Dhvanyalokalocana 68
English (machine translation) 68
- Language
- English
68.2
By nominal endings, verbal endings, numbers, and relations, and likewise by case-relations, / and by primary and secondary suffixes and compounds, that [suggestion] whose process is imperceptible can sometimes be revealed. //
68.3
The soul of suggestion whose process is imperceptible, namely aesthetic relish and the like, is seen to be manifested by specific nominal endings, specific verbal endings, specific numbers, specific relations, case-relations, specific primary suffixes, specific secondary suffixes, and compounds. Through the word "and" (ca), [it is also manifested] when particles, prefixes, tenses, and the like are employed.
68.4
As in: / "Indeed, this itself is my humiliation, that I have enemies; and even among them, that he is an ascetic! / And he, right here, slaughters the race of rākṣasas; yet alas, Rāvaṇa lives! / Fie, fie on him who conquered Indra's weapon! What use was Kumbhakarṇa who was awakened? / What use are these arms, puffed up in vain from plundering the miserable hamlet of heaven?"
68.5
For in this verse, the suggestive capacity of nearly all these elements is clearly observed. There, by "me yad arayaḥ" ("that I have enemies"), nominal endings, relations, and numbers are suggestive; in "tatrāpy asau tāpasaḥ" ("and even among them, he is an ascetic"), the secondary suffix and the particle; in "so 'py atraiva nihanti rākṣasa-kulaṃ jīvaty aho rāvaṇaḥ" ("and he, right here, slaughters the race of rākṣasas; yet alas, Rāvaṇa lives!"), the verbal endings and case-relations; in the latter half of the verse beginning with "dhig dhik cakra-jitam" ("fie, fie on him who conquered Indra's weapon"), primary suffixes, secondary suffixes, compounds, and prefixes.
68.6
And when an abundance of such suggestive elements is brought together, a matchless brilliance of composition blossoms in poetry. For where even a single word radiating suggested meaning appears, an extraordinary brilliance of composition is present in poetry; how much more so where there is an aggregation of many such elements, as here in the verse just cited! For here, although the word "Rāvaṇa" is already adorned by that variety of suggestion where the expressed meaning is shifted into another meaning, there is further an illumination of the types of suggestive elements mentioned immediately after. And such varieties of composition are abundantly seen among great souls endowed with exceptional poetic genius. As in the great seer Vyāsa's [verse]:
68.7
"The times whose joys have passed are here, full of dread; / day by day the days grow more sinful, and the earth has lost its youth."
68.8
For here, through primary suffixes, secondary suffixes, and numbers, suggestion of imperceptible process is revealed, and by "the earth has lost its youth," suggestion whose expressed meaning is completely set aside is manifested. And the suggestive capacity of these elements, both individually and collectively, beginning with nominal endings, is frequently seen in the extended compositions of great poets. The suggestive capacity of a nominal ending is, for example:
68.9
"The peacock, your friend, made to dance by my beloved to rhythms charming with her tinkling bracelets, / perches upon which [rod] at the close of day."
68.10
That of a verbal ending is, for example:
68.11
"Turn away; my wretched eyes were created only to weep, do not wipe them! / By them, intoxicated merely by gazing, your heart was not understood."
68.12
["Turn away; my wretched eyes were created only to weep, do not wipe them! / By them, intoxicated merely by gazing, your heart was not known to be of such a nature."]
68.13
Or as in: / "Do not block the path, step aside, youth! Oh, you are shameless! / We are dependent on others, and the empty house must be guarded by us."
68.14
[*20] Gāthāsaptaśatī (supplement 955)
68.15
["Do not block the path, step aside, youth! Oh, you are insolent, you are shameless! / We are dependent on others, since my empty house must be guarded."]
68.16
That of a relation is, for example:
68.17
"Go elsewhere, youth! Why do you stare at me as I bathe? / Ah, for those afraid of their wives, this is not their riverbank!"
68.18
["Go elsewhere, youth! Why do you stare at me as I bathe? / Ah, for those afraid of their wives, this is not even the riverbank!"]
68.19
In Prakrit usages with suffixes, suggestive capacity is readily evident with regard to secondary suffixes. In expressing extreme contempt, the suffix -ka [is used]. And [similarly] in the application of compounds according to the propriety of stylistic modes. The suggestive capacity of particles is, for example:
68.20
"Suddenly this separation from her, / my beloved, has befallen me, exceedingly unbearable; / and because of the rise of fresh storm clouds, the days / must be delightfully cool, free from the heat of the sun."
68.21
Here, it is the word "and" (ca). Or as in:
68.22
Her lower lip repeatedly covered by her fingers, / charming in her distress with words of refusal, / her face turned toward her shoulder—though somehow raised, / that lotus-eyed girl's face was not, however, kissed.
68.23
Here, it is the word "however" (tu).
68.24
It should be understood that although the illuminative function of particles is well known in ordinary usage, here it is stated with reference to aesthetic relish. The suggestive function of prefixes is as follows:
68.25
"Underneath the trees, wild rice fallen from the openings of parrot-inhabited hollows; / here and there stones, noticeably oily from breaking iṅgudī fruits, are indicated; / having acquired trust, the deer tolerate sound, their gaits unbroken; / and the paths to reservoirs of water are marked by streams of drippings from the fringes of bark garments"—and so forth.
68.26
And the use of two or three prefixes in a single word is also faultless precisely because it conforms to the manifestation of aesthetic relish, as in: "Watching eagerly from all sides the creatures stripped of covering, as darkness drops away with the brilliance of an upper garment..." and so forth; or as in: "Approaching respectfully and behaving in a human manner..." and so forth.
68.27
It is just the same with particles as well, as in: "Ah, alas, you are of enviable prowess!" and so forth; or as in:
68.28
"Those who live, who could not contain themselves in their bodies and danced for joy, / their hair bristling, shedding tears of excessive delight when an eminent and virtuous man was seen— / alas, oh misery, alas! Where can I go for refuge on behalf of those people / who have been brought to destruction by crooked fate as it nourishes the enemy of the good?"—and so forth.
68.29
And the repetition of a word, when employed occasionally with an eye to suggestive capacity alone, confers beauty, / as in: / "When a wicked person, bent on an objective, with his mind set on deception, speaks falsely with many flattering words, / the virtuous do not fail to know it; they know it, but / they are unable to make his supplication in vain"—and so forth.
68.30
The suggestive capacity of tense is as follows:
68.31
"Level and rough alike, with slow, sluggish movement on every side, / soon the roads will become impassable even for desires."
68.32
For here, in the phrase "soon the roads will become" (acirād bhaviṣyanti panthānaḥ), the suffix in this word "will become" (bhaviṣyanti), denoting a particular time, shines forth as the cause of the nourishment of aesthetic relish. For the meaning of this verse, being contemplated as the foundational excitant of the erotic sentiment in separation during travel, is full of aesthetic relish. Just as the suffix element is suggestive here, so in some places even the base element is seen to be so; as in:
68.33
"That was a house with crumbling walls; this is a palace that has gained entry into the sky; / that was an aged cow; these clouds of elephants roam about; / that was the meager sound of a pestle; this is the melodious music of women; / what a wonder! In a matter of days this twice-born man has been elevated to such an exalted station!"
68.34
In this verse, in the word "in a matter of days" (divasaiḥ), even the base element is illuminative. And the suggestive capacity of pronouns is as in the verse just quoted. And here, fixing in mind precisely the suggestive capacity of pronouns, the poet did not employ words such as "where" (kva). In this manner, other particular suggestive elements should also be inferred by sensitive readers for themselves. And although all of this was already covered merely by the mention of the illuminative capacity of word, sentence, and composition, it has been stated again with variety for the sake of instruction.
68.35
Objection: But has it not been stated that aesthetic relish and the rest are implied through the power of meaning? And so, the explanation of the variety in the suggestive capacity of nominal endings and the like is completely disconnected. / To this we reply: This has been answered on the occasion of stating the suggestive capacity of words. Moreover, even though aesthetic relish and the like are implied by a particular meaning, because those particular meanings are inseparable from suggestive words, the understanding of the nature of suggestive elements as demonstrated is certainly useful when properly distinguished. And the beauty of particular words that has been shown analytically elsewhere—that too must be understood as standing purely by virtue of their suggestive capacity.
68.36
Even where this does not immediately appear, it should be concluded that the unperceived excellence belonging to them when caught up in the flow of another, suggestive composition shines forth, through practice, even when they are abstracted. Otherwise, when words have equal denotative capacity, what could be the specific difference regarding beauty? If it be said: "It is something else, knowable only by sensitive readers," then what is this so-called sensitive readership? Is it expertise in a particular convention dependent on poetry without regard to aesthetic relish and emotion, or is it skill in understanding the essential nature of poetry, which consists of aesthetic relish, emotion, and the like? On the first view, there would be no fixed rule regarding the beauty of particular words established by such sensitive readers, because it would be possible to establish it differently through another convention. But on the second view, sensitivity is nothing but the capacity to appreciate aesthetic relish; the special distinction of words, known by such sensitive readers, is solely their innate power to deliver aesthetic relish and the like; hence their primary beauty rests entirely on suggestive capacity. / For words relying on denotative capacity, however, lucidity alone is their distinction when meaning is regarded; but when meaning is disregarded, it is merely alliteration and the like.
68.37
Having thus explained the nature of the suggestive elements of aesthetic relish and the rest, this is undertaken in order to define their conflicting factors: