Upa-rūpakas (Continued)
3. Prasthāna – the emotional states of apsaraḥ-strī or a proṣitapatikā are presented in a prasthāna. The story captures the pangs of separation of a nāyikā, whose beloved is out on a journey (prasthāna). It also narrates the manner in which the nāyikā and the nāyaka finally unite, traversing the vīra and adbhuta rasas. Aestheticians such as Bhoja, Rāmacandra-Guṇacandra, and Abhinava-gupta say that different seasons including vasanta (spring) and varṣā (rains) need to be presented keeping the lovelorn nāykiā as the locus; they also add that the vijaya-yātrā-prasthāna (onset of the victorious march) of the nāyaka needs to be presented by indicating the movements of horses and elephants through nṛtta. The work Nāṭya-darpaṇa (of Rāmacandra-Guṇacandra) mentions in clear terms the inclusion of nṛtta segments in a prasthāna. The Abhinava-bhāratī states that tāṇḍava (uddhata/ nṛtta) and lāsya (sukumāra/ abhinaya) need to be presented in a prasthāna and the proportion of lāsya is higher; thus, the importance of music and dance is clear. Abhinava-gupta further adds that a special musical feature called varṇāṅga needs to be a part of the upa-rūpaka called prasthāna – this further attests the importance laid on music and dance in the upa-rūpaka tradition.
4. Kāvya or Citra-kāvya – This does not refer to the literary genre of the same name; it is not associated with citra-bandhas or literary acrobatics connected with puns. This upa-rūpaka is a geyābhineya-prabandha – a lyrical composition meant to be sung and enacted. If the composition is set to one rāga only, it is called kāvya and if it is set to multiple rāgas, it is called a citra-kāvya. Abhinava-gupta calls this rāga-kāvya. Bhoja, in his Śṛṅgāra-prakāśa, delineates this genre along with details of rāgas and tālas that can be used. Rāghava-vijaya and Mārīca-vadha are examples of ancient compositions of this genre. We hear that Rāghava-vijaya was set to Ṭhakka-rāga and Mārīca-vadha was set to Kakubha-grāma-rāga. Kohala, another ancient aesthetician, describes a string of rāgas and tālas for the presentation of this upa-rūpaka. Gīta-govindam of Jayadeva is a popular work belonging to this genre; imitations of Gīta-govinda that are found in various languages of India belong to this genre as well. Similarly, the compositions meant for Yakṣagāna, Kathakalī, and Kṛṣṇanāṭṭam also belong to the genre called rāgakāvya, kāvya, or citra-kāvya. Dr. V. Raghavan says that Nandanār Caritam (by Gopalakrishna Bharati) and Rāmanāṭaka-kīrtanas (by Aruṇācala-kavi-rāya) also belong to the same category. Furthermore, he says that śuddha-prabandha and sūtra-prabandha – two kinds of rāga-kāvya that are practiced in Odisha, are important examples as well. The Kannada composition Gīta-gopāla (Cikka-devarāja Wadiyar) can be considered a variety of rāga-kāvya. Bhāmā-kalāpam and Gòlla-kalāpam of Kūcipūḍi-nṛtya (dance) also belong to this category.
5. Bhāṇikā – Bhoja-rāja defines bhāṇika as a genre of upa-rūpaka, filled with nṛtta and gīta, that has multiple languages and contains the stuti of many devatas. Both uddhata and sukumāra flavours of the genre exist and both abound in bhāratī-vṛtti, i.e., spoken language. Abhinava-gupta notes that in this genre, vādya-saṅgīta – instrumental music plays a prominent role; he also states that through anyāpadeśa[1] of birds and animals, dharma is taught. Raghavan, who bases his arguments on the works of Abhinava-gupta and Bhoja-rāja, says that a bhāṇikā could perhaps be the presentation of the animal-avatāras of Mahā-viṣṇu, i.e., description of Matsya, Kūrma, Varāha, and Nṛsiṃha avatāras, through nṛtta and gīta; it is also in the form of a vyākhyāna – a detailed account. He says that such presentations are in vogue in the Mathurā region even today. Dr. Padma Subrahmanyam considers bhāṇikā as a Prakrit variant of the Sanskrit bhāṇa, perhaps performed by women. (Both bhāṇa and bhāṇikā are solo presentations). She classifies her productions such as Rāmāya Tubhyaṃ Namaḥ and Kṛṣṇāya Tubhyaṃ Namaḥ on the lines of bhāṇikā.
6. Goṣṭhi – only Bhoja-rāja describes this kind of upa-rūpaka. In his view, goṣṭhi presents episodes depicting Śrī-kṛṣṇa vanquishing asuras.
7. Hallīsaka – this is one amongst the līlās of Śrī-kṛṣṇa with the gopikās – it largely falls in the category of maṇḍala-nṛtya, i.e., group dance. Forms like the hallīsaka can be found around the country. Garbā of Gujarat, acciyār, kuravai, kummi, kudiccuppāṭṭu of Tamil Nadu, Kaikòṭṭikkaḻi of Kerala, Gòbbiḻḻu of Andhra, Gòndaḻa of Karnataka and Maharashtra are regional variants of this genre.
8. Nartanaka – this is an ekahārya-nṛtya akin to today's Sadir/Dāsiyāṭṭam/Tāphā. Bhoja-rāja says that nartanaka is a form of dance in which rasābhinaya plays an important role; it is performed to vilamba-laya (slow speed) and has appealing āṅgika; he also considers śamyā (dancing with coloured sticks, akin to kolāṭa), dvipadī, and chalika (rasābhinaya that only has the delineation of emotions) as variants of nartanaka; śamyā also involves clapping of hands as per the rhythm of the tāla; dvipadī is also a kind of tāla-pattern. Chalika is mentioned by Kālidāsa in the play Mālavikāgnimitram. In summary, this can be thought of as the equivalent of daṇḍa-rāsaka or śamyā-rāsaka – two forms of kolāṭa.
9. Prekṣaṇaka – this is a form of dance that is performed on the streets, porticos, and terraces. It may be performed in palaces and temples as well. Bhoja-rāja has quoted the episode of kāmadahana as an example for prekṣaṇaka. Drawing from Bhoja’s description, Dr. V. Raghavan guesses that this could be a reference to the dance of roosters; however, his view does not seem to hold water. Prekṣaṇaka is a form of street dance performed by humans. We may also call it a simple street play. Raghavan also infers that going around on the streets dancing and singing the lāvaṇis is an art akin to prekṣaṇaka.
To be continued...
This series of articles is authored by Shatavadhani Dr. R Ganesh and have been rendered into English with additional material and footnotes by Arjun Bharadwaj. The article first appeared in the second edition of the anthology Prekṣaṇīyaṃ, published by the Prekshaa Pratishtana in December 2022.
[1] Anyāpadeśa usually involves an utterance which is meant to convey something over and beyond the obvious; it may involve speaking to an animate or inanimate object, while it conveys a deep message to a third party. A whole range of anyokti-kāvya has been modelled after this.
