Analysis of Arthopakṣepakas

There are five Arthopakṣepakas^[1] that have been designed to be used by dramatists to narrate such incidents as war and death, which should not be shown on stage and incidents that connect the story but need not be acted on stage.

(i) Praveśaka:

When menial characters nīcāpātras are employed to narrate the story related to past or future in an abridged form, it is called Praveśaka.^[2] Here, as the second Act opens, the conversation between Kāsa and Chardi, the servants of Yakṣmā, narrating the various activities already taken place on their side in lieu of the activities on the hero’s side, forms the Praveśaka.

(ii) Viṣkambhaka:

When a scene is acted by persons of intermediary class, madhyama-pātras bringing out the story of the past and link it with the future happenings, it is called as Viṣkambhaka^[3].

The initial scene at the beginning of Act III where the city policeman, his assistant and Gada, the spy of the enemy camp, and also the intial scene in the sixth Act where Matsara, Kuṣṭra and her servant converse in Sanskrit, regarding the activities on both sides that had taken place as well as the activities that are to take place, forms the Śuddha viṣkambhaka.

(iii) Cūlikā:

When an actor indicates something from behind the screen it is called Cūlikā^[4]. This feature is found in this Nāṭaka, when Kāla from behind the screens announces the complete eradication of the enemy side, as soon as Jīva had been transferred with all Yogic powers by lord Śiva.

(iv) Aṅkāsya:

In the present play, at the end of the sixth Act, minister Vijñāna Śarmā leaves the stage with a plan to prepare for the remaining fight. This dramatic device of keeping the readers/viewers eagerly await for the next Act, is called Aṅkāsya^[5].

The commentator makes note of this in the commentary (p.418):

ātra cottarāṅkārambhe kathāsaṃghaḍanārtham āṅkāsyaṃ nāmārthopakṣepakaṃ prastutamāsīt ‘tatpratividhānāya vyāpriyamāṇāḥ’ ityadibhiḥ | uttarāṅke ca mantrikṛtodyamabalenaiva raṇāmbudhiruttīrṇa iti pūrvāṅkāntasūcito'rthaṃ eva vivriyate | “āṅkāntapātrairaṅkāsyamuttarāṅkārthasūcanā” iti tallakṣaṇam |

(v) Aṅkāvataraṇa:

This is found at the opening of the seventh Act when king Jīva and minister Vijñāna, in continuation of the happenings of the sixth Act, open their conversation with regard to the victory of the war.

Since this information is a continuous description of the happenings in the sixth Act, the structural device here is termed Aṅkāvataraṇa^[6] (com. p.420):

etacca pūrvāṅkāntoktasya viṣayasyānugatatvāt āṅkāvataraṇaṃ nāma nāṭakāṅgam |

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

D.R. I.59:
ārthopakṣepakaiḥ sūcyaṃ paṣcabhiḥ pratipādayet |
viṣkambhacūlikāṅkāsyāṅkāvatārapraveśakaiḥ ||

[2]:

D.R. I.60cd-61ab:
tadvadevānudāttoktyā nīcapātraprayojitaḥ ||
praveśo'ṅkadvayasyāntaḥ śeṣārthasyopasūcakaḥ |

[3]:

D.R. I.58:
vṛttavartiṣyamāṇānāṃ kathāṃśānāṃ nidarśakaḥ |
saṃkṣepārthastu viṣkambho madhyapātraprayojitaḥ ||

[4]:

D.R. I.61cd:
āntarjavanikāsaṃsthaiścūlikārthasya sūcanā ||

[5]:

D.R. I. 62ab:āṅkāntapātrairaṅkāsyaṃ chinnāṅkasyārthasūcanāt |

[6]:

D.R. I. 62 cd: āṅkāvatārastvaṅkānte pāto'syāvibhāgataḥ ||