2. Summary of the Deśopadeśa

The Deśopadeśa is another satirical work of Kṣemendra containing 300 verses in eight chapters called Upadeśas. The last two verses presumably are not from the pen of the author and might be an interpolation as is clear from their being irrelevant to the subject dealt with.^[1] The work is written in the form of Upadeśa (advice). Kṣemendra observed the society keenly and he portrays his observations in the work.

The Deśopadeśa depicts a morally degraded society. In the work, Kṣemendra ridicules a section of people for their wickedness and corrupt practices. The wicked, the miser, the prostitute, the bawd, the libertine, the student, the old man and his young wife and many other scandalous characters and their immoral activities and behaviours are beautifully portrayed in a humorous way. He satires all the frailties of the people and at the same time he has the intention to correct it.

In the very beginning of the work, the author pays tribute to the lord Heramba and after that he glorifies the crooked characters like veśyā, Viṭa, Kuṭṭanī etc. keeping harmony with the main theme. But before going to the main theme, the author gives the cause behind the composition of the work. He says that, ‘I just want to bring all the failings before all of us and to help and guide all the people from undertaking evil ways.’^[2]

The Deśopadeśa is known only by name and a quotation in Kavikaṇṭhābharaṇa and reappeared in the year 1923 A.D. under the editorship of Pādatāḍitaka MS Kaul Shastri. Pādatāḍitaka Kaul collected a manuscript containing the work in 1921 from a library of Kashmir.^[3] The work is published by the Research Department, Jammu and Kashmir State, Srinagar in the fortieth volume of Kashmir Series of Texts and Studies.

Upadeśa I, Durjana-varṇana:

The first upadeśa begins with the durjana-varṇana or the description of the wicked. The author mocks the wicked by paying homage to him. For the wicked, friends and foes are alike just as the respect and insult. He is a mean. Actually, the wicked is fool but claims to be a learned man and it is because of his past good deeds. In praising his own qualities he is like a Śeṣa, the thousand headed serpent and in mocking others he is like Bṛhaspati, the guru of gods. Infect, no one can escape without being foolish by the wicked. The nature of the wicked is unchangeable. The wicked never admire good qualities, never love anyone and never give anything to others.

The following verse gives a perfect picture of the wicked—

bhrukuṭikuṭiladṛṣṭirdhāturanyaiva sṛṣṭi-rdhanalavamadaliptaḥ prauḍavādānuliptaḥ/
sadasi kuṭiladoṣairdurjanaḥ sajjanānāṃ malinayati yaśāṃsi sphārakailāsabhāṃsi//^[4]

This Upadeśa contains twenty four verses.

Upadeśa II, Kadarya-varṇana:

This Upadeśa deals with the description of the kadarya or the miser. In this chapter, the nature and qualities of the miser is disclosed. The miser is too much harsh and is comparable to a catechu plant. All hopes are fruitless for him. In the end of a miser’s life everything is being captured by the rogues and libertines. The miser lives a horrible life. He never takes bath. He remains far away from fragrant; he has no interest in decorating himself. He avoids music. He takes meal without salt. His dinner comprises of only green leaves and a barley soup. In any condition he cannot spend his savings. He never takes meal until he does not scare away the supplicant from his door. In reality, the miser lives in a hell. He remains far away from the functions and pretends to be suffering from illness. He involves in quarrelling with his wife and pretends to be on fast when his relatives come to his home. He never welcomes the guests in the evening; otherwise he will have to ask for dinner. No one can see any joyous occasion in the house of a miser. He lives in a solitary house, where nobody comes to visit him..

This Upadeśa bears thirty six verses.

Upadeśa III, Veśyā-varṇana:

The third Upadeśa deals with the description of the veśyā or the prostitute. The prostitute is a grown up woman but decorates herself with beautiful ornaments with a hope to look most attractive. She hankers after money and for that she deceives everyone. She has no tenderness for children and no respect for aged one. Her heart has no good wishes for others.

She is like a puppet dancing on a string. It discloses the artificiality of everything. She even deceits a rogue applying her trickery. Infact, she is excellent in deception. She swindles others throughout the life. But when she becomes sixty, tries to conceal her old age by coloring her hair. She also protects her youth by eating fish, ghee, milk and garlic. By hook and crook she tries to maintain her figure. Her concern is only for money.

Number of verses in this Upadeśa is forty eight.

Upadeśa IV, Kuṭṭanī-varṇana:

The Upadeśa deals with the Kuṭṭanī or the bawd. The crooked bawd is as poisonous as serpent. She does unspeakable deeds. Wise people always stay away from her. When a wealthy person visits, her greed increases. For money, she does not hesitate to speak highly of an unattractive man. She eulogizes him to gain a lot and thus the bawd takes everything from the people. She avoids those who are penniless. In her body, flesh is not visible; only skin and bones remain noticeable, still she is not destroyable. Though she gets love from many people, her greed always makes her dissatisfied. The bawd moves round the whole world, her crookedness leaves none. Therefore, here arises the question as to who had created the bawd.

This Upadeśa bears thirty four verses.

Upadeśa V, Viṭa-varṇana:

This Upadeśa gives a description of the paramour or Viṭa. Viṭa is a mean and crooked character without having any quality. He is a slave to lustful passion. He can be compared to a monkey, as he is heedless and quickly becomes angry. Wise people stay away from him. He is treated as inauspicious. Even prostitutes spit on his mouth. Decorating himself beautifully, he visits the courtesan’s house but he is turned out by them. Still he does not refrain himself from getting into the courtesan’s house again and again. He even introduces his own mother as a water carrier servant. Being destroyed by debt, tortured by the enemies and marked by nail scratches of the prostitutes, the paramour or the Viṭa goes to another country. There he stays for only one month in the Khaśa’s cottage and after returning he says that he knows the languages and everything about that place.

This Upadeśa contains twenty eight verses.

Upadeśa VI, Chātra-varṇana:

This Upadeśa deals with the description of the student or the chātra. In this Upadeśa, the poet ridicules the student who comes from Gauḍa to Kashmir for study. Before arriving Kashmir the student looked like a skeleton having no flesh and blood in the body. Everyone is scared seeing him from a distance and stay away thinking him an alive skeleton. But the nutritious food and healthy atmosphere of Kashmir soon change his life.

The Gauḍa student strictly maintains his purity. But soon his reality comes out. He begins to eat meat in his meal. Gambling becomes his favorite game. He pays a huge amount of money to have a prostitute, but alas! the prostitute also rejects him. The lewd student is not only interested in harlots and gambling, he is also a thief. If he goes to a shop, gives less money and seeks much. The Gauḍa student also tortures other students. Nor love nor any incentives can ordain the Gauḍa student.

There are forty five verses in this Upadeśa.

Upadeśa VII, Vṛddhabhāryā-varṇana:

This Upadeśa deals with the vṛddhabhāryā or the wife of the old man. This Upadeśa tells the story of a young girl who is untouched by anyone like a creeper growing in the chasm. But an old man whose life is too short in this world wants to marry her. The old man arrives in the wedding day with an anemic appearance. His snoring breath and weak eye sight make her annoyed. The young lady cries and her aged father consoles her by saying that the bridegroom has vast wealth and he gets premature old age.

In the wedding night the old bridegroom tries to apply force on her. She drives away him complaining that he is like a great-grandfather. She laments and not accepting him to be her husband she runs away. Her relative brings her back. But the young lady rejects him from the core of her heart.

She can bear her old husband for a few moments only for his obeying manner and valuable gifts offered by him. Time passes and she gives birth to a son of another man. The old man becomes so happy that he organizes a party to celebrate his good fortune.

This Upadeśa contains thirty one verses.

Upadeśa VIII, Prakīrṇa-varṇana:

This Upadeśa deals with the different categories of people living in the society. They are the degraded people irrespective of class or castes of the society. Among them are—the guru, the official, the poet, the physician etc.

This Upadeśa has fifty two verses.

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

Shastri, Pt. MS Kaul, the Deśopadeśa and Narmamālā of Kṣemendra, preface, p.2

[2]:

hāsena lajjito’tyantaṃ na doṣeṣu pravartate/
janastadupakārāya mamāyaṃ svayamuddamaḥ// Deśopadeśa ,I.4

[3]:

Dattaray, Rajatbaran, A Critical Study of the Life and Works of Kṣemendra, p.2

[4]:

Deśopadeśa , I.24