Sahitya-kaumudi by Baladeva Vidyabhushana
by Gaurapada Dāsa | 2015 | 234,703 words
Baladeva Vidyabhusana’s Sahitya-kaumudi covers all aspects of poetical theory except the topic of dramaturgy. All the definitions of poetical concepts are taken from Mammata’s Kavya-prakasha, the most authoritative work on Sanskrit poetical rhetoric. Baladeva Vidyabhushana added the eleventh chapter, where he expounds additional ornaments from Visv...
Text 1.8
तद्-भेदान् आह,
tad-bhedān āha,
He mentions the categories of poetry. This is the definition of excellent poetry:
idam uttamam atiśayini vyaṅgye vācyād dhvanir budhaiḥ kathitaḥ ||1.4cd||
idam—this (poetry); uttamam—is the best; atiśayini vyaṅgye—when the implied sense is much better (in terms of strikingness); vācyāt—than the literal sense; dhvaniḥ—dhvani (first-rate implied meaning); budhaiḥ—by scholars; kathitaḥ—is called.
When the implied sense excels the literal meaning of the text, that is first-rate poetry and is called dhvani by scholars.
idam kāvyaṃ vācyād vyaṅgye iti camatkāriṇi saty uttamam. tad etad uttamaṃ kāvyaṃ dhvanyate’sminn iti vyutpattyā budhair dhvanir ity abhidhīyate.
Idam (this) means kāvyam (poetry). Regarding vācyād vyaṅgye (when the implied sense excels the literal meaning): Poetry is excellent when the implied sense generates more astonishment than the literal meaning of the text does. “This is first-rate poetry, termed dhvani-kāvya by scholars,” by the derivation: dhvanyate’smin (implying is done in this).
Commentary:
This is the topic of chapter four. The terms dhvani-kāvya (poetry that contains a dhvani) and uttama-kāvya (excellent poetry) are synonymous. The derivation dhvanyate’smin (implying is done in this) (lit. echoing is done in this) is taken from Viśvanātha Kavirāja’s Sāhitya-darpaṇa.[1]