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122
सटीको वृत्तजातिसमुच्चयः
[BRIEF NOTES
cause when used in its proper place it beautifies the stanza, but when it is used at an improper place, it spoils the whole of it and thus seems to control himself and also others. This 'King' of the Caturmätras must not be employed when a Caturmātra in general is prescribed in the lines of a stanza. Thus, for example, it must not be employed at the uneven Amsas of a Gāthā, a Skandhaka, an Upagīti and a Gīti, even when it is said that a Yodha, i.e., a Caturmātra in general, is to be employed at all the Ambas of a Găthā except the 8th, the 16th and the
6th at IV. 1 below. V.23 : This Narendra Caturmātra must be employed at the 6th Amśa of
all the abovementioned metres, namely, Gāthā, Skandhaka, Gīti and the Upagīti, except the last one (where only a single short letter is prescribed); but in the absence of it, only the Dvija or the Vipra Catur
mātra, i.e., the Sarvalaghu, should be used and none else. V. 25: When however, a Vipra Caturmātra is thus employed, let a word
be finished with the 1st of its 4 letters and a new one begin with the 2nd; the example is furnished by the stanza itself, where a word is concluded with the 1st letter of the Vipra Caturmātra mmi kunası and another begun with the 2nd. If again this Caturmātra is used at the 5th Amśa in the 2nd half, avoid the combination of the first letter of it with the preceding word, i.e., let a new word begin with the first letter itself. The example is again supplied by the stanza itself, parihara being the Caturmātra at the 5th Amśa. This particular direction is mentioned in the case of the Sanskrit Gāthā, or Āry, as it is called, even by Hemacandra, Chandonuśāsana (N.S.P. edition of 1912, p. 27a, lines 8-11), Jayadeva, Jayadevacchandas IV. 6-7 (see Jayadāman p. 12-13), and Kedāra, Vșttaratnākara II.2 (Jayadāman p. 73).
V. 26: This Narendra Caturmātra is however not prohibited even at the
uneven Amśas of the metres Adhikākṣarā, Nirvāpita, Bāņāsikā and Sirsakas. I am unable to understand what is meant by the word Śīrşaka in the stanza; for a Sirsaka is a double or a triple metre, the word being applied in general to any couplet or triplet. In the sequel Virahānka gives 3 such Sirsakas at IV. 39-40, 41-42 and 43-45; in the last two cases it is made up of an Adhikākṣarā with a Gīti and Adhikākşarā, Nirvāpitā and a Giti at the end respectively. But in the first case we have a stanza in an unspecified metre coupled with a Gīti. Perhaps the rule is meant for any other metres like the Adhikākṣarā and Nirvāpitā which are used as the constituents of the Sirsaka; it