Some Aspects of Rasa Theory

Author(s): V M Kulkarni
Publisher: B L Institute of Indology

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SOME ASPECTS OF THE RASA THEORY
He probably thought that it was not impossible to act on citra-turaganyāya, for Dusyanta says, “Punarapi citri-krta kānta."
Bhatta Nāyaka's theory of rasa : His main contribution to the theory of rasa is the idea of universalisation (sādhāranīkarana), whereby the determinants (vibhāvas etc. are stripped off all relations, temporal, spatial or personal, and presented in a universalised form by a distinct function of words recognised by him and called bhāvakatva. The sthayi which too is universalised by bhāvakatva is enjoyed by virtue of the third function of words viz. bhojakatva/bhoga/bhogikști, which is of the nature of samadhi.
Now Bhațța Nāyaka has no śāstric (philosophical) authority to support him so far as the recognition of the last two functions, leaving abhidha, is concerned. One may call it his invention, but that does not in any way lessen the importance of his contribution to the explanation of the rasa theory.
From the word 'sattvodreka' used by Bhatta Nāyaka, Govinda Thakkur and Nāgeśa Bhatta infer that he was influenced by the Samkhya darśana. According to them bhoga is like the consciousness of ananda. According to the Samkhya system,' says Nāgeśa, jñāna is nothing but the reflection of the citta-vrtti in the Puruşa and the form of the jñāna is, therefore, the same as that of the reflected citta-vrtti. Now when the sāmājika witnesses a drama, the sattva quality becomes predominant while the other two qualities, rajas and tamas, are subdued. This 'sattva-maya-citta-vrtti' is reflected in the Purusa; and since sattva gives rise to ananda, the sattva so: reflected in the Puruşa, creates the consciousness of ananda. Thus the samājika enjoys rasa.
This is the explanation given in Pradipa and Uddyota.
Vidyācakravartin explains this theory with the help of the Yoga-darsana. He points out that by acts of purification (pari-karma) like cultivation of friendliness (maitri) towards happiness (sukha), compassion (karunā) towards pain (duḥkha), joy (muditā) towards merit (punya) and indifference (upekşā) towards demerit (a-punya), the sattva quality becomes free from the other two qualities, rajas and tamas, which struggle to overpower it and the mind-stuff assumes a state of complete calm like that in a samadhi which is of the nature of consciousness (prakāśa) and bliss (ānanda). According to Vidyacakravartin's interpretation of Bhatta Nāyaka, the sāmājika's pleasure partakes of the ecstatic bliss which a yogin enjoys in the state of samadhi.
It is suggested that the words 'prakāśa' and 'ananda' employed by Mammata in the explanation of Bhatta Nayaka's theory of rasa are used in their Saiva significance; so prakāśa stands for vimarśa (self-consciousness) and the word sattva too should be interpreted in that light. This conjecture does not seem to be very helpful since Bhatta Nāyaka's concept of aesthetic experience appears to be more akin to the Vedāntic concept of ananda, which consists in the predominance of pure sattva due to the inoperation of the other two qualities, rajas and tamas, which is the result of the absenee of the