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Debendra K. DashDipti R. Pattanaik 51felt in Orissa because its political contact was mainly with the south,and it was more or less a benevolent kind of Islam, as practiced inthe south. By the time Orissa came under the direct Muslim rule ofthe powers of the north, it was again the influence of tolerant Islam,which encouraged heterogeneity. Thus, throughout Orissan history,there was an ambience of peaceful existence between the tworeligions. Therefore, the incidence of forcible conversion, seen innorthern India, was rare in Orissa. Concurrently BrahminicalHinduism, which was more orthodox elsewhere, resulting in massconversion like in Bengal and parts of Kerala, was less so in Orissa,accommodating subaltern groups within the Hindu fold. This fertilefield of religious tolerance and accommodation both by the Islamicgroups and Brahminical orthodoxy could be one of the reasons ofChaitanya’s phenomenal success in Orissa compared with his nativeBengal. The other reason of Chaitanya’s acceptance in Orissa wasthe political disempowerment of the Gajapati Kings afterPurushottam Deb (Sahoo 1968: 7).Chaitanya’s advent had a profound bearing on the ideologyof translation in Orissa. However, the full significance of the roleplayed by Chaitanya on the translation scene cannot be realizedwithout having a glance as well at the relationship between politicalpower and the languages implicated in the translational practice. It iscommon knowledge that written languages are intimately connectedwith structures of political power and are important sites ofideological struggle. With the rise of Muslim rulers to seats ofpolitical power in India, it is natural to expect that Persian or Arabicwould assume the hegemonic position replacing Sanskrit.Nevertheless, because of the peculiar power equation in operationduring that time, Sanskrit did not face a direct confrontation withArabic or Persian. First, the Kshyatriya chieftains, who opposed theMuslim rulers militarily, were merely patrons of Sanskrit. Theydidn’t know or identify with the language. The Brahmins who