॥ अथ अभिज्ञानशकुन्तलं ॥ ar eft: agç arar'aefà fafusă ur efaçlar a dì— 1 प्रत्यचाभिः प्रपन्नस् तनुभिर् श्रवतु वस् ताभिर् श्रष्टाभिर् ईशः ॥ १ ॥ (That visible form) which (was) the first creation of the Creator [i.e., water]; (that) which bears the oblation offered-according-to-scriptural-rule [i.e., fire]; and (that) which (is) the offerer [i.e., the officiating priest who offersthe oblation]; (those) two (visible forms) which define the time [i.e., the Sun and Moon which cause day and night]; (that) which perpetually pervades all space, having [conveying] the quality (sound) perceptible by the ear [i.e., æther]; (that) which they call the birth-place [womb, proximate cause] of all created-things [i.e., the earth]; (that) by which living beings are furnished with breath [i.c., the air]; endowed with [manifested in, known by] these eight visible forms, may Isa [the supreme Lord] preserve you!' The play begins and ends with a prayer to Siva: see the last note in this book. After every relative pronoun some case of pratyakshá tanuh must be supplied. Srishtir ádyá: see Manu i., 8-10, apa eva sasarja ádau, (the creator) first created the waters.' Vidhi-hutam, i.e., veda-vidhánena agnau kshiptam: Ch. Hotri, i.e., dikshita-mayi tanuh: K. yajamána-rúpá tanuh: Ch. the Brahman who is qualified by initiation to offer the oblation.' Kálam vidhattah samayam kurutah: Ch., srijatah: S. Hence the Sun is called divákara, ʻmaker of the day;' and the moon, nisákara, maker of the night.' Sruti, etc.: the Hindús reckon five elements, viz., water, fire, æther, earth, and air. Ether [ákása] is held to be the vehicle of sound, or of that quality which is the object of perception to the car: sco Manu, i., 75, Akasasya sabdam gunam viduh. Vyápya sthitá, i.e., 'keeps pervading.' Compare ryápya sthitam rodasi: Vikram. Stha is joined with an indecl. part. to express continuity of action. Viswam = prapancham: K. Sarva-bhúta-prakritih: so reads Kátavema followed by my own MS., and supported by Manu, ix., 37, Iyam bhúmir bhútánám saswati yonir uchyate, this earth is called the pri = = Verse 1. The metre is SRAGDHARÁ (variety of PRAKRITI), in which there are twentyone syllables to the half-line; cach half-line being alike. नान्द्यन्ते सूत्रधारः ॥ नेपथ्याभिमुखम् अवलोक्यं ॥ श्रार्ये । यदि नेपथ्यविvran_gafsð | affayaraz zıuwai | = = upá meval womb [yonih káranam: Kul.] of all created things' [such as trees, etc. Kul.]. The other MSS. have sarva-vija-prakṛitir. Prakritih dána-kúranam: K. = utpatti-sthúnam: Ch. nidánam: Prapannah == upetah K. The Bengálí MSS. have prasannas. The worshippers of Siva, who were Pantheists in the sense of believing that Siva was himself all that exists as well as the cause of all that is, held that there were eight different manifestations of their god, called Rudras [or Rudra, Bhava, Sarva, Ísána, Pasupati, Bhíma, Ugra, Mahádeva] and that these had their types or representatives in the eight visible forms enumerated here. So the Vishnu-Purána as quoted by Sankara [p. 58, Wilson]-Brahmá assigned to them their respective stations: water, the sun, earth, fire, air, æther, the officiating Bráhman [dikshito bráhmaṇah], and the moon; these are termed their visible forms [tanavah]. In the opening of Málavik., Siva is said to uphold the universe by means of these forms, ashtábhir tanubhir bibhratah kritsnam jagadapi. See also Kumára-s., iv., 76. Sankara, with far-fetched subtilty, points out how each of these types of Siva is intended by the poet to typify events and circumstances in the life of Sakuntalá. Thus, ya srishtih, etc. is compared with the sentiment in verse 43; and ye dwe, etc., is supposed to be significant of her two female friends. The opening benediction is called Nándí because it is supposed to rejoice the hearts of gods and men. Deva-dwija-nripádínám ásírváda-paráyaná nandanty asyám surá yasmát tena nándi prakírtitá: S. The Sútra-dhára was the manager [= sthúpaka: Ś.] who held and regulated the thread of the drama, or who developed the thread of the plot. Yena nartaniya-kathá-sútram prathamam súchyate; nanu sútra-pathanlyá nándí sútradhárasya cha páṭhávasarah pravésánantaram : §. He is otherwise, especially when not a Bráhman, called the Sthápaka, he who fixes or directs the action of the play;' kávyárthasthápanát: Ch. Sthápakah sútradhára-sadríša-gunákárah : Sáh.-darp., p. 137, 1. 6. Sútra-dhára-padena atra sthápako 'bhimatah sútra-dhúra-samánákáratwát: S. As to nándyante, see the note in page 7 of this book. 'Looking towards the tiring-room,' which was behind the stage, 'looking behind the scenes.' Nepathyam ryatiriktam yaranikúntaritam varnikú नटी ॥ प्रविश्य ॥ अज्ज । अन्हि । श्राणबेदु श्रन्नो | को । नटी ॥ प्रविश्य ॥ श्रार्य । दूयम् अस्मि । श्राज्ञापयतु श्रार्यः । को uñû ayftgazfi । सूत्रधारः। श्रर्ये । अभिरूपभूयिष्ठा परिषद् द्वयं । श्रद्य खलु कालिदासग्रथितवस्तुना नवेनाभिज्ञानशकुन्तलाख्येन नाटकेनोपस्था grahanadi-yogyam nata-varga-sthánam: K. bhúshana-sthanam rangád va hih-stham: Ch., S. In a Hindú theatro, a curtain [apati pata yavaniká] suspended across the stage, answered all the purposes of scenes. Behind it there was the space or room called nepathya, where the decorations were kept, and where the actors attired themselves and remained in readiness before entering the stage; whither also they withdrew on leaving it. When an actor was to come on hurriedly, the stage-direction is patákshepena or apatikshepena, with a hurried toss of the curtain.' When he was to say something whilst hidden from the audience in this space behind the curtain, the direction is nepathye (a voice) in the postscenium.' As to nepathya-vidhánam [= prasádhana-kriyá: S.], it may be translated, 'the act of decoration,' 'making the toilet,' or perhaps, the arrangements of the tiring-room.' Nepathye yad vidhiyate tan nepathya-vidhánam. Káṭavema has naipathya. Nepathyam vidhá == nepathyam rach or nepathyam kri: Compare Ratn., p. 2. 1. 16. The interrogative pronoun and iti show that the 'directa oratio' is here substituted for the 'obliqua.' Iti may be omitted, but is generally the sign of the direct form. In the obliqua oratio,' which the Hindús more rarely use, the relative pronouns and particles would be used without iti, thus, ájnúpayatu yo niyogo anushthiyatám. 2 'For the most part (composed of) learned [educated] men.' The audience consisted chiefly of good judges, cognoscenti. [abhirúpa = vidwas, pandita: K., Ch.] So ráshtram súdra-bhúyishṭham: Manu, viii., 22. With the new drama called "Token-Sakuntalá," or "Ring-(recognised) Sakuntala." Abhijnána-sakuntalá is an anomalous Tatpurusha compound [Lagh.-kaum., 994]; not one in which the terms are inverted, but one in which there is uttara-pada-lopa or madhyama-pada-lopa, elision of the second member.' On the authority of Chandra-sekhara, the second member to bo supplied is smritá, 'recognized;' and abhijnána is 'the token of recognition-. तव्यम् श्रस्माभिः । तत् प्रतिपात्रम् श्रधीयतां यत्नः । नटी । मुविहिद प्पश्रो श्रदाए अज्जम एण किम्पि परिहारस्सदि । नटी । सुविहितप्रयोगतया श्रर्यस्य न किमपि परिहास्यते । सुत्रधारः । श्रार्ये । कथयामि ते भूतार्थं । परितोषाद् विदुषां न साधु मन्ये प्रयोगविज्ञानं । बलवदपि शिक्षितानाम् आत्मन्यप्रत्ययं चेतः ॥ २ ॥ नटी ॥ सविनयं ॥ एव्वं णेदं । अणन्तरकरणिज्जं दाव श्रज्जो नटी ॥ सविनयं ॥ एवं न्विदं । अनन्तरकरणीयं तावद् श्रार्य श्राणवेदु । श्राज्ञापयतु । the ring.' The compound will thus be equivalent to abhijnána-smrità sakuntalá, Sakuntalá recognized by the token.' So sáka-párthiva, 'the king of the era,' is equivalent to sáka-priya-párthiva, the king beloved by the era.' 2 'Therefore let care be applied by cach to his own part or character,' ‘let pains be taken by all in their several parts.' Pratipátram = pátre pätre : K. Tat = tasmàt : K. So sureshu sthàneshu avahitair bhavitavyam : Vikram., Act 1. ± — By reason of your honour's good assignment of (the parts of) the play (to the several actors), nothing will be wanting ;' i.e., ‘by reason of your skill in casting the characters, nothing is likely to go amiss in the acting;' or, 'by reason of (our) good acting nothing will be wanting to your honour ;' or, ‘by rcason of your honour's (skill in the) management of the play,' etc. Such aro the various interpretations of Kátavema, Chandra-śekhara, and Sankara : the first seems preferable. So yah prayogo bhavatishu nibaddhah: Vikram., Act 2. [prayogam nibandh = prayogam virach : Schol.] 3 Bhútártham state of the case.' = satyam : S. = satyártham : K., the real truth,' ‘the true 4 — I do not consider skill-in-the-representation-of-plays to be good [perfect] until (it cause) the satisfaction of the learned (audience); the mind of those Verse 2. ARYÁ or GÁTHÁ, in which there are thirty instants (a short syllable containing one, and a long, two) in the first line, and twenty-seven in the second. Each foot must contain four instants, except the sixth of the second line, which contains one; and the line must be divided by a pause at the end of the third foot. |