Suggestive Uses of Alliteration

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Some Suggestive Uses of Alliteration in Sanskrit Court PoetryAuthor(s): Kenneth LangerSource: Journal of the American Oriental Society, Vol. 98, No. 4 (Oct. - Dec., 1978), pp. 438-445Published by: American Oriental SocietyStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/599756Accessed: 27-05-2015 13:05 UTC

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2/9

SOME SUGGESTIVE

USES OF ALLITERATION

IN

SANSKRIT

COURT POETRY

KENNETH

LANGER

HARVARD UNIVERSITY

Alliteration

in

Sanskrit

court

poetry

is

frequently

utilized to

suggest

an

integral

relation-

ship

or

bond

of

shared

qualities

between words

with

similar sounds. Part I

of

this

paper

briefly

examines

Vedic literature

in

respect

to

1)

alliteration

as a

semantically binding

force,

2)

folk

etymology,

and

3)

the tradition

of

equating

certain sounds with

correspond-

ing objects

and

phenomena.

From

the

perspective

of

these three traditions

we

can

fully

appreciate

the classical

poets'

employment

of alliteration to

produce

semantic bonds.

Drawing

from

a

variety

of

classical

poems

and collections

representing

a

wide

range

of

poets

and

time

periods,

Part II cites and

discusses

striking

alliterative clusters

which

involve

Sanskrit

words

for

woman.

This

paper explicates

six distinct

types

of

semantic

relationships

suggested

by

these

words

so bound.

I.

THE TRADITIONAL CRITICISM

of

the alamkdra-

Sdstra

recognizes

the

importance

of

suggestion

in Sanskrit

poetry.

And

yet

the

alamkdrasastra

fail

to

discuss certain subtle

suggestive

devices:

alliteration,

assonance,

paronomasia,

and

figura

etymologica,1

as these

techniques

have been utiliz-

ed to

suggest

an

integral

relationship

or bond

of

shared

qualities

between words

sharing

similar

sounds.2

This is

particularly

surprising

in

the

light

of three

distinct

pre-classical

traditions

each

of which

served to imbue well-versed

Indians

with

the notion that similar sounds

may

suggest

that

the

entities

represented

by

those

sounds

are likewise similar. First

Gonda,

in his

Stylistic

Repetitions

in the Veda has

proven beyond

a

doubt

that

alliteration,

which

semantically

binds

the

words

involved,

informs

Vedic texts.

Second,

the authors

of

religious

texts

were

known to

indulge

in excessive

attempts

at

binding

seemingly

1

Gonda,

in

distinguishing

this term from

parono-

masia,

rejects

Marouzeau's definition

of

figura etymo-

logica

and

applies

the term

solely

to

that

type

of

parono-

masia

in

which

a verb is used

with

an

accusative case

noun

deriving

from

the same root.

As

one

example

he

gives

vivre

sa vie.

See

J.

Gonda,

Stylistic Repetition

in the Veda, Amsterdam: N.V. Noord-HollandscheUit-

gevers

Maatschappij,

(1959),

p.

273.

2

The

use of

alliteration

for this

purpose

is,

of

course,

not

peculiar

to Sanskrit literature.

See,

for

example,

R.

Jacobson, Closing

Statement:

Linguistics

and

Poetics.

in

Style

in

Language,

ed.

T.

Sebeok

(Cambridge:

M.I.T.

Press, 1975),

pp.

357;

367-73.

disparate

entities,

processes,

etc.,

by

an

appeal

to

word

origins.

This

long

tradition

of

folk

etymology

was

based

not on

the

rules

defining

historical sound

shifts

that are

known

to

modern

comparative

and

historical

linguistics,

but

was

founded on the

presumption

that

similar

sound

patterns

were

criteria

for

positing

historical

relationships

between words. Third

is

the

theory

which

equates

certain

sounds

with

distinct

entities

to

which

they

belong.

The

relationship

between

the word and

thing

is

accepted

as

real,

not

sym-

bolic.

Let us

briefly

turn

to the Vedas

for

a

look

at

how similar sound clusters translate into

semantic

messages.

Throughout

this

paper

I

shall

often

rely

on

the term

alliteration

in

its

widest

sense

to

include

the

aforementioned

processes.3

RV.

3,39,6

rather

conveniently

illustrates

not

only

alliteration

and

paronomasia,

but

rhyme

and

homoioteleuton.

gdhd

hitdm

gihyaam

gufham

apsdl

hdste

dadhe

ddkSine

ddksinadanll

3

For

definitions and

the

history

of

the term

allitera-

tion,

see

Gonda,

Stylistic

Repetitions,

p.

177.

It

should

be noted

that

these

Vedic

seers

(as

well

as

the

classical

poets) made little, if any, distinction between allitera-

tion,

assonance,

paronomasia,

etc.

. . .

because it

was

the mere

repetition

of

sounds

which could

strike them

in

the first

place

and

which

made the

greatest

appeal

to

their

imagination.

(Gonda,

The

Etymologies

in

the

Ancient

Indian

Brahmagas,

Lingua,

5

(1955-56),pp.

69-

70.

438

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3/9

LANGER:

Suggestive

Uses

of

Alliteration

Him

(Vrtra)

that had secreted

himself

in a

hiding

place,

deserved to

be

concealed,

concealed

in

the

waters,

he

(Indra)

took in

his

right

hand,

the

giver

of

sacrificial

presents.4

Gonda

cites this

verse

as an

example

of

how

alliteration,

etc. ...

help

to

picture

a

variety

of sentiments

or

dispositions

or to

express

con-

sistency,

obsession,

insistence

. .

.

.

This

verse

merits

a

closer examination.

Alliteration,

as-

sonance,

etc.,

combine

the demon

Vrtra's

activities

and traits

in the

first half

verse

and the

god

Indra's

in the second.

Not

only

does the

verse

succeed

in

sharply

differentiating

the

shameful

Vrtra,

who

is

associated

with one

set

of

sounds,

from the

victor

of this

cosmogonic

battle

who

is

associated with

another,

but the verse

also

sug-

gests, through

assonance,

that

the waters

(apsd)

were

the

proper

place

for him

who deserved

to

be

concealed

(guhyam).

Gdha,

gdhyam

and

giilham,

each,

contain

two

vowels,

u

and

a,

in the

same order.

The

word

apsd

is

formed

with the

same

two vowels

although

their

order

is

reversed.6

Similarly,

by alliteration,

assonance,

paronomasia,

and

rhyme,

it is

wholly

appropriate

that

the

giver

of

sacrificial

presents

(ddksindvan)

took

(dadhe)

[Vrtra]

in his

right

hand

(haste

. .

ddksine).

Other

Vedic verses

utilize

alliteration

and

assonance to associate

a

subject

with

a

verbal

notion. Gonda cites

the

following

example

which

he

accompanies

with

a translation

that

aptly

retains the

sound

correspondences:

yavo

'si,

yavasmad

dvesah

thou

art

barley;

bar

from us

enemies,

bar evil

spirits. ?

Vocatives

frequently

alliterate

with

imperatives,

suggesting

that

the

persons

addressed

are

indeed

suitable

subjects

for the

pronounced

command.8

Alliteration between

subject

and

verb,

verb

and

object,

verb

and

an

instrumental,

as

well

as

4

This

verse,

with its

translation,

is

from

J.

Gonda,

Vedic

Literature,

(Wiesbaden:

Otto

Harrassowitz,

1975),

p.

225.

5

Ibid.

6

The

reversal of

vowels

in

apsd,

the

word

which

ends

the

description

of

Vrtra

and

his

exploits,

may

serve

to

stop

or

even

reverse the

flow

of

words.

This

effect

might

suggests

that

Vrtra

himself

is

self-contained

and,

like

the

flow of

words,

does

not

easily

mix

with

the

world of

Indra.

7

Gonda,

Stylistic

Repeitions,

p.

190.

8

Ibid.,

p.

196.

verb

with

any

other

case

noun,

may

be

found

in

the

Veda.

Numerous

alliterating

word

groups,

often

etymologically

paronomastic

(or,

to

use

Gonda's

phrase,

pseudo-paronomastic ),

create

semantic

bonds. Sukrena Socisd with bright light (RV.

1,48,14)

and

prdtar jarethe

jaraneva

in

the

morning

ye

wake

up

like

two

old

men

(RV.

10,40,

3)10

exemplify

these

respective

types.

Many

formulaic

word

clusters,

which

are

used

to

express

a

single

idea

bound

by

its

opposites,

as

in

our

expressions

from

top

to

toe,

and

last

but

not

least

often

express

a

unity

of

diverse

elements

through

alliteration

and

related

techniques.1

The

comparison

in a

simile

or

metaphor

(upa-

mdna)

may

alliterate

with

the

thing

compared

(upameya).

Here

like

sound

patterns

may

rein-

force

the

comparison.12

In

this

context,

as

well

as others, we should not ignore the purely stylistic

factors

that

may

motivate

a

poet

to

alliterate

words.

Gonda,

in

his

Stylistic

Repetitions,

does

not

fail

to

illustrate

with

copious

examples

the

potential

import

(both

stylistic

and

semantic)

of

alliteration,

as

when

it

possesses

a

connective

function

in

versification

or

emphasizes

strongly

emotional

passages.13

It

is

not

surprising

that

the

authors

of

the

Brdhranas,

unlike

the

Rgvedic

seers,

were

hardly

content

with

the

mere

suggestion

of

identity

through

like

sound

patterns.

These

ritualists

were

relating

aspects

of

the

sacrificial,

as

well

as

non-sacrificial, world to their homologues in

heaven,

air

and

earth.

In

showing

these

relation-

ships

they

were

not

willing

to

risk

misinterpreta-

tion.

Accordingly

they

employed

definite

terms

of

equivalence

rather

than

the

ambiguous

hints

9

Ibid.,

p.

194ff.

10

Ibid.,

pp.

179-180.

11

Ibid.,

p.

179ff.

Gonda's

research

shows

that

in

Sanskrit

1

of

every

13

phrases

is

alliterative

(p.

180).

He

concludes,

alliteration

which

must

have

been

deeply

rooted

in

at

least

part

of

the

pre-historic

Indo-European

soil

underlines

the

notional

relations

between

the

main

termsof these expressions. (Stylistic Repetitions,p. 181).

12

Gonda,

Stylistic

Repetitions,

p.

196.

13

For

the

connective

function

of

alliteration

in

Ka-

lidasa,

see

W.

Schubring,

Jinasena,

Mallinatha,

Ka-

lidasa,

Zeitschrift

der

Morgenldindischen

Gesellschaft,

105

N.F.

#

30,

(1955),

pp.

331-337.

A

discussion

of

different

semantic

functions

of

alliteration

can

be

found

in

Gonda,

Stylistic

Repetitions,

p.

178ff.

and

p.

211

(for

rhyme).

439



4/9

Journal

of

the

American

Oriental

Society

98.4

(1978)

carried

by

alliteration.

The threat

of

ambiguity

motivated these

ancients

to

couple

alliterative

devices

with

unambiguous

statements

of

identities.

Obsessed

with two needs-to

relate the

seemingly

disparate

entities

of

the cosmos

and to

discover

the origins of these entities-these ritualists fre-

quently

resorted to

etymologies14

and

etiologies,15

many

of which had

a correct

etymological

basis.

However much

there

may

have been

a

sincere

desire to

discover,

as

linguists,

the

true

origin

and

relationship

of

words,

it is

irrefutable

that

the

major

thrust of such

etymologizing

had

the

establishment

of

linguistic

bases

which

would

reveal

real bonds

between

word-concepts

for

its

end.

The context

in which

we find

profuse

folk

etymologies

in Indian

religio-philosophical

texts

compels

us

to

conclude

that for these

Indians

etymological

relationships

were intended

not

so

much to furnish historical linguistic insights as

to

reveal

eternal

ties between

phenomena.'6

Vedic

thought,

not to

mention

the

Mimdnfsd

school of

religious

exegesis,

admits

the

notion

that

sounds-far

beyond

their

suggestive

or

etymolo-

gical

functions-correspond

to

realities.

For

example,

the

word

udgitha

(chanting

of

the

Sdma

Veda)

is

broken down into three

syllables,

each

corresponding

to

aspects

of the

phenomenal

world.

Ud

is

equated

with

breath,

heaven,

sun,

and

the

Sama

Veda,

gi

to

speech,

atmos-

phere, wind,

and the

Yajur

Veda,

while

food,

earth,

fire,

and

the

Rg

Veda are

reduced

to

the

syllable tha.'l7

In

short,

the

traditions

of

alliteration

and

similar

sound

parallelisms, etymologies

based

on

such

sound

correspondences,

and

religio-philo-

14

See

J.

Gonda,

Old

Indian

(Leiden-Koln:

E.

J.

Brill,

1971),

pp.

197-223;

P.

Poucha,

Vedische

Volksetymo-

logie

und das

Nirukta,

Archiv

Orientalni,

7

(1935);

Gonda,

The

Etymologies

in

the

Ancient

Brahmanas ;

M.

A.

Mehendale,

Upanisadic

Etymologies,

Bharatiya

Vidya,

20-21

(1960-62),

40-44.

15

Ibid.

See

particularly

Gonda,

The

Etymologies

in

the

Ancient

Indian

Brahmanas,

p.

80.

16

It must be admittedthat a fairnumberof etymologies

were

motivated

by

a

sincere desire for

the

historical

truth

of

the

relationship

between

words.

Furthermore,

certain

etymologies

were

not

intended

to

be

taken

seriously.

See

Gonda,

The

Etymologies

in

Ancient

Indian

Brahmanas,

p.

64.

17

Ibid.,

pp.

84-85.

In his note

56,

Gonda

cites

other

references

exemplifying

this

notion: AiB.

3,46,8;

gB.

10,6,2,8;

TaittU.

2,6.

sophical

notions

that

equate

sounds

to real

entities

were

developed

in

India

long

before

the

advent

of

classical

Sanskrit

poetry.18

Ingrained

in

the

minds of

all

well-versed

Indians

was

surely

the

belief

that

alliteration

and

other

such

stylistic

processes, as well as etymologies which were based

on

corresponding

sound

patterns,

suggest

a

semantic

bond

between

the

terms

so

bound.

If

we are to

accept

the

thesis

that

Sanskrit

court

poetry

utilizes

alliteration

and

like sab-

dilamkcras

to

this

end,

our

evidence

will

have

to

be

internal.

Nevertheless,

it

is

my

hope

that

these

pages

which

have

merely

touched

on

an

important

traditional

function

of

alliteration

and

similar

techniques

in

pre-classical

literature

will

encourage

the

reader

to

accept

in

Sanskrit

court

poetry

these

stylistic

devices

which

bear

semantic

weight.

Much

kdvya

does

not

abuse

this

type

of

sabddlarrlkdra for the sake of

merely

achieving

striking

repetitions

of

sound.

Kalidasa,

for

example,

does

not

dull

our

senses

by

a

contrived

overuse

of

alliteration

but

heightens

them

through

his

restraint.19 I

believe

that

it

has

been

necessary

to

stress

that

meaningful

alliteration

has

been

a

rigorous

tradition

in

pre-classical

India.

The

acceptance

of

this

fact

should

not

only

add

per-

spective

to

the

stylistic

techniques

under

consid-

eration,

but

should

help

to

minimize

the

reader's

scepticism

as

we

now

turn

to

the

classical

poetry.

II. As

in

Vedic

and

later

literature

that

preceded

Sanskrit court poetry, alliteration and related

techniques

may

serve

a

variety

of

ends in

kavya

literature.20

Nevertheless,

we

must

here

confine

18

Rhyme

has

long

been

acknowledged

as

an

ancient

device

which

served to

bind

words

semantically.

Gonda

(Stylistic

Repetitions,

p.

204f.)

quotes

H.

Seidler:

Durch

eine

gleiche

Lautung

in

zwei oder

mehreren

Wortern

wird

das

mit

dieser

Lautung

verbundene

oder

verbind-

bare

Gefiihl

starker

aktualisiert.

Die

Einheit

von

Lau-

tung

und

Gefiihl

schafft

einen

Stimmungsgrund,

auf

dem

nun

die

Wortgehalte

in

besonderer

Durchleuchtung

erstehen. T.

Todorov

goes

so

far

as

to

classify

rhyme

as a

type of folk or, to use his term, poetic etymology:

... for

riming

words

are

perceived

as

being

related

in

their

meanings

as

well.

Meaning

in

Literature,

Poetics

[1971],

p.

10).

19

I

have

noticed

countless

instances

where

Kalidasa

has

intentionally

avoided

the

use of

a

word

for

woman

which

would

have

created

alliteration in

the

verse.

20 A.

Hillebrandt,

among

others,

has

noted

the

use

of

alliteration

to

create

various

moods.

An

example

is

440



5/9

LANGER:

Suggestive

Uses

of

Alliteration

ourselves

to

a review

of these

techniques

where

they

create

semantic

bonds between

the

words

involved

in

these

processes.

I have chosen

to

exemplify

this

process

by

an examination

of

words for women.

Confining

myself

to one

such

set will later enable me to reach conclusions about

one

important

function of

alliteration,

and

to

see

how

these

devices

often determine

a

poet's

choice of

words

where

a

large

number

of

synonyms

are available.

Let us

begin by

considering

verses

in

which

the

alliteration of two

or

more

nouns,

in

addition

to

the

direct

designations

of the nouns

and

the

syntax

of the

sentence,

furnishes

a

semantic

message.

SRK.

754 reads:

unmilanmuku lakar

lakundakosapracyotadghanamaka-

randagandhagarbhah/

tam

isatpracalavilocandm

natdagim

daligan

pavana

mama

sprgdngamangam//

Perfumed,

oh

wind,

with

the rich

scent

of

pollen

dripping

from

jasmine

branches dentate with

opening

buds,

embrace

my

love

whose

eye

half

flirts,

whose

body

bends;

and

then,

touch me on

every

limb.21

Raghu.

IX.

23.

on

which

he

writes,

.

..

in den

Worten

ranarenavo

rurudhire

rudhirena

suradvisam...

hat

die

haufige

Wiederholung

des r nicht nur

den

Zweck,

Form-

geschick zu zeigen, sondern das furchtbare Blutbad

klanglich

zu

malen,

das der dahinfahrende Held

unter

den Feinden

der

Gotter

anrichtete: 'Des

Schlachtfeldes

(der

Sonne

entgegenwirbelnder)

Staub

erstarrte

durch

das Blut

der Gotterfeinde

Man

wird

das

hier

nicht fir

eine

blosse

Spielerei

des

Dichters

halten,

sondern fur

eine

Verwendung sprachlicher

Kraft,

die

uns

abhanden

ge-

kommen

ist.

In

Indien

geht

das

Verstandnis

hierfiir

auf alte Zeit zuriick

und

hat schon

bei

dem

feindlichen

Zauber die

Rauheiten der

Sprache,

d.h.

hartklingende

Worte

verwendet;

es

hat

aber,

auch

ausserhalb

der

Magie,

fur

die

ja

die

Wahl

des Wortes

Bedeutung

hat,

den

Poeten des Landes seit

altester

Zeit nicht

gefehlt

....

Wenn die spateren Kunstdichter solchen Formen sich

bedienen,

so sind

sie

nur dem

ursprunglichen

Gefiihl

dafir

gefolgt,

haben

denn

allerdings

davon

Gebrauch

gemacht,

der alle Grenzen

iiberschritt

und

sich

in For-

malismus

verlor.

(Kdliddsa,

[Breslau:

M & H.

Marcus,

1921],

S.

106-7).

21

D.

H. H.

Ingalls,

An

Anthology

of

Sanskrit

Court

Poetry

(Cambridge:

Harvard

University

Press,

1965),

p.

243.

Here

nat&igim

(my

love ...

whose

body bends)

which ends the

third

pdda

alliterates

with

ariga-

marigam

(every limb)

which

closes

the verse.

Bhavabhiuti

has

succeeded

in

uniting

the

hearts

of

these

two lovers

enduring

physical

separation.

It is worth noting that the word pavana (wind)

comes

directly

between the

words

natarigim

and

argamarigam.

Thus

the

flow

of

words

reinforces the

intent

of their

meaning.

The

separation

of

the

emotionally

harmonious

lovers

is

to be

bridged by

the wind

alone.

Srligdrasataka

39

proclaims

that

two

things

alone

are

worthy

of

man's

attention-the

youth

(yau-

vanam)

of

women and

the

forest

(vanam).

kim

iha

bahubhir uktair

yuktigiinyaih

praldpair

dva-

yam

iha

purusnadm

sarvada

sevaniyaml

abhinavamadaliladdlasam

sundarinadm

stanabharaparikhinnam

yauvanam

va

vanam

vd//22

VairdgyaSataka

120

expresses

the

dichotomy

between

a beautiful

wife

(bhdrya

sundari)

and

the

ascetic's cave

(dari):

. . . eka

bhdryd

sundari

va dari

va. 23 In

the first

example,

the

word

for

forest

(vanam)

is

embedded

within

the

word

for

youth

(yauvanam).

The

verse

of

the

Vairdgya-

Sataka

has

the

word

for

cave

(dari)

contained

within the

word for beautiful

(sundari)

in

beauti-

ful wife.

Might

Bhartrhari be

suggesting

that

hidden

within each

of the

latter

and,

I

dare

say,

more

attractive

alternatives lies

the

former?

Is

it not

suggested

that the

differences

between

beautiful youth, or wives, and ascetics' forests

and

caves

fade

after

an

intensive

pursuit

of

either ?

An

explicit

grouping

is

often

reinforced

by

alliteration. In

Kum.

V. 71

the

disguised

trident-

bearing god

tells the

forest

dwelling

Parvati

that

two

things,

in

their

desire

for

Siva,

have

fallen

into a

pitiful

state- the

splendid

digit

of

the

moon

[kald

ca sd

kdntimati

kaldvatas]

and

you,

the

moonlight

of

the

eyes

of

the

world

[tvam

asya

lokasya

netrakaumudi].

SRK.

377

proclaims

that

a

vine

(lata)

and a

beloved

(dayita)

when

budding

entice

men.

In

Raghu.

XIX.13

the

lap of the hedonist King Agnivarna was occupied

solely

by

the

lovely-sounding

vind

(vallaki

ca

22

grngaragataka

39 of

Subhaditatrigati,

ed. D.

D.

Kosambi,

(Poona,

1957),

p.

80.

23

VairagyaSatakam

120

(Oriental

Publishing

Co.,

Bombay)

cited in

Apte's

Sanskrit-English

Dictionary,

p.

803.

441



6/9

Journal

of

the

American

Oriental

Society

98.4

(1978)

hrdayam,gamasvani)

and

his

lovely-eyed

lass

with

her sweet

voice

(valguvag api

ca

vCmnalocand).

Countless

instances

of

alliteration

merely

suggest

a

semantic

connection

rather

than reinforce

an

explicit

notion

of

unity. Raghu.

VII.25

offers

a

challenging example of multiple alliterations and

word

plays.

nitambagurvi

gurund

prayukta

vadhur

vidhatrprati-

mena

tenal

cakara

sd

mattacakoranetrd

lajjdvati

ldjavisargam

agnaul/

Heavy-hipped (Indumati)

with

eyes

like

a

maddened

cakora

bird,

after

being

instructed

by

her

guru,

the

very

image

of

Brahma,

embarrassed,

made

an

offering

of rice

into

the

fire.

In

the first

two

padas,

the

association

of

Indumati,

who is nitambagurvi vadhur, and her preceptor,

a

guru

who is the

image

of

vidhdtr,

is

strength-

ened

by

these

Sabddlamkdras.

The

other

connec-

tions-that she

of

maddened

cakora

eyes

made

(cakdra)

an

offering

of rice

(Idja)

while

embarrass-

ed

(lajjdvati)-are

hardly

expressing

one

to

one

correspondences.

Nevertheless,

I believe

that

it

can

be

said

that

the

consistencies

of

sound

between

words

referring

to

Indumati's

physical

attributes,

actions,

and

objects

of action

suggest

the

overall

harmony

of

Aja's

newly

acquired

bride.

A second

major

category

may

be

established

in

which

vocatives,

in our

case

women

addressed,

alliterate with nouns designating aspects of the

scenery being

indicated

by

the

speaker.

In

the

last

canto of the

Kum.

(VIII.52), Siva,

eager

to

perform

his

rites

to the

twilight,

consoles

Par-

vati

who

has

become

angry

at the

prospect

of

being ignored.

Explaining why

the

dusk

demands

his

worship,

the

god

speaks

of

the

twilight's

form

(tanu)

after

which he

immediately

inserts

the

vocative

sutanu

(oh,

slender

formed

woman).

The

suggestion

is

clearly

that

the

two

forms

share like

qualities.

Consequently,

Siva's

wor-

ship

of the

twilight

is

hardly

a

full

turn

away

from his

wife.

Rather

it can

be

interpreted

as

an

indirect worship of her or her qualities. In short,

Parvati

needn't

be

upset.

In

another

verse

of the

same

canto

(VIII.

45)

Siva

addresses

Parvati

as

kufilakesi

(oh you

with

curls)

immediately

after

introducing

the

word

kotayah,

the

edges

of

clouds

which

he

has

just

pointed

out in a

description

of

the

clouds'

splendid

hues

at

twilight.

Again

the

alliteration

suggests

a

similarity

between

the

clouds'

beauty

and

the

lovely

locks

of

Parvati.

Siva,

as

many

a

clever

man

in

Sanskrit

poetry,

has

devised

a

way

of

praising

that

which is

not

his

beloved

without

being

accused

of

divided

loyalties.

Elsewhere

(SRK.

506)

the

maid

asks

the

young

woman: Oh doe-eyed girl [mrgdksi] the path [mdr-

gam]

of

what

lucky

man

do

you

honor

with

your

glances

.

.

.

Not

only

is a

tie

established

between

the

young

woman's

eyes

and

the

path

that

she

watches-her

eyes

have

become

truly

fixated-

but

one

can

almost

see

the

margam

reflected

in

the

fawn

eyes

of

this

mrgdksi.

In

Raghu.

XIII.

57

Sita

is

addressed

by

Rama

as

anavadhydngi

(oh

lady

of

faultless

limbs)

as

he

points

out

the

Garigd

in

all

the

river's

splendor.

(The

river

is

also

iva

bhasmangaraga

tanur

isvarasya. )

In

Kum.

VIII.

68

Siva

directs

Parvati's

eyes

to

the

crest

of

wishing

trees

(kal-

pavrksasikharesu) adorned by the pearl-rays of the

moon.

Here

Siva's

bride

is

addressed

as

avikalpa-

sundari

(oh

you

of

unimaginable

beauty).

Not

only

is

there

a

suggested

transfer

of

beauty

from

the

well-pictured

tree

to

the

woman

Parvati,

but

we

can

speak

of

a

subtle

suggestion

through

dissimilarity

(vyatirekhadhvani)

in

that

Parvati's

loveliness is

avikalpa

(unimaginable)

while

the

poor

wishing

tree

is

of

the

genus

kalpa,

a

word

which

by

contrast

suggests

an

imaginable

or

lesser

beauty.

Vocatives

may

alliterate

with

imperatives

that

are

directed

towards

the

person

addressed.

Ta-

rarigaya drso 'igane (Oh woman, send forth

your

glances

in

waves)

in

SRK.

518

suggests

that

the

woman

is

able

to

project

such

coquettish

glances

since

her

designation

is

of

a

like

sound

pattern.

As

when

an

aspect

of

the

scenery

alliterates

with

a

word

for

woman

in

the

vocative

case,

creating

a

bond

between

that

woman

and

the

charming

landscape,

alliteration,

etc.,

may

serve

to

associate

an

addressed

woman

with

a

verbal

notion

that

exists

outside

of

herself.

Consider

Raghu.

XIII.

47:

Oh

woman

with

rounded

limbs

(bandhura-

gdtri), [the

Citrakiuta

mountain]

binds

(badhndti)

[my

eye].

Is

it

not

she

that

binds

this

man's

eye? Kum. IV. 11 alliterates the

vocative,

the

verbal

infinitive

associated

with

the

addressed

person,

and

the

object

of

that

infinitive.

Suggest-

ed

is

that

Rati's

beloved

(priya

=

Kama)

alone

can

ensure

that

the

young

lasses

(priyds)

arrive

(prdpayitum)

safely

at

their

lovers'

dwellings.

Tanvaingi

tarahgitdsi

(Oh

lady,

you

are

shaken .

..)

of

SRK.

413

exemplifies

a

vocative

alliterating

with

a

past

passive

participle.

In

the

442



7/9

LANGER:

Suggestive

Uses

of

Alliteration

same

vein,

adjectives frequently

alliterate

with

the

words for

women,

regardless

of

their

case

endings.

Such alliteration

clearly

emphasizes

that

the

qualities

represented

by

these

predicates

truly

belong

to or

are

inseparable

from the

women

they describe. Kdntds are frequently klantd

(weary)

from

lovemaking;

bdlds

are

often

abald

(weak)

and

pramadds

often madd

(intoxicated)

with

love,

etc.

Figura

etymologica

comprise

a

large percentage

of

this

group.

Sometimes

words

sharing

sounds create

inventive alliterative

pat-

terns.

When

in

SRK.

832

we

read,

nirastabhiyo

'bhisdrikds

(the

women

setting

out

to

meet their

lovers

[proceed]

without

fear)

we

are

struck

by

the

fact

that

there is

almost

a

complete

reversal

of

letters from

irastabhiy

to abhisdri.

Words for

women

alliterating

with adverbs

may

invite

suggestive

overtones. Consider

grnigd-

rasataka 4:

kvacit

subhrfibhaigaih

kvacid

api

ca

lajjaparigataih

kvacid

bhititrastaih

kvacid

api

ca

lilavilasitaih/

kumarinam

etair

vadanasubhagair

netravalitaih

sphu-

rallilabj

anam

prakaraparikirna

iva

diSah//

The semantic

value

of the four

kvacids

merely

tell us

that

the

women's

prolific

glances

are

seen

everywhere

differently.

That

lovely

women

lie

behind

every

one of

these

glances

strewn in

some

(kvacit)

direction is

perhaps

reinforced

by

the

alliterating

k

letters and

the v

and u

(semivowel

to

its

corresponding

vowel)

of

the four

kvacits and the word kumdrinim. My proposal is

admittedly

questionable.

I

leave it to

the

reader's

discretion

whether

or not

to

accept

this

interpreta-

tion and

consequently

this

entire

category.

Unfortunately

I

have

found

no

examples

of

words

for

women

creating

obvious bonds

with

adverbs

through

alliteration.

This

category

must

remain

in

question.

Amaru. 3

reads

the

face

of the

young

woman

[tanvyd]

.

.

.

may

that

[face]

protect

you

[tat

tvdm

pdtu].

Although

tattvdm

(written

together

in

devandgari)

is

properly

a

combination

of

tat

(that)

and

tvdm

(you),

no

reader

of

Sanskrit

could fail to see the total effect of this coalescence

in

its

resemblance

to tattvam

(truth).

Whereas

we

may

not

have

the

liberty

to

read

may

the

face

of

the

young

woman...

protect

the

truth,

we

cannot

prevent

ourselves

from

associating-

consciously

or

subliminally-this

woman

with

the

truth.

In

the

light

of

the

large

number of

Sanskrit

designations

for

woman

and

the

importance

of

women's

physical appearance

in

Sanskrit

poetry,

it

is

little wonder that

poets

frequently

combine

words

for

women which will

alliterate

with

other

words

(and

usually

there

is

again

a wide

choice)

denoting parts

of

the

female

body.

In

every

case

the similarity of sound encourages the reader to

associate

the

entire

woman with

her

hips,

breasts,

and so forth.

The

word

stana

(breast)

is

often

used in

connection with

tanvi or

tanvangi

(slender

woman).

Words

ending

in

visarga

(which

becomes s

before

t )

often

precede

the words

tanvi and

tanvangi, creating

the

effect of

...

s-tanv. ..

Arga

(limb)

frequently

com-

bines

with

tanvarigi, sarangdksi

(fawn-eyed)

and

other words

sounding

similar.

The

streak of

hair

above

the navel

(romavali)

of a

beautiful

woman

(rdmi)

is

a word

play

encountered

in SRK.

338.

In Kum.

VII 64

the women

(ndryo)

seeing

Siva,

drink him up with their eyes (nayanaih). They

have

become all

eyes,

as it

were.24

SRK 416

contains the

phrase

tanvangydh (katham

api)

nitambasthalam

(of

the slender

woman

...

the

region

of

hips).

We

may

note an

interesting

verbal

icon in

the

reversal

of

two

pairs

of

consonants

from

tanvargydh

to

nitambasthalam,

i.e.,

t,

n;

v,

n:

n,

t; m,

b.

(Of

course,

Sanskritists

permit

the

alliterative

interchange

between

the

nasals

n and

m and

the

letters v

and

b. )

Does

not this

symmetry

of

letters

suggest

a

sym-

metry

of

bodily

form?

Consider

SRK. 399

which

is

more

explicitly

suggesting

such a

shift

from

stylistic to semantic symmetry. In this verse we

read

kucadvandve

kurarigidrsah

(the pair

of

breasts

of the

deer-eyed

woman).

Examples

of

words

qualifying

important

features

of

women

alliterating

with the

word

for

woman

are

Sri-

garasataka

25

which

speaks

of

the ... m

ad-

haramadhu

vadhundm ...

(nectar

of

lips

of

the

women)

and

SRK. 356

which

portrays

the

pan-

dutarau

tarunydh

(very pale

[breasts]

of

the

young

woman).

We

have

already spoken

of verbs

alliterating

with women

addressed in the

vocative.

Let

us

24

tain ekadrsyam nayanaih pibantyo ndryo na jagmur

visaydntarini

tathd hi

gesendriyavrttir

dsdm

sarvdtmand

caksur

iva

pravistd

Cf.

Raghu.

VII. 12.

which

differs

only

in

the

beginning:

td

rdghavam

drstibhir

dpibantyo

....

While

this

verse

seems

to

undermine

the

meaningful

alliteration

of

Kum

VII.

64,

we

cannot

be

certain

that

Kalidasa

did

not

consider

the

latter

version

more

successful.

443



8/9

Journal

of

the American Oriental

Society

98.4

(1978)

now

turn to

a

few

noteworthy examples

of

words

for

women

not

in

the

vocative

case,

sharing

sounds

with

verbs

that in some

way

are to be

associated

with

these

women.

In

SRK.

469 the

beloved

(priyd),

resisting

her

newly

acquired

husband's

advances, reaches (yait) a greater charm. In

adolescence the

figure

of the

slender

girl

(tanvyi)

grows

(tanute)

beautiful

(SRK.

352).

The

way-

farer

of

SRK.

780

questions

how

the

long

days

of

separation pass (yanti)

for

his

frail

darling

(priydydh).25

In Bhartrhari's verse 66 of

the

Srrigrasataka

a

traveller,

having

become in-

different towards his

wife,

rationalizes,

what's

the

use of

journeying

home if

my

beloved

no

longer

lives

or

merely

breathes

[prdniti priyatama]?

Another

traveller

laments,

when

will

I

see

[drak-

sydmi]

the loosened robe of

my

fawn-eyed

love

[mrgadrsa]? (SRK.

758).

Elsewhere

(SRK. 425)

it is said that the full moon steals away (harati)

the

splendor

of the

fawn-eyed

maid

(harinak-

syah).

The

sprouts

placed

on

the

ears

of

women

(dayitd)

are

excitants

(madayita)

to the lovers of

Raghu.

IX. 31.

Of course

sprouts

alone

could

never

excite men's

desires. The

word

play sug-

gests

that

the

dayitd (granted,

with

sprouts

on

their

ears)

have become

the

madayita

of

men.

The

harmonious

situation of a

good

woman

giving

birth to

a

son at

the

auspicious

time

is left

doubt-

less

by

the

alliteration

in

Raghu.

X. 66:

prasati

samaye

sati.

An

angry

woman

(manini)

earns

the

first

syllable

of her

name

when she cries to her

lover ma ma munca (no, no, let me go) in Amaru.

36.

SRK. 521

exemplifies

a

comparable

type

of

suggestion.

. .

.

the

falling

of

every

glance

from

the

fair-browed

lass

[subhruvo] trips

me

up [vib-

hramanti].

The

alliteration

suggests

that

the

brows

themselves

play

a

large

role in

this

decep-

tion. The

reader

should

note

that the

consonants

of subhruvo

also

trip up

when

they

reach

vibhramanti

(bh,

r,

v,

to

v, bh,

r).

Alliteration

and

similar

sabddlamkdras are

employed

quite

effectively

in

metaphors

and

similes

to

bind

the

upamdna

with the

upameya.

This is measureless ambrosia

this

the

river

[sindhu]

of

bliss;

25

Cf.

Raghu.

IX.

7

in

which

the

word

priyatamd

alliterates

with

and

puns

on

yatamdna.

For

word

plays

involving

priyd

and a

form of

the

verb

ya,

see SRK.

780,

469,

806;

Rtusamnhdra

2.19;

Meghadaita

22;

and

Srngd-

radataka

66,

95.

this is

sweet

as

honey

[madhumadharam]

this

truly

strikes the heart

[antardhunoti]:

when with a household

of

young

wives

(vadhandm)

...

a

man

may spend

his

days

in dalliance.26SRK.566

Here three

of the four

comparisons,

like the

upa-

meya,

vadhanam contain the cluster

dhu

preceded

or followed

by

a

nasal.

Rtusamhara III.

28 invokes the

autumn,

resplendent

(kantih)

like

a

lover

(kamini).

Indumati

is

uttama-saukumaryd

kumudvati

(the

most

tender

woman,

like

night

lilies)

in

Raghu.

VI. 36. In one of

Bhartrhari's

less

flattering

moments

(Srngdragataka

41)

the

poet

likens a woman

(striyam)

to an unclean

leather

bag

(pratyaksaducibhastrik&m).

Finally

we

should note the

bond created between

couples,

often

separated, by

the

frequent

use

of

alliterating

words for man

and

woman.

The

most common of such

pairs

are:

pati/patni;

kami/kamini;

vara/vadhul;

and

nara/nari.

Serving

the same end would be the

pairs:

pramada/pra-

vasin

(Rtu.

II.

12);

katara/kanta

(Amaru.

8);

jayd/jano (Meghadufta 8);

and,

with

a

proper

name,

rama/Rama

(Raghu.

XII.

23).

In

conclusion,

alliteration and

related

tech-

niques

are indeed

employed

in

Sanskrit court

poetry

not

only

as

word

plays

that charm the ear

but as

devices

that reinforce

or

suggest

a

semantic

bond

between the words

involved

in

alliteration

and

similar

Sabdilamkdras.

Of the

Sanskrit

words

for

women that

I have

found

to alliterate

with this intention, the majority were involved in

some

connection

(explicit

or

implicit)

with

1)

other

nouns,

2)

an

aspect

of

the beautiful

scenery

[in

this

category

the

words

for

women were usual-

ly

in

the

vocative

casel,

3) adjectives

describing

these

women,

4)

adjectives

qualifying

one of

their

physical

attributes,

5)

the

major

terms of

meta-

phors

and

similes

to which these

women

are

compared,

and

6)

words

for

men

who

usually

enjoy

a love

relationship-and

are

often

separat-

ed

from-these

women.

Although

we cannot

say

whether

or

not

certain of

the

many

epithets

(usually

vocatives)

designating

women

were

formulated for the purpose of having a larger

access

to

alliterating

vocabulary,

the

examples

cited

illustrate that a

poet's

choice

of

one word

for

woman

over

another was

not

infrequently

determined

by

his

desire to

create

such a mean-

ingful

alliteration.

26

Ingalls,

An

Anthology, p.

202.

444



9/9

LANGER:

Suggestive

Uses

of

Alliteration

In

the

study

that

I

have

made of

words

for

women in Sanskrit

poetry,

343,

or 31

%,

of

1091

instances

are

involved

in an

alliterative

type

of

sound

cluster. Of these

146

or

42

%

(13

%

of all

words

examined)

contain sound

similarities that

translate into a semantic message or suggestion.

Granted,

the

use of such

techniques

was

never

standardized nor even

acknowledged by

Sanskrit

poets

or critics

(had

this

technique

been

in-

corporated

into the

alamkarasastras

my

figures

would

be much

higher I);

nevertheless,

meaning-

ful

alliterative

and

similar

techniques

are

indeed

an

important

aspect

of

kdvya

to

which readers of

Sanskrit poetry should be alerted, lest we over-

look or minimize

the

significance

of this

under-

stated and often

elusive

stylistic

device.

445

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Suggestive Uses of Alliteration

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