description of laksmanasena as well of the land and rivers of different parts of India. There is a magnificent description of Vijaypur, the capital of Gauda in the poem. In describing the route taken by the wind, the poet mentions the names of several places including Pandyadesh, Uragpur, Setuvandha, Kanchipur, Chol, Keral, Andhra, Kaling, Suhma as well as of rivers such as Tamraparni, Suvala, Kaveri, Godavari, Reva, Narmada, Ganges, Jamuna. The poet mentions the names of the Bhil and Shavar castes.

The poet was influenced by kalidasa's Meghaduta. However, unlike Meghaduta, there are no canto divisions in Pavanaduta. In recognition of Dhoyi's poetic genius, Jaydev referred to him as 'Kaviksmapati' (king of poets) and 'Shrutidhara'. Besides Pavanaduta, a number of poems composed by Dhoyi are included in various poetry anthologies such as saduktikarnamrita, Subhasitamuktavali, Sharbgadharapaddhati. [Kanailal Ray]