Part 11 - Activities of Proṣitabhartṛkā

Examples of the activities of the Proṣitabhartṛkā character of woman heroine:

1 Jagār^[1] —Wakefulness

याः पश्यन्ति प्रियं स्वप्ने धन्यास्ताः सखि योषिताः ।
अस्माकं तु गते कान्ते गता निद्रापि वैरिणी ॥

yāḥ paśyanti priyaṃ svapne dhanyāstāḥ sakhi yoṣitāḥ |
asmākaṃ tu gate kānte gatā nidrāpi vairiṇī ||^[2]

O Friend! the ladies who see their lovers in their dreams are blessed. As for me, my sleep like an enemy has also left along with my lord.

2 Nimittādi-vilokana^[3] —Watching for Omens

Padam[4] Language -Telugu Rāga–Yadukula Kāmbhōji	Composer -Kṣētrajña
Vindu būci tirigīnē tilla gōvindu ḍindu vaccenēmō Yindu vadana yiṇṭi mundara nenta vintaga	The spider is dangling from here to there, may be the thillai govinda has come to our place. O fair woman what an omen it is in front of our house!
Kulukucunu pāla kuḍigi tirigīnē Kalakala manucu paiḍigaṇṭa palikīnē Molanunna nerikōka muḍi yippuḍu vadalīnē Yilalōna nī śakuna mevari kayyīnamma	In a playful mood the calf runs about making his bells give a sonorous sound. The knots of the waist garment get loosened. Has anyone witnessed such omens!
Jakkuna gubbalu cāla yuppongīnē Cakkera vaṇṭi kemmōvi sāre kadarīnē Makkuva sandaṭi daṇḍalu māṭimāṭiki bigisīnē Pakkana tōraṇa gauḷi palumāru balikīnē	The pair of breasts expand like geese. The sugary lips go on quivering. The biceps get stiffened with every movement and the lizard is always muttering.
Talacinaṭla nēḍu daivamu tōḍayyānē Kalikirō! Yidiye kṣēmakāri yayyānē Yelami nī vāma bhuja mipuḍidigō yadarīnē Palumāru muvvagōpāluḍu ninugūḍīnē	As expected, God, the muvvagopala who united with you many a times, has come to your rescue. Oh dear it looks like something good is about to happen today. Even your left arm is just now pulsating.

3 Mālinya^[5] —Being unkempt

वियोगिनी धूसरवक्त्रपद्मा विमुक्तभूषा मलिनैकवस्त्रा ।
कपोलदेशे निहितैकहस्ता सा वेद्या प्रस्थनवराटिकेयं ॥

viyoginī dhūsaravaktrapadmā vimuktabhūṣā malinaikavastrā |
kapoladeśe nihitaikahastā sā vedyā prasthanavarāṭikeyaṃ ||^[6]

Her husband is away, her lotus like face is dust white, she has abandoned garments and is wearing a soiled dress. She rests one hand on her cheek. Such a woman is known as "poor soul on account of departure'' (of the husband).

4 Aṅga-sāda^[7] —Weariness of limbs

Tamiḻ poem from Aganānūru; Akam 59[8] Tiṉai—Pālai Poet—Madurai Marudan Iḷanāgan

Translated by: Palaniappan Vairam Sarathy

Taṇ kayattu amaṉṟa vaṇḍu paḍutuṇai malarp Perundagai iḻanda kaṇṇiṉai, peridum Varundiṉai, vāḻiyar, nīyē! vaḍā adu, Vaṇ puṉal toḻunai vār maṇal agaṉduṟai, Aṇḍar magaḷir taṇ taḻai uḍī iyar Maram sela miditta mā al pōla, Puṉ talai maḍap pidi uṇī iyar, amkuḻai, Neḍu nilai yā am oṟṟi, naṉai kavuḷ Paḍi ñimiṟu kaḍiyum kaḷiṟe tōḻi! Sūr maruṅgu aṟutta suḍar ilai neḍu vēl, Siṉam migu murugaṉ  taṇparaṅkuṉṟattu, Anduvaṉ pāḍiya sandu keḻu neḍu varai, Iṉ dīm paiñcuṉai īraṇip polinda Taṇ naṟuṅ kaḻunīrc ceṇ iyaṟ siṟupuṟam Tām pārāṭṭiya kālaiyum uḷḷār Vīṅgu iṟaip paṇait tōḷ negiḻ, sēy nāṭṭu Aruñ seyaṟ poruṭpiṇi muṉṉi, nap Pirindu, sēṇuṟainarseṉṟa āṟē.

You, who have lost the beautyof the twin flowers in the cool ponds which are adored by the bees which swarm them, have suffered a lot.Long live you. Cool Kuvalai flower in the sweet nectar like fresh mountain pool, on the high mountain with abundant sandal trees sung about by Anutuvan,called cool Parankunram, ‘the seat ofMurukan of great wrath the possessor of the long spear with a shining leaf edgethat had cut the body of cur(curan) into two’, is comparable to the natural beauty of your back with swaying tresses made into a knot. Think about the time when Thalaivan used to celebrate this beauty of yours. Leaving your arms to slim like the swollen bamboo, Thalaivan has left us to perform the great job of accumulating wealth in the distant land. In his journey to distant land, (he would see) the male elephant would bend and break the high Ya tree, for the young female elephant to eat the gentle shoots like, “Maal who trampled the tress by walking upon it, in order to allow the bathing women of the cowherd community, to dress into the cooling foliage on the wide spread sand banks, of Tolunai (Yamuna) river of the north full of water” and chase away the bees settling in cheeks drenched in lust. (Seeing this, Thalaivan would come back).

5 Cinta^[9] —Anxiety

आदृष्टिप्रसरात्प्रियस्य पदवीमुद्वीक्ष्य निर्विण्णया विच्छिन्नेषु पथिष्वहः परिणतौ ध्वान्ते समुत्सर्पति ।
दत्वैकं सशुचा गृहं प्रति पदं पान्थस्त्रियास्मिन्क्षणे मा भूदागत इत्यमन्दवलितग्रीवं पुनर्वीक्षितम् ॥

ādṛṣṭiprasarātpriyasya padavīmudvīkṣya nirviṇṇayā vicchinneṣu pathiṣvahaḥ pariṇatau dhvānte samutsarpati |
datvaikaṃ saśucā gṛhaṃ prati padaṃ pānthastriyāsminkṣaṇe mā bhūdāgata ityamandavalitagrīvaṃ punarvīkṣitam ||^[10]

A friend describes the wife of a traveller to another friend.—The wife of the traveller stood on the threshold and continued to watch the foot prints of her lover as far as her eyes could go, till the day passed and it became dark on all sides and the routine of the travellers coming and going also stopped. After this she decided to return home and kept a step towards the house and suddenly again turned to see if her Lord had come meanwhile.

6 Karśya^[11] —Lean and 7 Jadata^[12] —Dullness

जाड्यमप्रतिपत्तिः स्यादिष्टानिष्टागमादिभिः ।
प्रिये समागते तन्वी न किं चिद्धुबुधे क्षणम् ॥

jāḍyamapratipattiḥ syādiṣṭāniṣṭāgamādibhiḥ |
priye samāgate tanvī na kiṃ ciddhubudhe kṣaṇam ||^[13]

8 Śayyāratissadā^[14]

[i.e., Always on the bed Common example for jaḍata and Śayyāratissadā]

Jāvaḷi Language–Kannaḍa Rāgam-Ranjani Tāḷa -Ādi	Composer–Smt. Dwaraki Krishnaswamy Inspired by Kṣētrajña
Pallavi Ēnalē bhāmini mōhinī	Hey! intoxicating girl, I, your favourite mirror am watching you.
Kāṇutihenēnā nelagannaḍi priya ninna Śūnyadi soragi suruḷi malagihe yēke	You are lying down emptily coiled and tired.
Anupallavi (tiśra naḍai) caṇa caṇa ciṭiketāḷa ciṇṇapada muṇumuṇuguta Maṇinūpura jhaṇa jhaṇise cimmuta kaṇḍe anudina Nuṇṇina galla kenduṭiya anda sampige nāsikada rannagombe nī Kāṇe kāṇenā sukhisidēnā caṇa caṇava ramaṇī	Every day I saw you, snapping you fingers and muttering a small song. your anklets produced lovely music while you bounced around. You are a golden doll with beautiful chin, red lips and nose like the sampige flower. Now, I cannot see thse beautiful moments O! beautiful girl.
Caraṇa Yāra dhṛśṭi tākitō ninnoṇṭi tanake dūḍihanē ava Sarisu jaḍatanava biḍu avanoḷ hagetanavā Koragi koragi soragi baḷali basavaḷidu beṇḍāde ēke Bharavase iḍu madananē sākṣhi sāgu sāgu madhura milanake	Who jinxed you, that you have been pushed to your loneliness? Leave you dullness; leave your bitterness towards him. Thinking constantly about him, you have lost your charm and feel tired, giddy and why have you left your freshness (liveliness). Have belief, cupid is your witness, think positively towards your union.

9 Virahānubhāva—Afflicted by Separation

माधुर्यं मधुरैः अपि कोकिलैःकलकलैः मलयस्य च वायुभिः ।
विरहिणः प्रणिहन्ति शरीरिणो विपदि हन्त सुधाऽपि विषयाते ॥

mādhuryaṃ madhuraiḥ api kokilaiḥkalakalaiḥ malayasya ca vāyubhiḥ |
virahiṇaḥ praṇihanti śarīriṇo vipadi hanta sudhā'pi viṣayāte ||

Inspite of the sweet cooing of the koel, inspite of the fragrant breeze blowing from the East, Vasanta, the king of the seasons, makes miserable the life of lovers who, separated, pine for each other. Truly, in times of adversity, even nectar acts like poison.^[15]

10 Anavasthānam Prāya^[16] —Largely Unstable

श्रुत्वाऽकस्मान्निशीथे नवघनरसितं विश्लथाङ्गं पतन्त्या शय्याया भूमिपृष्ठे करतलधृतया दुःखितालीजनेन ।
सोत्कण्ठं मुक्तकण्ठं कठिनकुचतटोपान्तदीर्णाश्रुबिन्दुस्मृत्वास्मृत्वाप्रियस्यस्खलितमृदुवचो रुद्यते पान्थवध्वा ॥

śrutvā'kasmānniśīthe navaghanarasitaṃ viślathāṅgaṃ patantyā śayyāyā bhūmipṛṣṭhe karataladhṛtayā duḥkhitālījanena |
sotkaṇṭhaṃ muktakaṇṭhaṃ kaṭhinakucataṭopāntadīrṇāśrubindusmṛtvāsmṛtvāpriyasyaskhalitamṛduvaco rudyate pānthavadhvā ||^[17]

In the middle of the night, when the wife of the traveller heard a loud thunder, she got scared and fell on the floor. But her saddened friends managed her by their hands. After this she was overwhelmed by sorrow, remembering her hero, in her sweet voice, she started crying so much that the tear drops that fell on her chest scattered here and there.

11 Wanting to die

गच्छ गच्छसि चेत्कान्तः पन्थानः सन्तु ते शिवाः ।
ममापि जन्म तत्रैव भूयाद्यत्र समागमः ॥

gaccha gacchasi cetkāntaḥ panthānaḥ santu te śivāḥ |
mamāpi janma tatraiva bhūyādyatra samāgamaḥ ||^[18]

Go, if you (really) are going, my lord, let your path of journey be propitious and I may also be born there where we may unite.

प्रस्थनं वलयैः कृतं प्रियसखैरस्रैरजस्रं गतं धृत्य न क्षणमासितं व्यवसितं चित्तेन गन्तुं पुरः ।
यातुं निश्चितचेतसि प्रियतमे सर्वे समं प्रस्थिता गन्तव्येसति जीवित! प्रियसुहृत्सार्थः किमु त्यज्यते ॥

prasthanaṃ valayaiḥ kṛtaṃ priyasakhairasrairajasraṃ gataṃ dhṛtya na kṣaṇamāsitaṃ vyavasitaṃ cittena gantuṃ puraḥ |
yātuṃ niścitacetasi priyatame sarve samaṃ prasthitā gantavyesati jīvita! priyasuhṛtsārthaḥ kimu tyajyate ||^[19]

The nāyikā in viraha is saying thus–As soon as my lord said he is leaving to go abroad, immediately all his friends started to leave. The bangles of the hand went away (indicating that she had become thin), torrents of tears started falling, courage could not wait even for a second, even my mind started going forward. But O life! if you also wanted to join your friends, then, why are you not leaving?

[12 Rasamañjarī states that the Daśa Avastaha are her activities:] [???]

Footnotes and references:

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[1]:

Rasārṇavasudhākara, I. cxxiv. 31; Bhāvaprakāśana, IV. clxv. 141; Ujjvalanīlāmaṇi, V. lxxxix.

[2]:

Kāmasamūha, cdxxxv. 147; Rasakalpadruma, 64.

[3]:

Rasārṇavasudhākara, I. cxxiv. 31; Bhāvaprakāśana, IV. clxv. 141.

[4]:

Muvvagopala Padavali, 305.

[5]:

Rasārṇavasudhākara, I. cxxiv. 31; Bhāvaprakāśana, IV. clxv. 141; Ujjvalanīlāmaṇi, V. lxxxix.

[6]:

Kāmasamūha, cdxlviii. 150.

[7]:

Bhāvaprakāśana, IV. clxv. 141.

[8]:

Palaniappan Vairam Sarathy, “Seperation of Lovers–Krishna Stealing Clothes of Gopikas–Murgan in Thiruparankundram–Akam 59,” Karka..Nirka, July 25, 2009, http://karkanirka.org/2009/07/25/akam59/.

[9]:

Rasārṇavasudhākara, I. cxxiv. 31; Bhāvaprakāśana, IV. clxv. 141.

[10]:

Amaruśataka, lxxvi. 101.

[11]:

Rasārṇavasudhākara, I. cxxiv. 31; Bhāvaprakāśana, IV. clxv. 141.

[12]:

Rasārṇavasudhākara, I. cxxiv. 31; Bhāvaprakāśana, IV. clxv. 141; Ujjvalanīlāmaṇi, V. lxxxix.

[13]:

Kāvya Darpaṇa, IV. clviii. 196.

[14]:

Rasārṇavasudhākara, I. cxxiv. 31; Bhāvaprakāśana, IV. clxv. 141.

[15]:

Śṛṅgāraśatakam, xxxiv. 45.

[16]:

Rasārṇavasudhākara, I. cxxiv. 31; Ujjvalanīlāmaṇi, V. lxxxix.

[17]:

Amaruśataka, cxxix. 145.

[18]:

Kāmasamūha, cccxlviii. 123.

[19]:

Amaruśataka, xxxv. 57.