Encyclopedia of India–China Cultural Contacts v2.c10.s3.t10: Nagananda
Encyclopedia of India–China Cultural Contacts v2.c10.s3.t10
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Nagananda
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Nāgānanda, is one of the representative dramas created by Siladitya based on the legend of Jimutavahana Bodhisattva sacrificing his life to save the son of Naga (snake), and it combines the elements of both Buddhism and Hinduism. The Chinese translation of this epic, done by Wu Xiaolong was published in 1956.
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Synopsis
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Siladitya was an excellent dramatist who became famous relatively later when the idiomatic usage of language had developed from simplicity into elaborate and magnificent rhetoric. Nāgānanda was probably written between 611-640 CE, based on the story of Prince Jimutavahana saving the son of a snake at the cost of his own life. Princess Malayavati dreamed one night that goddess Gouri predicted she would get married to King of Vidhyadharas. And then she fell into love with Jimutavahana, prince of Vidhyadharas, he, in order to express his love to the princess, drew her portrait on a stone seat. However unfortunately, Princess Malayavati misunderstood that the prince already had a sweetheart and was unwilling to marry to her, so she tried to hang herself but was saved by the prince. The doubts were dispelled. In Act III, the two lovers are shown to be happily making preparation for their marriage, but when it goes into Act IV, the comedy turns into a tragedy. Garuda who fed on snakes, wanted to eat Shankachuda, a snake, which overwhelmed his mother with sorrow. Jimutavahana decided to face Garuda in place of Shankachuda and was tragically killed by Garuda. But in the end, with the aid of the Goddess Gouri, Jimutavahana was brought back to life. He later married Princess Malayavati, and inherited the throne and ruled the world.
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*'Nāgānanda', front cover of the Chinese edition*
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A Chinese Buddhist Monk Yi Jing in his *An Account of Buddhism from the South Seas*, Volume IV says, “*Siladitya created a story based on the legend of Jimutavahana Bodhisattva sacrificing his life to save the son of a snake. Siladitya collected songs about it, played music, and issued an order to compose dances; the songs and music of Nagananda became popular down the ages.*”
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The saying is used to prove that Siladitya is the author of Nāgānanda. However, if you think carefully about the words used by Faxian, an eminent Chinese monk, you will find the conclusion may not be accurate.
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Words used by Faxian include, “Based on the legend”, “collected songs”, “played music” and “ordered people to compose for it,” which all signal that Nāgānanda was created on the basis of materials that already existed at that time, rather being written by Siladitya himself.
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During the period that Nāgānanda was written, Siladitya might have done some directorial and editing work. He collected a variety of current writing materials into an organic whole and constructed his own themes to express his own thoughts.
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On account of the huge differences between the first three and late two acts, even if Nāgānanda had actually been written by Siladitya alone, the possibility that he just presided over the creation of the book can’t be ruled out.
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(*Zhang Yuan*)
Linked texts (1)
- Nāgānanda — Harṣavardhana, Sanskrit