Part 2 - Dress and decoration (found in the Śrīkaṇṭhacarita)

The dress or costume is one of the most important or primary requisites of a human being. An animal needs no cloth, but for human beings, it is indispensable; even prehistoric people used to wear bark garments and animal skins. These are not only used to safeguard one’s prestige and honour, the dress and decoration also reflect the standard or the style of living of the people in a given social set up. People choose dress or costumes according to the climate, place and need of the hour. The taste of people for dress and decoration changes throughout the ages. These have an inseparable relation with human culture. Actually, dress and decoration bear the mark of the culture created over the years and thereby, they are, as if, the imprints of human civilization. The people of Kashmir of Maṅkhaka’s time also, are of no exception. From Maṅkhaka’s work, the stage of civilization or the progress made by the people of that time was well reflected. From the study of the dress and decoration of the people of that time, it seems that the people of that age were in the practice of wearing sober clothes and ornaments.

The 12^th century male used dukūla.^[1] Black-coloured dukūla was also used^[2] along with white dukūla.^[3] China-cloth mentioned as cinacelaṃ was also used.^[4] Uttarīya i.e. the upper garment was used both by the male and female sections of the society.^[5] It can be noted here that the uttarīya is a piece of garment similar to the shawl of present times. Females generally used kañcuka or kañculikā to cover the upper parts of their body^[6]. The females put on veil.^[7] Nīlapaṭajālikā, a kind of black net-cloth had been used, by the females to cover their faces.^[8]

The decorations for the male section of the society are as follows-males used vīrapattikā, a kind of band round the forehead.^[9] Males, as like as females, worn ear-rings^[10], necklace^[11] and armlet.^[12] Males put on bracelets on the wrists^[13], rings on fingers.^[14] Males also applied collyrium on the eyes.^[15] The decorations for the females are many, such as the ladies tied their braids only after washing their hair and softening them by fumigation.^[16] Flowers were used to decorate their hair.^[17] Kurala, a particular variety of braid was also popular among ladies.^[18] Just as the males used vīrapattikā, the females too used lalāṭikā, a kind of gold band at their lalāṭapradeśa i.e. the forehead. Females used dantapattra made of the teeth of an elephant to decorate their ears.^[19] Ear-rings made of pearls^[20], gold^[21], blue lotuses were used to decorate the upper part of ears of the ladies.^[22] The females applied collyrium in their eyes.^[23] Necklaces made of pearl were used.^[24] Sometimes, the necklaces were studded with jewels.^[25] Ladies wore armlets^[26], ivory bangles^[27]. Girdles made up of metal, gold etc. were put on by the females. Sometimes costly jewels were studded in it.^[28] Anklets were also used by the ladies.^[29] The ladies paint their feet by red lac.^[30] Ladies used to paint different parts of their body.^[31] With ornamental lines, different body parts like the breasts, cheeks, faces etc. were decorated.^[32]

This way, dress and decorations were used by the males and females of that time of Kashmiri folk.

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

tāpayadvapurudaśrudukūlāḥ kalpayantya iva sāndrajalārdraṃ/
khaṇḍitā nibiḍadainyavatīrbhirvāgbhirityasakṛdindumanindan//
Ibid., XI. 62; also, VIII. 3

[2]:

Ibid., XI. 25

[3]:

Ibid., IX. 11

[4]:

Ibid., XI. 38; XII. 97; XV. 3

[5]:

Ibid., VII. 66; XV. 9

[6]:

dayite vilokayati kāpi kucau hriyametya kañculikayā pidadhau/
amṛtaṃ vavarṣa tu tadunnatitasruṭimetya sāpi bata tasya dṛśoḥ//
Ibid., XIII. 32; also, XV. 10-14, 22

[7]:

Ibid., IV. 29

[8]:

Ibid., XIII. 29

[9]:

kāmisaṃtatihṛdantaravāsakrāntarāgalaharīsamarītiḥ/
pāṭalāpaṭalamayyudagacchadvīrapaṭṭaghaṭanādhilalāṭaṃ//
Ibid., XII. 2

[10]:

Ibid., XVIII. 14

[11]:

Ibid., XVIII. 4

[12]:

Ibid., XVIII. 26

[13]:

Ibid., XII. 3

[14]:

Ibid., XVIII. 2, 21, 33

[15]:

Ibid., II. 19

[16]:

Ibid., X. 48; XII. 53; XIII. 30

[17]:

Ibid., XI. 27, 36

[18]:

Ibid., XIII. 25

[19]:

Ibid., X. 49

[20]:

Ibid., XI. 21; XIII. 14

[21]:

Ibid., XIV. 50; XV. 42

[22]:

Ibid., XXI. 48

[23]:

Ibid., XIV. 49

[24]:

Ibid., XII. 36; XIII. 19, 39; XXI. 50

[25]:

Ibid., XXI. 41

[26]:

Ibid., XIII. 23

[27]:

Ibid., XIII. 18

[28]:

Ibid., XI. 17; XII. 48; XIII. 24, 35, 44

[29]:

Ibid., XI. 37; XII. 61; XIII. 35, 38, 44; XV. 1

[30]:

ete karā himakarasya calācalākṣi lākṣājuṣoścaraṇayostava saṃstavena/
janmānavāptacarafullasahasrapatra-sauhārdasaukhyagaṭanāṃ ciramāpnuvantu//Ibid., XI. 50; also XIII. 50; XV. 39, 48

[31]:

Ibid., XII. 20. 97; XIII. 2, 3, 5, 52

[32]:

Ibid., XI. 26, 28; XII. 57, 69; XIII. 13, 31