vakroktijivita (Crooked speech)

Kuntaka's alamkara work emphasising the literary appeal of Vakrokti or cooked speech.
to be continued




Kuntaka Sanskrit: कुन्तक was a Kashmiri Sanskrit poetician and literary theorist who is remembered for his work Vakroktijīvitam in which he postulates the Vakrokti Siddhānta or theory of Oblique Expression, which he considers as the hallmark of all creative literature. He lived roughly 950–1050,^[1] between Anandavardhana in the ninth century and Abhinavagupta in the tenth century and was a rough contemporary of Dhananjaya and Rajasekhara.^[2]

Vakrokti, emanating from the creative faculty of the poet endows poetic language with strikingness[Vaicitrya] and causes aesthetic delight to the reader. Etymologically, the word Vakrokti consists of two components - 'vakra' and 'ukti'. The first component means 'crooked, indirect or unique' and the second means 'poetic expression or speech'.

Types of Vakrokti

It is manifested at six levels in language, viz. the phonetic level, [varṇavinyāsa], the lexical level [padapūrvārddha], the grammatical level [padaparārddha], the sentential level [vākya], the contextual level [prakaraṇa] and finally the compositional level [prabandha]. Kuntaka anticipates much of the modern stylistic approach to literature and his stylistics encompasses imaginative language at the micro and macro levels. The conscious choices made by the poet in the language is a fertile field of investigation in his approach. It is the considered view of Kuntaka that poetic language always deviates from hackeneyed expressions by its imaginative turns. Kuntaka avers that the stamp of originality of a great author will be present even in the title of the work of art.

to be researched.

Magha.

Magha is admired for his delightful style profound thought and beautiful similes. Megha's vocabulary is very vast and his knowledge of grammar is deep. he delights in the use of grammatical peculiarities and avoids the use of the same word a second time. It is said that if one studies nine cantos of  Magha there will be no new word for him to study. Navasrga gathe Madhe  Navashabdho na vidyathe, Malinatha the great commentator is said to have remarked madhe medhe gatam vayaha.the toughness of Magha's style.
to be continued

University of Washington In a recent article in JAOS, Y. Bronner and L. McCrea presented cogent arguments for the authenticity of the “nonbitextual” version of Śiśupāla’s speech in the fifteenth canto of Māgha’s Śiśupālavadha and concluded that the “bitextual” version of the passage, in which each verse could be read with a double meaning, was a later alteration. Whereas they discussed the issue on the basis of internal criteria, the present article approaches it by means of external comparison with its presumptive source text in the Sabhā-parvan of the Mahābhārata. This analysis confirms Bronner and McCrea’s conclusion, while also raising some new issues and problems. Also discussed is the legacy of the popular, if unauthentic bitextual version in the Bhāgavata-purāṇa and its commentarial tradition. i. introduction: bronner and mccrea on śiśupālavadha xv The Śiśupālavadha, “The Slaying of Śiśupāla” (hereafter ŚPV), is one of the six canonical mahākāvyas of the high literary tradition of Sanskrit, composed by the otherwise unknown poet Māgha, probably in the late seventh or early eighth century c.e. 1 It describes in twenty sargas the events surrounding the conflict between Kr̥ ṣṇa and his cousin and rival Śiśupāla, king of Cedi, culminating in the slaying of the latter by the former, whence the title of the poem. 2 In an important recent article in this journal, Yigal Bronner and Lawrence McCrea (Bronner and McCrea 2012; hereafter B&M) discussed the two very different versions of a key passage in the fifteenth sarga, “Setting Out to War” (yuddhaprasthānam), of the ŚPV. The passage in question consists of Śiśupāla’s passionate denunciation of Bhīṣma’s decision to designate Kr̥ ṣṇa as the foremost guest of honor at the rājasūya sacrifice for Yudhiṣṭhira’s royal consecration. Here some manuscripts, primarily those associated with the commentary by Mallinātha (Sarvaṅkaṣā), have a passage (XV.14–39), which B&M call “nonbitextual,” containing an “oration that is unequivocally accusatory” (B&M p. 430). But other manuscripts, mostly those with the commentary of Vallabhadeva (Sarvasandehaviṣauṣadhi),

 bitextual,” containing an “oration that is unequivocally accusatory” (B&M p. 430). But other manuscripts, mostly those with the commentary of Vallabhadeva (Sarvasandehaviṣauṣadhi), contain a “bitextual” version (XV.14–47) consisting of a e“speech that can be read to convey either blame or praise” (ibid.) through the use of puns, 3 sarcasm, and other rhetorical devices. 4 This discrepancy is particularly glaring in comparison to the textual situation for 1. Th basic source for the date of Māgha is Kielhorn 1906. See also, for example, Hultzsch 1926: iv–vii. 2. For a convenient summary of the ŚPV, see B&M pp. 429–30. 3. The type of punning in this section is referred to by Vallabhadeva as vakraśleṣa, or perhaps rather, according to the emendation proposed by B&M (p. 433 and n. 12), vyājaśleṣa. 4. The “nonbitextual” version of the passage in question will hereafter be cited as ŚPV (M), i.e., Mallinātha’s text, and the bitextual version as ŚPV (V) = Vallabhadeva’s text. The texts will be cited according to the editions of Durgāprasāda et al. (1957) and Kak and Shastri (1935) respectively. Durgāprasāda’s edition presents a composite text in which both versions of the text in question are printed, first the nonbitextual one with Mallinātha’s commentary, then the bitextual with the commentary of Vallabhadeva (compare B&M p. 432),

nonbitextual passage.
to be continued.

Popular tales and fables.

Sir William Jones, one of the earliest western scholars to take to the study of Samskrit, asserts that the game of chess, the decimal scale of notations and the mode of instruction by apologue or moral fables were beyond doubt the inventions of the Hindu genius. scholars upheld the Indian mind in the field of story telling as in almost all other fields of literature. The fables narrated in the Vedic literature, especially in the Brahmanas the epics and the Jatakas are the oldest and bear eloquent testimony to the Indian genius.
The tales being conceived in the spirit of moral instructions, meant to cater to the interest of the populace who were denied liberal access to the vedas and the kavyas meant mostly for the higher strata of society.
Some popular ones
Brhatkatha, jatakamala, aryashoor, avadhanashatak, divyavadana, Of course the Panchatantra no other book published and transalated into so many languages can compare with it excepting the Bible. The story of the Indian  tales migration from east to west is more impressive a story.  Dasaropaka. Bhasa based some of his dramas and plays on this treasure house of mythology example a tale of an ignorant king Satavahana who pelted his wife with mokhaka sweet meats though she wanted him to desist from splashing water ma udakai tadai. the king later learnt what she actually meant from Sarvavarma the author of Kathaitravyakarana. It is also reported that one Gunadhaya after being defeated by Sarvavarman in a wager swore not to use grammatical language and then composed the Brhatkatha in Paisachi Prakrit. The Brhatkatha is translated into sanskrit by two kashmiri authors (Slokasangraha) by Budhasvamin and (Brhatkathamanjari) Of Kshemendra. Kathasaritasagara of Somadeva. Vetalapancha vimshathi. 

Mrchchakatika, Pratijnayaugangandharayana,Svapnavasavadatta.

Mrchchakatika, Pratijnayaugangandharayana 4 acts;,Svapnavasavadatta. 6 acts;

Yaugandharayana is the hidden hand directing the actions successfully with wonderful resourcefulness and undaunted courage, ultimately dedicating all at the feet of his master, the proud and aristocratic Udayana (King of the Vatsa country) who is content with his Vina Ghosavati and taming the wild elephant herds. he is content with his life and unceremoniously rejects marriage proposals. But the King Pradyota decides to have such a covetable one as his son in law even by foul means. The ever vigilant Yaugandharayana renders his efforts fruitless. But fate comes to his rescue. A wonderful machine elephant almost life like housing a hundred select warriors is made to move about in the forest just outside the kingdom of Udayana. As expected Udayana is decoyed and caught, just before Yaugandharayanas warning reaches him. Udayana might be roughly handled by his captors, but Salankayana, Pradyota,s minister receives him honourably and he is treated royally only with restrictions of movement. The scene in which Pradyota is apprised of Udayana's capture is admirable. The Vina is presented to Vasavadatta and before Udayana recovers from his wonder, he is slyly requested to teach the Gandharva vidya or music to Vasavadatta. The plan works nicely leading to gandharva vivaha. At Kausambi however, the amazed minister, in response to Udayana's mother's request, takes a Bhishma like vow for effecting the kings release. He disguises himself as a mad man and with the help of the brahmin vidushaka, begins bearding the lion in its own den by striking fifth columnist practices in Ujjain itself. At the very last moment however Udayana who is now well in the grip of Vasavadatta,s passion, refuses to escape except in the company of Vasavadatta. Undaunted Yaugandharayana's plans are immediately revised; instead of one now two elephants (one of which is Vasavaddatta) are made to run outside the stables; the mahout of Vasavadatta is bribed into getting her out as though for an outing. The other  elephant Nalagiri is made to run amok; Only Udayana can save the situation; to save the city he is released. he tames the unruly elephant and suddenly elopes with Vasavadatta. The faithful minister covering up their flight and keeping at bay the guards sent in pursuit. The queen mother of Vasavadatta is completely upset and wants to commit suicide, but she is consoled by Pradyota who has two life like effigies of their daughter and her paramour prepared and the marriage is celebrated with great eclat in the presence of Yaugandharayana who is caught. who triumphantly says ne the ratne bajane ko nirodh (when the precious contents are rifled, of what avail is the preservation of the box.)
The Svapnavasavadatta continues the story from this point.
To the pleasure seeking Udayana's hobbies of music and elephant hunt, a third has been added. The indifference of the King has indirectly encouraged his enemies particularly Aruni, to gradually annex the territories of the Vatsa country of Udayana. The minister takes Vasavadatta into confidence. For the sake of the welfare of her husband and the restoration of his lost territories, she pretends to be dead for some time and puts up with separation from him for whose sake she had given up even her parents. When the King had gone for a pleasure trip to a village called Lavanaka, the palace in which Vasavadatta was left behind is burnt and Vasavadatta is reported to have perished. The faithful minister in his desire to save her has shared the same fate. This report is conveyed to the king. The disconsolate king's grief is inconsolable; he wants to put an end to his own life. with great difficulty Rumanvan succeeds in preventing his suicide. after some time they quietly persuade him to leave the village. In the mean while Vasavadatta disguised as Avantika, is entrusted to the care of Padmavati, the sister of King Darsaka, marriage with whom would lead to the restoration of Udayana's lost territories, according to the astrologers. The rumor of Vasavadatta's death has spread there also, as well as Udayana's mad passion for her even after her death. Surely such a husband is worth having, and this becomes Padmavathy's cherished ambition.{What to tell of Bana's style and imaginary how well the stories are interwoven and made interesting such great minds lived and worked in ancient times, its no wonder then that his works are even today considered unique} The stage is now set for slowly driving in the thought of a second marriage. quietly a change of climate is proposed;Udayana who has left everything to his ministers does not protest. He is taken to Darasaka's capital where he is received with all royal honours. Darsaka is charmed by the amiable qualities of the young King and slowly and surely advances his request. Here again the King does not protest all the time dreaming of his lost Ghosavati and his fair disciple who had stolen his heart. As fate would have it, the marriage garlands etc have to be strung by Avantika, who though avoiding anybody's company is particularly sought out for this task. The marriage ceremony takes place. Of course some consolation comes to the suffering Vasavadatta (Avantika) from reports about her lover's continued loyalty and fidelity to her alone. As though not satisfied the dramatist provides an opportunity for the veritable tapasvini to hear from Udayana's own lips a confession of his steadfast devotion to her alone. The two queens are in the pleasure park hidden by some thick bushes. The Vidushaka and the King also go there. The mischievous Vidushaka asks the king "whom do you love more, vasavadatta that is dead or Padmavathy that lives." The King hesitates but the Vidushika persists saying there is nobody to overhear. Udayana is forced to reply and he confesses that Padmavati does not delight his mind as intensly as Vasavadatta did.Udayana's face is bedded with tears. The senior queen manages to slip away asking Padmavati to console her erstwhile lover. Padmavati's sudden appearance is too much for Udayana; he excuses himself saying some kasa flower dust has fallen into his eyes and is causing him irksome pain. she wonder at his dakshinya and loves him even more. Now the evil dramatist wants to provide another soothing balm to vasavadatta's lacerated heart. the scene is Padmavsati is suffering from a bad headache and Udayana is very upset at the news and goes to the samudra gruha with his friend expecting to find Padmavati there. but he has come too early and padmavati does not come at all as too much fuss was made over a trivial headache.to while away the time Udayana asks his friend to narrate a story. The absurdity of the story and the cool air in the pavilion make Udayana doze off. The place gets rather chill and the vidushaka decides he must have a shawl. When he is away Vasavadatta comes in expecting to find Padmavati. she seats herself on the bed on which Udayana has laid himself, though it was meant for Padmavati. realizing her mistake she curses herself and wants to withdraw. just then Udayana cries out Vasavadatta her curiosity is roused by her realizing that he is fast asleep and is only dreaming unconsciously O beloved pupil is the next pathetic cry. She musters up courage to say I am here. Udayana refers to her miserable appearance and demands a reason for her being unornamented. he fancies of course in his dream that he has offended her and implores to be forgiven with both hands uplifted. Now Vasavadatta feels she has overstayed and wants to run away. She is gripped by an irresistable impluse to put his hands back under the quilt before departing. This action of hers sends an electric current into the body of Udayana who fully roused up, just glimpses his fleeing wife. He wants to pursue, but the door shutter inconveniently knocks against his head and he feels baffled. At this juncture the vidushaka returns with the shawl and ridicules him when he says he has seen his Vasavadatta. It might be some hallucination conjured up by some yaksini. The incident might be forgotten by others but never by Udayana, who after some time decides that with the help of his brother in law he should defeat Aruni, which he ultimately does. Padmavathi with her retinue (one of whom is the disguised Avantika) comes to Kausambi. After some time as chance would have it, the vina Ghosavati is recovered and Udayana's misery is again revived. At this juncture his Mother in law, hearing of his steadfast devotion to her daughter even so long after her death, send him the two effigies with which she had celebrated their marriage. Udayana's lacerated heart is touched to the quick that Vasavadatta's mother should have felt for him so much even after he had deliberately chosen to be somebody elses son in law. Padmavathi looks at the effigy of Vasavadatta and is struck by the striking resemblance of Avantika thereto. She remarks about it to her husband. Yaugandharayana disguised as the brahmin who had entrusted his sister to Padmavathi,s care now presents himself and demands his sister back. To legalize the restitution, the unsuspecting Udayana appoints a neutral commission Vasavadatta's own nurse and her Brahmin escort Badarayana. They at once recognize Vasavadatta, and Yaugandharayana implores the king,s pardon which is readily granted.

With infinite dramatic irony and unmatched tragic setting, Bhasa,s achievement is simply superb. Bhasha,s dramas are eminently suited to the stage, with their brief and effective conversations, very few and appropriately chosen metrical verses and excellent dramatic scenes full of dramatic irony both real and ideal with a due scence of rasa to keep the audience engaged.

Vedic literature chart. explained.

The Rig Veda is devided into21 sections, the Yajur Veda into 109, the Sama veda into 1000, and Atharvana Veda into 50 it was accepted as a veda only after a very long time, it abounds in secular incantations, and is a source book of our medicine, archery and some technical sciences. Most of the hymns of the rigveda are repeated in Yajur Veda and Sama veda, where in Yajur veda they are arranged as they are required for various sacrifices and in Sama Veda they are set to music. These sacred hymns of the Brahmins stand unparalleled in the world literature. Each of the four vedas has its own Upanishads and they are 1108 in all. The Brahmanas are commentaries in prose on the vedas explaining how the various sacrifices rites are to be performed. some of the explanations are in prose and these are probably the very first prose compositions of the world. the next prose commentaries are in the Brahmanas and also in the Aranyakas and the Upanioshads which are further explanations with the additionb of the allegorical section they flowered into our philosophical darshanas.
Each of the four vedas are divided into 4 groups Mantra Samhitas, Brahmanas, aranyakas and Upanishads to match with the four Asramas Brahmacharya or celibacy, Garhasthya or family life, Vanaprastha or forest hermit and Sanyasa or renunciation. The Yajur Veda  is devided into two parts Krishna or the Taittiriya being the older the Sukla or Vajasaneya was revealed to sage Yajnavalkya by Surya. The Samhitas are metrical compositions comprising prayers and hymns addressed to various deities of nature who were worshipped as Indra Agni Vayu. The Brahmanas are prose explanations directing priests in the use of the mnantras in various sacrifices. The aranyakas are mystical sylvan texts which together with the Upanishads constitute the Brahma Kanda, the samhitas and the Brahmans forming the Karmakanda. The Rig Vedic priest again is designated Hota, the priest reciting the Yajur Veda is Adhvaryu and the Sama Veda priest is known as Udgata. The priest of the Atharva Veda is Brahma and exercises a sort of superintending control over the other three.
to the Rig Veda are assigned two Brahmanas Aitareya and Sankhyayana; the Sathapatha Brahmana belongs to the Shukla Yajur Veda while the Krishna Yajur Veda has Taittiriya and Maitrayana Brahmanas. To the Sama are attached six Brahmanas Tandya or Pancha Vimsa, Shad Vimsa, Chhandogya, Adbhuta, Arsheya and Upanishad Brahmana. Gopatha is affiliated to theAtharva Veda.
The four Upavedas are Ayurveda or Medicine correlated to Rig Veda, Dhanur Veda Archery affiliated to Yajur Veda the Gandharva veda or Music linked to Sama Veda and Sthapatya Associated with Atharva Veda.
The Vedangas or auxiiaries to the Vedas are six: Siksha (Phonetics) Vyakarna (Grammar) Chhandas (Prosody) Niukta (Vedic Exegesis) Jyotisha (Astronomy) Kalpa (Vedic Geometry for drawing the diagrams in the various Yajnas)
The second division the Smritis they are 18 in number and are called Dharmasastras; most important among them are Manu, Yajnavalkya and Parasara, the last being specially earmarked for Kali Yuga. the other smritis are Vishnu, Daksha, Samvarta, Vyasa, Harita, Satatapta, Vasisht, Yama, apastamba, Gautama, Devala, Sankhalikhita, Usana, Atri, and Saunaka. They are next only to the Vedas in authority and importance and supplement or comment upon vedic vidhis or rules.
Itihasas are ancient chronicles or epics, which if arsha or revealed are designated by that hoary name if they are classical or secular they are called Kavyas, The classical are also designated Akhyanas or Puranas eg. Mahabharata and other upapuranas coming under them. The Ramayana though revered as Arsha has become a adi Kavya .
to be continued.

Vedic literature chart.

Vedas	Schools	Samhitas	Brahmanas	Aranyakas	Upanishads	Kalpa sutras	smrtis.
Rg Veda	Aitreya Kausitakins	Rksamhita	Aitreya Sankhyayana	Aitreya Kausitaki	Aitareya Kausitaki	Asvalayana Sankhyayana
Sama veda	Tandins Talavakaras	Kauthuma Ranayaniya Jaiminya	Tandya Sadvimsa Jaiminya Talavakara		Chandogya Kena	Latyayana Gobhila Khadira Samavidhna Brahmana Jaiminya
Yajur Veda Shukla and Krsna	Kathakas Taittiryas Maitrayaniya Kapisthalakathas Madhyandinas Kanvas	Kathaka Taittiriya Maitrayani Vajasaneyi Kanviya	Kathaka Taittiriya Satapatha	Taittiriya Mudhyamdineyi Vajasaneyi Kanviya	Taittiriya Mahanarayana Svetasvatara Maitrayna Brhadaranyaka Isa	Kathaka Grhya Hiranyakesi Manava Katyayana	Baudhayana Apastamba Hiranyakesi Bharadwaja Manava
Atharva Veda	Atharvanas				Mundaka Prsna Mandukya	Kausika Vaitana

classical Sanskrit Literature chart.

date in centuries	epics puranas and mahakavyas	prose didactic fables and popular tales	lyrics	philosophy yoga and religion	drama	alamkara and grammar	foreigners	kings	miscellaneous
10th - 4th B>C>	composition and systematisation of epics vyasa and valmiki			brahmanas upanishads aranyakas sankhya and yoga buddha and mahavir 6th cen.		panini 7th cen.	Alexander the great 326 B C.	sisunagas and nandas chandragupta maurya 322 B C	fall of the nandas and establishment of the mauryan empire in 322 B C.
3 B C	Gunadayas Paisachi Brhatkatha	Brhatkatha		Jaimini	Bharatas Natyashastra Bhasa's plays.	Natya shastra katyayana	Measthenes	Chandragupta bindusara ashika	Chanakya's arthashastra Vatsyayanas Kamasutra Pingalas Chandas
2 B C	Kalidasa Raghuvamsa and Kumarasambhava.		Meghaduta Rtusamhara gatakarpara	Patanjali, manu yajnavalkya	Shakuntala Malavikagnimitra,Vikramorvasiyam		Invasion of the greeks Menander	Brhadrata Maurya murdered 185 B C Accession of Pushyamitrasunga	Gargi samhita Astrology Barhut and sanchi stupa
1.B C				Vaiseshika sutras, Jatakas
1 A D			Hala Saptasati		Mrichechakatika		Kushan invasion
2 A D	Asvaghosa's Buddhacharita Saundara nanda							Kanishka C78-120 Rudradaman Palumayi	Girnar parasasti 130-150AD, Nasikprasasti 130-158 AD.
3 AD	Markandeya purana
4 AD	Vishnu purana vayu purana							320 AD Chandragupta,330 A D Samudragupta,375AD chandragupta 2. vikramaditya
5AD		Panchatantra Hitopadesa			Vishakadatta, Dingnaga		405 -11 Fahien	413 AD Kumara gupta	476 Aryabhata born Vatsabhatti's Mandasor inscription.
6 A D	Bharavi	Dasakumaracharita				Kavyadarshaof Dandin Bhamaha		Durvinita Gasnga	505 Varahamihara born,578 Brahmagupta born
7 A D	Bhattikavya Janakiharana	Bana Subandhu	Mayura's Suryasataka		King Harsha Ratnavali,Mahendra varmas Mattavilasaprahasana	vagbhata	6-9-45 Hiuen Tsang	Sri Harsha, Pulakesi, Mahendravarma	Harsha defeated by Pulakesi in C620, PallavamallaC 630 - 668.
8AD	Gundavaho Magha		Muka Amaru	Kumarilabhatta. Shankaracharya	Bhattanarayana, Saktibhadra, Bhavabhuti	vamana		Adisura Bengal, Yasodvarma Kanauj.
9 A D	Haravijaya, Kappanabhyudaya,Raghavapandaviiya				Murari Rajashekara	Anandavardana Rajashekara
10A D	Yasastilakachampu,Nalachampu, Madalasa champu	Vadibhasimha, Odayadeva, Dhanapala			Krishna misra,Kshemesvara	Dhananjaya
11 A D	Vikramankadeva charita, Ramayanachampu	Kathasaritasagara,Kshemendras manjaris			Bilhanas Karanasundari	Mahima bhatta	Alberuni 973-1048	Bhoja C1000-1055	Vijnanesvara the Jurist
12 A D	Hemachandra suri Mankha Poet Sriharsha	Soddhala's Udayasundari	Lilasukha Jayadeva	Ramanujacharya	Jayadeva	Hemachandra Mammata Ruyyaka	Muhammad Ghori	Prithviraj defeated in 1191 A D	Kalhana's Rajatarangini1150AD Bhaskaracharya Mathematician.
13 A D				Madhavacharya		Vidyadhara's Ekavali			Malik Kafur's invassion
14 AD	Vedanta Desika Champu Bhagavata					Vidyanathas Prataparudriya
15 AD	Gangadevi	Vamanabhatta Bana Vemabhupala			Vamanabhatta bana	Visvanatha		Vema bhupala	Mallinatha suri
16 AD
17 A D	Nilakanthavijaya champu, Venkatadhvari					Jagannatha Panditharaya		Krishna devaraya Shah Jahan