Text 7.145

(12) [This is a discussion on the fault called prakṛti-viparyaya (discrepancy in the description of the nature):]

वीर-रौद्र-शृङ्गार-शान्त-प्रधाना धीरोदात्त-धीरोद्धतधीरललित-धीरशान्ताश् चत्वारो नेतारः. ते च सर्वेऽनुकूल-दक्षिण-शठ-धृष्टा दिव्यादिव्योभयात्मानश् चोत्तमा मध्यमाः कनिष्ठाश् च. तेषु यो यथा-भूतस् तस्यायथा-वर्णनं प्रकृतिविपर्यायो दोषः. एवं देश-कालादीनाम् अप्य् अयथा-वर्णनं बोध्यम्. तथा सति हि काव्यस्यासत्यता-प्रतिभासेन विनेयोन्मुखी-करणासम्भवः.

vīra-raudra-śṛṅgāra-śānta-pradhānā dhīrodātta-dhīroddhatadhīralalita-dhīraśāntāś catvāro netāraḥ. te ca sarve'nukūla-dakṣiṇa-śaṭha-dhṛṣṭā divyādivyobhayātmānaś cottamā madhyamāḥ kaniṣṭhāś ca. teṣu yo yathā-bhūtas tasyāyathā-varṇanaṃ prakṛtiviparyāyo doṣaḥ. evaṃ deśa-kālādīnām apy ayathā-varṇanaṃ bodhyam. tathā sati hi kāvyasyāsatyatā-pratibhāsena vineyonmukhī-karaṇāsambhavaḥ.

There are four kinds of heros: A dhīrodātta hero (clever and virtuous) is mostly characterized by vīra-rasa, the dhīroddhata hero (clever and boastful) by raudra-rasa, the dhīra-lalita hero (clever and fun-loving) by śṛṅgāra-rasa, and the dhīra-śānta hero (clever and peaceful) by śānta-rasa.^[1]

Each one of those leaders is further subcategorized: (A) He is either anukūla (favorable), dakṣiṇa (expert), śaṭha (deceitful), or dhṛṣṭa (audacious), (B) He is either divya (divine), adivya (nondivine), or divyādivya (both divine and nondivine),^[2] and (C) He is either uttama (best), madhyama (average), or kaniṣṭha (beginner).

The fault called prakṛti-viparyaya occurs when there is a description of one of them in a way that is not in conformity with the way he is.^[3] It also occurs when there is an inconsistency in a description of a place, or of the time, and so on. The learners cannot be made to be interested when a description is faulty in this way, since the poetry seems untrue.

Commentary:

Mammaṭa expounds: evaṃ deśa-kāla-vayo-jāty-ādīnāṃ veṣa-vyavahārādikam ucitam evopanibandhavyam, “Thus the attire, behavior, and so on, should be properly described with respect to the place, the time (the season, the lunar fortnight), the age, the category, the species, and so forth” (Kāvya-prakāśa, verse 329 vṛtti).

Above, Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa echoes Ānandavardhana’s opinion: śṛṅgāra-rasāṅgair unmukhī-kṛtāḥ santo hi vineyāḥ sukhaṃ vinayopadeśān gṛhṇanti. sad-ācāropadeśa-rūpā hi nāṭakādi-goṣṭhī vineya-jana-hitārtham eva munibhir avatāritā, “The learners readily accept instructions of moral conduct only when the poetry catches their attention by means of aspects of śṛṅgāra-rasa. Poetry, including dramaturgy, in the form of instructions about moral conduct was introduced by Bharata Muni and others only for the benefit of the learners, i.e. those who deserve to be taught” (Dhvanyāloka 3.30).

In short, in poetry the instructions of moral codes amount to this: “One should follow Rāma, and one should not behave like Rāvaṇa” (Commentary 1.4).^[4] In addition, Rūpa Gosvāmī says the purport is: To achieve proper happiness, one should become a good devotee; one should not imitate Kṛṣṇa.^[5]

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

The four types of heros belong to the category of vibhāva, since they are qualities of the viṣaya (Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu 2.1.224) (Sāhitya-darpaṇa 6.31).

[2]:

Śeṣarāja Śarmā explains: divyādivyāḥ = divyā api ya ātmani naratvābhimānino yathā śrī-rāma-candrādayaḥ, “Persons who are divyādivya are persons who, although they are divine, have the conceit of being human. An example is Śrī Rāmacandra” (Candrakalā 7.15). Govinda Ṭhakkura says Śrī Kṛṣṇa is another example(Kāvya-pradīpa on Kāvya-prakāśa verse 328 vṛtti).

[3]:

Viśvanātha Kavirāja writes: prakṛti-viparyāyo doṣaḥ, yathā dhīrodāttasya rāmasya dhīroddhata-vat chadmanā bāli-vadhaḥ, “An instance of prakṛti-viparyaya is the episode where the monkey called Bali is killed by the deceit of Rāmacandra, who is a dhīrodātta, as if He were a dhīroddhata” (Sāhitya-darpaṇa 7.15). However, although Kṛṣṇa is mostly described as a dhīra-lalita nāyaka (a hero who is intelligent and playful), He can also be represented in any one of the three other types of heros (Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu 2.1.224).

[4]:

caturvarga-phala-prāptir hi kāvyato rāmādi-vat pravartitavyaṃ na rāvaṇādi-vat ity-ādi kṛtyākṛtya-pravṛtti-nivṛtty-upadeśa-dvāreṇa supratītaiva (Sāhitya-darpaṇa 1.2); rāmādi-vad vartitavyaṃ na kvacid rāvaṇādi-vat | ity eṣa mukti-dharmādi-parāṇāṃ naya īryate || (Ujjvalanīlamaṇi 3.25)

[5]:

vartitavyaṃ śam icchadbhir bhakta-van na tu kṛṣṇa-vat | ity evaṃ bhakti-śāstrāṇāṃ tātparyasya vinirṇayaḥ || (Ujjvala-nīlamaṇi 3.24)