EkakSara and other ingenious forms of Slokas

[Jan Brzezinski]

Dear Krishna,

In answer to your question on 'ingenious forms of slokas'. To my knowledge
these are known as 'citra-kaavya'. I cannot give you a history of the form,
but I know that Ruupa Gosvaamin and Kavi KarNapuura of Bengal in the 16th
century wrote a number of this type of verse. I don't have their works in
front of me, so I will not be able to give you a detailed account of the
various and sundry forms that they use. I do have a copy of Jiiva
Gosvaamin's RasaamRta-ZeSa, in which he gives a number of examples of
citrakavitaani (taken from Ruupa's Stavamaalaa) under the anupraasa section
of zabdaalankaara. Since this book is written on the model of
SaahityadarpaNa, you might wish to look there (my copy is in a box somewhere).

DvakSaraM:

rasaasaara-susaarorur asuraariH sasaarasaH
saMsaaraasirasau raase suriraMsuH sasaara saH

carcoruroci ruccoraa ruciro 'raM caraacare
caurocaaro `ciraac ciiraM rucaa caarur acuucurat 

dhare dharaadharadharaM dhaaraadharadhuraarudhi
dhiiradhii raararaadhaadhirodhaM raadhaa dhuraMdharaM 

EkaakSaraM

ninunno 'nanaM nuunaM naanunonnaanano nuniiH
naanenaanaaM ninunnenaM naanaun naanaanano nanu

For your help and mine, this is glossed as follows by Baladeva VidyaabhuuSaNa:

Nanu, kim evaM gopaalakaM kRSNaM bahuzlaaghase iti vadantaM kaMcit prati
kazcid aaha--nanu bho vaadin! naanaananaz caturaasyo brahmaa inaM gopaalaM
naanaut naastaut, etena api tu astaud eva. NuunaM nizcitaM. Sa kiidRzaH?
NaanenaanaaM prabhuunaam indraadiinaaM ninut 'nuda preraNe kvibantaH'
sarvadevataadhipatir apiity arthaH. Sa punaH kiidRzaH sannamaud ityaaha--na
anuunaM kRtsnaM yathaa syaat tathaa unnaani azruklinnaani aananaani mukhaani
yasya saH. undii kledane dhaatuH. bhiityaazruzoSaad iti bhaavaH.
anunayatiityanuniiH. inaM gopaalaM prabhuM kiidRzaM ninunnaM duure
kSiptamanasaH zakaTasya tadaaviSTasyaasurasyaananaM jiivanaM yena tam.

This is given as is, with one or two obvious errors taken out.

These are not technically citra-kaavya, which, as the name suggests, are
meant to draw a picture or pattern. 
Such as padma-bandha, mahaapadma-bandha, cakra-bandha, sarpabandha,
murajabandha, gomuutrikaabandha, praatilomyaanulomyasama, sarvatobhadra, etc.

These are extensions on the idea of the palindrome and other word plays
found in other languages. Thus,in padmabandha the first three syllables of
the first quarter = reverse of last three of fourth; last three of first
quarter = first three of second (reversed); last three of second = first
three of third; last three of third = first three of fourth.

        kalavaakya sadaaloka kalodaara milaavaka
        kavalaadyaadbhutaanuuka kanuutaabhiira baalaka (n.b., b and v are
interchangeable in Bengal).

Sarvatobhadra: each quarter is a palindrome.

        raasaavahaa haavasaaraa sa lalaasa salaalasaa
        balaaramaa maaralavahaasamaadadamaasahaa

The complete palindrome is praatilomyaanulomyasama:

        kaadhidaa sasvabhaa raadhe maano maastu ramaadhave
        vedhamaarastu maa no maadheraabhaa svasadaadhikaa

KarNapuura adds zaMkhabandha, chatrabandha, khaDgabandha, zaarngabandha,
gadaabandha and pataakaabandha, as well as a third type of word play based
on rhyme: pratipaadasarvayamakam, sarvayamakam, pratyakSarayamakam

Sarvayamakam:
        sasaara saa sasaarasaa 'sa-saara-saasa-saarasaa
        sasaara saasasaara saa sa saarasaasa-saara-saa

Please don't ask me for translations!

I am sure that such types of versification have antecedents in the
mahaakaavyas, but it is quite possible that Ruupa and KarNapuura may have
made some original contributions. Ruupa seems to have made some such
contributions in his work on the virudaavaliis, which as a poetic form has
the strongest tradition, it would appear, in the GauDiiya VaiSNava world. I
would welcome any comments on virudaavalii as I have been able to find
nothing helpful which predates Ruupa Gosvaamin's (d. 1568)
_Virudaavalii-lakSaNam_. Virudas are poems which use a more occidental style
(if I can call it that) rhythmic metre, characterized by strong rhyming
patterns.


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                        Jan K. Brzezinski, Ph.D.
                          1262 rue St-Joseph
                      Val-David (Québec) J0T 2N0
			819-322-6146, 322-3382
                         jagat at polyinter.com
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