suntharalingam_abhinavagupta's conception of humor (thesis)

7/28/2019 Suntharalingam_Abhinavagupta's Conception of Humor (Thesis)

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A B H I N A A G U P T A ~ S CONCEPTION OFHUMOURIts resona nces in Sanskrit Drama, Poetry, Hindumy thology and spiritua l practiceBy'D. Suntharalingam '

qhfSis u b Y ' l i ~ J l or " g ) ~ g r ~ ~ 0/DOCTOR OF PH ILOSOPHYINPH I LOSOPH Y

,[Jnder tlte Supervision ofPROF. A. K. CH ATTERJEE

DEPARTMENT OF PHILOSOPHYBANARAS HI D UNIVERSITY

..Yay, 1983Enrolment No. 1153'3


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ABUINAVAGUPTA'S CONCEPTIOU OJ' HttMltftl , ~ 2 i . r ~ RESONANCES INSANSKRIT DRAHA, ilOETR'.(, tUNDU H ~ T H O l a O G Y ANDSPIRITUAL PRACTICE

( AB S TRACT )

ThJ.s con t r ibu t ion to the psycholo9Y and :3Ociology o f humou.raDd l aughte r and t.o tha aes the t ic s o f hasYa i s pr imar i ly conce iwdo f as a stepping-st .one to a t o t a l unders tanding of the func t ion ands ignif icance o f the y i d u , ~ who, though the prime focus o f haSYaon t.he Sa..'1skrit st.age, has alwa1s been c r i t i c i zed fo r not servingt h i s func t ion aaequ a te ly His st: .ereotyped t r a i t s in a l l th eClass ica l play s and th e inexpl icable and seemingly unconnectedp re sc r i p t i on s l a id down by the dramaturgis t s with regard to himpo in t i n s i s t en t ly to some o ther func t ion than th-a comic one , andt h i s has led Prof . F . B . J . !


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2 also accomrnodate h is haSYA aspect so t ha t the OD::! does not negate theo t he r . Abhinava' s a t t r ibu.tion of the mere semblance of h isya(lJ.iay;l?baaa) to the yidusak. , whose hA1a funct ion he nowhere denies"convinced me I was O Il t,he r i 9h t t r ack .

In delving in to the complex symbolism of the vidusaka, moreand more of h is fea tures show themselves t o r e fe r back, di rec t ly orind i rec t ly , to a cen t ra l funct ion of bein9 the ins t i tu t iona l i zedt ranS9ressor o f brahminical soc io- re l i9 ious norms and taboos,especia l ly founded on the pure/ impure opposi t ion which sus ta ins theHindu socio-rel i9ioLls hiera rchy. The vidusaka i s a comic f igurepreCisely because he re -enac ts t h i s eso ter i c t ransgress ive funct ion"in a purely symbolic mode, before an exoter i c audience in the publ icSOCial se t t ing of the Sanskr i t drama, where these taboos still b:lvea l l t he i r binding force . .Further research revealed t ha t t h i s t r a n s gress ive dimension, re ta ined and elabor atea in the latez: T ant r icsystems ( l ike the Kaula/rr ika)J i s roo ted in Vedic re l ig ion whereit i s in tegra ted harmoniously in to a t o t a l system t ha t f indsexpression in cosmogony, r i t ua l (esp. the pre -c l a s s i ca l s a c r i f i c i a lsystem centexeo on t r ~ impure gIka+ta as a basic type comprisingother f igures lik.a the granm'n-gij.l\OhilK5ii, brQhmacarin, e tc .. )" society.(sa turna l ia ) and. other p lanes as wel l , and "Chat these othe r aspectsof the system have b e ~ n de l ibe ra te ly re ta ined in the symbolism ofthe yiduiu\ka and determine h is re la t i .on and in te rac t ion with thehero a..nCi o ther charac ters . Ma't.hodologically, our approach presupposet ha t Hindu cul ture and especia l ly its symbolic universe forms a t o t a lcoherent system tha t has been oerived, tbro-.lQl1 a ser i es of sociore l ig ious t ransformat ions , from an e ~ a l l y coherent Vedic system ofrel i .g ious rep resen ta t ions . A ll the Indologist .s whose work.s we have
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#r e l i e a upon fo r ou.r- g en e ra l f r a m e w o r J ~ (Kuiper , Durnezil, Heestennan,Rer}C)er s o n a l i t j i n t n e r i t .ua l dramof tn G p re - c l a s s i C a l sacr i f i c e . 1'1any otalt.ion under.ly iL19 t.he v i Q U ~ a k a and h issp e c i f i c i t y to tne symlOlic univer..3'E:: of rad ian "Craai 'Cion, i s neve:r:t n e l Bs s ill i'1a:r:mony with c.ne ethLlolo-.Jj.:::>t ::.h": comic t r ansgre ss ivefunc t ion 0:1: ell r i tu .a l clovln as a u.n,iversal .;>henoJuenon ( l ' akar ius )1,vhich .? resupposes a t.t1F..:ory of t ra .nsgress ion being t he founua t ionof t.ne o r i g i n a l Sacred (C a i l l o i s , r3atai l le , l 'JaKarius).

In t h i s t h e s i s , Vie a re only i n t e r e s t e a in demonst ra t ing t h a tt h e r e i s a b i s o c i a t i v e theory 0:1: n as i a {and nasa ) impl ic i t inAbhinavagupta ' s s C a t ~ e r e d . 9r;.)I1o.J.acements on th e same and exp lor inghow prec i se ly t h i s stJ:ermits hasYa to e f f e c t i v e l y veh ic le a
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non-comic funct ion in th e Y1dusalsa and how, to some e x te n t , even

t h i s hiSVa funct ion i t s e l f comes to s igni fy something tha t i sindependent: o f it. Thus, whereve.t incurs ions are made in to var iousaspec ts of the Vidufaka ' s symbolic behaviour , it i s pr imar i ly withthe view o f determining hoW' it has been adjusted and accommodatedto be t t e r serve h is hasYa-func t ion . One o f our aims here i s toques t ion the va l id i t y o f a purely "PSYChological" approach to theproblem of humour and laughter drawing insp i ra t ion from pr imar i lybio logiCal models based on analyses in terms o f function/norm or a tmost f r o m" sociologizing" models based on analyses in terms ofconf l i c t / ru l e . Our i n t en t ion i s to s h i f t the emphasis to a l i ngu i st i c mooel t ha t , though der ived from and accommodating the aboveperspec t ives , i s based pr imar i ly on analyses in terms of s i gn i f i ca t ion/sys tem. Laughter i s the pleasurable dischaJ:ge o f superf luousenergies OCCasioned by the mutual neut ra l iza t ion of tw o opposingsiml.lltaneous impress ions (cogni t ive , emot iona l and/or sensory-motoro f a s ingle stimulUS. our method i s to show how t n i s bas ic blsoci.;!t ive s t ruc ture rooted in the physiology and funct ioning as a s a f e tyva lve fo r superflu.ous eneqjj ies in the organism, inevi tab ly lendsi t s e l f - -by i t s very s t ruc tu r e - - to soc ia l e xp lo i t a t i on o f laughteras a censure-meChanism agains t t ransgress ions of SOCia-re l igiousnorms. This s i tua t ion i s exp lo i t ed in inverse by an esoter iCperspect ive valor iz ing t aboo-vio la t ion to th e po in t t h a t itprese r ibes a genera l ized comic behaviour (as in the Pa Lpa ta ascet ieven independent ly of sj?eci f ic modes of t ransgress ion . 1"i1


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5t aboo-v io la to r laughs f ree ly and loudly (even when there i s nothingto laugh a t) because such sacred l aughte r (e .g . the a t tahaa of..Rudra imi ta ted by h is P ~ ~ p a t a devotee) h as thereby corne to s ignifyh is t ransgress ive func t ion which i s gree ted by soc ie ty with profanel augh te r . Ult imate ly , a s ignify in9 func t ion (worked in to a r igoroussystem o f representa t ions) der ived fronl th e psychology and sociologyo f l aughte r begins to reac t in tu rn upon t h i s psychology anasoc io logy. not only in te r fe r ing with t h e i r r egu la r funct ioning bu t ,under ce r t a in cond i t ions , i t s e l f becoming primary and reo r i en ta t ingthe Be .. i n f r a s t ru c t u re s" Not only i s such an apprQach th e onlyadequate one to th e clowning o f l:".l1e lauli)hing P aJLpata (and sacredr i t u a l clowning in o th e r soc ie t i e s ) b u t it alone Can do f u l l jus t i ceto th e exp lo i t a t ion o f hasya. in the yiaUsaka

Ln orde r to e s t a b l i s h the poss i b i l i t y of c ~ vidusaka 's haS i I,func t ion s imul taneously , and withou t con t rad ic t ion , vehic l ing apI:ofou,nd oon-comic one , it i s not.. s u f f i c i e n t to o.emonstrate t h a tAbhinava has an impl i c i t ly b i soc ia t ive concept.i,.)n of hClilCa t .hat'WOulc. permit. it to serve bo th exigenc ies ; ie nas to be fu r the rshown tnat . t h i s concept ion COl:L"esponO.s t.v r ea l i t y and r e f l ec t s thebas ic s t ruc tu re o f humour anti l aughte r as a universa l phenomenon.Here" r have r e s t r i c t ed Iny e f fo r t s t.o t.he follolllin;a t a s k s l

1) To show t h a t humour-a,nd-laughter remains an unsolved problemof Western phi losophy, psyChology, aes the t ic s and sociology andt h a t th e var i e ty o f conf l i c t ing approaChes" t h e o r i e s and conclus ionsshould warn aga ins t scho la r s o f Indian aesi;.htH. ic s and l i t e r a t u r e espec ia l ly sl ;udents o f th e y i p Mfu a (or o f th e anthropology of

-.Il aughte r and clowning in c u l t , e . g . the Pasl . lpatas)--from mechanical lapplying 80m3 ready-made West.9rn concept ions to the problem ~ f biaa/


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naSla or to evaluat ing the comic exp lo i t a t ion of the yidusalsa inth e Indian context (ch . I , I I I -VI ) . What i s needed i s to analyseIndian theory and prac t i ce in terms of each o ther and in the l i gh to f th e d iscuss ions o f the problems involved by na t ive commentatorsl i ke Abhinava (Jagannatha e t c . ~ , no t hes i ta t ing to draw amply uponp a r a l l e l Western concepts wherever these axe ablll:! to c l a r i fy themore obscure p o i n t s o f the t rea tment of t.he comic in Indiant r ad i t i on , In t h i s way, whatever i s spec i f i c to the l a t t e r and itst a c i t inner uni ty , however complex, w i l l not be l o s t in the at temptto ar r ive a t a un iver sa l ly va l id de f in i t i on of humour and l augh te r .

2) To br ing together in a s ingle work not only a l l of Abhinavamore s igni f icant remarks d i rec t l y tOUChing upon aA.u and haSls (ch.IV, VII , IX) but a lso o th e r re l evan t passages and some examples o fh is pra c t i c a l l i t e r a ry cr i t i c i sm (eh . VIII , X) t h a t may con t r ibu tetowards c la r i fy ing h is i n s i ~ h t s the reon. Spec ia l care has beent aken to show, by in te rna l c r i t i c i sm and by replac ing i t . wi thin h ist o t a l aes the t ic s of kasa , the inn er coherence of Abhinava' spronouncements from d i f fe ren t po in t s of view on naSi .aw! hasla .

3) To show t ha t coherence can be res to red to Abh1nava' sSCattered ins ights on i ncongru i ty , super ior i ty , ro le o f pa in ,socia l -censure mechanism, i den t i f iCa t ion , pan-emotionalism (of hasyr asAbhasa, has lbhasa , e t c . only on th e ba s i s of an impl iCi t b i s o c ia t ive theory , whiCh can provide the framework fo r synthes iz ingwhatever i s of va lue in the soc io logiCal ; psychoana lyt ic , behaviour1 s t i e e t c . approaches to humour, and 1s moreover capable of aCcommoda t ing recen t e thno log ica l da ta on th e comic aspec ts of r i t u a lclowning.


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4) Since Western theor is ing on hwnour and laughter i s f a rmore e x p l i c i t and of fe r s a varie ty of sys temat ica l ly cons t ruc tedmodels each accounting fo r spec i f ic aspects of the phenomenon, wehave found it much more convenient to arr ive a t Abhinava ' s impl i c i tb isoc ia t ion- theory by s t a r t i ng o f f from a presen ta t ion of Gur j ie f f 'model which i s not only exp l i c i t l y bisoCiat ive but f inds t h i ss t ruc tu re a t every l e v e l ( in t e l l ec tua l , emot ional , m o ~ i n s t i nc t iv

from which laughter may spring (ch . I I ) . We then proceed t.o re f int h i s bas ic s t ruc tu re with th e he lp o f the conceptua l t oo l s (Qoperatf i e lds , " " se lec t ive opera to rs , " "b i soc ia t ive junct ion ," et .c . ) c o n t rbuted by A. Koes t le r and show how it alone Can simultaneouslyacoomnodate .Bergson' s theory of laughtel: as a so c i a l censur e-mechanand Freud 's theory of jokes (and th e laughter provoked) as vehic leso f represaed ten.dencies and pre - log i c a l modes of thought (t'irtlO t heorwhich are otherwise a i f f i c u l t to reconci le with each o t h e r ) - - c h . I IThe remainin


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the b isoc ia t . ion theory in o rd e r to a r r i v e , through success ive c l a rf i c a t i ons , a t Abhinava ' s unders tanding of the same. The convuls ion(0) cons is t ing in th e mutual neu t ra l i za t ion of th e two opposingi r reconc i l i ab le impress ions of a s ing le s t imulus no t only prov idesth e b i soc ia t ive s t ruc tu res respons ib le fo r hUlTPur a f i rm roo tednessin t he phys io log ica l mechanisms respons ib le fo r t he p l ea surab lelaughter-d. ischarge but also accounts fo r th e t a c i t sk . i l l of recognzing ana. e w k i n g humour. T h i s phenomenological aspec t i s es p ec i a l limpor tan t fo r th e re l i sh ing o f hasYa which, as a ua.s. ( fo r Abhinavnot an ob jec t o f cogn i t ion but th e re l i shab le cogn iz ing i t s e l f - p r a t I t i , l:?odha), i s pr imar i ly the s k i l f u l exp lo i t a t ion o f cogni t ives t ru c t u re s fo r br inging about b i soc ia t ive emot iona l e f f e c t s . Wherin compulsive (s iddha) worldly h.i.u, th e bis::>ciated pe rcep t ion impby th e s t imulus automatiCal ly provokes l augh te r through the pass ivemedia t ion o f th e convuls ion 0 , in th e aes the t i c r e l i sh o f h a s l a th esUbject ( s w g a y a ) ac t ive ly e xp lo i t s 0 as a sensor fo r reorganizingth e given s t imu l i so as to heigh ten and d ivers i fy th e b isoc l a t ivep o s s i b i l i t i e s of fe red ana no more than suggested by th e ob jec t iveform and content o f th e poem, joke e t c . , fo

6) Abhinava ' s most o r i g i n a l and promising i n s igh t fo r thepsychology of hunour i s th e s t ruc tu r a l de f in i t i on impl ied i t l h isd


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within i t s e l f any emotion whatever and also a t th e same t ime someo t h e r element t h a t opposes and impedes th e development of t h i semotion. The ana lys i s of hasYa in love-poems (Ch. VIrI ) r ev ea l st h a t t h i s opposing element i s i t s e l f most of t e n a cont ra ryincompat ib le emot ion, and the " theory behind th e exp lo i t a t ion o ft h i s em:>tional b i soc ia t ion fo r hasYa-effec ts i s deduced fromAbhinava ' s i n t e rp r e t a t i on o f the maxims governing the de l inea t ion, . -o f love- in-union ( sambho9asrnQarg,) Though pr iv i l eg ing in t h i s con tex t , and in keeping with th e ~ a e 8 t h e t i c , th e emot iona lcomponents and J?Qss ib i l i t ies o f b i soc ia t ion , Abhlnava i s a l ive toits cogn i t ive aspec t as well , as i s ev idenced by h is in t roduct iono f th e incongrui ty pr inc ip le in th e genes is of rasAbhasa, and byh is appeal ing to the same in orde r to r e j e c t t".he imi ta t ion theoryo f drama, fo r th e b isoc ia ted cogn i t ion of both the ~ t a t e d andthe imi ta t ing e lements can resul t . only in haSii (eh . VII , n. 20) .It. i s on th e ba s i s o f emotional b i soc ia t ion again t h a t an a t tempti s made to exp la in Abhinava's otherwise c ryp t i c remark. on th ecomponent o f momentary pa in o r d i s t r e s s i n de te rmina te l augh te r(sAny.sandhana-!li.u), and it i s fu r t h e r demonstrated t h a t such anin te rpre ta t ion i s in harmony with Freud ' s i n s igh t in to "humour" asa d e f e n c e ~ c h a n i s m aga ins t i n c i p i e n t unpleasure , and also supporteby th e exper imenta l r e s u l t s of behav ioura l and soc ia l psychologyand. by e thnographic d a t a on r i tU a l clowning (ch . IV). The re levanco f these f indings fo r contemporary humour research and theor is ingare two-fold . 1) th e pre sen t models whiCh seek to i s o l a t e spec i f i cl augh te r - (or hwnou:r-) s t . imuli from those o f o ther emotions , o rwhich seek. to separa te the l augh te r from o t h e r emot ional a f f e c t s


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in t h e i r examinat ion o f sl:.imuli which seem to genera te bo1.h ( e i t he rs imul taneously , a l t e rna t e ly , o r a l t e rna t ive ly ) , could more prof i t abbe replaced by a s t ruc t .ura l model t h a t r evea l s how the s t imul i ofthese ot.her emot ions are reorganized to produce the b i so c i a t i v ee f f ec t s respons ib le fo r l aughte r (o r humour); 2) the r e in t e rp r e t a t i oo f incongrui ty as th e object . ive cor re la te o f b i soc ia t ed percept ionand response w i l l obvia te t.he more se r ious of t.he cur ren t ob jec t ionto incongrui ty t heory .

7) To p r o ~ j Q s e t h a t f.r.om th e po in t of view o f aes the t ic s ,Abhinava ' s p r i n c i p a l con t r ibu t ion 't:.o moci.ern humour-theo:rising wouldl i e in h is having provided th e necessary t he o re t i c a l framework fo rd is t ingu ish ing between ~ as worldly se l f - subs i s t ing emotionalb i soc ia t ion provoked by common ( s ~ d . h a r a I j a ) s t imu l i (and normallyimmediately discharged as plea surab le lauvhte:r) ana its t ransformatin to the t r anscenden ta l (a laukika) r e l i sh of haYa whiCh i s del iCat

- Isus ta ined through aes the t i c i de n t i f i c a t i on with charaCters (asraYA)representeo as r eac t ing in emot.ionally incompat ib le ways t. o s t imu l it .hat are peCUliar to them alone (ch . V I I ) . Through a l i t e r a rycr i t iC ism of s evera l ve r ses , dep ic t ing mut.ual love (sambbOge) asprime sentim::nt but ye t overf lowing with ha@Ye/ in t e rms o f thepsychology o f the C harac te rs represented ana th e mode of par t i c i pa t ion o f th e connoisseur ( ~ ~ ) , it i s shown t h a t t h i s t he o re t i cais t . inc t ion merely r e f l e c t s the t .echniques fo r evoking hig. exploi tby th e poe t s in act.ual prac t i ce (en. V II I ) . It i s argued moreovert h a t the prescr ip t . ion o f hasYa as an inevi tab le anc i l l a ry of (Sambhknsara, though par t lY accountea fo r by the p leasurab le na ture of.l aughte r t h a t makes it . a n a t u ra l s t imulant and s ide - e f f e c t o f kama
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as a purus K th . , i s pr imar i ly i n t e l l i g ib l e only in terms of its

essent i a l ly bisoc ia t ive s t r l lc ture and th e aes the t ic norms governingthe poe t i c de l inea t ion o f sambhog q The ana lys i s r e l i e s pr imar i lyon Abhinava' s own c r i t i c a l comments on t h e aes the t ic t echniquesu t i l i zed and comes to the conclus ion t h a t the ra sa -aes the t icpr iv i leges above a l l the "epp t iona l centre" in its t rea tment o fhaiya .

The ~ p l i c a t : 1 . o n of t h i s dis t incc. ion to Western aesthe ' t . icswould require no t th e abandonment of the st i l tUlus-organism-responsmodel o f behaviourism (which i s also bas ic to the ~ - a e s t h e t i c )but i t s ref inement to include processes , l ike tanmavThhavAP:i(aes the t ic ident i f i ca t ion) and iadhi ranIk,arana (unive rsa l iza t ion) ,. .based on and cie1- iw d from t h i s model but becoming primary andmodifying its whole funct ioning i n ce r t a i n con tex t s , esp . t h a t ofaes the t ic s . This i s wholly c l ea r in Abhinava ' s t h i rd c r i t e r ion t h aunl ike the s t imulus of hasa l the vibhiva of haSYa i s uncomrron(asadhMa,na), i . e . uniquely re la ted to a par t i cu l a r i l r a l a whose

perceived responses and the t r ans i tory emotions they sU9gest arei n t e g ra l and ind ispensable to the re l ishing of hasYa. I t i s heret h a t the pr inc ip le of tanmavIbhavana in tervenes to make the c ruc i asepara t ion between the ~ - a e s t h e t i c s with its s t h i Y i n / ~dis t inc t ion and the behavioura l approach of those l ike I .A. Richard( c f . h i s " synaesthesisl t ) which i s unable to dis t inguish between thetw o though the neea. i s acute ly f e l t . .Nevertheless, Abhinava himseadmits t ha t the d i s t i nc t i on ~ h a S y g , though perfec t ly va l id intheory and eas i ly recognizable in priv i leged cases l ike the love-verses above, i s of ten b lu r red and d i f f i c u l t even in thea t re
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(QrahASana., vidU,.Mil): it . would the re fo re l:::le pre fe rab le to speakin terms o f degrees of aes the t i c i za t ion o f hasa in to hasYa.

I t i s c l e a r moreover t h a t the ~ h a ~ y a dis t . inc t ion cannot.be app l ied as such and wit.hollt modif ica t ion t.o Western o r o th e rl i t e r a t u r e s which are not. organ ica l ly and se l f -conscious ly dependenon an aes the t i c t r ad i t i on o f t.he !:.SlA-t.ype. 1'1or to a whole Cat.egoryof jokes and wit t i c i sms which, though possessed of a ce r t a i naest.hetiC appea l , hover in a kind o f l imbo between a r t and worldlyl i f e . Though unable to aevote spec ia l a t t en t ion to such frequent.in s tances of -hwrour" which do not. exploi t . b i soc ia t ive s t r a t eg i e sfo r pr imar i ly emot ional e f f e c t s l we never theless t ry to show (Ch. Vt h a t s imi la r mechanisms o f i de n t i f i c a t i on with th e emot ional a t t i t udo f o thers are of t e n involved even i f subordinated t.o o th e r purposesl ike s a t i r i c a l i n t en t . Often again t.he humour l i e s ra the r in th eingenuit.y and a r t i s t r y with which the b i soc ia t ive Clash i s broughtabout o r t.he b r i l l i a n t non-comic i dea s t.hat. are vehic led by th e formtechnique o f the b i soc ia t ed pat t .ern: to achieve a st.r ik ing c o n t r a s to f ideas , to ques t ion t.he f i e l d operat .ors involved, t.o br idge d i f f e rplanes o f thought. so as to present. t.hem in an ent . i re ly novel l i gh t ,o r to revea l t h e i r hidden connec t ions o r s i m i l a r i t i e s , and so on .An e s s e n t i a l component of su.ch w it o r humour i s no doubt the separat . ion of thought. from th e i n e r t i a of the emotions as rooted in th ebiologiCal i n s t i n c t s ( separ a t i e n o f t.he c o r t i c a l l aye rs from thesympathet ic system on the phys io logical l eve l )1 so much insis t .ed upoby Koest . ler . Being a comment.ator on an ex i s t ing a r t i s t i c prac t i cebased on t.he r a sa -a e s t h e t i c and not a s y s t e m a ~ i c theore t . ic ian aiminga t a universa l theory of h ~ u r and laught .er, Abhinava has natura l ly
http:///reader/full/vidU,.Milhttp:///reader/full/insist.edhttp:///reader/full/laught.erhttp:///reader/full/vidU,.Milhttp:///reader/full/insist.edhttp:///reader/full/laught.er


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COIn;;>lel:.ely neg lec ted t:.he se aspect.s o f humour- theory . Ilhat:. i ss i g n i f i c a n t however is t h a t hasYs., i nso fa r as it i s t:.he a e s t n e t i c iza t ion o r re l i sh ing o f th e emot ional b i soc ia t ion t h a t const i t : .u tesh a s a is based not on .:.he a ivorce of thought from th e i n e r t i a o fth e co n s t i t u en t emot ions but. x'at..I:ler on t h e i r r e c o n c i l i a t i o n . t.!brethan t h a t , the cogni t ive s t . ra tegies and idenl : . i f icatory mechanismsinvo lved are subord ina ted to tne evoca t ion o f emotion and it i st .heir ino.ispensable media t ion t h a t en s u res t h a t th e emot ions evokeaXe p u r i f i e d o f t h e i r biolo; ; , ica l i n e r t i a in to th e r e l i s h ab l e s t a t e

o t ~ . vne would be j u s t i f i e d in Claiming t n a t the ~ - a e s t h e t iinc lud ing hasYa, i s based not:. so much on th e p r in c ip l e o f Consciouness seekin 'dt .o esCape its b io lo g i ca l dete rmina t ions b ut I a t h e r onl:.he q u a s i - t a n t r i c p r in c ip l e o f its tu rn ing baCk to infuse t:.heo io lo g i ca l tunct:.ions, in t h e i r emot ional expressio(1, with its ownl i g h t n e s s , m o b i l i t j and detaChment. Unless t h i s p r in c ip l e i s keptin mina ... OLle i s aouna t.o lose s i ~ h t of what i s spec i f i c to t:.heex p lo i t a t i o n o f t:.he unive rsa l ly va l id bi soc iae ive s t ruc tu re L ~ t .hea e s t h e t i c s of hisYa .

8) Another irnJ..JOIta11t con t r ibu t ion o f Abhinava to humour- theori s h is advocat ion o f che e x p l o i t a t i o n o t hasYa (o r hasa) as a meano f r e in fo lc iag t.he (proper p\.lX suit . o i ) th e p u r u i ' ~ r t h a s th roughnegat ive exarilple (cll . LX) . d is assirnila1:.ion ;J f incongru i ty (acogn i t . i ve / ae s the t i c p: r inc ip le) to s0cio-re l igio


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tio11. wherever t h i s s o c i a l fu.nction ana th e enjoyment o f laughtc;;rt;iains t t le up;>erhana over th e J?urely aesthet . ic dimension , c . h E : ~ L :t i on retvJe,,;;:n ~ and h a s i a l o s e s most of its r e l ev an ce . 1'nou.'.;)hch i s i d e o l o ~ i c a l anll\"3xation l au g h t e r in t.he se r vice o f s a f e 9uara ing s o c i a l nor.rns i s haro. l t a . l f ie rent . frol" 3eI.g SO{l I s es s en L i a lc o n t r . ibution to hurnour-t.i:leorj ( ~ s . . ; > e c i a l l j as tu r 1:.11\".::1 c laDor acedL::ttQ behavi 'JUlal models chat syn tnes ize Llco11yruitf , social-cc.:f lsor

s h i ~ . ) anu enhaHceo se l f -e s t eem) , th e v i t a l Ciif1.:ereilCe i s t h a t Abhin

',;lith t.he bu1:.t. as cOi l s t i tu t ive vf l 1 . ~ . s Y a even when ic . func t io l l s as acensurc:-mecnanism, sowetning tIl. at. 3er.9SOH ;Jl impsea bUL i J aS unable

"5'L O recOflcile wi't.h 1 : . h ~ cnastzing eftec1:. o f r id icul in ; ; ; 1 augh:c.er' and0J.r. o.issociat . ion from th e l aughable s o c i a l lnisaemeanou.r. I ton Lne b a s i s o i si.lch iaent . i : r : icat ion t ! la t Mhill,:lVa reco; . .uizes al o , ; ic a l u i s t i ( ic t ion- -even tempo! a l sequence- -betweenc.he .. semblancv t (any) rasSl" (r .asabhasa) and. 1:.he ensi.lii.l9 hasya , chat iuterru.;>t.st a i s momt:!nt.al.Y o r pa l . t i a l i aen t i i i ca t . l .on. .it. is h is i rnpl ic i tb isoc ia t ion tneory alone tnat . Can j u s t i i y ch i s simul taneous i d e n t it i ca t . ion with ana rejec1:.ion o f t.ne b u t t , ana i't. i s sug:;:;ested t h a t ,

ar irU!1l det.r act iug frol!! t i le c h a s t i s i n g ef : tect of the l au .ghwr ,it i s t h i s ; J ~ x t i a l i a . en t i f i ca t ion t.:na1:. reilo.ers it 9ar , t icul3 . r lynumi l i a t ing fo r th e but t . . A fu.rt .her a i f f e rence i s th e , ,)ossiblycm:.).tio(lal nat.ure o f t h i s p a r t i a l i d ~ n t i f i c a t i o n , whereas fo r Be:rgsa l l par t i c i ;>a t ive emotion i s uet r in ,en ta l to SOCialized l augh te r .lhour iv i leged. r e l a t i o n wit.h (sambho9a-) ni .gara and karn.un account o t th e c a t n a l t l c p l eas u re i t .
http:///reader/full/aesthet.ichttp:///reader/full/augh:c.erhttp:///reader/full/sequence--betweenc.hehttp:///reader/full/ensi.lii.l9http:///reader/full/iaentiiicat.l.onhttp:///reader/full/reilo.erhttp:///reader/full/aesthet.ichttp:///reader/full/augh:c.erhttp:///reader/full/sequence--betweenc.hehttp:///reader/full/ensi.lii.l9http:///reader/full/iaentiiicat.l.onhttp:///reader/full/reilo.er


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..l.5

9 ) l"1Ost :sit;,nii:iCant anG. with far-reaChL'19 repercuss ions oui:.siact i l e r\:,:alnl :):;.; aE schee ics ana the soc ia l h i e ra rchy , es p ec i a l l y 1fJhenle . ) laced . ' l i thia h is to t .a l concep t i0n of: hasYa, i s h is a t t r i bu t ion,..)1: tae rnere It semblance o f has ta" to tn e Y . . . : L d u ~ a k . a whose haSYa funcLi

Inte:r:j.jreteCi in t.he l i g h t o t a l l t.ne r i t .ualnot .a t ions tha t.. hi3.Ve 10(19 been rec.:)gnized (cu lminat ing P ro f . Kui;)er 'recen t co n.t r ibut ion} anCl E ' s ~ e c i a l l t those tl1at. converye to unoer l inh is c;:,;ntral :ei..l.nctlon as th e tr'ansr;resso.t: oi : bIahw.L.lical SOC1 . J -re 1i;iou;3 nor IT l5, t h i s necessar ili irn(?lie s t .t lat, f O l Abniuava, ti'l8

dimensions ao not exnaUst th e e}q?loic.ation 0 1 haeLd in loLL;;:: v i d . i l ~ M . s l

t.har. h as t a coulu Silhul't:.aneousli serve th e Giarnetr ic ?i.lly or?90sitefunc t ion of ;.)e:r:n.ittiLl9 the exte r ior iza t ioLl Qf an e so t e r i c crans,: :!re

yidU:sgKil,' s c0.mic lJei1..J.vioJr, ::)uc th e ir.t:'2:;t;ular mod,,::'s \ ooscene ,

t.e. )Cannot De a t C.! iou t 8a tv 1 : . n ~ l ack i :Jt c r : e a , ~ i V8 ,in: ag inatiol . l in t.he J?.:,)So'(. s , to r th e se aonormal and inexcl l icably r-e .s trJ.\;(.eu moues o f

conV8Llt.i0l1, Llto ddri3lIi.:ltic nQill { in to " l awfu l i r r e9 . J . l a r i t i e s " i , to

the p lay ana th e i10rms governin.; t h a t func t ion alrE:ady s t rong ly
http:///reader/full/vid.il~M.slhttp:///reader/full/J./;(.euhttp:///reader/full/J./;(.euhttp:///reader/full/vid.il~M.slhttp:///reader/full/J./;(.eu


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16

SUi:)':;1loi t the haSi a fUnc'cion , tor cnastisL1S) tn i sdu t. \.:..he

C' Jl,, ' ,,")' an ;, 'Ll , e, i" a1 ,"1 'la' c ,'" {'c" J": r'"'" 0'" " '1" ,-'c' v F t i -,,,,, -, (' " , "', '1'" k { "1'" )_.-.. "1..... -- -, .... _, J.. '- """" ' - ' '--........ u ~ -.J...., "- .::>.,;. ' -.I. , - . . . . \;;! I mo::;tel o f ; )u rusar tha- ' ' '

I - ,;1pl '1 d.L a):J i. (. l ; ' : )

o f its cnast isif l :J ro le in t i le c o n f l i c t O E : t ~ v e e n brahIt lLl lcal s o c l o

'eL)C, comiC c . Jn f l i c t O il t,hE: :;?Oci.al110iQuousU r e s o l v es c.hat contl ic 'c . scrol1; ly sug':;:iests t l1at t.he h as /i s :'3imult':1ileOu3ly s ( " ~ v in s to dis: ;u i s e an in t .Gnt ional valor. a t ion

ana . ) a r t ly n eu t . r a l i ze s its ro l e as an i n s t r um e n t a t s o c i a l cen su re

L1a1neS ()f ;>urE: bralll11inical "-Jeo.igree , c e n t r a l ro l e in c.l1c drama
http:///reader/full/aesc.hG1:.ichttp:///reader/full/aesc.hG1:.ic


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u S i ! n l l 1 t . a n e O ~ 5 (exo"Cer ie ) ueva1o:r iza"Ciof1 adO (e sJtel . iC ) va lo r izo.-

th e ae s t .het ic leW:d .L1 ra1 as a mooe o f incoi.19IUOUS boh2Lvi;)Ul ac t ing as a comicst.in;u1us. 'l'h.oui;;n SLlcn tr aasg!E; s s i an Can p:tvVo lJUl.e1l n E ~ 9 0.


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cente red arounu tr a n sg re s s i o n , b o t h a i rec t l y and./or i i1.directlythrough symbolic ass imi la t ion with o th e r (comiC or non-comic) f igu r.:.hat belong to the same sys.:.em (something which i s f a c i l i c a t e d bythe polyvalence o f symbols) . Th i s would immeuiately exp la in thei r r e gu la r i t y o f tl1.e !1OrmS governing h is has ta func t ion a t the aes tht i c l e v e l , fo r they w:Juld have simultaneouslY sel:ved to ensure thes igni fy ing func t ion o f these os tens ib ly comic s t imul i" Likewise,c.he va lo r i za t ion of the v iouiaka i s only the del i :berate va lo r i za t ioo .:.he symbolic W1iverse media ted by him whereas h is eX91ic i to .evalor izat ion an,a r io. iculous aspec t would be a func t ion of t h a tc e n t r a l t r ansgres s ive aimension which i s wnolly censurable from thepurely e}(Qteric po in t o f view of l i f e - i n - soc i e t y governed. by the9raded hierarchy o f the 2uru s i r t has . T h i s tot:.al a,tJ.proach to the.

v i a u ~ ~ t ha t cons iae r s him p r imar i ly as a s ign , and only second a -r i ly in te:r:ms o f h is soc ia l and ae s the t i c func t ion by aetermininghow these l a t t e r are re in tegra ted in to t h i s s ignify ing func t ion ,i s alone capable o f explaining a l l the otherwise impossible cont . rad i c t i o n s in h is indiv idual "psychology" (wise foo l , indis.f,'e;Dsablebut bungl ing h e lp e r , lewd cnas t i ty ueformed and monkey-l ikefavour i te o f the queen ' s maius, e t c . ) , h is l i t e r a ry I charac te r iza t ion" (s tupid brahmin counselloJ: o f the exemplary king, obscenebu.t f ree access to harem, nonsens ica l jokes , Prakr i t -spaking ,me at -ea t ing and wine-dr ink ing br ahrnin, e t c . ) ana. soc ia l s t a tus("boy" ~ , abused by lower cha:r: acteJ:s b ut honourea by the hero ,e t e . )

To the e s o t e r i c gaze , t h a t h as al ready l e a l n t to accordsupreme va lo r i za t ion to the most. r a o i c a l modes of t r ansgres s ionwhen replaced wi th in t he i r de l imi ted con tex t governed by a profourd
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metaphy s i c a l and/or r i t ua ! motivation. . the recogn i t ion of thet ransgress ive funct ion invested in the v i d u ~ m ' s symbolism Can beno cause for l aughte r . On the cont ra ry , the recogni t ion o f thes ign i f i ca t i ons hidden in the var ious s ign i f i e r s brought togetherin h is comic ln tex 'vent ions and t.he displacement o f the al:.t.entiontowards re s tor in9 t h e i r coherence on the eso te r i c plane can onlyde t r ac t f rom, 1 not l a rge ly e f face h is hasXe func t ion . M::>reovereven the i ns t ances of r ea l ly incongruous behaviour , speech o rco stume, and th e comic aura t h a t surrounds them, are now r a the rperceived as the tranSj;>arent symbols o f a t r ansgress ive funct iont h a t has nothing i n t r i n s i ca l l y comic a.bout it. For these symbols,desp i t e t he i r adaPta t ion and e labora t ion to su i t the comic.r o le o fth e y ' i d U ~ ~ in the drama, acquire t he i r capaci ty to s ign i fy onlyby vi r tue of t h e i r pa r t i c ipa t ion in a p re -ox i s t in3 5i9ni f j i n9 s y s tt ha t encompasses the en t i r e doma.in of Iiindu cu l tu re a....ld reaches bato i t s Vedic o r i g i n s , where they recur in an arunistak.eably non-com< r i tua l , cosmogonic, ep.1c, e t c . ) con tex t ,:>r a t lea.st with a pr imanon-comic Irot ivation (Gax.teJia'.s o r Agni 's enornlOus appet i t e , o r th eformer ' oS DRdakas1 the contrary speech o r donkey-l ike :::>raying ofBrahma' s f i f t h heach the bra.!'ynacil'.L.'11 s abl.lse o f the hetaera in theI lahavrata, e t c . ) . Replaced in t h i s t o t a l system by an eso te r ic gaforearmed with the comprehension and mastery of its secret correspdence s .. the hasye aspect. o f the vidufaka ' 5 i n t e rven t ions -on theaestll.::tlc l i t e r a ry l eve l o f the 'ploy and in the' t.;;xot.erlc soc1oreligl, ;)U5 context tha t encompasses thE: performance o f t.he d r a m a -is redu:=ed to a mere semblance. To just . "Ii/hat e x t e n t Abhinavagl. lptahad ass indla ted the t r ad i t i ona l symbolic u.niverse under lying thef igure of the v i d u ~ ~ and to what exten t he ef fec t ive ly recognize


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20it in the l a t t e r ' s t r a i t s (e_g_ Varuna) and i n t e rven t ions can onlybe matter of fu t i l e specula t ion fo r us who have ourselves only j u scOJ'l'l{(1enced the t a sk of decipher ing . What mat ters i s t ha t he himselwaS the crowning theore t ic ian of the t ransgress ive ideology ofTr ika ( ra the r Kaula) t an t r i sm, att . r ibuting h is hignes t metaphysicarea l i za t ion of the supreme al l-devouring Bhairava-Consciousness toprec ise ly su.ch t ransgress ive pra x i s , At the same t i n e , he c lea r lyrecognized th e dichotomy between the esote r ic and the exo te r i c domth e l a t t e r governed by r igorous soc io- re l ig ious norms from whichperspect ive alone he comments on the Sanskr i t drama. He eveni n s i s t s on the cont inui ty oatween the Vedic and the T an t r ic t r ad i to f esoter ic ism explo i t ing extreme impuri ty and radiCal t ransgress iin order to t ranscend the pure/ impure dis t inc t ion and a t t r i bu te st.he re t icence of t .he Vedic R ~ i s on t h i s t ransgress ive dimension ofthe i r rea l i za t ions t.o t h e i r concern wi th preserving the exote r icorder founded on norms o f puri ty I avikalgena bhavena my.nayo.e.!tathaanavan / / 2 4 3 / / lokasaruraksaoarthem tu ~ ta t tvam t a ihpraaopi tam/... / /244 . TA. IV . As such, it seems to us t ha t Abhinavacombines in himself a l l the necessary condi t ions for recognizing acen t ra l t ransgress ive funct ion in the viOuiaka t h a t , though deeplyrooted in Vedic eso te r i c i sm, would have also found manifold expresin the symbolic universe o f Hinduism. But l ike the Vedic Rsishe descr ibes , he would have been even more committed to preservingand re inforc ing the exo te r i c o rde r , OOW governed by the gradedhit:!I a1chy of the Quru i r t b a s which it was the duty of the 1'


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21rea l ly s t r ik ing i s no t Abhinavagupta ' s r e t i cence on th e t rue ro leof the xidU,aka b u t , on the contra rY, th e var ious h i n t s he hasdropped fo r us-at l e a s t fo r those among us who are prepared tot ake him wholly s e r i o u s l y - t h a t the v i d u ~ ~ ' s ro le i s not exhausteby hisYa, i . e . h is proper ly aes the t i c ana. SOCial, aspect . He hasno he s i t a t i on in emphasizing, to exp la in the v idusaka ' s beingpro tec ted by OMkara, t ha t he i s , along with th e nay aka, th e p r i n c i pmale charac te r of the p lay . Taken toge ther with h is casua l remarksa t t r i bu t ing not hasya but the semblance of hasya (hasy3bhasa) toth e ~ = , . a & & , t h i s va lo r i za t ion of h is otherwise inexpl icable ro leproves conc lus ive ly t n a t no t only did Abhinavagupta know a g r ea tdea l more about h is ro le than he ever p u t in to h is AbhinayabharatIb ut t ha t he had de l ibe ra te ly l e f t these c lues behind fo r th ei n i t i a t ed l ike himse l f to recognize and fOllow up sys temat iCal ly .

I t w i l l be c lea r by now t h a t a cOflvincll'lg expos i t ion ofth e es::>teric signif icat ioJ . ls ~ r k e d in to th e hasYa func t ion of the~ ~ ~ w i l l f i r s t o a l l have to recons t i tu t e th e t o t a l s igni fy insystenl ( the bas ic pr inc ip l e s un6er lying it, t.he symbolic t echn iquesit employs, an inventory o f its ch ie f mot i f s and t h e i r complexi n t e r re l a t i ons and s u b s t i ~ u t i o n s , the h i s ~ o r i c a l ~ r a n s f o r m a t i o n sand d i s t o r t i o n s it has undergone, e t c . ) by v i r tue of which th ec l us t e r s of s igns t h a t fuse to cons t i tu te even a s ingle comicin te fven t ion of th e yidUlaka are able to evoke an en t i r e complex ofideas , pra c t i c e s and doc t r ines . Though we have already deciphereda grea t por t ion o f t h i s symbolism and a t l e a s t enough to confirmbeyond any doubt th e t r ansgres s ive func t ion we have only presentedsome of these mater i a l s in th e body o f t h i s t h e s i s , and t h a t too on
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sporad ica l ly , wherever the poss i b i l i t y showed i t s e l f of demonst ra thoW' they have been explo i ted fo r hasya e f f e c t s . The reason Was noonly l imi ta t ions o f space bu t t h a t , whereas the focuss of t h i st he s i s i s on hasya (humour and laughter ) and hasyAbhasa and t h e i rmode of superpos i t ion , such an under taking would have l i f t e d u so u t completely from the domain o f hasya and the Sanskr i t dramaas an aes the t ic spectacle into the vas t symbolic universe ofIndian r e l i g ious l i e . Even the x1dUsak.. would have to be ru th le sd i ssec ted to systemat iCal ly compare the ind iv idua l elements of h issymbolism with the same dispersed elsewhere in the t r ad i t i on , befowe re in teg ra te them-wi th a l l t h e i r fu l lness of s ig n i f i c a t i o n - tore susc i ta te h is comic essence . Even then , s ince t h i s symbolism i sscarce ly expl i c i t a t ed in an over t sy s temat ic manner anywhere, we'WOuld have to l i nge r long over these va.riol.ls models to demonstrateconclus ively t h a t these i na iv idua l symbols which they share withth e yidu,.AA indeed do have the prec ise meaning we a t t r i bu t e tothem and are ul t imate ly f ragments o r face t s of a s ingle semiot ic8Y stem. Though t h i s i s impossible within the scope of t h i s t hes i sit would su f f i ce i f we have convinced our r eader s t h a t the v i d U $ ~hASV a funct ion also veh ic les a non-comic symbolic func t ion andprovided ample i nd ica t ions t h a t th e l a t t e r comprises an e s s e n t i a lt ransgress ive dimension.

10) But as a prepara t ion to t h i s l a rge r under taking we havea t tacked the xJ"g,iisaka' s incongruous speech as a form o f poe t i chumour" (kaVYallasYA) to show t h a t it i s indeed teeming with thekind o f comic r iddle-o.evioes t h a t would have served to t ransposecomplex symbolic equiva lences , l ike those found in the r i t ua lbrahmodYgs o r the Rigvedic hymnology # in to the aes the t ic se t t ing
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o f th e drama. OUr analy s i s o f the v r t h I in te rms of the a t f i r s ts igh t a rb i t ra ry de f in i t i ons o f its t h i r t een cons t i tuen t e lements ,and in the l i g h t of both t h e i r comic explo i ta t ion by th e v i d ~ , ~- .in th e r i t u a l ve rba l co n te s t o f the p u r y a r a n g a - ~ a t a and th e noncomic mechanisms., moments and roodes of the brahmod.Ya, led to theconc lus ion t h a t l - 1) th e v l t h I was or ig ina l ly th e comic expos i t iono f enigmas by a s ingle pers:>n o r a comic wit-combat between twopers:>ns fu l ly ex.ploi t ing a r i ch varie ty o f r iddle-mechan1smsl2) these r iddle-mechanisms o f th e vltny:af1gas }:)etray a scheme tof a c i l i t a t e th e de l ibe ra te t ranspos i t ion of the r idd le -co t l t e s t s ,with t he i r profound cosmo-r i tua l mot.ivations., of the brahmodYasonto the a e s the t i c o - l i t e r a ry medium of the drama; 3) desp i te t h e i rprogress ive exp lo i t a t ion fo r pure ly l i te r a r y e f f e c t s , t h e i r or ig inafunc t ion would have been b es t : tetained. in th e COmic yid\iea!s.2 with hl icence to speak iocongruously I 4) the predominance o f hasya in th eyItbaOgas i s pr imar i ly to permit. th e super :posi t ion of the exo te r i cincongrui ty and th e e s o t e r i c coherence of the hidden equiva lencest h a t c o n s t i t u t e th e enigma. ( c f . esp . g ~ A and Asatpra lapa , bothcharaCte r i s t i c o f the yidUsaka)j S) t h e i r explo i ta t ion by th e v i d u . -in both r i t u a l t r i g a t a (prolonga t ion of the Vedic Vivie) and th eprofane plaY confirms h is I t ready-wit" (prat ibha" presc r ibed byth e NS) bu t of a type akin to t h a t o f the Rigvedic p o e t - s e e r s h is I t fool ishness" I l ike h is comic func t ion , is th e secondary e labort i o n o f the exoteriC incongrui ty o f h is i n t e rven t ions a t the pure ly

l i t e r a ry l eve l (WhiCh harmonizes with the explana t ion o f th e samein te rms o f h i s t r ansgres s ive func t ion) I 6) as beare r o f th e

~ 1 1 a k a presented by Brahma (h imse l f the pro jec t ion of the branmAnand as the p r o t J 9 ~ o f OMkira, t aken toge ther with th e monotonous
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in s i s t ence on h is brahminhood p a r exce l l ence , th e xkdusoka i sindeed a comic "car ica tu re" of the brahm4n (o r ' !HrohitA) p r ec i s e lybecause he is th e r ev e l a t io n o f th e e s o t e r i c dimension o f th e l a t t . e ras bea re r o f the brahmtn-enigma. Taken t oge the r with h is primarycoope ra t ion with th e ( Indra-)nAyaka of the p lay , t h i s impl ie s they i d [ , , ~ s symbolic i den t i ty with th e Brahma-a t radha ra o f th ep ,u rYara69a- t r iga ta and the l a t t e r t s p a r t i a l i d e n t i t y with th eV a r u . n a - ~ e . a k a (whose a n t i t h e s i s he r e i n t e g ra t e s in to the t h e s i so f th e I n d r a - g i r i R i J ; ~ v i k a so as to ar r ive a t a n ~ c o m p r e h e n d . i I 1 g syn thes i s ) . The vidusaka o f th e 91ay prope r , a s Brahma with an

exaggera ted VarUIJ.ic aspec t , wou.ld rep re sen t t h a t Mitra-VarUQaincal-nated in th e brahmAn-purghi tas par exce l lence l i ke the Vas is tha...For it is by regress ing as the (p re -c l a s s i c a l ) d1ks i t a , in whatamounts to a metaphys ica l t r ansgres s ion , to th e embryogonic chaos(Asat) o f Varuna t s realm (Varuna ' s 2!!ingax:a-pot held by th e viduOakal i ke th e largE baske t -ea r s of the Brahma-v.1dUaaka, is c l e a r l y a womb

/symbol) , t h a t th e bro!!nAl! a t t a i n s to th e t o t a l i t y o f cosmic connectbconst i tu t . ing th e j a t av idva . In t h i s way # th e vidU:,aka ' s ku' ! i lakawould symbolize not only h is mastery o f th e "crooked" speech o f th eenigma but a l so s ign i fy (among o th e r t h ings ) t he "pervers i ty o fth e t r ansgres s ion ( ~ d a y a k u \ i l a ) t h a t l i e s a t th e h e a r t o f th e enigm

Abhinava ' s con t r ibu t ion to these conc lus ions i s amb.4luous, and necessa r i l y so , fo r th e very pr inc ip le of eso ta r ic i sm exc ludes th e pos s ib i l i t y o f h is dwell ing e xp l i c i t l y upon t h i s hidden func t iono f th e y!thYaiigas o r t h e i r r i t u a l e x p l o i t a t i o n in th e yidusak.a ' i e t it i s r e levan t to note th e s t r ik ing d i sc repanc ie s between h is

(a l ready s l igh t ly aes the t i c ized) i n t e rp r e t a t i ons o f these formulas
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and the (h ighly aes the t ic ized) i l l u s t r a t i o n s he provides o f them.He i s c lea r ly aware t h a t it is th e enigma and its I11E9chanisms t h a tholds these formulas t o ; e the r and of ten prov ides d e t a i l s o f contextmotiva t ion , procedure t h a t c l a r i fy th e manner in which they cou ldhave served as t r a n sp o s i t i o n s . Yet as a t r a d i t i o n a l commentat;orfaced with the double t ask o f being f a i t h fu l to the de f in i t i onshanded down by Bharata and a t th e same t ime reg i s t e r ing and l e g i t imz ing the cur ren t prac t i ce o f adapt ing them fo r pure ly aes the t iCe f f e c t s ( independent o f r i t u a l no ta t ions ) , he a lso of ten i n f l ec t sth e t e rms of each de f in i t i on so as to j u s t i fy and f a c i l i t a t e t h i sl a t e r usage. Only an independent analy s i s , in t e rms o f th e symbolifunc t ion , o f the v id isAka ' s comic u t te rances in the p lays can revea.th e prec i se ex ten t and var ied modes in which these formulas havebeen exp lo i ted to r e t a i n h i s hidden ro le as the beare r of theb r a P m ~ - e n i g m a ( in P r a k r i t ~ ) .

But to do t h i s we would have to leave .behind th e aes the t ic sand psychology of hiS1a to delve in to th e t o t a l symbolic universein which the yidusaka par t i c i pa t e s . In t h i s t h e s i s , we have r e s t r i

te d ourse lves to drawing ou t the inp l1ca t ions o f Abhinava* 13 impl i ctheory of haSa and to showing how, in the :v:igiifak.sh the s t ruc tureof haaya permi ts it to s imultaneously serve and disguise a non-comsymbolic func t ion . This func t ion i s centered on r i t u a l t r ansgres s ifrom which we have suggested t h a t most o f h i s a t t r i bu t e s and behaviCan be der ived e i t h e r d i r e c t ly o r i nd i r e c t l y . I t i s th e b iaoc ia t ivs t ruc tu re of hasYa. t h a t in t h i s way permi ts the vidU:aag to mediatebetween these two opposing y e t complementary domains o f Indianr e l i g ious l i f e governed r espec t ive ly by the sacred of i n t e rd i c t i onand the sac ra l i ty o f t ransgress ion . I t i s through th e as it were
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unconscious ident i f ica t .ory pole of the b i soc ia t ed percept ion t h a tth e e:xoter ic v i s ion comes to pa r t i c ipa t e in sp i te o f i t s e l f in asymbolic universe whose coherence it does no t recognize and whoseva lues it i s as y e t not prepared to accept . In the laughing

: v ; i d u , ~ ~ an exo te r i c v is ion wholly enmeshed in the hie ra rchica lorder of th e puru.sarthas,which he en te r t a in ing ly re in fo rces by h is

laughable nega t ive e x a m p l e ~ i s never theless forced to submit i t . se l fto the cla ims o f an esote r ie v i s ion t h a t encompasses it and i s a l lth e more e f f e c t ive fo r the reason t h a t it i s ca re fu l ly hidden

suntharalingam_abhinavagupta's conception of humor (thesis)

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