Mudrarakshasa (literary study)
by Antara Chakravarty | 2015 | 58,556 words
This page relates ‘Use of Vyajokti-alamkara’ of the English study on the Mudrarakshasa: an ancient Sanskrit dramatic play (Nataka) authored by Vishakhadatta which deals with the life of king Chandragupta. This study investigates the Mudra Rakshasa from a literary perspective, such as metrics, themes, rhetorics and other poetical elements. Chandragupta ruled the Mauryan Empire during the 4th century BCE, hence this text can also be studied as a historical textbook of ancient India.
3.29. Use of Vyājokti-alaṃkāra
[Full title: Use of Alaṃkāra in Mudrārākṣasa: Arthālaṃkāras, Gūḍhārthapratitimūlaka (or Guḍhārthapratitī-varga) (5). Vyājokti]
Vyājokti-alaṃkāra has been defined by Viśvanātha Kavirāja in his Sāhityadarpaṇa as—
vyājoktirgopanaṃ vyājādudbhinnasyāpi vastunaḥ/[1]
The shrewd concealment of a thing, even though it is clear, is Vyājokti. Our dramatist has used the Vyājokti-alaṃkāra only once in the Mudrārākṣasa that too in the first verse. If we go through the nāndī verse again, we can find that, though, Pārvatī has been clearly observing a lady (gaṅgā) sitting on the head of her husband, yet Mahādeva is concealing this fact from Pārvati with some obscure replies.
We have mentioned in the beginning that in the first verse of the drama, the Śabdālaṃkāra named Vakrokti has been employed. But our skilled dramatist has composed the Nāndi verse in such a way that it has become an example of Vyājokti alaṃkāra also. We may say that this is a rare case where both the Arthālaṃkāra and Śabdālaṃkāra goes hand in hand to form an amalgamation.
Footnotes and references:
[1]:
Sahityadarpana, X.92