Text 10.23

यथोत्तरम् उपमेयस्योपमानत्वे रसनोपमा. तत्राभिन्ने

yathottaram upameyasyopamānatve rasanopamā. tatrābhinne sādharmye yathā,

If the upameya in one instance is turned into an upamāna in the next and so on in succession, that is a chain of similes (rasanopamā). There are two varieties: The common attribute is always the same or the common attribute is always different. This illustrates the first kind:

yasya buddhir^[1] ivādhītir adhītir iva dhīratā |
dhīrateva kriyā gurvī viṣṇu-bhaktiṃ sa vindati ||

A person whose study is deep like an ocean, whose wisdom is deep like his study, and whose deeds are deep like his wisdom obtains devotional service to Viṣṇu.

Commentary:

Mammaṭa calls this ornament raśanopamā (Kāvya-prakāśa, verse 413 vṛtti). Viśvanātha Kavirāja’s changed it to rasanopamā. Kavikarṇapūra uses the term rasanopamā, whereas Jagannātha follows Mammaṭa. The terms raśanā and rasanā are synonymous in the sense of girdle.^[2]

Footnotes and references:

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[1]:

The verse should read: yasyāmbudhir. This is taken in the translation.

[2]:

strī-kaṭyāṃ mekhalā kāñcī saptakī raśanā tathā, klībe sārasanaṃ ca (Amara-koṣa 2.6.108). atha rasanaṃ svadane dhvanau, jihvāyāṃ tu na puṃsi syād rāsnāyāṃ rasanā striyām, “Rasanam means relishment, and sound. Rasanā means tongue, and girdle”(Medinī-kośa).