3.6. Use of Utprekṣā-alaṃkāra

[Full title: Use of Alaṃkāra in Mudrārākṣasa: Arthālaṃkāras, Sādṛśyamūlaka (or Sādṛṣyagarbha) (3). Utprekṣā]

bhavetsambhāvanotprekṣā prakṛtasya parātmanā^[1]

“Utprekṣā is the imagination of an object under the character of another.”

That means Utprekṣā is the prominent apprehension of upameya (prakṛta) as upamāna (parātmana). This Utprekṣā has got primarily two varieties-Vācya and Pratiyamāna. Viśvanātha has subdivided Utprekṣā into innumerable varieties.^[2] Viśākhadatta is also seen as an expert in using Utprekṣā at the proper places in the drama.^[3]

In the first act of Mudrārākṣasa, the boastings of Cāṇakya is heightened by Utprekṣālaṃkāra thus—

samutkhātā nandā nava hṛdayarogā ivaḥ bhuvaḥ
  kṛtā maurye lakṣmīḥ sarasi nalinīva sthirapadāḥ/
dvayoḥ sāraṃ tulyaṃ dvitayamabhiyuktena manasā
  phalaṃ kopaprītyordviṣati ca vibhaktaṃ suhṛdi ca//^[4]

In this verse, Cāṇakya, while boasting of himself about uprooting the nine Nandas like darts in the hearts of the earth, utters the word hṛdayaroga iva which consists of Guṇotprekṣā.

Again, in the second act, while Ahituṇḍika in a svagatokti compares the might of Cāṇakya and Rākṣasa with that of two wild elephants fighting for supremacy, imagines rājalakṣmī as the baffled female elephant who is in a state of indecision as to whom to select as her partner, there Viśākhadatta implied Utprekṣālaṃkāra very nicely.^[5]

In another place of the drama, while declaring the orders from the king to get prepared for the kaumudīmahotsava, Kañcukī says,

“Let the glow of the fine Chamaries having the luster of enmassed beams of the full-moon quickly embrace the pillars, fragrant by being fumigated with incense, and having garlands fastened round them, let also sprinkling with Sandal water mixed with flower quickly favour the earth that is in a swoon as it were by the long weight of the lion-emblemed throne.”^[6]

The later portion of the above verse contains Vastutprekṣā, because here the dramatist fancies that the Earth (which is personified) fell into a swoon as she had for a long been shouldering the very heavy burden of the throne, and therefore a sprinkling sandal paste mixed water can oblige the Earth.

Likewise, act III and act VI contain lots more fine examples of Utprekṣā some of which are—

kṣatāṅgānāṃ tīkṣṇaiḥ paraśubhirudagraiḥ kṣitiruhāṃ
  rujā kūjantīnāmaviratakapotoparuditaiḥ/
svanirmokacchedaiḥ paricitaparikleśakṛpayā
  śvasantaḥ śākhānāṃ vraṇamiva nibadhnanti phaṇinaḥ//^[7]

Again,

antaḥśarīrapariśoṣanudagrayantaḥ
  kīṭakṣatisrutibhirasramivodvamantaḥ/
chāyāviyogamalinā vyasane nimagnā
  vṛkṣāḥ śmaśānamupagantumiva pravṛttāḥ//^[8]

And,

pramṛdnañchrotṛṇāṃ śrutipathamasāraṃ gurutayā
  bahutvāt prāsādaiḥ sapadi paripitoñjhita iva/
asau nāndīnādaḥ paṭupaṭahaśaṅkhadhvaniyuto
  diśāṃ draṣṭuṃ dairghyaṃ prasarati sakautūhala iva//^[9]

In these above three verses, Rākṣasa’s frustration can be seen through Utprekṣā. The first verse describes the worst condition of the jirṇodyāna, that, Rākṣasa fancies that the serpents, out of pity, are bandaging the wounds of the branches of the trees, which are inflicted by the hacks of axes, and crying in excruciating pain through the incessant mourning of the pigeons, with the pieces of their sloughs.

In the same way, the next one conveys the fancy that the trees of the jirṇodyāna, through the loss of shade and drying of their trunk’s interior has withered and further with the holes bored in them by the worms like very heavy grief has plunged into misery, and proceeding gradually to the cremation ground.

And in the third one, Utprekṣā reaches to such a height that Viśākhadatta fancies through Rākṣasa’s speech as, the uproar of rejoicing blended with the tumult of deep sounding drums and conches, which is drunk and through its magnitude instantly thrown up by the big mansions spreads as if curious to measure the expense of the quarters.

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

Sāhityadarpaṇa, X.40

[2]:

Sāhityadarpaṇa, X. 40,41,42,43,44,45

[3]:

Mudrārākṣasa, I. 24, 25; II. 2, 14; III.7, 8, 22, 30, 33; IV. 7, 12, 23; V. 6,8,13,16; VI. 5,6,15,19; VII.10

[4]:

Mudrārākṣasa, I.13

[5]:

viruddhayorbhṛśamiva mantrimukhyayormahāvane vanagajayorivāntare/ aniścayād gajavaśayeva bhītayā gatāgatairdhruvamiha khidyate śriyā// , II. 3

[6]:

āliṅgantu gṛhītadhūpasurabhīn stambhān pinaddhasrajaḥ saṃpūrṇendumayūkhasaṃhatirucāṃ sacchāmarāṇaṃ śriyaḥ/ siṃhāṅkāsanadhāraṇācca suciraṃ saṃjātamūrcchāmiva kṣipraṃ candavāriṇā sakusumaḥ seko’nugṛhṇātu gāṃ// Ibid., III.2

[7]:

Ibid., VI.12

[8]:

Ibid., VI.13

[9]:

Ibid., VI.14