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Art is a Matter of Attitude, A Frame of Reference
This "frame of reference" is brought about by the poetic use of language in Literature. That is to say, in poetry, "We may... be putting before our hearers some feeling or attitude of ours, but we do so by expressing it and not by talking about it...,"239 This is the differentiating mark of the Aesthetic experience according to Abhinavagupta. And, Hemachandra completely follows Abhinavagupta's theory of Rasāsvāda. In Ānandavardhana's new aesthetics, the referential function of the words and the meanings is subordinate to its aesthetic function. Mammața (K. P. 2 ff.) categorically states that in poetry, Word and Sense become subsidiary owing to its being concentrated on such processes as are subservient to particular sentiments. This distinguishes poetic creation from Vedic injunctions and Epic exhortations or didactic narratives. in Dhvanyāloka 1.13, Anandavardhana himself lays down that in a Dhvani composition, the expressed sense as well as the expressive words both subordinate themselves so as to suggest that sweet and beautiful idea - which abounds in the works of great poets.240 And Hemachandra does not lag behind in this matter. As a matter of fact, his discussion of the aspect of poetic delight in Kavyānušāsan 1.3 and his lucid exposition of it in the gloss that follows as well as his apt quotations from the Kāvyakautuka of Tauta as also from Bhattānayaka's work provide ample and unmistakable proof of his theoretical sirength and equipment.
The Poetic Purpose
Hemachandra's emphasis on the delightful character of the aesthetic enjoyment is entirely in keeping with his faith in the doctrine of Rasadhvani. For, "the arts - all of them - have as their essential common characteristic a suitability for being observed in the 'aesthetic attitude and thus a suitability for yielding 'aesthetic pleasure'. 241 Hemachandra clearly endorses the view that in the ultimate analysis "aesthetic pleasure" is
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| SR No. | 001713 |
| Book Title | Kavyanushasana Critical Study |
| Original Sutra Author | N/A |
| Author | A N Upadhye |
| Publisher | A N Upadhye |
| Publication Year | 1987 |
| Total Pages | 558 |
| Language | English |
| Classification | Book_English, Literature, & Kavya |
| File Size | 10 MB |