4.5. Dhvani
As a devout follower of Ānandavardhana, Sāyaṇācārya accepts three śabda-vṛttis: abhidhā, lakṣaṇā and vyañjanā. He does not admit tātparya:
तात्पर्यतोऽर्थमप्येके केचिदालङ्कारिका अनुवाद्यानामर्थानां विधेयार्थपरत्वं तात्पर्यमिति कमपि व्यापारमधिकृत्य तस्मात्प्रतिपन्नमर्थं तात्पर्यार्थमङ्गीकुर्वन्ति—“उमां स पश्यन्नृजुनैव चक्षुषा प्रचक्रमे वक्तुमनुज्झितक्रमः” । अत्र दर्शनस्य चक्षुःकरणत्वाव्यभिचाराद्यत्तदुपादानं तद्विशेषणार्थम्। तदेव चात्र विधेयम्। तत्परत्वमेव तात्पर्यम्। एषा वृत्तिरस्मन्मते कथञ्चिद्दूष्या च।
In its treatment of lakṣaṇā, Alaṅkāra-sudhānidhi deviates slightly from Kāvya-prakāśa, which it otherwise follows closely. It does not accept rūḍhi-lakṣaṇā as it serves no special purpose (prayojana). The author accepts six varieties of lakṣaṇā as expounded by Mammaṭa, and adds a seventh to the list, following Vidyādhara, the author of Ekāvalī.[1] The seventh variety is jahad-ahajat-svārthā, and all these feature under prayojana-lakṣaṇā –
“निरूढा लक्षणाः काश्चित्सामर्थ्यादभिधानवत्” इत्युक्तत्वाद्व्यङ्ग्यभूतप्रयोजनशून्यत्वात् कुशलादिषु रूढिलक्षणाया अभिधाप्रायत्वाद्व्यङ्ग्यस्यैव कार्यत्वाद्रूढिलक्षणामुपेक्ष्य जहत्स्वार्थामजहत्स्वार्थां जहदजहत्स्वार्थां द्विविधां सारोपां द्विविधां साध्यवसानां चाङ्गीकृत्य सप्तविधत्वं लक्षणायाः प्रतिपादितम्।
इत्थं प्रयोजनवती सप्तविधा लक्षणा दृष्टा। 2.16अ
The author considers vyañjanā the supreme among the three śabda-vṛttis, and holds there is no poetry without it. Further, he considers dhvani the life-force of poetry:
व्यङ्ग्यस्य सत्ताच्छायापि यत्र नायात्यवस्थितिम्।
अलङ्कृतमलङ्कारैरपि काव्यं न तद्भवेत्॥ 1.101
तद्व्यङ्ग्य एव वाक्यार्थः काव्यजीवितमिष्यते। 1.92
To describe the poetic concept of dhvani, Sāyaṇācārya quotes its promulgator, Ānandavardhana.[2] He says dhvani is like bashfulness in women – it counts as the foremost enhancer of beauty and outshines all other ornaments:
यथा केयूरहारनूपुराद्यनेकालङ्कारालङ्कृतानामपि स्त्रीणां लज्जैव मुख्या भूषा भवति, तथा चित्रयमकश्लेषाद्यनेकालङ्कारालङ्कृतानामपि महाकविगिरां प्रतीयमानार्थच्छायैव मुख्या भूषा भवति।
Sāyaṇācārya defends dhvani against all the criticisms levelled at it. He mainly counters the allegations made by Mahima-bhaṭṭa, and shows how dhvani is an inviolable poetic concept:
वाच्यस्य लिङ्गभावेन व्यज्यमानं प्रतीह तु।
व्यञ्जनस्यानुमानान्तर्भावं यन्महिमाभ्यधात्॥ 1.95
अविचार्यैव तत्प्रोक्तं तेन व्यक्तिविवेकिना।
वाच्यस्य व्यज्यमानेन न तादात्म्यतदुद्भवे॥ 1.96
इति ध्वनिवादनिराकरणपादप्रसारिकायमाणो व्यक्तिविवेकखण्डः प्रत्याख्यातः। यस्मादभिधाया उपरि लक्षणा तदुपरि व्यञ्जनम्। एवमभिधाया उपरि व्यञ्जनमिति तृतीयोऽपि शब्दव्यापारः समर्थयिष्यते।
In this defence of dhvani Sāyaṇācārya has utilized the arguments put forth by Mammaṭa.
The author follows Ānandavardhana and classifies poetry into three types on the basis of dhvani: uttama, madhyama and adhama –
प्रधानगुणभावाभ्यां व्यङ्ग्यस्योत्तममध्यमे।
काव्ये ध्वनिर्गुणीभूतव्यङ्ग्यमित्युदिते उभे॥ 1.99
तस्यास्फुटत्वेऽलङ्कारप्राधान्ये काव्यमिष्यते।
चित्रशब्दार्थविषयमधमं चित्रमित्यपि॥ 1.100
By the foregoing we understand the types of poetry in the following manner:
- Uttama is the best kind of poetry in which the suggested sense triumphs over the literal sense,
- Madhyama is the next level of poetry in which the suggested sense sub-serves the literal sense,
- Adhama is the inferior form of poetry in which the suggested sense is not distinct.
4.6. Rasa
The exposition of rasa appears under asaṃlakṣya-krama-dhvani in the second chapter. Following Mammaṭa, Sāyaṇācārya describes rasa as the supreme joy that surpasses all other kinds of happiness; it enters the heart and embraces it, as it were:
हृदयं समाविशन्निव सर्वाङ्गीणमिव गाढमालिङ्गन्।
सर्वमिवान्यत्तिरयन्नतिलोकचमत्क्रियाकारी॥ 2.44
He further describes rasa in the light of Abhinavagupta’s explanation as Mammaṭa presents in a condensed form:[3]
अनुभावयन्निव परब्रह्मास्वादैकनियतमानन्दम्।
अतिलङ्घ्य दर्शितस्थितिरभिधातात्पर्यलक्षणापदवीम्॥ 2.45
अनधिगतनिर्विकल्पकसरणिरसावननुमाघ्रातः।
स्वादः शृङ्गारादिर्न च कार्यो नैव च ज्ञाप्यः॥ 2.46
इत्यभिनवगुप्तोक्तं रसस्य लक्षणमुदीरितं सम्यक्। 2.47
Alaṅkāra-sudhānidhi does not include the various explanations of the rasa-sūtra put forward by Lollaṭa, Śaṅkuka and Bhaṭṭa-nāyaka. Rather, it subscribes to Abhinavagupta’s position and directs the interested reader to Kāvya-prakāśa for a more detailed account. This is all very good, for by the fourteenth century ce the nature of rasa had been settled and Abhinavagupta’s explanation had come to be universally accepted. Besides, the nature of the present text as a compendium precludes long-winded discussions on allied topics.
Rasa, the author affirms, is the ātmā of poetry; it directs all other poetic concepts such as guṇa, doṣa and alaṅkāra –
दोषा गुणा अलङ्काराः सर्वेऽपि रसगोचराः।
काव्यस्यात्मा रसो यस्मादात्मधर्माश्च ते यतः॥ 1.108
The text unequivocally avers: ‘Rasa is always suggested; it can never be described’ –
विश्रान्तिधाम तदिदं रसात्मकं व्यङ्ग्यमेव वस्त्वखिलम्।
स्वप्नेऽपि नाभिधेयं नैतल्लक्ष्यं न तत्परत्वमपि॥ 2.92
Alaṅkāra-sudhānidhi follows Daśa-rūpaka in its exposition of rasa and bhāva. It admits eight rasas in dṛśya-kāvya and restricts śānta-rasa only to śravya-kāvya –
रतिहासावुत्साहस्मयौ जुगुप्साभये तथा क्रोधः।
शोकश्चेत्यष्टविधा निर्दोषाः स्थायिनोऽपि तैर्भावाः॥ 2.50
नाट्यादन्यत्र पुनर्निर्वेदस्थायिभावमिह शान्तम्।
नवममपि सङ्गिरन्ते मुनिभावज्ञा रसं रसिकरूपाः॥ 2.51
The sthāyi-bhāva of śānta is nirveda. Bharata-muni mentions it first in his list of vyabhicāri-bhāvas to indicate it is a sthāyi-bhāva –
अन्यत्र काव्येषु निर्वेदस्थायिभावः शान्तो नाम नवमोऽप्यस्ति रसः। स्थायिनां प्रतिपादनसमनन्तरम् अमङ्गलरूपस्य निर्वेदस्याचार्येण प्रतिपादितत्वात्।
Following Dhanika, Sāyaṇācārya opines that the predominant rasa in Nāgānanda is not śānta but dayā-vīra.
A unique feature of the present text is its allusion to Śiva, the primordial and pre-eminent naṭa, in its justification of the nine rasas –
यमिना मिथुनेन पुरां रिपुणा स्मरयुवतिकरुणदायिदृशा।
हसता हास्याकृतिना दिगम्बरेणान्तरम्बराश्रयिणा॥ 2.148
अभयार्थिषु भयभाजा परिहरता लोकलोचनपथानि।
हृदयगुहामधिवसता बीभत्सेनास्थिनरकपालभृता। 2.149
रुद्रेण करोल्लासितशूलेनाद्भुतरसैकनिलयेन॥
रसरूपेण नटेन प्रकाशितेष्वपि रसेषु का विमतिः॥ 2.150
रसरूपो नटः परमेश्वरः। तेन नव रसाश्च स्वरूपेण प्रतिपादिताः। तस्मात्तत्र वैमत्यमनुपपन्नम्।
These verses remind us of similar compositions such as ‘śive śṛṅgārārdrā’[4] and ‘śṛṅgāraṃ kṣiti-nandinī-viharaṇe.’[5]
Alaṅkāra-sudhānidhi cursorily mentions Bhoja’s view on rasa –
एवं परिबर्हशालिनं भोजः शृङ्गारमेकमेव शृङ्गारप्रकाशे प्रत्यपादयदित्याह—
वटयक्षवचःसदृशीं हास्यादिषु हास्यमुन्नयन् रसताम्।
रसमेकमाह राजा शृङ्गारं रसिकभावशृङ्गगतम्॥ 2.147
We surmise that it does not subscribe to this view as Bhoja holds śṛṅgāra as the supreme rasa, while it is clear from the foregoing that Sāyaṇācārya sees no distinction among the rasas.
The text delineates vibhāvas, anubhāvas and vyabhicāri-bhāvas connected with various rasas in the light of Daśa-rūpaka. The treatment of these and allied concepts is more elaborate here than in Kāvya-prakāśa.
On the topic of rasābhāsa, Sāyaṇācārya follows Vidyādhara and avers that rasa can be evoked by taking ‘lower beings’ such as birds and animals as characters:[6]
यत्र च परस्परानुकूलः कल्लोलितः प्रवर्तते स्थायी तत्र रसः। यत्र पुनरेकतरानुरागस्तत्र स्थायिनोऽनौचित्यप्रवृत्तत्वादाभास एव। अपरे तु रसाभासं तिर्यक्षु परिचयन्ति। तन्न परीक्षां क्षमते। यत्तेष्वपि विभावादिसम्भवात्।
This is a major deviation from the mainstream view on rasābhāsa.
Alaṅkāra-sudhānidhi introduces three varieties of śṛṅgāra: nava-yoga, sambhoga and vipralambha –
नवयोगविप्रयोगौ सम्भोगश्चानुबन्धिनो भेदाः॥ 2.95
On close examination we understand that the new inclusion, nava-yoga, is the same as pūrvānurāga-vipralambha counted by other writers.
Further, the text includes only two forms of vipralambha—māna and pravāsa—while most other treatises mention five varieties. We have observed that pūrvānurāga is a form of vipralambha, and so the varieties not mentioned here are only two: śāpa and karuṇa.
The text follows Daśa-rūpaka (4.83) in holding that rati takes the form of prīti when the recipients are children, friends, etc., and bhakti or harṣa when the recipients are parents, elders, etc. Further, the feeling harboured by a poet towards his patron is bhakti. Sāyaṇācārya does not accord the status of rasa to mṛgayā, akṣa and such feelings; he places them under vīra as they emerge from utsāha –
यूनोर्मिथो रतिर्या शृङ्गारः सा निरूपितः प्रथमम्।
पुत्रादिषु सा प्रीतिः पित्रादिषु भक्तिरिति च वा हर्षः॥ 2.166
तेन स्वामिविषयस्य कवीनां चाटुवादादिभिर्व्यञ्जितस्य रतिभावस्य भक्तिरूपत्वाद्भावत्वमेव।
भावो मृगयाक्षादिषु सा पुनरुत्साह एव वीररसः। 2.167
[1] अंशेनैकेन पुनर्जहाति न जहाति चान्येन। शब्दः स्वार्थं यदि जहदजहत्स्वार्था समाख्याता॥ (Ekāvalī, 2.8)
[2] मुख्या महाकविगिरामलङ्कृतिभृतामपि। प्रतीयमानच्छायैव भूषा लज्जेव योषिताम्॥ (Dhvanyāloka, 3.37)
[3] Ref: Kāvya-prakāśa, 4.28 vṛtti
[4] Saundarya-laharī, 51
[5] Śrī-rāma-karṇāmṛta, 39
[6] Ref: Ekāvalī, p. 104
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To be continued.
