Kohala and Nāṭya (5): Other varieties of plays: Saindhavaka

तदेतदाह पात्रमित्यदिना । जातावेकवचनम् । तेन यत्र पात्राणि प्राकृतैर्वचनैर्युक्तानि, अत एव विभ्रष्टः संकेतविशेषः रसोचितः काक्वध्याये कथितपूर्वः, स एष भ्रष्टात्मा भ्रंशं नीतः संकेतो यत्र, सुष्ठुव्यक्तिर्यतो रसस्य तेनैव करणेन वीणावाद्यादिक्रिययान्वितं पात्रं सैन्धवकमिति विषयतद्वतोरभेदोपचारात् । तेन दशरूपकस्य यद्भाषाकृतं वैचित्र्यं कोहलादिभिरुक्तं तदिह मुनिना सैन्धवाङ्गनिरूपणे स्वीकृतमेव ।

tadetadāha pātramityadinā | jātāvekavacanam | tena yatra pātrāṇi prākṛtairvacanairyuktāni, ata eva vibhraṣṭaḥ saṃketaviśeṣaḥ rasocitaḥ kākvadhyāye kathitapūrvaḥ, sa eṣa bhraṣṭātmā bhraṃśaṃ nītaḥ saṃketo yatra, suṣṭhuvyaktiryato rasasya tenaiva karaṇena vīṇāvādyādikriyayānvitaṃ pātraṃ saindhavakamiti viṣayatadvatorabhedopacārāt | tena daśarūpakasya yadbhāṣākṛtaṃ vaicitryaṃ kohalādibhiruktaṃ tadiha muninā saindhavāṅganirūpaṇe svīkṛtameva |

—(Abhinavabhāratī, Commentary on 19.131. GOS Vol. III, p.72) 

The above extract is the commentary for the following verse in Nāṭyaśāstra.

पात्रं विभ्रष्टसङ्केतं सुव्यक्तकरणान्वितम् ।
प्राकृतैर्वचनैर्युक्तं विदुः सैन्धवकं बुधाः ॥ १९.१३१ ॥
रूपवाद्यादिसंयुक्तं पाठ्येन च विवर्जितम् ।
नाट्यं हि तत्तु विज्ञेयं सैन्धवं नाट्यकोविदैः ॥ १९.१३२ ॥

pātraṃ vibhraṣṭasaṅketaṃ suvyaktakaraṇānvitam |
prākṛtairvacanairyuktaṃ viduḥ saindhavakaṃ budhāḥ || 19.131 ||
rūpavādyādisaṃyuktaṃ pāṭhyena ca vivarjitam |
nāṭyaṃ hi tattu vijñeyaṃ saindhavaṃ nāṭyakovidaiḥ || 19.132 ||^[1]

(Trans: When [one represents] a lover who has failed to keep his tryst and is using Prākṛt [to express his grief] through well-performed Karaṇas, it is [an instance of] the Saindhavaka.^[2])

The knowledgeable in nāṭya say that saindhava is that variety of dance wherein there is use of instruments and no pāṭhya (dialogue). 

The verse 19.132 has been given in the GOS edition in brackets. It is not found in some other editions. The subject matter under discussion is Bharata’s acceptance of many other varieties of plays which do not under the categories of daśarūpaka. 

Saindhava mentioned herein is one of the ten^[3] lāsyāṅgas and saindhavaka is a variety of drama that uses the saindhava type of dance:

गेयपदं स्थितपाठ्यमासीनं पुष्पगण्डिका ।
प्रच्छेदकं त्रिमूढं च सैन्धवाख्यं द्विमूढकम् ॥ १९.११९ ॥
उत्तमोत्तकमं चैवमुक्तप्रत्युक्तमेव च ।
लास्ये दशविधं ह्येतदङ्गनिर्देशलक्षणम् ॥ .१२० ॥

geyapadaṃ sthitapāṭhyamāsīnaṃ puṣpagaṇḍikā |
pracchedakaṃ trimūḍhaṃ ca saindhavākhyaṃ dvimūḍhakam || 19.119 ||
uttamottakamaṃ caivamuktapratyuktameva ca |
lāsye daśavidhaṃ hyetadaṅganirdeśalakṣaṇam || .120 || 

—Nāṭyaśāstra of Bharatamuni: 2003: GOS Vol. III: pp.67-68

In this extract, in certain varieties of plays, Abhinava says that some characters use dialects of prākṛta, due to which the matter that is to be communicated is slightly distorted. But this does not hinder the communication or affect the advent of rasa because that is ensured by kāku. In cases where the plot has slipped from its course while trying to communicate it, but the rasa is brought out well by enacting/miming the playing the vīṇā etc., or where there is identity of the ‘viṣaya’ (character) and the ‘tadvat’ (vīṇā player etc.), that pātra is called saindhavaka. At this juncture, Abhinava brings in Kohala when he says that there are many types of plays wherein the variegation (vaicitrya) is created by the use of different languages and that Kohala has mentioned/ described all of these. He also says that Bharata’s mention of the saindhavaka play which is one of these forms indicates his concurrence and acceptance of these forms also.

Footnotes and references:

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[1]:

Nāṭyaśāstra of Bharatamuni: 2003: GOS Vol. III: p.72

[2]:

Nāṭyaśāstra of Bharatamuni: 2006: Vol. II: p.684

[3]:

Bharata mentions ten lāsyāṅgas, Ramakrishna Kavi adds two more based on the Abhinavabharati.