Kavyamimamsa of Rajasekhara (Study)
by Debabrata Barai | 2014 | 105,667 words
This page relates ‘Genesis of Sahitya-vidya (literart criticism)’ of the English study on the Kavyamimamsa of Rajasekhara: a poetical encyclopedia from the 9th century dealing with the ancient Indian science of poetics and rhetoric (also know as alankara-shastra). The Kavya-mimamsa is written in eighteen chapters representing an educational framework for the poet (kavi) and instructs him in the science of applied poetics for the sake of making literature and poetry (kavya).
Part 2.3 - Genesis of Sāhitya-vidyā (literart criticism)
Once upon a time in Brahmaloka, the Brahmarṣis and Gods engaged themselves in a Vedic debate. Then Brahamā directed Sarasvatī (Goddess of Learning) to be the judge. While Sarasvatī (Goddess of Learning) was going to the celestial assembly as a judge, this child Kāvya-puruṣa persisted in following her. Sarasvatī (Goddess of Learning) to his son Kāvya-puruṣa that, the gates of Brahmaloka are open only for her, without Brahmā’s desire he should not go to Brahmaloka. Than the Kāvya-puruṣa become angry and left the place in a hurry.
This type of conduct of Kāvya-puruṣa agitated his friends Kumāra Kārttikeya, who reports the whole things to his mother Gourī and she also in order to present him created Sāhitya-Vidyā-Vadhū by thinking:
‘prāyaḥ prāṇabhṛtāṃ premāṇamantare ṇa nānyadbandhanamasti, tadetasya vaśīkaraṇaṃ
kāmapi striyaṃ sṛjāmīti vicintayantī sāhityavidyāvadhūmudapādayat’|- Kāvyamīmāṃsā of Rājaśekhara: Ch-III, Pp- 7
Means:
“For men there is no other bond stronger than love. Thus Sāhitya-Vidyā-Vadhū was created. This Sāhitya-Vidyā-Vadhū was created by the Gaurī or Umā so her creation Sāhitya-Vidyā-Vadhū also known as the name Aumeya. Then she told to the Sāhitya-Vidyā-Vadhū as she is the bride of Kāvya-puruṣa and follow him to capture the attention of her truant lover.”
There Gaurī also told the sage discipline ‘Kāvya-Vidyā’ go to them and pray, as they are very essential for Kāvya (poetry) C.f.
‘bhavanto'pi hanta munayaḥ kāvyavidyāsnātakāścaritametayoḥ studhvametaddhi
vaḥ kāvyasarvasvaṃ bhaviṣyatītyabhidhāya bhagavatī bhavānī joṣamāsiṣṭa |’- Kāvyamīmāṃsā of Rājaśekhara: Ch-III, Pp- 7-8
Here, we seem that the concept of love given by Rājaśekhara is related in a śloka (verse) to the description of this works twelve chapter, when he says an example as:
“dṛṣṭā'nyebhaṃ chedamutpādya rajjvā yanturvācaṃ manyamānastṛṇāya |
gacchandadhre nāgarājaḥ kariṇyā premṇā tulyaṃ bandhanaṃ nāsti jantoḥ || ”- Kāvyamīmāṃsā of Rājaśekhara: Ch-XII, Pp- 66
Means:
“To saw his arch-rivals, the elephant broke loose from the ropes binding him, paid no heed to the words of the mahout and rushed to attack him he was stopped by the she-elephant. It is true that for a living being there is no bond stronger than love.”