Overview
Siddhānta-Ratna – Praṇetā Śrīyukta Upendra-mohana Gosvāmī Nivāsa Khaḍadara (Siddhānta-Ratna – Written by Śrīyukta Upendra-mohana Gosvāmī of Khaḍadara) was published in Sajjana Toṣaṇī, Vol.1 in 1881. In this book review, Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura praises the author of a new book on philosophy, but bemoans the fact that the style of his language is unreadable to most people.
(translated by Swami B.V. Giri)
We have received two volumes of the book Siddhānta-Ratna from the author. By reading theses books, we have come to know of the inexhaustible wisdom of Gosvāmī Prabhu. All the subjects of this book have been collected from such books as Śrī Jīva Gosvāmī’s Ṣaṭ-Sandarbha and Sarva-Samvādinī. Māyā, dharma, the jīvā, and discussions on the different doctrines such as Dvaita and Advaita can be found in various places in this book. Since Gosvāmī Prabhu himself is a scholar and expert in śāstra, his readers may not be able to understand his book if they are not like that. This is very sad. The book is not written in simple Bengali. The topics are divided without this consideration. It is not written in such a way that people can easily understand. Nowadays, if a book is written in the Bengali of Rammohun Roy, it becomes unreadable. People cannot understand anything. No matter how much scholarship is there in the book, it will not be uncovered.
By this, we are not saying that now and in the future Bengali books should all be written in an English style of Bengali. We have seen some Bengali books which are only written in English style. This is also harmful to Bengali. Our opinion is that Bengali books should be written in Bengali – not in semi-Sanskrit or in English style. The method by which the great scholar Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar Mahāśaya has written all his Bengali books is the correct Bengali method. These Bengali books needs to be written in that manner.
If Gosvāmī Prabhu kindly writes a book in a simple language summarising the Ṣaṭ-Sandarbha of Jīva Gosvāmī then the people of Bengal, especially all the Gauḍīya-Vaiṣṇavas, will always be indebted to him. It is our hope that the great scholar Gosvāmī Prabhu will be merciful to us and will soon produce such a great book and present that to the world. Life does not last long. Books bestow immortal titles on all their authors, therefore learned Vaiṣṇava scholars should not cease writing such works.
(‘Siddhānta-Ratna – Praṇetā Śrīyukta Upendra-mohana Gosvāmī Nivāsa Khaḍadara -‘Siddhānta-Ratna’ – Written by Śrīyukta Upendra-mohana Gosvāmī of Khaḍadara – was published in Sajjana Toṣaṇī, Vol.1 in 1881, and translated into English by Swami B.V. Giri)
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