Yash Pal

The Rasa Theory
The poet is differed from ordinary personas he is able to arrange words and senses in an elegant
manner. Everyone wants to express what he or she has experienced or felt deeply. When we
observe something beautiful around us, we are so much moved that we want share our
experience with other. When we see the rising or setting sun or moon with all her milky white
light or feel the first showers of the monsoon, we want to partake of the experience with
someone we love. The experiences weather joyful or sad touch the deep chords of our hearts and
we wish to narrate them to other. This is an innate desire of mankind to share pleasurable or
painful experiences in literary works also. Thus emotions are the foundation of literary works. Of
course, mere or direct narration of such emotions does not become literature. Suggestivity is the
key to creative expression.
When an experience is narrated, the person uses appropriate language and diction. Language and
diction of expression depends on the content. It is imaginative and fanciful. It may be in such
form such as poetry, prose, play etc. This presentation in imaginative manner is called literature.
Everyone who narrates is not a poet but one who narrates in beautiful and imaginative manner
affects the readers or bhavaks. We have often seen rainbows in the sky and we are also thrilled
by its beauty. William Wordsworth exclaims in a very beautiful manner in his poem:
“My heart leaps up when I beholds

A rainbow in the sky.”
This is the difference between a poetic and ordinary language. When we read a poetic language
it creates a similar kind of picture in our mind.

Bharata, the great rhetorician has tried to explain how this aesthetic pleasure takes place. He has
tried to give the theory of ‘rasa’ in one sutra. He says:
“Vibhava anubhava-vyabhichari-samyogad rasa-nisapattihi” (Natyashastra 6 th ch)
The above aphorism is in Sanskrit which means that Rasa is developed when vinhava, anubhava
and vyabhichari are blend together.
Rasa are of nine types;
1. Sringara (Erotic)
2. Hasya (Comic)
3. Karuna (Compassionate)
4. Raudra (Wrathful)
5. Vir (Heroic)
6. Bhayankar (Terrifying)
7. Bibhatsa (Odious)
8. Adhbhuta (Marvellous)
9. Santa (Tranquil)
Implications of Rasa Theory on Nissim Ezekiel’s poem:
“Night of the Scorpion”
“I remember the night my mother

was stung by a scorpion. Ten hours
of steady rain had driven him
to crawl beneath a sack of rice. (Bhayanaka Rasa)
The narrator remembers the terrible night when his mother was stung by a scorpion. It must be a
terrible day as his mother was in pain. These types of terrifying moments we never forgot and
pray to god so that it will never happen again. Bhayanaka Rasa arouse from such terrifying
incidents.
Parting with his poison – flash

of diabolic tail in the dark room –
he risked the rain again.
(Vir Rasa)
In these lines Vir Rasa is use in the context of scorpion. It is shown that although it was heavily
raining, he takes risk to go outside of the house. Vir Rasa is product out of utsaha (energy and
enthusiasm)
The peasants came like swarms of flies

and buzzed the name of God a hundred times
to paralyse the Evil One.
(Raudra Rasa)
Raudra rasa shows the sentiments of anger or fury. The permanent state for Raudra Rasa is
anger. When the peasants came to the house of the narrator, they search in wrath for the scorpion
to kill him, but when they got failed in searching him; they all started praying that god must
paralyze that scorpion that has bitten the women. Raudra Rasa is the aroused when anger is
shown.
May the poison purify your flesh

of desire, and your spirit of ambition,
they said, and they sat around
on the floor with my mother in the centre,
the peace of understanding on each face.
(Karuna Rasa)
In these lines Karuna Rasa is aroused when all the neighbors after searching for the scorpion,
come and sit around her. They show sympathy towards the women and pray for her betterment.
My father, sceptic, rationalist,

trying every curse and blessing,
powder, mixture, herb and hybrid.
He even poured a little paraffin
upon the bitten toe and put a match to it.
(Sringara Rasa)
In these lines love and care by husband for her wife is shown, which shows the love between
them. The love between husband/lover and wife/beloved arouses Sringara Rasa. Sringara Rasa
is called Rasaraja as it is the supreme rasa of all
I watched the flame feeding on my mother.

I watched the holy man perform his rites to tame the poison with an incantation.
(Karuna Rasa)
When the narrator’s father poured paraffin oil on his mothers toe and put fire on it. This incident
causes pity and pain in the heart of the narrator. Pity for loved is the result of Karuna Rasa.
My mother only said

Thank God the scorpion picked on me
And spared my children.
(Vatsalya Rasa)
In these lines mother thanked to god that scorpion had stung her, so that her children are safe. In
these lines Vatsalya Rasa is used as the motherly affection is shown in these lines. Vatsalya Rasa
is used to show parental affection.

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The Rasa Theory

key to creative expression.

“My heart leaps up when I beholds

it creates a similar kind of picture in our mind.

tried to give the theory of ‘rasa’ in one sutra. He says:

“Vibhava anubhava-vyabhichari-samyogad rasa-nisapattihi” (Natyashastra 6 th ch)

and vyabhichari are blend together.

Rasa are of nine types;

“I remember the night my mother

Parting with his poison – flash

The peasants came like swarms of flies

May the poison purify your flesh

My father, sceptic, rationalist,

I watched the flame feeding on my mother.

My mother only said

is used to show parental affection.

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