Srngaramanjari Katha

Author(s): Bhojdev, Kalpalata K Munshi
Publisher: Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan

Page 56

A CRITICAL APPRECIATION OF THE SMK
lives with her, and when all his money has been drained off she throws him out of the house. Thus Kapatamṛtyu always helps the courtesan to bring the rich paramour back and then destroy him.
Except in the two cases of Vinayavati and Devadatta the courtesans are described as being ultimately punished in the SMK.
In Sundari's tale mentioned above there is further development how Iśvaravarman ultimately takes his revenge. It reminds us of Somadatta taking revenge on Karpūrikā (Seventh tale). We have seen how Somadatta is successful in not only taking back his shepigeon, but also the wealth of the courtesans previously earned, and how he in exchange gives them a false siddhi and asks the royal entourage to return after five days. Iśvaravarman takes revenge in a somewhat similar manner. A monkey is trained to store money in its mouth and gives out as much as was asked for. Iśvaravarman shows the monkey to Sundari and she desires to have it. In bargain all the wealth previously taken away by Sundari was got back. Iśvaravarman then leaves her. On the third day the monkey stops giving money, gets angry, and hits Sundari. The bawd gets angry
and kills it.
Aśokavati (tenth story) and Lavanyasundari (eight story) in SMK have true love for their lovers. Vasantasena's devotion for the poor Carudatta is a classical example of a courtesan's true love.20 The social conditions made it difficult for the courtesan to maintain constancy in her love, as in the case of Lavanyasundari. Against her own wishes, she had to go to the sovereign king and consequently suffer indignity at the hands of Ratnadatta. Like Aśokavati being freed and married to Chaddalaka, Vasantasenā also was able to escape the limitations of her way of life and was legally married to Carudatta. Ragamañjarī in Daśakumāracarita21 was won over by merits by Apahāravarman and against the wishes of her mother and sister married him as any ordinary girl would do. Aśokavati's instantaneous death on hearing of Chaddalaka's death is reminiscent of the courtesan Vasantasena's death on hearing of Dhammila's death in Dhammilacariya in Vasudevahindi.22 In the Kuṭṭanimata we have a fine instance of a courtesan's love in Haralata's story.23 She loves Sudarsana but cannot go with him for she understands her own limitations. She ultimately dies when Sudarsana leaves her.
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Besides these courtesan stories there are two exceptional cases in the SMK., namely, that of Lavanyasundari (sixth tale) and Cellamahadevi (thirteenth tale). The former was the wife of an oilmen who took to the life of a courtesan to free her husband from the
20. Südraka, Mrcchakatika.
21. Dandin, Book II.
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22. Sanghadāsagaṇivācaka, p. 28 f. 23. p. 174 f.