The evil eye in Skt literature?

[jkirk]

Dear Prof Hart,

Since you mentioned the evil eye,  I write to ask you about its
terminological provenance in Sanskrit  literature because it would be so
helpful for my work to have some explicit references (I'm an anthropologist
specializing in south Asia studies but not a Sanskritist.) . If this inquiry
threatens to be bothersome, please don't mind and just tell me.  But I am oh
so curious--

Good wishes
Joanna Kirkpatrick
=============================================================


----- Original Message -----
From: "George Hart" <ghart at SOCRATES.BERKELEY.EDU>
To: <INDOLOGY at liverpool.ac.uk>
Sent: Tuesday, November 27, 2001 1:18 PM
Subject: Re: "Saantideva's literary ability


> It is conventional for Tamil works to begin with an avai aTakkam --
humility
> before the court (avai < sabhaa).  The greatest such poem ever written --
> even better in my opinion than Kalidasa's great stanza (kva
> suuryaprabhavo....) is at the beginning of the Kamparamayanam (12th
> century), in which the poet compares himself, about to tell the story of
> Rama, to a cat that is delusional enough to think it can lick up the great
> ocean of milk.  One can surmise that the purpose of this was to avoid the
> evil eye.  The exact opposite is found in the beginning of the
> Rasagangadhara, where Jagannatha praises himself extravagantly.  I
remember
> remarking on that to my Sanskrit teacher, Seshadrinathan, who merely
> replied, "sthaane."  G. Hart
>
> On 11/27/01 11:33 AM, "Richard B Mahoney" <RBM49 at STUDENT.CANTERBURY.AC.NZ>
> wrote:
>
> > Dear All,
> >
> > I am cross posting this request to both Indology and H-Buddhism. To
> > those who receive it twice my apologies.
> >
> > I am trying to track down secondary literature on what seems to be a
> > form of literary affectation at the start of "Saantideva's
> > Bodhicaryaavataara and "Sik.saasamuccaya.
> >
> > At BCA I:2ab (Minayeff's ed.) and "SS p. 1 ln. 11 (Bendall's ed.) a
> > similar half verse occurs :
> >
> > na hi ki.mcid apuurvam atra vaacya.m na ca
> > sa.mgranthanakau"sala.m mamaasti | (Minayeff)
> >
> > Surely such an opening is formulaic? Do readers know of any secondary
> > literature -- Indological or Buddhological -- on this subject?
> >
> > Thank you in advance for any help you can give.
> >
> >
> > Many regards,
> >
> > Richard Mahoney
> >
> >
> >
> > --
> > +----------------------- Richard Mahoney -----------------------+
> > | 78 Jeffreys Rd                                 +64-3-351-5831 |
> > | Christchurch                                      New Zealand |
> > +--------------[mailto:rbm49 at it.canterbury.ac.nz]---------------+
> >
>