64 Birds in Sanskrit Literature It occurs from Mussoorie to Assam. than any except the next two. (Sk. केशराज, केश्य ) after It is locally known as केसराज and केसिया the hairs on the head. Its name in Telugu, Yentiká passålå poligadu, also means the 'Haired Cattle-Tom-bird' (Jerdon). Its second Nepali name, जोबराज (Sk. युवराज ) seems to be complimentary in recognition of its vocal powers as next to those of y, the Large Racket-tailed Drongo. 6. The Indian Lesser Racket-tailed Drongo (26"): Black glossed with blue-green; under wing-coverts and axillaries with small white tips. Has no crest but the feathers of the forehead form a curious flat pad over the base and covering the greater part of the beak. This gives the bird an unfavourable aspect as compared with the smart bright look of the next. The lateral pair of tail-feathers run up to 21 inches of which the middle 12 inches is bare shaft and the terminal 4 to 5 inches is equally webbed on both sides. It is distributed over Northern India from Eastern Nepal to East Assam and is a bird of the forest. It has many and most varied notes, very full and melodious, and is an excellent mimic though not so good as the next. It is known as a (the fearful king of the Drongos; Lut more probably a corruption of भृङ्गराज). 7. The Assam Large Racket-tailed Drongo (26"): Is a denizen of the outer Himalayas from Nepal to Assam and the forests of Madhya Pradesh and South India. The whole plumage is black glossed with blue, the under wing-coverts and axillaries frequently tipped white. It wears a full, erect, and beautiful crest of long plumes, up to two inches, on the forehead, curv- ing backwards, each feather resembling a bow, curved sword or sickle. The outer pair of tail-feathers ineasure up to twenty inches of which the middle eleven or twelve inches is bare shaft and the terminal four inches is very narrowly webbed on the inner but broadly on the outer side and the broader web is twisted upwards. The two tail feathers, therefore, with a long shaft. It has been very properly named Black Drongo family) in Sanskrit and Hindi in recognition some appearance and musical talents. The terms, भिंग (कृष्ण, black), भिंगार and भिगारक in Prakrit and fभकार in Pali as names for aferfri (a particular bird) may belong to members of the Drongo family or to this bird (Sk. भृङ्गार, or भृङ्गराज). A few extracts from certain Sanskrit lexicons pertaining to these birds as also from others that give different meanings (and) of the same words are given below: (i) कलिङ्गः भृङ्गः धूम्याट: -अमरकोश, अभिधानचिन्तामणि भृङ्गः कलिङ्गः धूम्राटः (? धूम्याट) राजभृङ्गस्तु बुद्धिमान् वैजयन्तीकोश. गोप्रेरको भृङ्गराजो द्विपुच्छाग्रो वनप्रियः mble an axc. (King of the of its hand- 1. The harsh cry of Bhrigaraja is described as fire, and its softer notes as भिंगारक दीण कंदिय रवमु, in पाइय सद्द मरण्णवो... भिंग and भिगारक कुणालजातक, P.T.S. ed., vol. 3. p. 416. Drongos 65 सुचूडशीपों वाचालः सत्यवाक् स्याद् अथापर: भृङ्गः कलिङ्गो धूम्याटोऽपि-कल्पद्रुकोश. (ii) भृङ्गराजो मधुकरे (bee) मार्कवे (plant) विहगान्तरे --हेमचन्द्र, विश्वप्रकाश कलिङ्गो पूतीकर (plant) धूम्याटे (bird ) हेमचन्द्र. भृङ्गराजो भृङ्गरजो मार्कब: (plant) केशरञ्जनः (plant) – अभिधान चिन्ता ०. कलिकारः करजे स्याद् धूम्याटे पीतमस्तके विश्वप्रकाश. We may now refer to the great compliment paid to the Large Racket- tail in the litany of the Horse-sacrifice in VS. and TS. It is dedicated to Brhaspati, the singer (RV 10.36.5), in VS. 24.34 (brhaspataye vacaspataye paingarajah), and to Vák, goddess of speech, in TS. 5.5.13 (vace painga- rajah). The name Paingarája is probably derived from root fa, fra to sound, and thence fr and 4 (?) in Prakrit for Bhrngaraja.² Again, in TS. 5.5.17, शिल्पुट is allotted to Brhaspati (बृहस्पतये शिल्पुटः), and शिल्पुट, according to this a synonym for e, a bee (), and M. Williams also renders it as a 'large black bee', so that it is difficult to say whether forege of TS. stands for the large buzzing bee, or one of the sweet voiced Drongos, but cf. Marathi wge, a tail. The merits of the softer notes of the Black Drongo and the many musical calls merging into an excellent song of the Large Racket-tailed Drongo as a perfect mimic have been fully recognized in the Epics and the Puranas: (1) The Black Drongo, , with other birds and humming bees by the thousand, glorifies the forest: मत्तकोकिलभृङ्गाद्यैः कूजत्कलमनोहरम् कपोतशुकसङ्गीतम् उन्मत्तालिसहस्रकम् ।। Padma P., V. Ch. 69.64 (2) In addition to a very harsh metallic cry the u has an excellent repertoire of musical calls and whistles, and is justly reputed as a firm mimic imitating all the birds of the locality. Writing about it in the Fauna of British India, 2nd edn., S. Baker remarks: "Their notes are most musical, and, though they have no really connected song, one mellow. whistle follows another in such rapid succession that it is much the same in 1. A better reading, more easy to understand, of this half verse could well have been: कलिकार: स्याद् धूम्याटे करजे पीतमस्तके, the second quarter relating to a plant bearing yellow flowers at its top. The reading, as it is, has apparently misled the compiler of the Sabda-Kalpadruma to render ferre as the rare bird with a yellow head. (M.Williams renders free and stay correctly as certain plants.) Similarly, the compiler of the हिन्दी शब्द-सागर equates भृङ्गराज with भीमराज which however, has been described quite incorrectly-that it catches and swallows small birds as well. 2. Comp. पिंगल (पिङ्गल), पिगुल ( पिङ्गल), names of a particular bird (पक्षिविशेष ) and पिंगलिअ (पंङ्गलिक ) in पाइय सद्द महण्णवोप. For प and भ changed into फ in Prakrit, cf. फणस for पनस; फकवती for भगवती; रफस for रभस; रम्फा for रम्भा in Hemcandra's Prakrit Vyakarana, VIII. 4.325. 3. Sayana's rendering of Sitputa as a 'cat' does not suit the context at all.
