Mudrarakshasa (literary study)
by Antara Chakravarty | 2015 | 58,556 words
This page relates ‘Use of Indravajra metre’ 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.
2.3. Use of Indravajrā metre
[Full title: The Chandas employed in Mudrārākṣasa (3). Indravajrā]
In this definition of Indravajrā, Gaṅgādāsa states that,
syādindravajrā yadi tau jagau gaḥ/[1]
“Where every foot of a verse contains the gaṇas, viz, ta, ta, ja, ga and ga, than the chandas there is Indravajrā.”
In this meter there remain 11 syllables in every foot. Viśākhadatta has used this meter only once in this drama, that is the 8th verse of the Vth canto.
Let us scan the verse to determine the same as the instance of Indravajrā:
| ta | | | ta | | | ja | | | ga | | | ga | | | ta | | | ta | | | ja | | | ga | | | ga | |
| - - ⏑ | | | - - ⏑ | | | ⏑ - ⏑ | | | - | | | - | | | - - ⏑ | | | - - ⏑ | | | ⏑ - ⏑ | | | - | | | - | | |
mitrāṇi | śatrutva |mupāna|ya|ntī |mitratva |marthasya| vaśāśca | śa |trun|
nītirna |yatyasmṛ |tapūrva|vṛ|ttaṃ| janmānta|raṃ jīva |ta eva | puṃ |saḥ||
After scanning the verse it can be seen that in every pāda of it there are the gaṇas ta,ta, ja, ga and ga approving that this is a case of Idravajrā meter.
Footnotes and references:
[1]:
Chandomañjarī, II.41, p.45