Introduction (1)—General

INTRODUCTION General Literature has been divided by Sanskrit rhetoricians into two classes-that which can be seen, and that which can only be heard. The can be represented on the stage. It is also called a Rupakam, so called because the Rupa or character of the heroes is ascribed to the actors. Rupakas are tenfold viz., Nataka, Prakarana, viz.,-Nataka, Bhana, Prahasana, Dima, Vyayoga, Samavakara, Vithi, Anka and Ihamrga. The difference between these categories lies in the difference in, the plot, the hero and the emotion. The following slokas may be perused with advantage in this connection. drsyasravyatvabhedena punah kavyam dvidha matam | drsyam tatrabhineyam tadruparopantu rupakam || natakam saprakaranam bhanah prahasanam dimah | vyayogasamavakarau vithyankehamrga dasa || vastu neta rasastesam bhedakah . | Nataka, the most important type of Rupaka to which Abhijnana Sakuntala belongs is defined by Sanskrit rhetoricians as one that satisfies the three requirements laid down thus : - natake prakhyatamitivrttam, srirodatto nayakah, srngaravirarasayoranyatarasya pradhanyam | In a Nataka.

4 SAKUNTALA or drama the plot is one renowned by Epic tradition, the hero belongs to the Dhirodatta type, and love or heroism is the dominant emotion. That the present play satisfies all the three requirements will be clear from the pages that follow. Vastu or plot is of three kinds-Tea_or renowned by tradition, or conceived by the utpadya poet, and for partly traditional and partly conceived by the poet. Vide Dasarupaka:-¶a- tpadyamisratvabhedattattrividham matam . I Rasas or emotions that are considered to be. the soul of poetry are nine in number- the erotic, hasya the humorous, karuna the pathetic, raudra the furious, vira the heroic, bhayanaka the frightful, bibhatsa the loathsome, the marvellous and quietistic. Vide the following extract:- srngarahasyakaruna raudravirabhayanakah | bibhatsadbhutasantasca rasah purvairudahrtah || the According to Bharata, the founder of Sanskrit dramaturgy, only the first eight Rasas are recognized to the exclusion of Santa. The author of Dasarupaka who follows in the wake of Bharata repudiates the Santa rasa and holds that though Santa has to be recognized in general poetry, it can have no place in a drama. kua sthayitvamasmabhih samasya nisidhyate | tasya samastavyaparapravilayarudrasya 118 Consistently with his theory, Dhanika

INTRODUCTION in says that the dominant emotion in Nagananda is dayavira and not santa . But the general trend of opinion among Alankarikas is in favour of the ninefold classification of Rasa as stated above. Rasa has been defined in Dasarupaka as follows:- vibhavairanubhavaisca sattvikairvyabhicaribhih | aniyamanah svadutvam sthayi bhavo rasah smrtah || Rasa consists of a sthayibhava or sentiment which is rendered delectable by the cumulative influence of vibhava, anubhava s and vyabhicaribhava s. The nine sthayibhava s or sentiments which make up the said nine Rasas are enumerated in order as follows:- ratihasa r sokasca krodhotsaho bhayam tatha | jugupsavismayasamah sthayibhava nava kramat || They are--love, humour, grief, rage, valour, fear, disgust, wonder and tranquillity. or love is the basis of srngara . srngara or the erotic emotion is twofold- sambhoga and vipralambha, love in union and love in separation. • sambhogasrngara has been defined thus :- anukulau nisevete yatranyonyam vilasinau | darsanasparsanadini sa sambhogo mudanvitah || By way of illustration Dasarupaka cites the following two slokas from Uttararamacarita :- kimapi kimapi mandam mandamasaktiyogat ...Act I - 27. viniscetum sakyo na sukhamiti va duhkhamiti va ... Act I - 35. viralambhassrngara is sub-divided into four classes - ayoga, -mana, pravasa and karuna ayoga represents the separated

SAKUNTALA stage of loving couples before union, and the other three kinds of take place after their union. represents a separation due to love-quarrels. is separation due to exile, of which the whole of Meghasandesa is a monumental example. 19434 refers to the separation of lovers, one of whom departs from life, provided they join later on. The story of Pundarika and Mahasveta in Kadambari is an example of this kind of f. It has been vipralambha . defined as follows:- yunorekatarasmin gatavati lokantaram punarlabhye | vimanayate yadekastada bhavetkarunavipralambhakhyah || This differs from karunarasa inasmuch as the sthayibhava here is or the mutual love leading to a re-union whereas in Karuna or grief is the ad there is no re-union. The distinction has been pointed out in Sahityadarpana as follows: 1 sokah sthayitaya bhinno vipralambhadayam rasah | vipralambhe ratih sthayi punah sambhogahetukah || X or the heroic emotion has been treated under three heads as in the case of Yudhisthira, yuddhavira as of Rama in Mahaviracarita and dyavira as 1 of Jimutavahana in Nagananda. Heroes in general are considered to belong to four different types- dhirodata, dhiroddhata, dhiralalita and 'virasantah a . Valour, magnanimity, strength of character resoluteness and all other rare virtues are the

INTRODUCTION 7 characteristics of a Dhirodatta. Rama, Jimutavahana and the like are examples of this type. Haughtiness due to strength and valour, love of power, self-glorification, emulation, greed and the like are characteristics of the Dhiroddhata. Parasurama, Bhimasena, Ravana and others fall under this category. Free from care, addicted to fine arts and love and easy-going is the Dhiralalita, of whom Vatsaraja, the hero of Ratnavali, is a typical example. Dhirasanta is an average hero possessed of humility, sweetness, liberality and other good qualities, ordinarily a Brahmin, like Madhava in Malatimadhava. Vide Dasarupaka : mahasattvo'tigambhirah ksamavanavikatthanah | sthiro nigudhahamkaro dhirodatto drdhavratah || darpamatsaryabhuyistho mayacchadmaparayanah | dhiroddhatastvahamkari calasvando vikatthanah || niscinto dhiralalitah kalasaktah sukhi mrduh | samanyagunayuktastu dhirasanto dvijadikah || As to what are which every herb should possess, Dasarupaka says:- neta vinito madhurastyagi daksah priyamvadah | raktalokah sucirvagmi rudhavamsah sthiro yuva || buddhayutsahasmrtiprajnakalamanasamanvitah | suro drdhasva tejasvi sastracaksusca dharmikah || ☑ M Of the four types of heroes it is to the Dhirodatta type that Dusyanta, the hero of this play, belongs.

8 + SAKUNTALA Heroes for the purpose of love or caranayaka s as they are called, are also classified under four heads --anukula or one who is attached to one woman, daksina or one who accords equal treatment to several wives, or one who makes bold to appear before a woman when his affections are centred elsewhere, and or one who secretly commits an atrocious act of Infidelity. The definitions of the above four types of Nayaka are given in the following sloka:- ekayatto'nukulah syat tulyo'nekatra daksinah | vyaktaga gatabhirdhrsto gudhavipriyakrcchathah || The Rama is an example of Anukula Nayaka. following sloka of Uttararamacarita Is generally cited to illustrate an Anukulanayaka. advaitam sukhaduhkhayoranugatam sarvasvavasthasu ya- dvisramo hrdayasya yatra jarasa yasminnaharyo rasah | kalenavaranatyayatparinate yatsnehasare sthitam bhadram tasya sumanusasya kathamapyekam hi tatprarthyate || I 39. Vatsaraja and Agnimitra are examples of Daksinanayaka. An idea of Daksinanayaka may be had from the following illustration in the Dasarupaka- snata tisthati kuntalesvarasuta varo'ngarajakhasuh dyute ratririyam jita kamalaya devi prasadyadya ca | ityantahpurasundarih prati maya vijnaya vijnapite devenapratipattimudhamanasa dvitrah sthitam nadikah || The following verse from Malavikagnimitra has also been cited in Dasarupaka to illustrate Daksina Nayaka:-. to Eq

INTRODUCTION ucitah pranayo varam vihantum bahavah khandanahetavo hi drstah | 9. upacara vidhirmanakhininam na tu purvabhyadhiko'pi bhavasunyah || III - 3. For Dhrsta the following illustration is given there. laksalaksma lalatapattamabhitah keyuramudra gale drstra vaktre kajjalakalima nayanayostambularago'parah | kopavidhayi mandanamidam pratasviram preyaso lilatamarasodare mrgadrsah svasah samaptim gatah || And for a Satha, the following illustration is given from Amarusataka :- sathanyasyah kancimaniranitamakarnya sahasa yadaslisyanneva prasithilabhujagranthirabhavah tadetatkkacakse ghrtamadhumayatvadbahuvaco- visenaghurnanti kimapi na sakhi me ganayati || Of these four types of heroes Dusyanta, the hero of this play, belongs to the Daksina type. NANDI Nandi means the introductory benediction at the beginning of every play. Nandi consists in homage paid to the Deity, Brahmins, kings or the like, coupled with an invocation for blessing. Sahityadarpana defines it as follows: 1 asirvacana samyukta stutiryasmatprayujyate | devadvijanrpadinam tasmannanditi samjnita || In popular parlance the word Nandi denote a preliminary ceremony for the propitiation of manes, generally performed on the eve of any auspicious religious function like Upanayana,

10 SAKUNTALA marriage etc. The word Nandi as applied to the benedictory verse at the beginning of a drama has been derived by the author of Natyapradipa thus :- nandanti kavyani kavindravargah kusilavah parisadasca santah | yasmadalam sajjanasindhuhamsi tasmadiyam sa kathiteha nandi || nandanti asyamiti, asya iti va nandi Etymologically Nandi means that by which poets, musicians, spectators or literary works are delighted or shine to advantage. The etymology of the word Nandi can also be explained in a different way. is nandi the bull of Lord Siva, and his back served as a stage formerly for the dance of Siva, which displayed the twofold varieties of Tandava and Lasya. Since the back of Nandin served as a stage, the worship offered with a view to entry on the stage is called Nandi. nandi vrsah ko'pi mahesvarasya rangatvamadau kila khe jagama | tadangamuddisya krtam tu pujam nanditi tam navyavido vadanti || Nandi really means the Purvaranga ceremony i. e., the initial worship offered with a view to a successful staging of the play. But it has come to be used' to denote the benedictory verses composed by the poet himself, and it is in this significance that it is used in the majority of plays including Sakuntala. . The Nandi of this play invokes Lord Siva to protect the spectators. That there is a similar invocation to the Lord in the Nandis of his other two

INTRODUCTION 11 plays as well shows that Kalidasa was a devout worshipper of Siva. Sutradhara. sutradharah means the Stage - Manager sutram ( prayoganusthanam ) dharayatiti sutradharah One who holds the conduct of the stage. This etymology is supported by the following authority:- natyopakaranadini sutramityabhidhiyate | sutram dharayatityarthe sutradharo nigadyate || Matrguptacarya gives the following elaborate. definition of Sutradhara :- caturatodyanisnato'nekabhusasamavrtah | nanabhasanatattvajno nitisastrarthatattvavit || nanagatipracarajno rasabhavavisaradah | natyaprayoganipuno nanasilpakalanvitah || chandovidhanatattvajnah sarvasastravicaksanah | tattadgitanugalayakalatalavadharanah || avadhaya prayokta ca yoktrnamupadesakah | evam gunaganopetah sutradharo'bhidhiyate || The qualities required of a Sutradhara in the above definition are too many that it leads us to suppose that it refers to an ideal Sutradhara and not to all Sutradharas. In this play as in most others, the Sutradhara. enters upon the stage after the pronouncement of He may be called the the benedictory stanza. Sthapaka or Sthapana Sutradhara, because he

12 SAKUNTALA qi introduces the play to the audience, and as such he can be deemed to establish the foundation of the drama. sa ca kavyarthasthapanat sucanatsthapakah | He is different from Nandi Sutradhara, whose duty it is to perform the Purvaranga. purva vidhayadau sutradhare vinirgate | 1 pravisya tadvadaparah kavyamasthapayenatah | sucayedvastu bijam va mukham patramathapi va || As to which of the two Sutradharas should pronounce the opening benedictory stanzas or the so-called Nandi slokas, there is a division in practice. In those plays where the entry of the Sutradhara is directed after the Nandi slokas, the Nandi Sutradhara repeats the Nandi slokas, and the Sthapana Sutradhara conducts the Prelude. But in those plays where the entry of the Sutradhara is placed prior to the benedictory verses, the Sthapana Sutradhara himself pronounces the Nandi slokas and in continuation conducts the Prelude. This practice is comparatively very restricted and obtains in Saktibhadra's Ascaryacudamani and in all the thirteen plays ascribed to the authorship of Bhasa by the editor of the Trivandrum Sanskrit Series. It may be observed that the author of Sahityadarpana states that in Vikramorvasiya several manuscripts place the entry of Sutradhara before

INTRODUCTION 13 the Nandi sloka and that the reading there adopted is the more appropriate of the two. Vide the following extract from Sahityadarpana :- uktam ca- 'rangadvaramarabhya kavih kuryat ityadi | ata eva praktana- pustakesu 'nandyante sutradharah ' ityanantarameva 'vedantesu - ' ityadislokalikhanam drsyate | yacca pascat 'nanyante sutradharah ' iti likhanam tasyayamabhiprayah nandyante sutradhara idam prayojitavan itah prabhrti maya natakamupadiyata iti kaverabhiprayah sucita iti | , In the edition of Bhavabhuti's Uttararamacarita in the Sri Balamanorama Series, the entry of the Sutradhara is placed before the Nandi sloka, and it is supported by the high authority of the commentator Narayana. prastavana or the Prologue. In the sthapana, prastavana and amukham are synonyms. Prastavana, the stage-director is expected to converse wittily with the actress or an assistant actor or a clown for the purpose of introducing the play to the spectators. sutradharo natim brute marisam va vidusakam | svakarya prastutaksepa citroktya yattadamukham || prastavana va And this introduction of the play to the audience can take place in any one of the three methods :- prayogatisaya, -prayogatisaya, kathoddhata and pravrttaka . Whenever a Sutradhara introduces the play by comparing himself with some character whose immediate entry is referred to by means of words like eso'yam,

14 Guest SAKUNTALA the method adopted is said to be prayogatisaya Vide Dasarupaka :- eso'yamityupaksepatsutradhara prayogatah | patra praveso yatraisa prayogatisayo matah || This method is resorted to in Sakuntala by the following simile :-- tavasmi gitaragena harina prasabham hrtah | esa rajeva dusyantah sarangenatiramhasa ||, in Malavikagnimitra thus- sirasa prathamagrhitamajnamicchami parisadah kartum | devya iva dharinyah sevadaksah parijano'yam || and in Nagananda thus- pitrorvidhatum susrusam tyaktvaisvaryam kramagatam | vanam yamyahamapyesa yatha jimutavahanah || . The method of introducing a play, known as kathoddhata is deemed to be resorted to when the Sutra dhara uses words which are affirmed, repeated or reproduced in sense, first behind the scenes, and then after entering the stage, by the character that enters first. svetivrttasamam vakyamartham va yatra sutrinah | grhitva pravisetpatram kathoddhatodvidhaiva sah || In Ratnavali the actor playing the part of Yaugandharayana first affirms the words of the Sutradhara by saying evametat kah samdehah and immediately enters the stage, repeating the words of the Sutradhara- dvipadanyasmat etc. In Venisamhara, the words of the Sutradhara are not actually repeated, but they are

INTRODUCTION 15 reproduced in purport by Bhimasena who enters first. sutradharah - nirvanavairadahanah prasamadarinam nandantu pandutanayah saha madhavena | raktaprasadhitabhuvah ksataviprahasca svastha bhavantu kururajasutah sabhrtyah || (nepathye | sadhiksepam 1) ah duratman vrthamangalapathaka sailusapasada, laksagrhanalavisannasabhapravesaih pranesu vittanicayesu ca nah prahrtya | akrsya pandavavadhu paridhanakesan svastha bhavantu mayi jivati dhartarastrah || * * * (tatah pravisati sahadevenanugamyamanah kruddho bhimasenah | ) bhimasenah -ah duratman vrthamangalapathaka sailusapasada, ( laksagrhanala -- ityadi punah pathati | ) The third method of introducing a play goes by the name of pravrttaka . It takes place when the Sutradhara describes a season in terms applicable to the character that first enters the stage. the following extract from Dasarupaka :- kalasamyasamaksiptapravesah syatpravrttakam || Vide pravrttakalasamanagunavarnanaya sucitapatrapravesah pravrttakam || yatha- asaditaprakatanirmalacandrahasah praptah saratsamaya esa visuddhakantah | utkhaya gadhatamasam ghanakalamugram ramro dasasyamiva sambhrtabandhujivah || (tatah pravisati yathanirdisto ramah | ) Viskambha and Pravesaka. These are the two most popular of the five methods by which the Sucya portion of the plot is

16 SAKUNTALA indicated in a drama. The or the plot of a drama consists of two portions viz., sucya and asucya .. The portions that can be actually represented on the stage go by the name of Asucya. On the other hand, a battle and other similar things which are prohibited to be acted on the stage, uninteresting incidents and incidents that cover an unusually long period can only be indicated, and these things fall within the scope of the Sucya portion of the plot. The indication of a Sucya plot is described by rhetoricians to take place in five ways. They are viskambha, pravesaka, culika, ankasya and ankavatara . Vide Pratapa rudriya :- itivrttam sucyamasucyam ceti dvividham | asucyamapi dvividham - drsyam faiad-ai sravyam ca | tatru sucyasya sucanakramah pancavidhah | tathoktam dasarupake- 'viskambhaculikankasyapravesankavataranaih ' iti . Viskambha is that preliminary scene in any act of a drama in which one or more middle characters take part and which briefly indicates past or future incidents. vrttavartisyamananam kathamsanam nidarsakah | samkseparthastu viskambho madhyapatra prayojitah || A Viskambha is of two kinds-and A. suddha and misra, In the Suddhaviskambha, middle characters () alone take part, and the conversation is carried on only in Sanskrit; whereas, in Misra, low characters () also take part, and the Viskambha consists of a mixed dialogue in Sanskrit and Prakrt.

INTRODUCTION 17 sadvividhah suddhah samkirnasceti | kevalasamskrtaprayah suddhah, samskrtaprakrta- misritah samkirnah || A Pravesaka is similar to a Viskambha in that it is intended for brevity and indicates past and future incidents. But there there are certain salient points of difference between the two. In a Viskambha, one or more Madhyapatras or middle characters take part, and Nicapatras or low characters also can be introduced; whereas a Pravesaka consists exclusively of low characters. And consequently, a Viskambha, if Suddha, can be carried on entirely in Sanskrit and, if Misra, in a mixed dialogue of Sanskrit and Prakrt, whereas a Prave- saka is carried on only in Prakrt. A Viskambha can be inserted at the beginning of any Act, but a Pravesaka can never be placed at the beginning of the First Act, perhaps because the exclusive introduction of low characters at the beginning is likely to detract from the dignity of the play and to impress the audience unfavourably. vrttavartisyamananam kathamsanam nidarsakah | pravesakastu nadye'nke nicapatraprayojitah || Another method of suggesting the link between a prior and a later Act is by making some person or persons speak from behind the screen, and it goes by the name of Culika. Sometimes the characters at the end of a certain Act themselves indicate b

18 SAKUNTALA what follows in the next Act, and this method of suggestion is called Ankasya. But where the later Act is so connected with the previous that it seems almost a continuation of it except for the fact that the poet has divided the plot into two Acts, the method followed by the poet is described by rhetoricians as an Ankavatara. This is a residuary device, and in all beginnings of Acts where none of the other four exists, it is supposed that the poet has resorted to the Ankavatara. antaryavanikasamsthaisculikarthasya sucana | ankantapatrairankasyamuttarankarthasucana || yatra syaduttarankarthah purvankarthanusamgatah | asucitankapatram tadankavataranam matam || In Sakuntala we have a Viskambha at the commencement of the Third Act and Pravesakas at the beginning of the Fourth and Sixth Acts. The Viskambha of the Third Act is constituted by the soliloquy of a disciple of Kanva, a Madhyapatra or middle character. In, it is reported the protection of the sacrifice in which the king has engaged at the end of the Second Act, and the torments of Sakuntala as a result of love which occupies the major portion of the Third Act proper are hinted at. The Pravesaka of the Fourth Act consists of a dialogue between the two friends of Sakuntala, and the chief incident reported therein is the curse of Durvasas on Sakuntala. The Pravesaka at the beginning of the Sixth

ye INTRODUCTION 19 Act consists of a fisherman's scene and ends with an account of the king's sight of the signet-ring which rouses his memories of Sakuntala. This Pravesaka is carried on exclusively by low characters and in Prakrt. In the Pravesaka of the Fourth Act there is an admixture of Sanskrit in which the curse of sage Durvasas is couched though he does not actually appear on the stage. The description of Vidusaka's soliloquy at the beginning of the Second Act by Katayavema as Pravesaka is not quite correct as pointed out in our notes.