Mudrarakshasa (literary study)
by Antara Chakravarty | 2015 | 58,556 words
This page relates 鈥楧elineation of Rasa in the Mudrarakshasa (Introduction)鈥� of the English study on the Mudrarakshasa: an ancient Sanskrit dramatic play (Nataka) authored by Vishakhadatta which deals with the life of king Chandragupta. This study investigates the Mudra Rakshasa from a literary perspective, such as metrics, themes, rhetorics and other poetical elements. Chandragupta ruled the Mauryan Empire during the 4th century BCE, hence this text can also be studied as a historical textbook of ancient India.
Go directly to: Footnotes.
3. Delineation of Rasa in the 惭耻诲谤腻谤腻办峁蝉补 (Introduction)
Rasa is said to be the soul of any composition. No meaning can be gathered from a composition without 谤补蝉补鈥�
Therefore, it is obvious to have some predominant sentiment in a particular composition, especially in a drama, that can exhibit the theme of the drama to the connoisseurs. In the former chapter we have discussed about the characteristics of 惭耻诲谤腻谤腻办峁蝉补 as a 苍腻峁璦办补. A 苍腻峁璦办补 should have 艢峁涐箙驳腻谤补 or 痴墨谤补 as its predominant sentiment according to the 膩la峁僰膩rikas, and 惭耻诲谤腻谤腻办峁蝉补 follows this criterion properly.
惭耻诲谤腻谤腻办峁蝉补 is a unique drama having some special characteristics. Unlike the majority of Sanskrit plays it is purely a political drama. The foremost specialty of the drama is the absence of the heroine as well as 艢峁涐箙驳腻谤补rasa . The drama is also devoid of 贬腻蝉测补谤补蝉补 and the character of 惫颈诲奴峁办补 also cannot be found here. The drama conveys a manly stain and 痴墨谤补rasa is its predominant sentiment which is depicted without any bloodshed or any description of war or fighting. In many a places in this drama there are indications of a great war that had been fought against the Nandas by 颁腻峁嘺办测补 and Candragupta as a result of which a new dynasty, i.e., Maurya dynasty had been established by Candragupta. But nowhere in the drama can a vivid description of that war be found. Still, regarding the principal sentiment of 惭耻诲谤腻谤腻办峁蝉补 there is no controversy. Therefore, in the following, let us assess how 痴颈艣腻办丑补诲补迟迟补 is successful in delineating 痴墨谤补rasa as the principal sentiment of the present drama which is devoid of even a single scene of war or fight.
The 痴墨谤补rasa which has 鲍迟蝉腻丑补 as its 蝉迟丑腻测颈产丑腻惫补[2] and 顿丑峁泃颈, Mati, Garva, 厂尘峁泃颈 , Tarka and 搁辞尘腻帽肠补 as it鈥檚 蝉补帽肠腻谤颈产丑腻惫补蝉[3] has got several varieties. According to Bharata, the author of 狈腻峁瓂补艣腻蝉迟谤补, 痴墨谤补asa has got three varieties鈥�顿腻苍补惫墨谤补 , 顿丑补谤尘补惫墨谤补 and 驰耻诲诲丑补惫墨谤补.[4] 顿丑补苍补帽箩补测补 in his 顿补艣补谤奴辫补办补 also accepted the above three divisions.[5] But 痴颈艣惫补苍腻迟丑补, the author of 厂腻丑颈迟测补诲补谤辫补峁嘺 added one more variety to this list of three, i.e., 顿补测腻惫墨谤补.[6] 笔补峁囜笉颈迟补谤腻箩补 闯补驳补苍苍腻迟丑补 followed 痴颈艣惫补苍腻迟丑补 in this regard but further he added four more varieties, viz., 笔腻峁囜笉颈迟测补惫墨谤补 , 厂补迟测补惫墨谤补 , 碍峁尘腻惫墨谤补 and 叠补濒补惫墨谤补.[7] He also has laid emphasis on the point that lots more varieties of 痴墨谤补rasa also can be created if necessary.
cf.
...vastutastu bahavo v墨rarasasya 艣峁涐箙g膩rasyeva prak膩r膩 nirupayitu峁� 艣akyante[8]
Analyzing the most important character of the drama, i.e., 颁腻峁嘺办测补 who is mostly present in the drama, it is found that the nature and the speeches of 颁腻峁嘺办测补 do not come under any of the above said varieties of 痴墨谤补rasa. That means , 颁腻峁嘺办测补 does not fit under the characteristic of 顿腻苍补惫墨谤补 or 顿丑补谤尘补惫墨谤补 or even 顿补测腻惫墨谤补, because all these merits are found absent in the very character. Some may also profess about 驰耻诲诲丑补惫墨谤补 as the sentiment present herein the drama, but it cannot be supported because of the lack of any scene of war or fight in this drama. No doubt 颁腻峁嘺办测补 has been presented in this drama as a very knowledgeable person but still he has not been depicted here as an erudite scholar. Therefore the chance of 笔腻峁囜笉颈迟测补惫墨谤补 is also less. On the other hand, 颁腻峁嘺办测补 does not come under 厂补迟测补惫墨谤补 also as he is not much conscious in speaking the truth, or even 碍峁尘腻惫墨谤补, as 颁腻峁嘺办测补 never spare anybody for the offence done by the person. Moreover , 颁腻峁嘺办测补 is an old 叠谤腻丑尘补峁嘺, therefore, the chance of the presence of 叠补濒补惫墨谤补 is also missing here.
The main thing based on which the drama runs smoothly is 颁腻峁嘺办测补鈥檚 political intrigues which is clearly shown in the title of the drama itself, i.e., 鈥�惭耻诲谤腻谤腻办峁蝉补鈥� or 鈥�搁腻办峁蝉补 won over by means of the signet ring鈥�. It is 颁腻峁嘺办测补, the minister of Candragupta of 笔腻峁璦濒颈辫耻迟谤补, who had destroyed the Nanda Dynasty and placed Candragupta on the throne as the first Maurya Emperor. Now to make Candragupta secure, 颁腻峁嘺办测补 presses 搁腻办峁蝉补, the former minister of the Nandas, into the service of their Maurya successor as a minister. But the reconciliation of 搁腻办峁蝉补 is not an easy task as he still professes loyalty to his former patron. But the task is accomplished by 颁腻峁嘺办测补鈥檚 political intrigues through a signet ring. Therefore, it is seen that the politics or 谤腻箩补苍墨迟颈 of 颁腻峁嘺办测补 is playing the pivotal role here. Over and above, according to 顿丑补苍补帽箩补测补, 痴墨谤补vasa arises from the 惫颈产丑腻惫补蝉 called 笔谤补迟腻辫补 , Vinaya , Adhy膩vas膩ya , Sattva(Bala), Moha , Avi峁Ｄ乨a , Naya(狈墨迟颈), Vi峁aya and 笔补谤腻办谤补尘补.[9] Here, in this drama 惫颈产丑腻惫补 called naya or 苍墨迟颈 can be sensed everywhere. In this regard it should be mentioned that Dr. Satyavrata Singh has brought up a term 鈥槺纺倬眝墨ra鈥� for this kind of situation.[10] As 笔补峁囜笉颈迟补谤腻箩补 闯补驳补苍苍腻迟丑补 is liberal in accepting more varieties of 痴墨谤补rasa, it is worth supporting the term that 狈墨迟颈v墨ra or better R膩ja苍墨迟颈v墨ra is the main sentiment of the drama. Because one can easily notice 鲍迟蝉腻丑补 or fortitude (i.e., the 蝉迟丑腻测颈产丑腻惫补 of 痴墨谤补rasa) of 颁腻峁嘺办测补 for politics in the drama.
In this drama 颁腻峁嘺办测补 has total faith on his wit only. He is an ardent supporter of 办补谤尘补惫腻诲补 and doesn鈥檛 keep faith on fate. He says鈥�
dvaiva峁� avidva峁僺a岣� pram膩峁嘺yanti
(The illiterate alone believes in fate).[11]
To destroy the combined powers of 颁腻峁嘺办测补-Candragupta, 搁腻办峁蝉补 and Malayaketu tried a lot. So, 搁腻办峁蝉补 and Malayaketu are the 膧lambana惫颈产丑腻惫补 of 痴墨谤补rasa herein. 搁腻办峁蝉补鈥檚 affection towards his former master, i.e., Nanda, is the Udd墨pana惫颈产丑腻惫补 for 颁腻峁嘺办测补, the counteraction of 颁腻峁嘺办测补 against 搁腻办峁蝉补鈥檚 intrigues is the 补苍耻产丑腻惫补 and 顿丑峁泃颈 , Mati , Garva , Tarka and 厂尘峁泃颈, i.e., the Sa帽c膩ribh膩vas are also vividly described in the speeches of 颁腻峁嘺办测补 against his opponents. These 惫颈产丑腻惫补蝉, 补苍耻产丑腻惫补s and 蝉补帽肠腻谤颈产丑腻惫补蝉 of 痴墨谤补rasa strengthen the 蝉迟丑腻测颈产丑腻惫补, i.e., 鲍迟蝉腻丑补 in 惭耻诲谤腻谤腻办峁蝉补. Therefore, the connoisseurs can easily assess that the 痴墨谤补rasa is the predominant sentiment of the present drama.
Now, let us cite some examples of different rasas used in 惭耻诲谤腻谤腻办峁蝉补鈥�
Footnotes and references:
[1]:
狈腻峁瓂补艣腻蝉迟谤补, p.62
[2]:
uttamaprak峁泃irv墨ra uts膩ha蝉迟丑腻测颈产丑腻惫补ka 岣�//厂腻丑颈迟测补诲补谤辫补峁嘺,III. 232
[3]:
sa帽c膩rinastu dh峁泃imatigarvasm峁泃itarkaroma帽c膩岣�/ sa ca d膩nadharmayuddhairdayay膩 ca samanvita艣caturdh膩 sy膩t// Ibid, III.234
[4]:
诲腻苍补惫墨谤补峁� 诲丑补谤尘补惫墨谤补峁� 测耻诲诲丑补惫墨谤补峁� tathaiva ca/ 谤补蝉补峁� v墨ramapi pr膩ha 产谤补丑尘腻 trividhameva hi// 狈腻峁瓂补艣腻蝉迟谤补. VI.79
[5]:
v墨ra prat膩pavinay膩dhyavas膩yasatvamoh膩vi峁Ｄ乨anayavismayavikram膩dyai岣�/ uts膩habh奴岣� sa ca day膩ra峁嘺d膩nayog膩t tredh膩 kil膩tramatigarvadh峁泃iprahar 峁Ｄ佱弗// 顿补艣补谤奴辫补办补, IV. 72
[6]:
. 厂腻丑颈迟测补诲补谤辫补峁嘺, III. 234
[7]:
搁补蝉补驳补峁単腻诲丑补谤补, prathama 腻苍补苍补, p.175-178
[8]:
Ibid., p.175
[9]:
顿补艣补谤奴辫补办补m, IV.72
[10]:
惭耻诲谤腻谤腻办峁蝉补, Ed. Satyavrata Singh, p.31