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Rasa-nispatti-vicāra in Abhinavagupta
1555 by practice. In poetry and drama also by the delineation of the combination of vibhāvā"di-s, a sāmājika, who has acquired the above discussed expertise at worldly level, is able to get at the bhāva-s or emotions portrayed. Normally at worldly level feelings and emotions have a cause, an effect of expression, and also some assessories which help a given cause to generate a feeling. They make for the enhancement of a feeling. But in poetry these factors i.e. cause, accessories and effects are known by other technical names such as vibhāva, vyabhicaribhāva and anubhāva respectively. Vibhāva-s are so termed because of 'vibhāvana' i.e. their inherent capacity to make things relishable. i.e. "āsvādayogya." The capacity to make things an object of experience, so to say, 'anu-bhāvana' gives the name "anubhāva" that in worldly context are known as 'effects'. Vyabhicārins are so called as they have the potential to stay around the sthāyin and enhance the same-i.e. vi-abhi-carana and pusti. A harmonious - samyag-combination, yoga, of these three factors is essential for the birth of rasa. It is essential that their samyag - yoga or harmonious combination, or ekāgratā i.e. focussed situation should take place in the minds of the spectators. This exactly is termed :"vibhāvānubhava-vyabhicari-samyogah", and through this ekāgratā or samyag yoga a meaning 'artha' follows which becomes the object of 'sva-samvadana.' The obstacles are already removed from them. So, the process of rasanā, samvedana or āsvādana becomes bliss-giving. When arrived at through this process, the ‘kāvyártha' or 'nāțyártha' or “nātya” is termed “rasa.” It is identical with the process of enjoyment-rasanā”tmaka. It is not siddhasvabhāva i.e. it does not exist prior to the process of enjoyment. It is peri passu with the process. It is "tātkālika" i.e. happening only during the process of portravel. It is experienced only while the carvanā-vyāpāra operates. Thus 'rasa' is non-identical with worldly feelings and emotions. It can not be held to be "inferred sthāyin" either, for if it taken as inference than the blissfulness-"sarasatā” will disappear, for there cannot be joy in the act of inference, which is a dry process. But, however, Mahimā disagrees with this for he attaches joy to what he terms as 'kāvyánumiti' i.e. inference in the context of art.
ninavagupta has explained the process of rasa-realisation along with the epistemological discussion on the nature of rasa in very famous lines in his A.bh. and we will go to observe that all great thinkers, Mammaţa, Hemacandra, Viśvanātha, Jagannatha and the rest have almost quoted A.bh. verbatim and have expressed their full faith in Abhinavaguptaś observations. We will quote from the original, followed by Gnolis translation. The a.bh. reads as :- (Gnoli, pp. 20,
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