Five aesthetic schools are discussed by Sanskrit aesthetic scholars.

They are: 1) rasa school

2)alamkara school
3) Riti school
4)vakrokti school
5) dhvani school

Dhwani
1.
Semantic theory
2.
Introduced by Ananda
Varma
3.
Significant contributions
by Abhinava Gupta
4.
Relates to meanings &
suggestive power of
words
5.
Basic principle is innate
in sphota vada
(manifestation of the last
sound)
6.
Sphota means burst out
7.
Sphota= antima buddhi
grahya (what is known
by the last word/ antima
varna graahya (last
syllable)
8.
Dhwani has 3 aspects:
Abhidha, Laksana, Vyanjana
a) Abhidha: consists in
the literal meaning of the
expression
b) Laksana: consists in
the external
characteristic of the
expression which are
indicative of
something deeper
c) Vyanjana: means what
is suggestive
Prakrata dhvani is

Rasa
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.

8.

9.

i.
ii.
iii.
iv.

Affective theory
Introduced by Bharata
Developed by Abhinava Gupta
Relates to emotions
Suggests bhaava,
feelings/sentiments
Emotion is conveyed through
vyanjaka
Language of poetry is implicit,
and rasa / rasa that is
suggestive of the soul of great
poetry.
Word- combinations instinct
with implicit rasa reaches the
level of sarvee sarvaatha
vaacika- thus interpretation of
poetry may have plenty of
variations.
Rasa- Bharata
a. Bharata meant only Natya
rasa- others apply it to poetry in
general.
b.Bharata defines bhaava as
the basis of rasa.
c.Four kinds of representation in
poetry:
Imitation by speech (Vaacika)
Imitation by Costume (Aaharya)
Imitation by gesture (Aangika)
Imitation by psychic change
(Saatvikam)
d.Staayibhaavas- 8

vyanajana
9.
Sounds form words/word
wholes.
10. Abhidha & Laksana are
ways and vyanjana is the
end
11. Krama to gather
meaning of a word:
sound-word-sphotameaning
12. The word dhvani is used
for:
Conventional Symbolarticulated sound
a. Conventional meaning
Power of word to convey
meaning
b. Suggestive meaning
Poetic work containing
suggestive element
13. The expressed must
necessarily be
subservient to the
implicit
14. Soul of poetry is dhvani
as the wise have saidAnandavardana
15. Abhinava guptas
Dhvanyaloka locanam:
sabda sakti moola (word)
& arthasakti moola
(meaning) have a role in
dhvani
16. Dhvani in 2 different
ways
a. dhvanat itit dhvanithat which
onds/reverberates or
implies is dhvani
b.dhvanyate itit dhvaniwhat is
sounded/reverberated
/implied (the three
dhvanis come under this)
17. Implied sense is of two
fold: 1) loukika 2)kaavya

i.
ii.
iii.
iv.

10.
11.
12.
13.

14.
15.
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)
f)
g)
16.
a)

e.Vyabhichaaribhaavas- 33
f.Salient rasas-4:
Sringaara(haasyam rises
fromsringaara)
Veera (atbhutam rises from
veera)
Roudra(karuna from roudra)
Beebatsa(bhayanaka from
beebatsa)
g.Bharata doesnt mention
santa
Bhaava in dramaturgy is used in
the sense of mental state (44
types)
Bhaava brings rasa into being
by means of acting, vaacika,
aangika & saatvika.
Bhaava means that which
affects bhaavana & that which
affects vaasana.
Vaasana which is latent and can
be nourished through education
& experience is called as
Sthaayibhaava
Vyabhichaaribhaavas spring
from basic emotion/
sthaayibhaava.
Sthaayibhaavas
Haasa: all think highly of
themselves & laugh at others.
Sooka: feels sad when deprived
of the object of longing.
Kroodha: enrage at the
lossBhaya: when one realizes
his inability
Utsaha: The resolve to get over
the difficulty
Jugupsa: Repulsion when one
meets with repugnant objects
Vismaya: feeling wonder
Saama: abandon something
Vyabhichaaribhaavas
Transient bhaavas which
doesnt leave any
impression/samskaara in the

18.

vyaapaara gocara
35 varieties of dhvani
(abhinava gupta)

b)
c)
d)
e)
17.

18.
i.
ii.

19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.

26.

mind.
Rati: delight
Kroodha: anger
Utsaaha: heroism
Nirveeda: disinterested serenity
Vibhaava: represents the
external factors of the
experience (dramatic situation)a medium through which
emotion rises in actor and
actor, but in a different manner
than in life.
Two aspects of Vibhaava:
Aalambana-the object
responsible for the arosal of
emotions
Uddiipana- the
environment/setting which
enhances the emotive effect
Anubhava: physical changes
which results in the rise of an
emotion
Anubhava: voluntary physical
changes
Satvik bhaavas: involuntary
physical changes
Samvedana: subject of
cognitive chewing
Rasa is the essence of cognitive
chewing
Rasa experience:
vibhava+anubhaava+vyabhich
aaribhaava= rasa in sahrudaya
A sahrudaya has taste in poetry
and a sensitive heart, has close
acquaintances with poetical
works, and can experience the
delight of cognitive chewing.
Cognitive chewing-carvana:
brought about by the force of
the collocation of extra ordinary
vibhaavas / determinants and
the like.

27.

28.
29.
30.

31.
32.

33.

34.

35.

36.

Sahrudaya has vaasana in him

which is awakened by the force
of gerealised determinants/
sadharaniikaranam
Rasa is apremaya- an
unknowable entity- a process
Rasasutra says rasa is neither
generation nor knowledge.
Rasa is suggested by the union
of staayibhaava with the
vibhaavasa etc.. through the
relation between the suggested
& the suggester.
Practice of rasa is abhivyakti.
Abhivyakthi is the manifestation
through the power of
suggestion resulting in an
extra-ordinary state of relish,
known as rasana, asvada or
carvana.
Saadharanikaranam : rasan is a
generalized form. It means
understanding the niversal &
impersonal, thus transcending
all limitations.
Sahrudaya experience:
Sahrudaya reads a poemsthaayibhaava in his mind is
awakened-by the depicted
vibhaava-taking the general
form without specific
connection- this experience
overcomes all obstaclesproducing vita vigna pratiti
Rasa is a process of
enjoyment/relish- brought about
by commingling sahrudaya
sensibility & vibhaava,
anubhaava & vyabhichaari
bhaava.-It is
aloukika/transcendentalremoving all the ignorance that
envelops the basic mood-the
joy during this process is
ananada- this is abhvyakthi
Thus sahrudaya becomes

37.

38.
39.

40.
41.
42.
43.

44.

totally divested of all egoistic

feelings and to experience
aesthetic pleasure.
Two aspects of aesthetic
pleasure: 1. Vibhaavas are
senses in their generalized
forms 2. It looses the
spectators narrow sense of
personality and conducts him to
a higher place of consciousness
Rasa is the quintessence & lifebreath of every element in a
play
The artist turns the mental
state of life into patterns of
poetry with the help of his
imagination.
The power of creative
imagination is bhaavana.
Playwright is bhaavaka
Spectator is rasika
Bhaava complex:
i. When bhaava is reflecting
the exact appearance of
objects in poetry it is
reflecting the
vastusvabhaava
(aesthetic level at the
lowest).
ii. Bhaava complex is a
creation of the creative
imagination.
iii. The most successful
bhaava complex is
capable of yielding
delight and is considered
as rasa.
The present experience
becomes affiliated & perceived
in a new manner which breaks
the pleasures apart from the
egotistic instincts. This is called
rasavadana, camatkaara,
caravan.

45.
a)

b)
c)

d)
e)
46.
i.
ii.
iii.
iv.
v.

47.

48.

Poet
A person endowed with
prathibha/sakti/poetic gift.
Poetic genius is never acquired,
it is birth-gift. This genius can
be replenished by constant
practice & knowledge gained
through study of life.
He can see into the life of
things.
Abhinava Gupta defines genius
as the consciousness or
sensibility that can create
unprecedented and absolutely
new poetic experience- from
which he creates an apuurva
vasthu.
Poetry is born in the
imagination of blessed people
in certain blessed moments.
Poet has extra-ordinary
sensibility- kranta darsi or even
a rishi
Critics & Works
P.V Kane in his History of
Sanscrit Poetics
Kaavya Prakaasam Mammata
Literarv Criticism a Ancient
India
Ramaranjan Mukherji
Dhvanyalokam- Ananda
vardhana says that realm of
poetry is endless, there the
poet is the soverign. The realm
fnctions according to his will.
The distinct creative faculty of
the poet is described as prajna.
Prajna is dynamic & vigilant. A
poet with the help of his prajna
expresses his unique sensibility.
Ksemendra in, writes about the
act of poetic creation, poetry is
the product of the genius of the
poet as well as his skill which
he has acquired by reading and
by constant excercise. The poet

49.

50.

51.

52.
53.

54.
i.
ii.
iii.
iv.
v.
55.

56.
57.
58.

can see what others fail to see.

He can create things that have
never existed before; he has a
penetrating vision and a
creative imagination.
The poet explains the bhaavana
in an adequate verbal structure,
which has its images, figure of
speeches, its suggestive
meaning, its pattern & form.
In order to experience
knowledge, one has to rely on
pramata. Pramata is the limited
manifestation of the universal
consciousness. means of
knowledge.
Two aspects of cit knowledge
sends light towards the object/
means of knowledge is called
Pramaana.
The self conscious is Prameeya.
When the flame of pramata
reacts on the reflectin of the
object the innermind is
illumined- this illumination is
pramiti, a knowledge as it is in
itself.
Abhinava Guptas five levels of
appreciation:
The level of the sense
Level of the imagination
Level of the emotion
Level of catharsis
Level of transcendency
The level at which the self is
affected by sthaayi, which is
lower than aananda is termed
as Cathartic level.
The stage of paramaananda is
higher.
Sahrudaya: should be a gifted
person as well.
An accomplished reader only
can fully appreciate a literary
work.

59.

The Vignaas in the way of

appreciation(Abinava Gupta)
a) Inability to get at the
meaning.
b) Subjective limitations of
time and place.
c) Objective limitations of
time and place.
d) The influences of personal
joys and sorrows.
e) Lack of clarity dueto
insufficient stimulus.
f) Subordination of the
principal to some other
aspects.
g) Dubiousness of
presentation.

60.

According to another
interpretation the seven
vignaas are the following:
i. Improbability of the theme
ii. The intrusion of space and time
particularity.
iii. helplessness arising out of
personal happiness and sorrow at
the time of appreciation.
iv. The lack of means of
apprehension.
v. The lack of clarity.
vi. The lack of emphasis on the
principal element.
vii.The obstacle of doubt
61.

lack of probability, lack of

proper means of apprehension,
lack of clarity, defect in
presenting the principal and the
subordinate and the possibility
of doubt are the vignaas caused
by the poet.

62.

The other two are caused by

the lack of training on the part
of sahrudaya

63.
a)
b)

c)

d)
e)

f)
g)

h)

Abinava Guptas
Pratyabhigna School of
thought.
Pratyabhignadarsana- edited in
Kashmiri
The one single substance which
manifests itself as the cosmos
of living and non-living subjects
is citi or caitanya. therefore
it can be called spiritual
monism . All phenomenas are
manifestations of Siva. Siva
caitanya is conceived as fraught
with energy.
This view of ultimate reality is
explained through several
concepts and some of them are
'spanda' , 'phuratta'
'vimarsa', 'camatkaara' and
'icha'.
Samvit isexplained as that
which enlightens object. This
samvit is consciousness, it is
'prakaasa' . The monism of
prakaasa and samvit is the
monism of consciousness.
samvit is the ultimate reality or
'sathya' .
A person who is distinguished in
the art of knowing is called
bhujanka.
The experience of rasa free
from all obstacles-or the
experience of nirvignavat rasa
is rasva (tasting), carvana
(chewing), nirviti (bliss) & pratiti
(apprehension). This leads to
'pramatatva visraanti', a repose
in a state of being or knowing.
In this philosophy, everything is
Siva. This limited individual
human soul is Siva itself. As
soon as the individual soul does
not recognize itself by
pratybhigna, as Siva, it is
limited & consequently

unhappy.

Ananda Vardhanas theory of Rasa & Dhvani

Vastu dhvani
Rare fact / idea is
implied
Can be expressed by
direct meaning/
vacyaartha, by
suggestion/
vyangyaartha

Alankara dhvani
Figure of speech is
suggested
Can be expressed by
direct meaning/
vacyaartha, by
suggestion/
vyangyaartha

Rasa dhvani
Rasa is evoked
Cannot be expressed by
the direct meaning of
words
Asamlaksya karma
(sequence is not
perceptible)
Variety of rasa dhvani
bhaava dvani, sabda
dhvani, bhaavodaya etc.
further divided into subvarieties
Asamlaksya karma
dhvani-varna(syllable)pada(word)-vakya
(sentence)sangatana(diction) &
prabandha(the whole
composition)
Genuine dhvani (soul of
poetry)

Alamkara
1. Previously the science of poetics was known as alamkara-shastra.
2. Though there were rasa ,guna, riti, the importance was given to
almkara and thus the whole science was called as alamkara-shastra.
3. When the dhvani school becomes dominating this name seems to be
improper. Then this science called as 'Sahityshastra'.

4. The original meaning of the word alamkara is ornament and the same
meaning is reflected in this term alamkara- shastra or kavyashastra
the science of that particular element which adorns the poetry.
5. Bhamaha is considered as a founder of this school.
6. Udbhatta, Dandi, Rudrata, Jayadeva all these are the followers of this
school.
7. This school believes that there is rasa(emotion), riti ( a special style of
writing) in the kavya (poetry) but the alamkara is dominating feature
of it.
8. The word is derived from the root Kr with the prefix alam. Which means
to decorate, to adorn. {Alamkaroti iti alamkarah}.
9. Various definitions of Alamkara
a) Vamana says in his Kavyalamkarasutra, Saundaryam
Alamkarah{Beauty is alamkara}.
b) Dandi says in his Kavyadarsha, Kavya shobhakaran dharman
alamkaran prachakshate. (Those things which decorate the poetry are
called alamkara.)
10.

The number of these alamkaras is not fix.

11.
Mammata gives explanation of 61 artha-alamkaras and 6 shabdalamkaras in his Kavyaprakasha.
12.

vamana explains only two shabd-alamkaras.

13.
Scholars give more stress on the arth-alamkaras they have more
importance than the shabd-alamkara.
1) Shabd-alamkara (a figure of speech depending for its
pleasingness on sound or word).
(2) Arth-alamkara ( embellishment of the sense by poetical figure.)
14.

Shabd-alamkara
1) 1)anuprasa- In this alamkara words or syllables are
repeated.This is mainly of two types one is 'varnanuprasa' and
the other is 'padanupras'.

2) The padagata anuprasa, which of five types, is also called as a

'latanuprasa'.
3) (2)yamaka - The repetition in the same stanza of words or
syllables similar in sound but different in meaning. Same order of
the syllables,if meaningful them should differ in meaning.
4) (3)shlesha- Here the word have a double meaning at same
time.Generally one meaning is expressed by one word but two
meanings are expressed by one word and at the same time.
15.

Arth-alamkara
1) 1)upama- In this type there is sadharmyata(similarity)between
upamana(with which something is compared) and
upameya(whose comparision is done to other). When all these
are present then the it becomes 'purna upama' and one of these
is missing then it is called as 'lupt upama'.
2) (2)ananvaya - In this type the upamana and upameya are the
same. The comparison is among them only. The difference
between the latanuprasa and this is that, in latanuprasa one
cannot use other words and the uddeshata and vidheyata can be
seen there.
3) (3)rupaka- In this type the upamana and upameya are identified
with each other. It means that there is no difference in them. In
this type the face of a woman is none other but the moon itself.
But in Upama the difference is expressed by the words like eva,
thatha, samam, tulyam etc.