Text 4.8

एवम् अन्यत्राप्य् उक्तं मुनिना,

evam anyatrāpy uktaṃ muninā,

It was said in that manner elsewhere as well, by Bharata Muni:

vibhāvānubhāva-vyabhicāri-saṃyogād rasa-niṣpattiḥ ||

vibhāva-anubhāva-vyabhicāri—of vibhāvas, anubhāva, and vyabhicāri-bhāva; saṃyogāt—from the commixture; rasa-niṣpattiḥ—the effectuation of rasa.

The effectuation of rasa occurs from the blend of vibhāvas, anubhāva, and vyabhicāri-bhāva. (Nāṭya-śāstra 6.32)

asyārthaḥ, vibhāvayaty utpādayati raty-ādim iti vibhāvo nimittakāraṇam. sa cālambanoddīpana-bhedād dvedhā. yad uktam āgneye, “vibhāvyate hi raty-ādir yatra yena vibhāvyate, vibhāvo nāma sa dvedhālambanoddīpanātmakaḥ” iti. ādyo’pi dvedhā viṣayāśrayabhedāt. yam uddiśya raty-ādiḥ pravartate so’sya viṣayaḥ. āśrayas tu tad-ādhāraḥ. yat tu tam uddīpayati tad vanābhra-vidyut-prabhṛtyuddīpanam. anu paścād bhāvo yasya so’nubhāvaḥ kāryam. sa ca dvedhā, stambhādiḥ smita-kaṭākṣādiś ceti. tad uktam, “te stambha-sveda-romāñcāḥ svara-bhedo’tha vepathuḥ, vaivarṇyam aśru pralaya ity aṣṭau sāttvikāḥ smṛtāḥ.” “smitaṃ gītaṃ kaṭākṣaś ca bhuja-kṣepaś ca huṅ-kṛtiḥ, tanu moṭana-jṛmbhādiś cānubhāvaḥ prakīrtyate” iti. viśeṣeṇābhimukhyena sthāyinaṃ prati caratīti vyabhicārī. sañcārayati bhāvasya gatim iti sañcārī caiṣa raty-ādeḥ sahāya-bhūto nirvedādiḥ. eṣāṃ saṃyogāt sthāyini sambandhād rasasya niṣpattir abhivyaktir jñaptiḥ puṣṭiś ca kramād iti.

The meaning is as follows. Vibhāva is the instrumental cause, by the derivation: “It causes the sthāyī, such as rati, to rise (vibhāvayati = utpādayati).”^[1] Vibhāva is has two varieties: ālambana (the foundation) and uddīpana (stimuli). That was said in Agni Purāṇa,

vibhāvyate hi raty-ādir yatra^[2] yena vibhāvyate |
vibhāvo nāma sa dvedhālambanoddīpanātmakaḥ ||

“Vibhāva, which consists of ālambana and uddīpana, is thus twofold, by the derivations: “the sthāyi-bhāva is caused to be felt in whom (the āśraya),” “the sthāyi-bhāva directed toward whom (the viṣaya) is caused to be felt,” and “the sthāyi-bhāva is caused to be felt by means of this (uddīpana).”” (Agni Purāṇa) (Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu 2.1.15) (Prīti-sandarbha 111)

The first kind, ālambana-vibhāva, is twofold: viṣaya (the object of the sthāyī) and āśraya (the subject, i.e. the feeler of the sthāyī). The viṣaya of ālambana-vibhāva is that aiming at whom the sthāyi-bhāva stays active. The āśraya, however, is the substratum of the sthāyī. Further, an uddīpana (stimulus), such as a forest, a cloud, and lightning, is that which inflames the sthāyī (uddīpana = uddīpayati).^[3]

An anubhāva is so called because it takes place afterward (anu = paścāt). It is an effect. There are two kinds of anubhāvas: The sāttvika-bhāvas (involuntary bodily reactions) and those such as smita (smiling) and kaṭākṣa (casting a sidelong glance). Those two categories are stated:

te stambha-sveda-romāñcāḥ svara-bhedo’tha vepathuḥ |
vaivarṇyam aśru pralaya ity aṣṭau sāttvikāḥ smṛtāḥ ||^[4]

“The eight sāttvika-bhāvas are: stambha (being stunned), sveda (perspiration), romāñca (horripilation), svara-bheda (faltering voice), vepathu (trembling), vaivarṇya (a change in the complexion), aśru (tears), and pralaya (loss of consciousness, owing to happiness; or total devastation).” (Sāhitya-darpaṇa 3.135) (Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu 2.3.16)

smitaṃ gītaṃ kaṭākṣaś ca bhuja-kṣepaś ca huṅ-kṛtiḥ |
tanu-moṭana-jṛmbhādiś cānubhāvaḥ prakīrtyate ||

“The anubhāvas are: smita (smiling), gītam (singing), kaṭākṣa (casting a sidelong glance), bhuja-kṣepa (flailing the arms), huṅ-kṛti (roaring), tanu-moṭana (stretching the body), jṛmbhā (yawning), and so on.”^[5]

A vyabhicāri-bhāva is so called because it goes (cārin = carati) toward (abhi = ābhimukhyena) the sthāyī in a special way (vi = viśeṣeṇa), and is also termed sañcārī since it makes the course of a bhāva proceed. A vyabhicāri-bhāva, such as nirveda (self-disparagement), is an assistant of the sthāyi-bhāva.

The manifestation, the cognition, and the development, sequentially (niṣpattiḥ = abhivyaktiḥ jñaptiḥ puṣṭiḥ ca), of rasa occur from the connection (saṃyogāt = sambandhāt), in the sthāyī, of vibhāvas, anubhāva, and vyabhicāri-bhāva.

Commentary:

This is Bharata Muni’s well-known rasa-sūtra. Mammaṭa cites Abhinavagupta, who explains Bharata Muni’s term niṣpatti (effectuation) only as abhivyakti (manifestation, rousedness): That is the standard explanation.^[6] Hemacandra paraphrases Bharata Muni: vibhāvānubhāva-vyabhicāribhir abhivyaktaḥ sthāyī bhāvo rasaḥ, “A sthāyi-bhāva roused by means of vibhāvas, an anubhāva and a vyabhicāri-bhāva is a rasa” (Kāvyānuśāsana 2.1). Sometimes the rule is bent: For instance, a sthāyī is called rasa owing to the occurrence of vibhāvas and of two vyabhicāri-bhāvas (without an anubhāva). A sthāyi-bhāva is always implied. A poet would never use the word rati to say: “She has affection for her lover.” That would be the fault called sthāyi-bhāva-śabda-vācyatā (mentioning a sthāyi-bhāva by name) (7.137). The same applies to a rasa, and so on (5.18) (7.137).

Sometimes anubhāva is the effect of the sthāyi-bhāva,^[7] sometimes it is the effect of an uddīpana, and sometimes it is the effect of a vyabhicārī. Another explanation of anubhāva is: anubhāvo bhāva-bodhakaḥ, “An anubhāva is that which makes others understand the emotion in the person’s heart” (Amara-koṣa 1.7.21) (rendered in Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu 2.2.1).

Bharata Muni’s definition of vyabhicārī is: vividham ābhimukhyena carantīti vyabhicāriṇaḥ, “The vyabhicāri-bhāvas are so called because they diversely move in a favorable way” (Nāṭya-śāstra 7.27) (cited in Locana 2.3). However, the straightforward etymological meaning of vyabhicāri-bhāva is “transient emotion.”

In this regard Rūpa Gosvāmī writes:

unmajjanti nimajjanti sthāyiny amṛta-vāridhau |
ūrmi-vad vardhayanty enaṃ yānti tad-rūpatāṃ ca te ||

“Vyabhicāri-bhāvas emerge from the sthāyi-bhāva and merge in it like waves in an ocean of nectar” (Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu 2.4.3).

Moreover, after the sthāyī has reached the stage of rasa, the rasa turns into rapture when there is an outstanding implied sense (vastu-dhvani). In that regard, Abhinavagupta invented the function called rasanā: sā ca rasanā-rūpā pratītir utpadyate. vācya-vācakayos tatrābhidhādi-vivikto vyañjanātmā dhvananavyāpāra eva, “The perception (of rasa) that originates is the form of rasanā. It is the exact same function called Suggestiveness, only it is the soul of Suggestiveness” (Locana 2.4). He expounds: sā ca rasanā na pramāṇa-vyāpāro na kāraka-vyāpāraḥ. svayaṃ tu nāprāmāṇikī sva-saṃvedana-siddhatvāt. rasanā ca bodha-rūpaiva kintu bodhāntarebhyo laukikebhyo vilakṣaṇaiva, upāyānāṃ vibhāvādīnāṃ laukika-vailakṣaṇyāt. tena vibhāvādi-saṃyogād rasanā yato niṣpadyate’tas tathā-vidha-rasanā-gocaro lokottaro’rtho rasa iti tātparyaṃ sūtrasya.

“Rasanā is a function that has no proof, nor is it a function that is an active force. It itself, however, is not without proof, because it can be proven by one’s experience of it. Rasanā is simply a form of cognizance, but it is obviously distinct from other, worldly types of cognizance, since the vibhāvas and so on, the means, are distinct from the worldly ones. Consequently the purport of Bharata Muni’s sūtra is this: Since rasanā has become effected from the blend of vibhāvas and so on, an extraordinary meaning in the scope of rasanā becomes rasa (rapture)” (Abhinava-bhāratī).

In their explanations, the poetical theorists often mix the concepts of rasa in the sense of “relishable sthāyī” and rasa in the sense of “rapture”. The rasa which is rapture manifests by itself in oneself, and the body of its manifestation is undivided.^[8]

Bharata Muni expounds his sūtra as follows: tatra vibhāvānubhāvavyabhicāri-saṃyogād rasa-niṣpattiḥ. ko dṛṣṭāntaḥ. atrāha yathā hi nānā-vyañjanauṣadhi-dravya-saṃyogād rasa-niṣpattiḥ, tathā nānā-bhāvopagamād rasa-niṣpattiḥ. yathā hi guḍādibhir dravyair vyañjanair auṣadhibhiś ca ṣāḍavādayo rasā nirvartyante tathā nānā-bhāvopagatā api sthāyino bhāvā rasatvam āpnuvanti. atrāha “rasa iti kaḥ padārthaḥ” ucyate āsvādyatvāt.

“As the effectuation of enjoyment occurs from the combination of various vegetables, herbs, and other edibles, so the effectuation of rasa occurs from the arrival of various bhāvas. And just as the tastes, such as a dessert, and side dishes, are brought about by means of edibles such as sugar and by means of condiments, herbs, and seasonings, so a sthāyi-bhāva which has acquired various bhāvas reaches the state of rasa. Someone might wonder, “What is the meaning of the word rasa?” A rasa is so called because it is relished” (Nāṭya-śāstra 6.32).

Bharata Muni illustrates the second usage of the term rasa in this way:

yo’rtho hṛdaya-saṃvādī tasya bhāvo rasodbhavaḥ |
śarīraṃ vyāpyate tena śuṣkaṃ kāṣṭham ivāgninā ||

“An emotion that relates to a meaning which speaks to the heart gives rise to rasa. The body is pervaded by it like dry wood is pervaded by fire” (Nāṭya-śāstra 7.7).

Rūpa Gosvāmī only said that in bhakti, the sthāyi-bhāva turns into rasa when the heart is intensely resplendent with transcendental vibrations and when the constituent bhāvas (vibhāva, anubhāva, vyabhicārī) are no longer distinguished.^[9] This corresponds to rapture. Therefore in his illustrative examples, he implicitly referred to Bharata Muni’s rasa-sūtra every time he used the term rasa instead of rati (the sthāyi-bhāva of bhakti).

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

The entire elaboration is only from Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa. An uddīpana is the instrumental cause (nimitta-kāraṇa), whereas the ālambana is the ingredient cause (upādāna-kāraṇa).

[2]:

The one word yatra is used twice in the syntactical connection: When it refers to the viṣaya aspect of ālambana-vibhāva, the locative case in yatra is a viṣaya-saptamī (the object of emotions),but when it denotes the āśraya aspect,the locative case in yatra is an āśraya-saptamī (the substratum).

[3]:

As an example, in the sentence: “By seeing a raincloud, the gopīs remembered Kṛṣṇa,” the gopīs are the āśraya, Kṛṣṇa is the viṣaya, and the raincloud is an uddīpana.

[4]:

te stambhaḥ svedo’tha romāñcaḥ svara-bhedo’tha vepathuḥ |
vaivarṇyam aśru pralaya ity aṣṭau sāttvikāḥ matāḥ || (Nāṭya-śāstra 7.94).
Viśvanātha Kavirāja replaced Bharata Muni’s matāḥ with smṛtāḥ to indicate that the knowledge comes from a tradition.

[5]:

The sāttvika-bhāvas are included in the anubhāvas. The difference is that the sāttvikabhāvas are so called because they arise only from sattva (a fluctuation of the mind; the vibes) (Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu 2.3.1-2) (Sāhitya-darpaṇa 3.135). By contrast, the anubhāvas involve volition (Durgama-saṅgamanī 2.3.2): They are predominantly external transformations (Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu 2.2.1; 2.3.20).

[6]:

For instance, Viśvanātha Kavirāja writes: etair abhivyaktaḥ sahṛdaya-viṣayo rati-bhāvaḥ śṛṅgāra-rasa-rūpatāṃ bhajate (Sāhitya-darpaṇa 3.186).

[7]:

sthāyi-bhāvasya kāryāṇi kaṭākṣādīni yāni tu|
anubhāvās tāni bodhyā na saṅkhyā teṣu vartate || (Alaṅkāra-kaustubha 5.255)

[8]:

rasasya sva-prakāśatvam akhaṇḍatvaṃ ca sidhyati (Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu 2.5.112).

[9]:

vyatītya bhāvanā-vartma yaś camatkāra-kāra-bhūḥ|
hṛdi sattvojjvale bāḍhaṃ svadate sa raso mataḥ || (Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu 2.5.132)