Kalha .naColophons of the tarangas: iti śrīkāśmīrikamahāmātyaśrī-Ca .npaka-prabhusūno .h Ka-

lha .nasya k.rtau rājatarangi .nyā .m . . . taranga .h.; Ca .npaka was one of the chief of-!cials of king Har.sa (1089–1101).

Kalha .na wrote the introduction of his work in laukikasa .mvat 4224 = 1148–49 CE,cf. RT 1.52:

laukikābde caturvi .mśe śakakālasya sā .mpratamsaptatyābhyadhika .m yāta .m sahasra .m parivatsarā .h.

“At present, in the twenty-fourth year of the Laukika [era], onethousand and seventy years of the Śaka era have passed.” (Stein)

He completed it in the following year (cf. RT 8.3404).

Mankha, Śrīka .n.thacarita 25.78–80:

śrīmān Alakada/o yam analpa .m kāvyaśilpi.susvapariśramasarvasvanyāsasabhyamamanyata,tathopacaskare yena nijavānmayadarpa .na .hBilha .naprau .dhisa .mkrāntau yathā yogyatvam agrahīt,ta/adbahukathākelipariśramanirankuśamta .m praśrayaprayatnena Kalyā .na .m samamīmanat.śrīmān sā .mdhivigrahako ’lakada/o brāhma .nāgra .nīr . . .svapariśrama .h kāvya .m . . .kathāmahābhāratādaya .h

He saluted Kalyā .na with studied deference—[Kalyā .na] who is ir-repressible in his pastime of researching many stories of variouskinds, whom the honourable Alakada/a has ranked high amongpoets and considered worthy of entrusting on him the entirety ofhis task; who has polished the mirror of his own eloquence to suchan extent that it has become suited to re0ect Bilha .na’s grandeur.

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Kalha .na’s ars poetica (RT 1. 3–10)

vandya .h ko ’pi sudhāsyandāskandī sa sukaver gu .na .hyenāyāti yaśa .hkāya .h sthairya .m svasya parasya ca.ko ’nya .h kālam atikrānta .m netu .m pratyak.satā .m k.sama .hkaviprajāpatī .ms tyaktvā ramyanirmā .naśālina .h?na paśyet sarvasa .mvedyān bhāvān pratibhayā yaditadanyad divyad.r.s.titve kim iva jñāpaka .m kave .h?kathādairghyānurodhena vaicitrye ’py aprapañcitetad atra ki .m cid asty eva vastu yat prītaye satām.ślāghya .h sa eva gu .navān rāgadve.sabahi.sk.rtābhūtārthakathane yasya stheyasyeva sarasvatī.pūrvair baddha .m kathāvastu mayi bhūyo nibadhnatiprayojanam anākar .nya vaimukhya .m nocita .m satām.d.r.s.ta .m d.r.s.ta .m n.rpodanta .m baddhvā pramayam īyu.sāmarvākkālabhavair vārtā yat prabandhe.su pūryate:dāk.sya .m kiyad ida .m? tasmād asmin bhūtārthavar .nanesarvaprakāra .m skhalite yojanāya mamodyama .h.

“Worthy of praise is that power of true poets, whatever it may be,which surpasses even the stream of nectar, in as much as by it theirown bodies of glory as well as those of others obtain immortality.(3) <<. . . the indescribable insight of a gi2ed poet. . . (Pandit)>> <<zupreisen ist . . . die Eigenscha2 des wahren Dichters. . . (Kölver)>>Who else but poets resembling Prajāpatis1 [in creative power] andable to bring forth lovely productions, can place the past times be-fore the eyes ofmen? (4) <<. . . barring the poet and theCreatorwhocreate naturally delightful productions (Pandit)>> <<Wer anders[als der kavi] ist imstande, vergangene Zeit vor Augen zu führen?(Kölver)>>If thepoetdidnot see inhismind’s eye2 <<Vorstellungskra2, „Wieder-

1Cf. Dhvanyāloka 3.42+ (ed. Krishnamoorthy, p. 250): apāre kāvyasa .msāre kavir eka .h prajāpati .h|yathāsmai rocate viśva .m tatheda .m parivartate|| ś .rngārī cet kavi .h kāvye jāta .m rasamaya .m jagat| sa evavītarāgaś cen nīrasa .m sarvam eva tat|| bhāvān acetanān api cetanavac cetanān acetanavat| vyavahārayatiyathe.s.ta .m sukavi .h kāvye svatantratayā|| ‘In the boundless world of poetry the poet is the only Creator.3is whole universe revolves as he pleases. If the poet is amorous, a world full of 0avour arises in thepoem. If the same [poet] is disenchanted, all that world is without 0avour. In a poem a good poetfreely makes insentient things behave as sentient and sentient beings as insentient, as he pleases.’

2Cf. Bhāmaha, Kāvyālankāra 1.5: gurūpadeśād adhyetu .m śā%ra .m ja .dadhiyo ’py alam| kāvya .m tu

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spiegelung“, Re0exion (Kölver); awareness through intuition (Pan-dit) >> the existences which he is to reveal to all men, what otherindication would there be of his possessing divine intuition? <<di-vine perception (Pandit)>> (5)3ough in view of the length of the narrative diversity could notbe secured by means of ampli!cation, still there may be found in itsomething that will please3 the right-minded. (6)3at noble-minded [poet] is alone worthy of praise whose word,like that of a judge, keeps free from love or hatred in relating thefacts of the past. (7)<<Der Tugendha2e ist zu rühmen, dessen Rede wie [die] einesRichters sich bei der Erzählung vergangener Dinge der Liebe unddes Hasses enthält. (Kölver)>>If I narrate again the subject-ma/er of tales which others havetreated, still the virtuous ought not to turn their faces from mewithout hearing my reasons. (8)What is the skill required in order that men of a later time shouldsupplement the narrative of events in the works of those who dieda2er composing each the history of those kings whose contempor-aries theywere? Hencemy endeavour is to give a connectedaccountwhere the narrative of past events has become fragmentary inmanyre5ects.” (9–10) (Stein)“What skill does it show if men of later times supplement in theircompositions the report(s) of deceased (predecessors), by adding onthe various deeds of kings which they have seen?” (9) (Salomon)“When they, who had pieced together the history of the kings, eachone as he saw it, had gone to their rest, what kind of skill is it on

jāyate jātu kasya cit pratibhāvata .h|| ‘Even a thick-headed person can learn śā%ra following the teachingof his master, but poetry is born rarely and only for a few people who have inspiration.’

3Bhāmaha named pro!ciency (vaicak.sa .nya) in the four goals of man and the arts, pleasure (prīti),and fame (kīrti), as the threefold gi2 of poetry (Kāvyālankāra 1.2). Abhinavagupta quotes Bhāmaha’sverse to show that the audience can derive both instruction and pleasure from poetry, but then heremarks that of these two pleasure is the predominant result. 3en he relates one of his favouriteallegories to illustrate that di6erent literary genres teach us in di6erent ways: the Veda (= śā%ra)instructs in the manner of a master, we learn from the legends in the way we learn from our friends,and poetry teaches us a2er the fashion of a loving wife (Locana ad Dhvanyāloka 1.1). He takes theview (following his teacher) that it is pointless to separate pleasure and instruction in poetry, sincewithout delight coming from the tasting of rasa no lesson can enter the hearts of the connoisseuraudience (Locana adDhvanyāloka 3.10–14).

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the part of those born in later times that they should add to thenarrative?” (9) (Pandit)

Ānandavardhana encourages the poets to get rid of any motif which could hinderthe aesthetic experience and to insert freely invented stories, since a2er alltheir task is to write kāvya and not itihāsa:Dhvanyāloka 3.11+ (ed. Krishnamoorthy p. 144): kavinā kāvyam upanibadh-natā sarvātmanā rasaparatantre .na bhavitavyam| tatretiv.r/e yadi rasānanugu .nā .msthiti .m paśyet tā .m bhanktvāpi svatantratayā rasānugu .na .m kathāntaram ut-pādayet| na hi kaver itiv.r/amātranirvaha .nena ki .m cit prayojanam, itihāsādeva tatsiddhe .h|

Kalha .na’s ars poetica cont. (RT 1. 21–24)

iya .m n.rpā .nām ullāse hrāse vā deśakālayo .hbhai.sajyabhūtasa .mvādikathā yuktopayujyate.sa .mkrāntaprāktanānantavyavahāra .h sucetasa .hkasyed.rśo na sa .mdarbho yadi vā h.rdaya .mgama .h?k.sa .nabhangini jantūnā .m sphurite paricintitemūrdhābhi.seka .h śāntasya rasasyātra vicāryatām.tad amandarasasyandasundareya .m nipīyatāmśrotraśuktipu.tai .h spa.s.tam anga rājatarangi .nī.

“3is narrative [of mine] which is properly arranged and which re-sembles a medicine, is useful where the [accounts regarding the]place and time of kings are 0uctuating (lit., growing and diminish-ing). (21) <<3is narrative (of mine), which is arranged (in properorder) and resembles a medicine, is useful for increasing as well asdiminishing the (statements of previous writers regarding) kings,place, and time. (Bühler)>> <<DieMedizin, [die] diese [so] zusam-mengefügte,mit denGewesenenübereinstimmendeErzählung [ist],wird am [angemessenen] Ort und zur [angemessenen] Zeit beimZunehmenoderbeimAbnehmenvonKönigengebraucht. (Kölver)>> <<3is saga which is properlymade up should be useful for kingsas a stimulant or as a sedative, like a physic, according to time andplace. (Pandit)>> <<3is medicine-like tale is !t to be prescribedwhen kings grow (too) great, or when their reigns or realms are

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shrinking. (Salomon)>>Or if [another a5ect be considered], what intelligent man’s heartwould not be pleased by such a composition which treats of num-berless events of ancient times? (22) <<Oder auch: welchenWohlden-kendengeht einderartigesGefüge, in demdas frühere endloseTreibenzusammengekommen ist, nicht zu Herzen? (Kölver)>>When [the hearer] has well pondered over the sudden appearanceof living beings that lasts for a moment only, then let him judge ofthe sentiment of resignation (śānta)which is to rule supreme in thiswork. (23)Imbibe, therefore, straight with the folds of your ear-shells this‘River of Kings’ (Rājatarangi .nī), which is rendered pleasant by un-der-currents of powwerful sentiments. <<Deshalb sollmanmit denHöhlungen del Ohrmuscheln ganz deutlich diesen Fluß der Könige[oder: die Rājatarangi .nī], der durch das nicht träge Fließen desWassers [oder: der Gemütsstimmung, rasa] lieblich ist, hinein-trinken. (Kölver)>> <<. . . by the full 0ow of that sentiment (ofresignation) (Salomon, reading tadamanda°)>>(24)

Note ad verse 21: Poetic diction can facilitate the mastering of any kind of teaching.Princes, for instance, must be educated to become righteous kings. But, giventheir natural inclinations, they would be bored to tears while listening to theśā%ras. Poetry, however, is an excellent way to engage their interest: ‘enteringinto the hearts [of the princes, etc.]’, says Abhinavagupta, ‘is accomplished bythe tasting of aesthetic relish alone’: h.rdayānupraveśaś ca rasāsvādamaya eva(Locana adDhvanyāloka 3.10–14, ed. Kāvyamālā, p.183).4 Reading a scienti!ctreatise can be a painful experience for a sah.rdaya. It is like swallowing a bi/ermedicine, to use this ancient allegory, while reading poetry is almost equivalentto drinking ambrosia, which is sweet and healthy at the same time.5 It is anancientwisdomthat if you don'twant to frightenpeople away fromyour śā%ra,the trick is to drip some poetic honey into bi/er science.6 ‘How great is the

4Cf. Vakroktijīvita, prose a2er 1.3 (ed. p. 10): abhijātā .h khalu rājaputrādayo dharmādyupeyārthi-no vijigī .sava .h kleśabhīravaś ca, sukumārāśayatvāt te.sām| tathā saty api tadāhlādakatve kāvyaband-hasya krī .danakādiprakhyatā prāpnotīty abhidha/e—dharmādisādhanopāya .h|

5Cf. Vakroktijīvita, prose a2er 1.5 (ed. p. 15): du .hśravadurbha .naduradhigamatvādido.sadu.s.to’dhyayanāvasara eva du .hsahadu .hkhadāyī śāstrasandarbhas tatkālakalpitakamanīyacamatk.rte .h kā-vyasyana katha .mcid api spardhāmadhirohatīty etad apy arthato ’bhihita .mbhavati| ka.tukau.sadhavacchāstram avidyāvyādhināśanam| āhlādy am.rtavat kāvyam avivekagadāpaham|

6Cf. Kāvyālankāra 5.3: svādukāvyarasonmiśra .m śāstram apy upayuñjate| prathamālī .dhamadha-

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weight put on the poet’s shoulders!’, sighs Bhāmaha. No wonder: all wordsand meanings, all arguments and arts, if they deserve their name, become thecomponents of poetry.7

Kalha .na’s ars poetica cont. (RT 1. 46–47)

bhujavanatarucchāyā .m ye.sā .m ni.sevya mahaujasā .mjaladhiraśanāmediny āsīd asāv akutobhayāsm.rtim api na te yānti k.smāpā vinā yadanugraha .mprak.rtimahate kurmas tasmai nama .h kavikarma .ne.ye ’py āsann ibhakumbhaśāyitapadā ye ’pi śriya .m lebhireye.sām apy avasan purā yuvatayo gehe.sv ahaścandrikā .htā .ml loko ’yam avaiti lokatilakān svapne ’py ajātān iva.bhrāta .h satkavik.rtya ki .m stutiśatair? andha .m jagat tvā .m vinā.

“We pay reverence to that naturally sublime cra2 of poets withoutwhose favour even mighty kings are not remembered, though theearth, encircled by the oceans, was sheltered under the shadow oftheir arms as in the shade of forest-trees. (46) Without thee, Obrother composer of true poetry <<O brother! the work of a gif-ted poet! (Pandit)>>, this world does not even in its dreams knowof the existence of those ornaments of the earth who once re8edtheir feet on the temples of elephants, who possessedwealth, and inwhose palacesmaidens dwelt, moons of the day,—without thee theuniverse is blind, why [praise thee] with a hundred hymns?” (47)(Stein)

Cf. Rudra.ta, Kāvyālankāra 1.5–6 (9th century CE):

tatkāritasurasadanaprabh.rtini na.s.te tathā hi kālenana bhaven nāmāpi tato yadi na syu .h sukavayo rājñām.

“Time will destroy the temples of gods and othemonuments raisedby kings: their very name would fade away if there were no goodpoets (to immortalize it in their songs).” ( Jacobi)

va .h pibanti ka.tu bhe.sajam|7Ibid. 5.4: na sa śabdo na tad vācya .m na sa nyāyo na sā kalā| jāyate yan na kāvyāngam aho bhāro

mahān kave .h||

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Cf. Bilha .na, Vikramānkadevacarita 18.106–107 (c. 1085CE):

svecchābhangurabhāgyameghata .dita .h śakyā na roddhu .m śriya .h,prā .nānā .m satata .m prayā .napa.tahaśraddhā na viśrāmyati.trā .na .m ye ’tra yaśomaye vapu.si va .h kurvanti kāvyām.rtaistān ārādhya gurūn vidha/a sukavīn nirgarvam urvīśvarā .h.he rājanas! tyajata sukavipremabandhe virodha .m,śuddhā kīrti .h sphurati bhavatā .m nūnam etatprasādāt.tu.s.tair baddha .m tad alaghu raghusvāmina .h saccaritra .mkruddhair nītas tribhuvanajayī hāsyamārga .m daśāsya .h.

“Princes of the earth! Pro5erity, the wilfully unstable lightningof the cloud of fate, cannot be enchained; incessantly sounds thedrum that announces the departure of the breath of life; worshipthen those true poets, who work the salvation of your bodies ofglory through the nectar of their verse, and renouncing pride makethem your spiritual guides.O ye kings! abstain from opposing the a/achment of true poets;in sooth, pure fame comes to you through their favour; pleasedthey composed that grave beautiful life of Rāma, angered theymadeten-headed Rāva .na the conqueror of the world, an object of deri-sion.” (Bühler)

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