Society as depicted in the Chaturbhani (study)
by Mridusmita Bharadwaj | 2022 | 64,215 words
This page relates ‘Ornaments in ancient India’ of the study on the Chaturbhani: a collection of four Bhanas which represents a genre of dramatic performance peculiar to the ancient Indian tradition of theater and performing arts (i.e. Natya-Shastra). More specifically, this study examines the historical, literary, cultural, and satirical aspects of ancient Indian society as reflected in these four Sanskrit plays.
Go directly to: Footnotes.
Part 4.6 - Ornaments in ancient India
[Full title: Socio-cultural Aspects of the Society as Depicted in the Caturbhāṇī (6) Ornaments]
Ornaments—as Depicted in the Padmaprābhṛtaka:
In the Padmaprābhṛtaka bhāṇa, flowers are mostly used to enhance the physical beauty of women. Different kinds of flowers are employed in adorning different parts of the body from head to feet. For religious purposes, as a gift, to add beauty, flowers were highly used in the Gupta period. However, the description of Ujjayinī signifies the large scale of flowery shops. Vanarājikā visits Kāmadeva temple ornamented herself with a variety of flowers.[1] She fills her hair with kuravaka flowers mixed with vāsantī flowers, her topknot of hair is crowned with aśoka flowers and beautiful sinduvāra flowers adorn her chest. She makes earrings from fresh cūtapuṣpa i.e., mango blossoms and kisalaya i.e., leaves.[2]
Mostly for ornamentation of flowers, kurvaka flowers were preferred because of their variety in colours. Kuravaka is a kind of jhiṇṭī flower. Jhiṇṭī is of four varieties—red, yellow, white and blue. According to the Dhanvantari Nighaṇṭuka, yellow jhiṇṭī is called as kuraṇṭaka, cf. tatra śoṇe kuravakastatra pīte kuraṇṭakaḥ /[3] and red is kuravaka. In Hindi, jhiṇṭī is called as Kaṭasaraiyā or Piyāvāsa. According to the Amarakoṣa also, kuravaka is red.[4] Kālidāsa, in Uttaramegha of the Meghadūta, states that in Alakāpurī, women could find any kind of ornaments for decorating themselves. In Alakāpurī, women always carried a sportive lotus in their hands; they interwove their hair with the kunda flowers. Yellowish white coloured pollen of the lodhra flowers was used to enhance the glow of the face. Śirīṣa and nīpa flowers were used on their ears and the parting of hair respectively.[5]
There were stationery shops in the central market of Ujjayinī which kept different kinds of ornaments for women like raśanā, karavalaya.[6] Raśanā is a girth, a girdle particularly worn by women.[7] The Padmaprābhṛtaka bhāṇa also mentions mekhalā[8] which is an ornamented girdle, belt[9] worn by the ancient Indian woman. Mekhalā and raśanā both are amongst five kinds of ornamented waist belt which are stated in the Amarakośa[10]. The remaining three belts are viz., kāñcī saptakī and sārasana. Sanskrit texts share many references of wearing mekhalā.
Bāṇabhaṭṭa in his Kādambarī, also mentions mekhalā that has been embellished with precious gems making beautiful sounds.[11] Valaya simply means a bracelet, armlet, ring worn by men and women.[12] Karavalaya especially denotes a kind of bracelet worn on the wrist.
Ornaments—as Depicted in the Dhūrtaviṭasaṃvāda:
At the age of the Dhūrtaviṭasaṃvāda, people were experiencing a life of luxury. Women adorned themselves with various kinds of precious embellishments viz., hemakāñcī, mekhalā, nūpura etc. Women wore hemakāñcī i.e., golden griddle[13] in their waist. Kāñcī is one of the five kinds of ornamented waist belt which is also stated in the Amarakośa.[14] When the griddle is made of gold, it becomes hemakāñcī. This alludes to the availability of gold for the common people. The remaining four belts are viz., mekhalā, saptakī, raśanā and sārasana. The Padmaprābhṛtaka bhāṇa mentions mekhalā[15] which is another kind of ornamented waist belt worn by the women of that period. Women decorate their feet by wearing nūpura[16] i.e., chimes of sounded girdles. Nūpura is an ornament for the toes or ankles.[17] Sanskrit literature marks many references of wearing nūpura by ancient Indian women. For instance, the Hitopadeśa[18] mentions nūpura to make an understanding on the right places of things; like nūpura and cūḍāmaṇi adorned for the feet and head respectively.
Ornaments—as Depicted in the Ubhayābhisārikā:
Women consider jewellery as an integral component that enhances their beauty and style. There are many references to the ornaments in the Ubhayābhisārikā bhāṇa which were mostly worn by the women. Women used to decorate themselves with costly jewels engraving ratnas i.e., precious stones.[19] Vararuci mentions the ornaments like raśanā,[20] mekhalā,[21] hāra.[22] Raśanā and mekhalā both are ornamented waist belts worn by ancient Indian women. The Amarakośa mentions five kinds of waist belts viz., mekhalā, kāñcī saptakī raśanā and sārasana.[23] The Padmaprābhṛtaka bhāṇa also has the reference of the waist belt mekhalā.[24] Again, hāra is a chain of pearls as mentioned in the Amarakośa.[25] Flowers are always used as an important ornament for decoration. In the Ubhayābhisārikā also, the poets cite that varieties of flowers were especially used to decorate hair.[26]
Ornaments—as Depicted in the Pādatāḍitaka:
The women at the age of the Pādatāḍitaka enjoyed being adorned with different ornaments like nūpura[27], mekhalā[28], karṇotpala[29], tālapatra[30], kuṇḍala[31], aṅgulīya.[32] Karṇotpala is a lotus flower fastened to the ear as an ornament.[33] In this ornament, the real lotus is used. It is not an ivory ear ornament in the shape of a lotus. Nīlotpalas i.e., blue lotuses were also worn in the ear as an ornament[34]. The Raghuvaṃśa also has references of karṇotpala. The poet makes a description where the holy smoke of sacrificial order is compared with blue lotuses worn as ornaments on the ears.[35] Kālidāsa chooses blue lotuses as karṇotpala because the blue colour can be compared well with the smoke.[36] An ornament named Svetakāṣṭhakarṇikā is referred to by Śyāmilaka. Karṇikā is a variety of ear ornament.[37] Svetakāṣṭhakarṇikā indicates the ear ornament particularly made of svetakāṣṭha i.e., white wood. Tālapatra is an ear ornament similar to karṇikā according to the Amarakoṣa.[38]
At the age of the Pādatāḍitaka, women wore kāñcanatālapatrā, tālapatra that is made of kāñcana i.e., gold.[39] Again, kuṇḍala is also a variety of ear ornament mentioned in the Amarakoṣa[40]. The Mṛcchakaṭika has also mentioned this kind of ear ornament called kuṇḍala worn by women.[41] As mentioned in the Pādatāḍitaka, kuṇḍalas were created in the shape of mystical animal makara during that period. The Bhāgavatpurāṇa refers makarakuṇḍala as worn by the king Bāli in his ears.[42] Aṅgulīya means a finger ring[43] that has been mentioned by the author to be worn by the courtesans. Mahākavi Kālidāsa in the Raghuvaṃśa has made references to wearing finger ring by a king embellished with gems.[44]
Śyāmilaka in his Pādatāḍitaka mentions an ornament called raśanā.[45] It is a kind of girth, a girdle especially worn by a woman.[46] The women wore this ornament in their waist as like mekhalā, kāñcī and saptamī.[47]
Footnotes and references:
[1]:
rūpvatṛ kusumasamājamiva śarīre sanniveśya yathocitaṃ yatocitaṃ pūjāpurskāramupanīya kāmadevāyatanādavatarati /Padmaprābhṛtaka, p.35
[2]:
vāsantīkundamiśraiḥ kuravakakusumaiḥ pūritaḥ keśahasto
lagnāśokaḥ śikhāntaḥ stanataṛaracitaḥ sinduvāropahāraḥ /
pratyagraiścūtapuṣpaiḥ pracalakisalyaiḥ kalpitaḥ karṇapūraḥ
puṣpavyagrāgrahaste vahasi suvadane mūrtimantaṃ vasantam // Ibid.,p.36
[3]:
Amarakoṣa, p.80
[5]:
[6]:
krīḍā pakṣikṣubdhāścemāḥ pracurakaravalayaraśanāsvanā gṛhapaṅktayaḥ / Padmaprābhṛtaka, 9
[7]:
M. Monier Williams, A Sanskrit-English Dictionary, p.869
[8]:
pāṇibhyāṃ yena sampratyanucitaśithilāṃ mekhalāmudvahāmi / Padmaprābhṛtaka, p.46
[9]:
M. Monier Williams, A Sanskrit-English Dictionary, p.831
[10]:
strīkaṛyāṃ mekhalā kāñcī saptakī raśanā tathā klībe sārasana ca / Amarakośa, II.6.108
[11]:
…rasitaratnamālikānāṃ mekhalānāṃ manohāriṇā jhaṅkāreṅa …/ Kādambarī, Kathāmukham, p.107
[12]:
M. Monier Williams, A Sanskrit-English Dictionary, p.927
[13]:
….hemakāñcī punaryojate/ / Ibid., p.68
[14]:
strīkaṛyāṃ mekhalā kāñcī saptakī raśanā tathā klībe sārasana ca / Amarakośa, II.6.108
[15]:
pāṇibhyāṃ yena sampratyanucitaśithilāṃ mekhalāmudvahāmi / Padmaprābhṛtaka, p.46
[16]:
…nūpurasvanagadgadabhāṣiṇaḥ / Dhūrtaviṭasaṃvāda, p.76
[17]:
M.Monier Williams, A Sanskrit-English Dictionary, p.567
[19]:
śrīmadratnavibhūṣaṇāṅgaracanaiḥ…. Ubhayābhisārikā, p.125
[20]:
…vyapagataraśanā…. Ibid., p.141
[21]:
… na vyākulā mekhalā / Ibid., p.128
[22]:
…hāraharicandanādīnāṃ vardhate saubhāgyan / Ibid., p.122
[23]:
strīkaṛyāṃ mekhalā kāñcī saptakī raśanā tathā klībe sārasana ca / Amarakośa, II.6.108
[24]:
pāṇibhyāṃ yena sampratyanucitaśithilāṃ mekhalāmudvahāmi / Padmaprābhṛtaka, p.46
[26]:
…...vividhakusumālaṃkṛtakeśahastā……Ubhayābhisārikā, p.143
[27]:
Pādatāḍitaka, 7
[28]:
yaṃ badhnanti na mekhalābhirathavā na ghnanti karṇotpalaiḥ / Ibid., 7
[29]:
Ibid., 7
[30]:
karṇadvayāvanatakāñcanatālapatrā
veṇayantalagnamaṇimauktikahemagucchā / Ibid., 113
[31]:
…avagalitakapolaparyastakuṇḍalamakarādhiṣṛhitaviśeṣaka….. / Ibid., p.228
[32]:
khacitanakhamayūkhairaṅgulīyaprabhābhiḥ // Ibid., 146
[33]:
M. Monier Williams, A Sanskrit English Dictionary, p.257
[34]:
Ibid., p.256
[35]:
haviḥ śamīpallavalājagandhī………./
…………….muhūrtakarṇotpalatāṃ prapede // Raghuvaṃśa,VII.26
[36]:
Raghuvaṃśa, Notes, p.184
[37]:
karṇikā tālapatraṃ syātkuṇḍalaṃ karṇaveṣṛanam / Amarakoṣa, 2.6.103.
[38]:
Amarakoṣa, 2.6.103
[39]:
M. Monier Williams, A Sanskrit English Dictionary, p.268
[40]:
Amarakoṣa, 2.6.103
[43]:
M. Monier Williams, A Sanskrit English Dictionary, p.8
[44]:
ratnāṅgulīyaprabhayānubiddhānudīrayāmāsa salīlamakṣān / Raghuvaṃśa, VI.18
[46]:
M. Monier Williams, A Sanskrit English Dictionary, p.869
[47]:
strīkaṛyāṃ mekhalā kāñcī saptamī raśanā tathā /Amarakoṣa, 2.6.108