Studies In Sanskrit Sahitya Shastra

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

Page 30

18
Studies in
plagiarism. The charge of plagiarism is only valid where the borrowing is deliberate without creating new thought and new effects. Literature is full of coincidences, but they are not all plagiarisms. Some are due to similarity of creative genius..
'Colourable imitation' constitutes plagiarism. Taking a substantial part of the original work is literary theft. 'Substantial' does not refer to quantity alone but also to the importance of the part taken in relation to the whole a few lines may hold the real beauty of a poem and the taking of these lines would certainly amount to plagiarism...... Any fair dealing with a work for the purpose of private study, research,. criticism, review or newspaper summary' shall be above reproach.
They are silent regarding appropriation of thought in different Indian schools of thought. Probably they held that the thought is a common property of all of us, and the question of plagiarism does not arise there.
The Sanskrit theorist does not go far into the matter, naturally he fails to observe that if 'the apparent plagiarism is unintended or unconscious', it ceases to be plagiarism. 'Some minds are tenacious of good things and quite honestly forgetful of the source.' 'It is not strange that remembered ideas should often take advantage of the crowd of thought and smuggle themselves in as original.-Honest thinkers are always stealing unconsciously from each other.....Our minds are full of waifs and estrays which we think our own.....Innocent plagiarism turns up everywhere." Unconscious reminiscence is common to almost all poets.
If a poet makes what is ancient his own by his assimilative skill, we cannot damn him as a plagiarist. Even great poets have done that and there is no harm. in that.
In conclusion it may be stated here that though Sanskrit writers have, not given deep thought to this problem and have consequently failed to observe some subtle aspects of it yet it must be recorded that their contribution to this very interesting subject is sufficiently rich.
37 There is nothing in the works of Sanskrit writers that would correspond to such thoughts of the Western writers as are given in this paragraph, The Sanskrit writers and law-givers never discuss the legal aspect of plagiarism. If they were to give thought to this aspect they too would have possibly arrived at similar conclusions.