Mudrarakshasa (literary study)
by Antara Chakravarty | 2015 | 58,556 words
This page relates ‘Use of Harini 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.
2.11. Use of Hariṇī metre
[Full title: The Chandas employed in Mudrārākṣasa (11). Hariṇī]
Chandomañjarī defines Hariṇī as:—
This means that if every foot of a verse bears the gaṇas called na, sa, ma, ra, sa, la and ga then the meter is called Hariṇī. In this meter the caesura comes after every four (veda) then six (ṣaḍ) and seven (haya) syllables. This is a meter also having 17 syllables. Hariṇī meter can be found in Mudrārākṣasa only in three places, i.e., III.6, IV.2 and VI.20. Kṣemendra says, audāryarūcirāucityavicārehariṇīvarā[2] -to describe the generosity of someone in certain aspect, the verses should be framed in the meter Hariṇī. Act III.6 is a deliberation of Candragupta which exhibit his generous nature.
Let us scan the verse to satisfy our proposition:—
| na | | | sa | | | ma | | | ra | | | sa | | | la | | | ga |
| ⏑ ⏑ ⏑ | | | ⏑ ⏑ - | | | - - - | | | - ⏑ - | | | ⏑ ⏑ - | | | ⏑ | | | - |
iha vi |ca║rayan | sādhvīṃ śi | ṣyaḥ ║ kriyāṃ | na nivā |rya | te ║
tyajāti |tu║ yadā | mārgaṃ mo | hā ║ttadā | gurura |ṅku |śaḥ ║|
vinaya |ru║caya | stasmāt sa | ntaḥ ║ sadai |va nira |ṅku |śāḥ ║
parata |ra║mataḥ | svātantrye | bhyo ║ vayaṃ | hi parā |ṅmu |khāḥ ║||
Thus after scanning the verse we have got the gaṇas, na, sa, ma, ra, sa, la and ga in each of the quarter and the pause being after every four, six and seven syllables. Therefore the meter here is Hariṇī.
Footnotes and references:
[1]:
Chandomañjarī, II.167, p.125
[2]:
Suvṛttatilaka, III.20