International Journal of Academic Research ISSN: 2348-7666 Vol.2, Issue-3(3), July-September, 2015

Ravi .N.C., Assistant Professor ,Department of , Government Home Science College , Hassan 573201, Karnataka state

-Benjamin Lewis Rice was a His interest in educational upliftment scholar whose contributions to made him the Director of Public Karnataka & Kannada Literature stand Instruction in the . He held unparallel in History. He was a this post twice till 1868-69 & 1873-83. renowned educationist, epigraphist and He was also appointed as Secretary to the historian. His precious scholastic Education Department of the Mysore contributions supported the enrichment Government from 1883-90 and finally he of Kannada language, literature, served as the Director of Archaeological archaeology and history Research in Mysore from 1890-1906, besides serving in 1882-83 as Secretary to Lewis Rice was born in the Commission on Education of which on 17th July 1837. His father, Sir W.W. Hunter was president. He Benjamin Holt Rice, was an agent of the finally retired from official duty on 1st London Missionary Society. The family July 1906 at the age of 69. This is the had linkages to Kannada literature as his brief profile of Rice in Mysore state.( younger brother, Edward Peter Rice was B.L. Rice -Encyclopedia Britannica engaged in Kannada Literary activities. 2014). At ten, Lewis Rice went to England for higher studies & obtained B.A. Degree in Harrow University. After his return to Bangalore in 1860 , he was selected and appointed as Head master of the Central When he was a School inspector he School which later developed into undertook extensive tours all round the Central College, These years between Mysore division. It was during these 1860 to 1865 were so fruitful because he official tours he started taking interest in experienced the need of research into stone inscriptions found in remote areas, Kannada Language & literature during Kannada and palm leaf these formative years of his service. . In manuscripts. During his tours as 1865 he was appointed as Inspector of inspector, he came across hundreds of School in Mysore and Coorg divisions . ancient stone inscriptions, language and International Journal of Academic Research ISSN: 2348-7666 Vol.2, Issue-3(3), July-September, 2015 script of which was very different from In 1884, he prepared reports on the the one in vogue. With the help of history of education in Coorg (1832-82) assistants, he edited, translated, and and future plans .In 1868 Mysore transliterated thousands of inscriptions. Government sanctioned Lewis Rice’s He is credited with finding nine-thousand “Hobli School Scheme “ for the inscriptions. A variety of stone establishment of Hobli Schools to inscriptions including hero stones became bring education with in reach of the his obsession as he started collecting mass of the people. Under this information from local scholars . ( B.L. provision a school was to e sanctioned Rice -Encyclopedia Britannica 2014). for every hobli where people desired to have a school and in earnest of He took their desire agreed to provide a school interlinking from history , antiquities, house. ( Karnataka Itihassa academy – education and literature of Karnataka Articles on BL Rice 2001). region. This lead to the edition of ‘Mysore and Coorg Gazetteer’ in 1877-78 in 3 volumes. The first volume As the chief officer of census 1881,he exclusively dealt with Mysore in submitted a good statistical analysis general ,the second volume gave report on the Mysore census in 1884 district wise information and the .For some time he was in charge of third volume dealt with Coorg the police Department also. In (Kodagu) region . recognition of his meritorious and These Gazetteers contain information efficient service in any field he was on the physical features, flora and conferred with the title C.I.E. fauna, ethnology ,history religion, (Companion of Indian Empire )in 1884. Language and literature ,art , Recognizing his praiseworthy service in administration etc. The Gazetteers are the education field ,the University of in English and therefore people from Madras conferred on him honorary other parts also could know about the D.Litt. Director of Archaeological land . They were acclaimed as the Researches in Mysore, his contributions most objective and comprehensively were considerable .( Jyotsna Kamat –B informative .Therefore could be the L Rice- father of Karnataka epigraphy, best model for gazetteers of the other Kamat’s potpourri 2014 ). states . Jyotsna Kamat –B L Rice- father of Karnataka epigraphy, Kamat’s potpourri 2014 ). His prestigious twelve volumes of “Epigraphia Carnatica” containing in all8869 inscriptions actually In 1879, Rice brought out a volume surveyed in different parts of the called “Mysore Inscriptions “ containing state including Coorg and edited translations of all the photographed them in these volumes. ( B.L. Rice- inscriptions collected by Major Dixon Asian educational service Journal and of some other collected by himself 2001). In1886, he published volume of Coorg Inscriptions (E.C. Vol. I). International Journal of Academic Research ISSN: 2348-7666 Vol.2, Issue-3(3), July-September, 2015

In 1889 ,he published the volume above all more than forty five of Shravanabelgola Inscriptions articles on Karnataka history. (E.C. Vol. II ), consisting 144 Jaina Epigraphy , literature, art and Inscriptions collected at culture contributed to the journals Shravanabelgola . of Indian antiquary , Royal Asiatic Society , Epigraphia Indica and Afterwards he published other commemorative volumes. ( “Epigraphia Carnatica “ series Karnataka Itihassa academy – successively (E.C. vol.III in1894, IV Articles on BL Rice 2001). in 1898 v in 1902, vi in 1901,VII in 1902, VIII in 1904 ,Ix in 1904,xin A host of 1905, XI in 1903, and XII in 1904). Kannada scholars were impressed by the In 1909 Rice issued volume entitled works of Rice , took interest in Historical “Mysore and Coorg from the a research & enriched the ” Summing up the literature all through 19th & 29th historical and other information centuries. contained in the above volumes. ( 1. Desai P B B.L. Rice- Asian educational service Journal 2001). 2. Gai G S Rice started a new series of 3. Gopal B R scholarly research edition called 4. Kundanagaar K G Bibliotheca Carnatica where he edited and published important 5. Kalburgi M M classical Kanarese works on 6. Krishna M H grammar and poetry. This included Karnataka Bhasa Bhusana of 7. Lakshminarayana N Nagavarma II in 1884, Karnataka 8. Narasimhachaar R. Sabdanushasana of Bhattakalanka deva in 1890, Pampa Ramayana of 9. Narasimhamurthy A V Nagachandra in 1892, Pampa 10. Panchamukhi R S Bharata or Vikramarjuna Vijaya of pampa in 1898 and under the 11. Ritti RS guidance of Lewis Rice, K.B. 12. Saletore S A Pathak edited Kavirajamarga of Nripatunga or Srivijaya in 1898. 13. Srikantha shastry S Other works are ‘Catalogue of 14. Vasudevacharaya Sanskrit manuscripts in Mysore and Coorg’ (1884) ; European tombs and monuments in Mysore Kannada language & literature could (1906) ,the inscriptions (1900); blossom to its new heights because of the Amarakosha(1881), Find of Roman work of these scholars & several others. coins near Bangalore (1891), The Kannada scholarly world enriched through antiquity finding & epigraph A portion of Mysore and Coorg researches undertaken . supplied to the Imperial Gazetteer of (1908) and International Journal of Academic Research ISSN: 2348-7666 Vol.2, Issue-3(3), July-September, 2015

Rice was instrumental in undertaking pioneering work in historical aspects. His interest in antiquities of Karnataka region was not only splendid but they paved way for other scholars to continue the path of rice towards scholastic works. Kannada Literature was enriched by his research & Kannada world could become more research oriented by other such scholars who treated Rice as their Master.

1. Jyotsna Kamat –B L Rice- father of Karnataka epigraphy Kamat’s potpourri 2014 2. Karnataka Itihassa academy – Articles on BL Rice 2001 3. B.L. Rice- Asian educational service Journal 2001 4. B.L. Rice -Encyclopedia Britannica 2014 5. Kannada articles on B.L. Rice 2010