Global Journal of Human-Social Science, A: Arts and Humanities, Volume 21 Issue 12

The Indian Theory of Drama Siddhartha Singh © 2021 Global Journals Volume XXI Issue XII Version I 45 ( ) Global Journal of Human Social Science - Year 2021 A Author: Associate Professor, Department of English, Sri JNMPG College, Lucknow, India. e-mail: siddhartha.singh8@gmail.com Abstract- The source of the Indian theory of drama is the N ā tya śā stra of the sage Bh arata, an encyclopedic treati se on all the aspects of dramaturgy. Bharata the instaurator and codifier of the Indian tr adition of drama postulates theories of drama, music, dance, and poetry, construction of stage, the concept of rasa and the mimetic role of drama, etc. While neither Aristotle nor Plato applies to any form of Western dance style, in India, everyone goes back to N ā tya śā stra to find the source of various styles of Indian classical and regional dances and music. Metaphysically, the Indian theory of drama is based on Karma unlike the Greek theory of drama based on fate. At the outset, the present paper shall explore and discuss the origin of the N ā tya śā stra , and will analyze some of its most significant aspects. 1 I. Keywords: k ā vya; n ā tya śā stra; veda; brahma; bharata; aristotle; asuar ā s; deva; r ū paka; rasa; bh ā vanukirtanm; lokdharm ī ; natyadharm ī ; artaud; brecht; sahridya; neta (character); abhinaya; saussure; schechner; howard gardener; śā stra (theory) and prayoga (praxis); vastu (plot); da ś a r ū paka (ten types of drama); dance; karma; avasthas (stages); sandhis. he term K ā vya , literarily ‘poetry’, stands as in Aristotle, for entire imaginative literature, whether in prose or verse. K ā vya is, in Indian literary tradition, divided into two categories: Drisya K ā vya (visible poetry- poetry that is seen with eyes or performed) and Ś rvya K ā vya (literally audible poetry-poetry that is to be heard with ears). This is off course a simplistic division, for Dri ś ya K ā vya is both seen and heard. They are intended to refer to N ā tya and narrative and stanzaic poetry respectively. N ā tya has been considered the supreme form of K ā vya . The significance of N ā tya is often highlighted as the most charming genre. ( “K ā vye ṣ u N āṭ kam ramya ṁ ”). Of all poetry, drama is the most delightful). Both forms of K ā vya have their separate Śā stras (scientific treatises) for their understanding and evaluation. The former, called N ā tya- śā stra , is the oldest discipline, beginning with Bharata’s N ā tya- śā stra (500 B.C.), and including such works as Bh ā va Prak ā shanam of Shardatanya, N ā tak Lakshan R atna Kosha of T Sagaranandin, N āṭ yadarpa ṇ a of Ramchandra Gunachandra, Prat ā parudr ī ya of Vidyanatha, Sangitaratn ā kar of Śā r ṅ gadeva , S ā hityadarpa ṇ a of Vi ś van ā tha , Agnipur ā na, Vishnudharmottara Pur ā n , etc. This tradition is further enriched by the commentaries on Bharata’ s N ā tya- śā stra by Ś ankuka, Bhattalolaka, Bhattanayaka, and Abhinavgupta . The discipline related to narrative poetry is called Alank ā r - śā stra . It started much later in the 7 th century A. D., with Bh ā maha’s K ā vy ă lamk ā ra and Da ṇḍ in K ā vy ā dar ś a and conti nued till Pandit Raj Jagnnath’s Rasaga ṅ g ā dhara ḥ in the 17 th century. II. The N ā tya śā stra of Bharata is probably one of the earliest and certainly one of the best and most comprehensive unique encyclopedic compendiums on Indian Dramaturgy. A highly codified system drawn from earlier traditions of dramaturgy, interlinking text, and gestural language, the sole authority on Indian Dramaturgy, was described as the fifth Veda. “ N ā tya was created by Brahma” for the people “goaded by greed and avarice, and jealously and anger, [who] took to uncivilized (vulgar) way of life,” with an aim to “not only teach” them “but be pleasing to eyes and ear” (Rangacharya 1996 1). Thus N ā tya , created by Brahma, was to be accessible to all the varnas, including Śū dra, who were prohibited from listening to (learning from) the Vedas. Like all creations, the creation of N ā tya is a fittingly tribute to divine ingenuity. The creator of the world and the supreme creator of everything, Brahma created drama also, on the exceptional requisition of the gods. He took words from Ṛ gveda , music from S ā mveda , movements and make-up from Yajurveda, and emotional acting from Ā tharvaveda to create an additional Veda (which consists of around 6000 verses structured into 36 chapters). 1 In addition to music and dance, the subjects dealt with are semantics, morphology, the various dialects, and their phonology, play-writing, play-construction, production, rehearsal, acting, dramatic criticism, drama-audience, producer, and many allied crafts. (Rangacharya 1966 2) When Brahma asked Indra to compose plays, he modestly refused because that neither gods were competent enough nor was it proper for them to act in plays. The responsibility should be carried by the learned sages, and hence Brahma chose sage Bharat and his hundred sons to learn the dramatic art and to prepare the first performance. Assisted by Sv ā ti (employed to play musical instruments), N ā rada 1 I am grateful to Professor M. S.Kushwaha (Former Head, Department of English and Modern European Languages, University of Lucknow) and Professor Radhavallabh Tripathi (Former Professor of Sanskrit, Sagar University & Former Vice Chancellor, Rashtriya Sanskrit Sansthan, New Delhi) for their suggestions and critical reading of this article.