A Vijayanagara Princess and The Sack of Madurai

BANGALORE, India - April 4, 2013 - PRLog -- Bangalore  – Rasala today releases its second book, The Conquest of Madhura, a rare Sanskrit poem written by a 14th century princess of the Vijayanagara Empire, Gangadevi.  The Bangalore-based Rasala publishes India’s most beautiful forgotten poems alongside contemporary English translations,  

The Conquest of Madhura: Gangadevi’s Madhura Vijaya  allows readers to sample selections from a poem whose historical importance is matched only by its literary qualities – the editors who rediscovered it, in 1916, noted that it was so good that some scholars couldn't believe it had been written by a woman. The poem celebrates the victory of the poetess' husband, Kampa or Kamparaya, over the Persian-ruled Madurai.  In addition to battle scenes awash with blood, gore and plenty of poetical fancy, the poem describes how Kampa passes the time between wars with his bevy of beautiful wives. The Rasāla edition comprises about 200 of the original Sanskrit verses alongside a new English translation.  

The print book is available from major eRetailers including Flipkart; it is also available directly from the Rasala website at a 20% discount.  Readers who buy the print book before 1st June 2013 are being offered a free copy of the eBook, which includes audio versions of several verses.  

Title: The Conquest of Madhura: Gangadevi’s Madhura Vijaya
Translators:: Shankar Rajaraman and Venetia Kotamraju
Publisher: Rasala
ISBN:: 978-81-924112-2-4 (eBook:  978-81-924112-3-1)
Price:  Rs.250  (India); £7.50 (rest of the world)

About Rasala
Rasala publishes India’s most beautiful forgotten poems in translation.  These elegant volumes of Sanskrit poetry, accompanied by contemporary English translations, allow the general reader to enjoy ancient India as imagined by her poets.

For more details, please visit www.rasalabooks.com

Press Contact
Venetia Kotamraju – Founder, Rasala
venetia@rasalabooks.com | +91 997230 5440