7. Nāgānanda in Kuntaka’s treatment

Nāgānanda is a five act drama written by Śrīharṣa in 7^th century C.E. He also wrote two nāṭikas known as Priyadarśikā and Ratnāvalī. Kuntaka cites a single verse from Ratnāvalī but not from Priyadarśikā. Nāgānanda is the most interesting one among the three plays of Śrīharṣa. The original source of Nāgānanda is considered to be Bṛhatkathā.

Nāgānanda has two distinct parts. The first part depicts the love affair of Jīmūtavāhana and Malayavatī. The second half depicts the noble self sacrifice of Jīmūtavāhana. In Nāgānanda, the playwright adds all the ingredients essential for a good drama. He depicts the emotions of self sacrifices and charity in an attractive manner. In this drama once the hero, Jīmūtavāhana happened to see a plenty of bones of serpents killed by Garuḍa, whom the serpent King Vāsuki offered each serpents every day for his meal. For protecting the rice of serpents Jīmūtavāhana sacrifices himself. At last he protects the whole race of serpents and also attains his family and Kingdom.

1. Compositional figurativeness

Kuntaka cites Nāgānanda for explaining one of the varieties of compositional figurativeness. Through this variety, Kuntaka explains how a hero primarily achieves a single goal and then incidentally he also attains many other equally important deeds. In Nāgānanda, the ideal one Jīmūtavāhana offers his own body and saves a serpent named Śaṅkhacūḍa from Garuḍa. Jīmūtavāhana did so because once he happened to hear a lament of a serpent that it was her son’s turn that day to be the prey of Garuḍa. Then Garuḍa begins to eat Śaṅkhacūḍa without realizing that this is not a serpent. Garuḍa become remorseful when he came to realize the prey he started to eat was a great Vidyādhara princess. Afterwards Garuḍa take a vow of non-violence. Through this Jīmūtavāhana not only saves a single serpent but also the whole race of serpents.

In this drama the sole aim of hero named Jīmūtavāhana is to protect a serpent. But with his own infinite greatness, he happens to protect the whole race of serpents by changing the mind of Garuḍa. Moreover he happens to meet his parents and wife and also attains the kingship of Vidyādhara kingdom. In this manner though the mind of hero is completely in the pursuit of a single aim, infinite other good incidents, which the hero did not aimed also come flooding in front of hero by his virtue. According to Kuntaka, such innumerable achievements contribute extreme literary beauty and should delight the readers. Through depicting it, the poet would like to say that the ultimate results of virtue and self-sacrifice will be universal and individual well being. Including such unique depiction of moral message of a drama, which helps the complete evaluation of a text, Kuntaka again proved his minute power of observation and analysis