Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute

ABHINAVAGUPTA ON AKRAAuthor(s): H. R. DivekarSource: Annals of the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute, Vol. 8, No. 3 (1926-1927), pp.342-346Published by: Bhandarkar Oriental Research InstituteStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/41694780 .Accessed: 02/04/2014 04:56

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ABHINAVAGUPTA ON &AKRA. BY

H. R. DlVEKAR, M. A.

M. Jarl Charpentier, Ph. D. has recently published an article in April number of the Royal Asiatic Society's Journal, in which he contends that ' the word Sakra majr be derived from and is in its sense intimately connected with Saka ' Prof. S. Levi and MaxMUller do connect Sakra with Saka, whereas this connection is rejected by Prof. Konow. While purusing the Ms. of Abhinava- gupta's commentary on Bharatiya Ntya Sastra, I came across a passage in which the commentator accepts the association of the two words Saka and Sakra. In fact it is clear from Abhinava- gupta's comment - which I shall quote presently - that so far back as 900 A. D., this association of the two words was known and had been allowed by eminent Sanskrit Scholars. Abhinava- gupta's commentary has not yet seen the light ; I will, therefore, quote in extenso the passage which has inspired me to write this short note.

M. Charpentier was unable to trace the quotation from Bhra- tlya Ntya Sstra, XII-130 in Konow's Das Indische Drama. ( Vide p. 15 ). In Grosses edition of Ntya Sstra, there is no such verse ; neither does the Kvyaml edition of the Ntya Sstra contains the word Sakra in XII-130, for this verse reads as follows : -

^ri^ li On the other hand, Abhinavagupta reads in place of

WtlHW in the verse quoted above and comments at length on the derivation of the word Sakra. I reproduce the comment of Abhinavagupta as it appears in the Benares Sk. Library Ms. pp. 435-36.

P. 435, line 9 5i^T- 10 TO' FfTR: SHFlf 11

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Miscellanea. 343

13 3T

344 Annals of the Bhahdarkar Institute .

which is emended by Abhinavagupta as 5r(^)n % ( ^ ) pr X. ....... (T; ) n

The verse enumerates the various farm's, used in dramas as compared with the seven *rm 's mentioned in the preceding verse.

iTgipr ^ nr *nir: wrfai; n

It will be obvious that the difference between these two views, is that the first defines Sakra as one who speaks a .dialect abounding in the sibilant 3T, whereas th# second states him as an inhabitant of the country of Sakas.

( 3 ) starti t?th7( i This is the thid view, very probably held by Dhanika, who, while commenting on the word Sakra in Dasarpa II. 45, defines Sakra as '"W: rr - a base-born brother-in-law of a king. Abhinavagupta states that according to some, Sakra is a person with a vulgar mind, promoted to a high place ; whereas Dhanika, as we saw above, describes him as a base-born brother-in-law of a king. Taking these two interpretations together, we are justified in the conclu- sion that Sakras were despised as base-born, vulgar minded

persna whose sisters were frequently given in marriage to kings and the kings showed their appreciation of the fact by promoting th em to high places. This, naturally enough, led to considerable heart-burning among the well-born and cultured classes of the

king's subjects who never lost an opportunity of jeering at these favourites of the king. The verses quoted by Abhinavagupta support such an assumption. He first cites a verse by Bhsa, which is my reading for Hsa. Bhsa is known to Abhinava-

gupta as a *T

Aiscellanea. 345

It is possible to interpret this verse in two ways. First - The superabundance of the sibilant ST does not win ( for itself) a con- spicuous position even among the Prakrit dialects, but this super- abundance becomes strikingly evident only in the fog of Apa- bhrama. It is admitted by Rudrata and others that Sakr, which abounds in ST is a subdivision of Apabhramsa. The second inter- pretation is that the immense riches of Sakra, does not make him famous even among the common mass of people, but this same riches gives him a shining eminence only in the shades of the out-cast and the fallen . After this, Abbina vagupta gives a verse of his own composition wherein he bemoans the high prestige and the riches enjoyed by Sakras. The reading should be emhded as follows : -

)5rf4 ' ' ^P(T) SJ wr( : ) ?ar*rfh^F3HT( ) ufi ' ?rr ) wn ?w( * )

ST^ ir ) ( ^ 3 ) f f" -WR u

. The verse may be rendered as given below : - What did you propose to yourself, Oh Fate, when you made

Sakra ascend the meridian of power and glory ? The ( only ) profit is the creation of a vicious vocabulary; (a style that) scents standards ( of speech ). How should one mention then the right apprehension of sense ?

Abhinavagupta follows this up by quoting a verse from a drama, entitled by a great poet of his time - Bhlma -

who now and again describes king in his play as Sakra. We may correct the verse and read it as follows : -

ureter: tisir qg i?( qrO '

^ftt ii " This fellow, who commands the homage of a whole people is

plainly enough a Sakra. His promotion to the dizzy eminence proves Fate's accursed ways. He is the parent of a brood of vil'ainous words and his renown consists of the long tale of atrocities ( which he has committed ) and which are familiar knowledge." The drama though unknown to Schnyler

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346 Annals of the Bhandarkar Institute .

who does not refer to it in his bibliography appears to have been well-known in Abhinavagupta's time, as it is once more quoted by him along with and while commenting on Jatya Sastra XVIII - 34.

Finally Abhinavagupta remarks that # ( fe )vnx: meaning that the characteristic of vanity obvious in the fiddling of clothes and ornaments and the fidgety eye that turns to them, falls into place here. Such vanity would be natural in a Sakra, who betrays a constant consciousness of his power and riches and like a Parvenu millionaire is ill at ease in his silk and gold. Moreover, argues Abhinavagupta, there was no such caste as Sakra among the ryas and the Mleccha tribes are also separately mentioned in the next verse *rr ) ( )