A study of Indian English Novel and Stories

   

Name:Chudasama Namrataba Harpalsinh

T.YB.A

Sem:6

Class Assignment:Characters of all story

Home Assignment:Explanation of The Night Train At Deoli

Essay:How I Taught My Grandmother To Read

 Characters of All Story

      (Class assignment)

• Characters of Toba tek singh :

 1.Bishen Singh (Toba Tek Singh): 

                                                   A Sikh inmate who has been in the mental asylum for 15 years.Everyone calls him Toba Tek Singh, the name of his hometown.Speaks in strange, meaningless words. Always stands; rarely sleeps.Very confused about whether his hometown is in India or Pakistan.Represents the pain and confusion of Partition.Dies in no-man’s-land, showing that he belongs to neither India nor Pakistan. 

         

 2. Fazal Din :

                                                   A Muslim friend of Bishen Singh from Toba Tek Singh.Visits him after 15 years.Brings news: Bishen Singh’s family is safe in India.Kind-hearted and caring.Adds to the confusion when he gives mixed answers about where Toba Tek Singh is.

       

  3. The ‘God’ Inmate:

                                                   A patient who claims he is God.Bishen Singh asks him whether Toba Tek Singh is in India or Pakistan.He answers jokingly, making Bishen Singh angry.Represents how even “God” cannot solve the confusion of Partition.

4. Muslim League Worker (the Jinnah-claiming patient) :

                                                          A Muslim patient from Chaniot.Used to be a strong supporter of the Muslim League.Bathes 15–16 times a day, then suddenly stops.Declares that he is Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah.Shows how political events deeply affected even asylum inmates. 

5. Sikh Patient claiming to be Master Tara Singh :

                                                  A Sikh inmate who claims he is Master Tara Singh, a Sikh leader.Created as a mirror to the Muslim patient acting like Jinnah.Both are locked in different cells to prevent communal fights. 

6. The Hindu Lawyer :

                                              A young Hindu man who became insane after a failed love story.His beloved lives in Amritsar.Gets depressed when told Amritsar will be in India.When he learns he will be sent to India, he refuses, saying his law practice won’t succeed there.Shows how Partition separated lovers and destroyed lives. 

7. The Two Anglo-Indian Patients :

                                          Stay in the European ward.Shocked when told that the British have left India.Worry about what will happen to European food and European ward privileges.Represent the fear and uncertainty of minorities during Partition.

8. Newspaper-Reader Muslim Inmate:

                                                   Read the newspaper Zamindar When asked “What is Pakistan?” He gives a funny, confused answer:“A place in India where razors are made.”Shows how people did not understand the concept of a new country. 

 9. Bath-Time “Pakistan Zindabad” Patient:

                                                     A Muslim inmate who shouts Pakistan Zindabad loudly. Shouts so hard that he faints. Symbolizes extreme confusion and misplaced nationalism. 

 10. Roop Kaur : Bishen Singh’s daughter.

 11. Bhai Balbir Singh: Friend of Fazal Din, mentioned in his message.

 12. Bhai Vadhawa Singh :  Another friend mentioned in Fazal Din’s message .

 13. Bahain Amrit Kaur :  Woman mentioned by Fazal Din for greetings. 

• Character of Lihaaf:

1.Narrator (unnamed young girl) :

                                          The story is narrated by an unnamed young girl who remembers a strange experience from her childhood. When she sees her quilt forming the shape of an elephant on the wall, she recalls the days she spent at the house of her mother’s adopted sister, Begum Jaan. As a child, she slept in the same room as Begum Jaan and her masseuse, Rabbu. She often saw the quilt shaking and heard unusual sounds, but because she was too young to understand what sex was, she felt confused and frightened. When Rabbu went away one night, Begum Jaan behaved inappropriately with the narrator, which made the child feel a deep but indescribable fear.

2.Begum Jaan:

                                 Begum Jaan, the narrator’s aunt, is shown as a beautiful but troubled woman. Although she is married to a nawab, her husband has no interest in her and spends most of his time behind closed doors with young men. Lonely and neglected, Begum Jaan finds emotional and physical comfort in Rabbu, her masseuse. Their relationship is hidden from the world. When Rabbu leaves to visit her son, Begum Jaan becomes desperate and turns towards the child narrator for the same attention, showing her as the main negative force in the story.

3. Nawab Sahib:

                            Nawab Sahib, Begum Jaan’s husband, is the head of the household and is respected publicly for his good character. However, the story hints that he secretly has sexual relationships with young male students who stay in his house. He completely ignores his wife and keeps her separated from others, which pushes her towards Rabbu. It is also suggested that Nawab Sahib behaved wrongly with Rabbu’s son, causing the boy to run away and never return. 

4.Rabbu:

                             Rabbu, the masseuse, is a constant companion to Begum Jaan. She massages her, sleeps beside her, and shares an intimate relationship with her. Rabbu belongs to a lower class, shown through her dark complexion and marks of smallpox. When she leaves the house to meet her son, Begum Jaan becomes restless and irritable, showing how dependent she is on Rabbu. 

5.Amma:

                      Amma, the narrator’s mother, sends her daughter to stay with Begum Jaan for a week because the girl often fights with her brothers. The narrator misses her mother deeply during this stay, especially when she feels unsafe around Begum Jaan. 

6.Rabbu’s son: 

                    Rabbu’s son is a young man who refuses to visit the Nawab's house after a mysterious incident involving Nawab Sahib. The story hints that he, too, was mistreated by the nawab. Even though the nawab tries to win him back with gifts, clothes, and even a shop, the boy never returns, showing the seriousness of what happened to him.

• Character of the Night of  full moon:

1.Malan :

                     Malan is Minnie’s mother. Even though she is middle-aged, she is still very beautiful and looks young, almost like Minnie’s sister. Her husband ignores her and stays busy with work, which makes her feel lonely and unhappy. For many years, a man has loved her silently and waited for her. On a full-moon night, Malan finally gives in to her hidden feelings and goes to meet him. This decision later causes a misunderstanding, and people wrongly blame her daughter Minnie for what happened. 

2. Minnie:

                       Minnie is Malan’s daughter. She is young, beautiful, innocent, and shy. She is about to be married in a week and behaves like a well-mannered and respectful girl. She regularly prays at the temple and follows social rules. Sadly, she becomes a victim of false accusations when villagers think they saw her with a man at night. In reality, it was Malan wearing Minnie’s dupatta and bangles, but Minnie has to suffer because of this mistake.

 3. The Lover (Malan’s Secret Admirer):

                           The lover is a man who has deeply loved Malan for more than twenty years. Every full-moon night, he comes quietly, hoping Malan will accept his love. For years, she refused him, but this time she opened the door. He meets Malan near the bo tree on the full-moon night. His meeting with Malan becomes the reason for the later misunderstanding in the village.

 4. Malan’s Husband :

                              Malan’s husband is a strict and hardworking moneylender. He is always busy earning money and caring only about work. He does not show love, care, or emotional support to Malan. Because of his cold behavior, Malan feels neglected. On the important full-moon night, he is away from home, which indirectly allows the misunderstanding to take place. 

5. Lajo (Neighbour Woman) :

                          Lajo is Malan’s neighbour. She is curious, judgmental, and enjoys gossiping about others. She claims that she saw Minnie with a strange man in the fields at night. Instead of checking the truth, she spreads her assumption. Her words play a big role in starting the false rumour and damaging Minnie’s reputation.

 6. Jumma (Village Watchman):

                            Jumma is the village watchman. He also says that he saw “Minnie” with a man during the night. In truth, he saw Malan, but he could not recognize her because she was wearing Minnie’s dupatta. By repeating what he saw without understanding the truth, Jumma adds more strength to the false accusation and scandal. 

7. Ratna (Zamindar / Landlord):

                            Ratna is the rich and powerful landlord of the village. He becomes angry when he finds a broken red bangle in his field. Since Minnie was seen wearing twelve bangles, he believes the broken one belongs to her. Without listening carefully or thinking deeply, he accuses Minnie in front of everyone. His strong words make the situation worse and increase the public humiliation of an innocent girl.

• Character of The Night Train at Deoli:

1.The Narrator (The Young Man):

                           An observant, sensitive college student traveling by train. Kind-hearted, curious, and prone to romanticizing brief encounters. He becomes captivated by the girl, representing universal feelings of longing and the melancholy of missed connections, as he never truly connects with her beyond a few words and a purchased basket.

2.The Girl at Deoli

                             A young, impoverished girl selling baskets at the Deoli station. Shy, hardworking, simple, with dark, expressive eyes that hold a hint of longing. She embodies fleeting beauty, poverty, and an unknown future, leaving a deep, lasting impression on the narrator despite their brief interaction.

3.Station Master:

                            A minor character who provides a brief, unhelpful detail about the girl's disappearance on the narrator's return journey, highlighting the indifference of the world to such transient figures.

 

• Character of How I Taught My Grandmother To Read:

  

1.The Granddaughter (Narrator):

                                  Role: A young, patient, and affectionate teacher who guides her grandmother .Teaches the Kannada alphabet daily, showing empathy and respect for her grandmother's desire to learn.

 

2.The Grandmother (Krishtakka):

                                             Deeply religious and emotional, she loves stories but regrets not learning to read; she feels ashamed of her dependence and wants to read her favorite novel, Kashi Yatre, herself. Traditional yet open-minded, determined, resilient, hardworking, respectful, and a quick learner.Moves from relying on her granddaughter to becoming an independent reader, achieving her goal with great effort and dedication by Dusshera.

• Character of Karma:

  1.Sir Mohan Lal:

                                 Sir Mohan Lal is prejudiced and sees things in black-and-white: he cannot see the negative aspects of the English society and culture, or the good aspects of India and of his life there. The story suggests that being kicked out of the train brings Sir Mohan face to face with reality, and he learns a lesson because of his own arrogance.

 

2.Lachmi:

                                    Lachmi is depicted mostly as her husband’s opposite, which helps define each of the characters in the story. Lachmi is portrayed as an obedient Indian woman and is not a developing character, as she does not change by the end of the story.

Explanation Of The Night Train At Deoli

      (Home assignment)

About the Author :

Ruskin Bond was born on 19 May 1934 

(age 91) Kasauli, Punjab States Agency, British India (now in Himachal Pradesh, India) and is Anglo- Indian. He is a famous Indian writer and poet. His first novel, The Room on the Roof, was published in 1956 and won the John Llewellyn Rhys Prize.

Ruskin Bond has written more than 500 short stories, essays, and novels. Out of these, 69 books are written for children. He received the Sahitya Akademi Award in 1992 for his book Our Trees Still Grow in Dehra.

 He was also honoured by the Indian government with the Padma Shri in 1999 and the Padma Bhushan in 2014 for his contribution to literature. 

Summary:

Published:-1988

When the narrator was a college student,he was 18 years old and he used to spend his summer holidays at his grandmother’s house in Dehra. He travelled by night train and passed a small station called Deoli, about thirty miles before Dehra. Deoli was a quiet and lonely station surrounded by jungle. The train always stopped there for ten minutes, even though no one got on or off. There was only one platform, a small station office, a waiting room, a tea stall, a fruit seller, and a few dogs. The narrator felt sorry for the station because it seemed forgotten and unimportant, and he often wondered what life was like there. 

One early morning, when the train stopped at Deoli, the narrator noticed a young girl selling baskets on the platform. She was poorly dressed and barefoot, but she walked with grace and dignity. She wore a shawl because it was cold. When she came near his window, their eyes met, and there was a strong, silent connection between them. Without saying much, the narrator felt drawn to her. He got down from the train, went to the tea stall, and finally bought a basket from her, even though he did not really want one. Before they could speak properly, the train started moving, and the narrator had to rush back to his seat. As the train left, he saw the girl standing alone on the platform, smiling at him. He could not forget her face for the rest of the journey.

Two months later, on his return journey, the narrator remembered the girl and hoped to see her again. When the train stopped at Deoli, he felt excited to find her there. She recognized him too, and both were happy, like old friends meeting again. They did not talk much, but their feelings were clear. The narrator strongly wished he could take her away with him. He held her hand and told her he was going to Delhi. She quietly replied that she had nowhere to go. When the train started, he promised to return and asked if she would be there. She nodded, and once again he had to leave her behind as the train moved away. 

After this meeting, the girl stayed in the narrator’s thoughts for a long time. When his college term ended, he travelled to Dehra earlier than usual, eager to see her again. But when the train reached Deoli, she was not there. He searched the platform and asked the station-master about her, but the man knew nothing. The narrator felt disappointed and uneasy. He returned to his grandmother’s house but could not stay long because he felt restless. He decided to go back and ask more questions at Deoli.

On his next visit, the station-master had changed, and the new one also knew nothing about the girl. The tea stall owner remembered her but said she had stopped coming and did not know why. Once again, the narrator had to leave without any answers. Still, he comforted himself by thinking that one day he would stop at Deoli, search the town, and find the girl. 

Years passed, and the narrator travelled through Deoli many times. Each time, he looked out of the train window, hoping to see the girl again, even though he knew she would probably not be there. He never gathered the courage to get down at Deoli because he was afraid of discovering the truth—that she might be married, sick, or gone forever. He preferred to keep the memory and hope alive. For him, Deoli remained a place of dreams, longing, and unfinished love. He continues to pass through the station, always waiting and wondering, but never stopping

How I Taught My Grandmother To Read

(Eassy)

How I Taught My Grandmother to Read is a short story written by the famous Indian author Sudha Murty. It was first published in 2004 in the book How I Taught My Grandmother to Read and Other Stories by Penguin Books, India.The story is included in the Class 9 English Communicative CBSE syllabus. 

The story How I Taught My Grandmother to Read is a touching real-life account of the author’s childhood and her special relationship with her grandmother. When the author was about twelve years old, she lived in a village in north Karnataka with her grandparents. Life in the village was simple, and transport facilities were poor. Newspapers arrived only in the afternoon and weekly magazines came a day late. Everyone in the household waited eagerly for the bus that brought letters, newspapers, and magazines.

 At that time, Triveni was a very famous writer in the Kannada language. One of her novels, Kashi Yatre, was being published as a serial in the weekly magazine Karmaveera. The novel was about an old woman who strongly wished to go to Kashi (Varanasi), which is believed to be the holiest place for Hindus. However, in the end, the old woman gives all her savings to help a poor orphan girl’s marriage, believing that helping someone is more important than a religious pilgrimage. 

The author’s grandmother was named Krishtakka, and the author affectionately called her “Avva,” meaning mother in the local Kannada dialect. Avva was sixty-two years old and had never been to school, so she was illiterate. Even though she could not read, she had a sharp memory and a deep interest in stories. Every Wednesday, when the magazine arrived, the author would read the new episode aloud to Avva. Avva listened with full concentration, forgetting all her household work, and later could repeat the story word for word. She identified strongly with the old woman in Kashi Yatre because she herself had never gone to Kashi. 

Once, the author went to a neighbouring village for a wedding and stayed away for about a week. During that time, the magazine arrived, but Avva could not read it. This made her feel helpless, dependent, and embarrassed. Although she was financially well-off, she realized that money without education cannot give independence. She waited eagerly for her granddaughter to return and felt deeply hurt by her inability to read.

One night, under the full moon, Avva shared her life story with her granddaughter. She spoke about losing her mother early, never getting an education, marrying young, and spending her life caring for her family. She explained that she always ensured her children and grandchildren were educated, even though she herself remained illiterate. That night, she firmly decided to learn the Kannada alphabet, despite being sixty-two years old. She set a goal to read a novel independently by Saraswati Pooja during the Dassara festival. 

Though the granddaughter laughed at her age at first, Avva remained determined. From the next day, the granddaughter began teaching her. Avva proved to be a disciplined and hardworking student, practising reading, writing, and reciting daily. The granddaughter became her first teacher, and Avva became her first student. 

On Dassara day, Avva performed the pooja and then surprised her granddaughter. She gifted her a frock material and then touched her feet as a mark of respect. This was unusual because elders do not touch the feet of youngsters. Avva explained that she was touching the feet of a teacher, not her granddaughter, because a teacher deserves respect regardless of age or gender. 

In return, the granddaughter gifted Avva a copy of Kashi Yatre in book form. Avva immediately read the title, author’s name, and publisher on her own, proving that she had successfully learned to read. 

The story beautifully conveys that education brings independence, learning has no age limit, and teachers deserve the highest respect. It also highlights the strong emotional bond between a grandmother and her granddaughter.

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Skill Enhancement Course

 Skill Enhancement Course

(class assignment)

Virtues of Critical Thinkers

Open minded nature: 

                        A successful critical thinker can never be rigid or closeminded in his/her thinking. S/He can think of any issue from all possible ways and take a decision, without being emotional to the extent that it impedes a good decision making. Open mindedness also means receiving the valid ideas etc. from others even when it contradicts the opinion one held till thom Critical thinkers are open-minded and thus it is a biggest virtue.

Example:A person whp realized a deeply held belirf might flawed can be open-minded enough to learn from new information and adapt their views, rether than stubbronly clinging to their old ideas.

Habitually inquisitive-minded: 

                            A successful critical thinker io eager and habitually inquisitive about understanding different things that may matter him/ her how-so-ever remotely connected i could be to his/her immediate life. He/she is a person with inquisitiveness about everything in his/her life. Inquisitive mind is indeed a big virtue of a critical thinker.

Example:The person is not content with commom knowledge but actively seeks out rare and less-known information to deepen their understanding of the past.

Truthful of reason:
                 Trutthis process they enhance the repertory of their information yoo activities becomes a way of life for them. It is easy fot us o revise old information and update new ones. This entre cyce & understand the consequences of such a way of life. Based on reasons. They believe in being those who talk sense based Trustful of reason: Successful critical thinkers trust any argument on reasons and logic. They attempt to convince others based on logic and they in turn can also be convinced based on reason and logic. They are less emotional and more rational and logical when comes to assessing a situation. They cannot be convinced based on illogical reasons or rumours.

Flexible: Critical thinkers are not rigid in their thinking and the cannot afford to be so either. They attempt to understand a situation from different possible angles, weigh the strengths and weaknesses of every alternative, attempt to understand the he pros and cons of taking a decision from different perspectives. To all these, we all need to agree that one needs to be flexible in nature.

Fair-minded in evaluation: Since they are truth seekers and logiod driven in nature, they have to be obviously fair-minded in evaluatin: anything. They cannot afford to be either biased or prejudiced evaluating any situation. Their evaluations cannot be based o either emotions or gut feelings. Therefore, they are fair-mindedis their evaluation

Honest in facing personal biases: 

Since critical thinkers are fair. Minded in evaluation, they have no hesitation in accepting and admitting their inadequacies and seeking advice from the specialists in case of necessities. Therefore, it becomes easy for them to be honest in facing personal biases, this is a sign ofa developing and reflective mind. Hence, this is a great virtue of critical thinkers.

Willing to reconsider:

 Due to their flexible nature, they are amenable to reconsider their views on any issue. This is a sign of learner’s attitude. This ability can take them to greater heights. Even after a person is said to have concluded on an issue, one can revise his thinking and he will be willing to reconsider the issue afresh in another perspective based on other set of facts and logic.h seeker: A successful critical thinker is one who is intereste in seeking the truth. The ultimate objective for all critical thinkers to seek truth and live in tune with this. They attempt in all fairness to verify facts based on certain reliable sources. They seek truth before they form a conclusive opinion about anything. They are the people who attempt to convince others in a conversation and they can also be convinced easily if others have much stronger logic and facts. Therefore transactions with them become easy and rewarding. Perhaps this is a great virtue that could be seen in any civilised society.

Clear about issues:

 The successful Critical Thinkers are clear about handling different issues that surround them. They do not suffer from conflicts for long as they are competent enough to resolve them quickly. In this process too, their conclusions are based on factual truth and logic only, not on emotions.

Not impulsive:

 From the above-explained virtues, it is evident that critical thinkers cannot afford to be impulsive. In their thinking process, emotions cannot hijack logic. They conclude on different things based on sound logic and facts. Therefore, they are not impulsive in nature. They are not in a hurry to conclude their views.

Logical minded and do not lose temper in discussions:

     As said bove, they are logical-minded people and they do not lose temper in discussions easily. They try to convince others if they think they can without losing their cool easily. Therefore, in discussions, they can be convinced easily if the other person is logical. This is a great virtue of a critical thinker.

Orderly in complex matters: 

The strength of critical thinkers is their ability to organise and arrange even the complex issues systematically so that they can handle them well. In approaching them also, they are orderly in nature.

Diligent in seeking relevant information: 

They are hard working, painstaking and intelligent enough to seek relevant information from authentic sources. This they do when they realise that they need to consult the right source. It could be books, people, newspaper or any source.

Do not hesitate in consulting expert opinions: Successful critical thinkers do no hesitate to consult experts on seeking expert opinions.

Reasonable in selection of criteria: 

Critical thinkers weigh pros and cons based on a set of criteria, which they develop for themselves. While developing this set of criteria.

Focused in inquiry:

 In their process of inquiry of thinking about any issue they are not casual, but serious and in order to do that they need to be focused.

  

(Home assignment)

Characteristics of a creative thinking)

Characteristics of Creative Individuals:

Create individuals possess the following characteristics.

Unconventional: Creative people do not feel the need to conform to society’s standards. They often swim against the current and flow with their own way of thinking and living.

 Individualistic: 

Creative people want to find out what the truth is, and they have a strong need to decide for themselves what works and what does not.

Inventive: 

Creative people live in the world of ideas, and don’t always have the best interpersonal skills.

Driven: 

Creative people are almost compulsive until they car bring their internal vision into fruition. Ta passion to contribute to the beauty of the world.

 Visionary: 

Creative people have a guiding vision in their head, heart, and soul that they are often called to bring to life.

 Intuitive: 

Creative people are very much in touch with their inner selves. They pay attention to the signs, synchronicities, symbols around them, and make use of that information in their work.

Curiosity: 

Display a great deal of curiosity about many things; are constantly adking questions about anything and everything may have broad interests in many unrelated areas. May 2 collections based on unusual things and interests.

 Fluency: Generate a large number of ideas or solutions to problems and questions; often offer unusual ("way out"), uique, clever responses

 Uninhabited:

 Are often uninhibited in expressions of opirion, are sometimes radical and spirited in disagreement; are unusualy tenacious or persistent – fixating on an idea or project.

Risk taking: 

Are willing to take risks, are often people who at described as a "high risk taker, or adventurous, or speculative."

Imaginative:

Display a good deal of intellectual playfulness; ess, may frequently be caught fantasizing, daydreaming or imagining.

 Sense of Humour:

 Display keen senses of humour and set humour in situations that may not appear to be humorous to others. Sometimes their humour may appear bizane, inappropriate, and irreverent to others.

 Sensitive:

 Exhibit heightened emotional sensitivity. May be very sensitive to beauty, and visibly moved by aesthetic experiences.

Non conformity:

 Are frequently perceived as nonconforming accept disordered of chaotic environments or situations; frequently not interested in details, are described individualistic; or do not fear being classified as "different.

(Eassy)

Steps of creative thinking

Steps of Creative Thinking

 The five steps of creatively are:

 1. Deferring judgment when looking for idens

 2. Generate as many ideas as possible

 3.List ideas as they occur and keep a written record

 4 Constantly elaborate or improve on ideas

 5. Allowing your subconscious to generate ideas by incubating their subject

 Deferring judgment keeps the creative juices flowing. The moment we say to our self or our team… “dumb idea,” is the moment your mind or our team will stop producing those so called dumb ideas. Wait to decide which ideas are worth pursuing until we’ve generated lots of ideas…no matter how stupid or unrelated to the problem at first they may seem.

Generate as many ideas as possible fills the well. The more ideas, the better the odds that we’ll find something novel that works. Most of our ideas will end up on the cutting room floor but all it takes is one or two good ones.

List ideas as they occur and keep a written record. Creative ideas are flighty. They can disappear from your mind the moment you get distracted by the routines and distractions of the day. But more importantly, creative ideas often don’t look like they’re creative until combined with other, often dissimilar, ones. Bywriting down your ideas and musings we won’t lose them. Then we can mix, match, reshuffle and recombine them and see wha comes out at the end.

Generate helps you find novel combinations, mutations and Constantly elaborating or improving on the ideas we or our team surprises. Creative people look for alternative ways to think about a subject even when the old ways work well. Look for for and entertain different perspectives and ways of doing things.

Allowing subconscious to generate ideas by incubating on the subject. Einstein is often quoted as saying, “Why is it my best ideas come to me while taking my morning shower?” Your subconscious mind is constantly working but cannot be forced at times to produce. Good ideas need time to incubate. So work on na problem, generate ideas, then walk away and do so something completely different. Take a walk; go to a show; sculpt, paint, sing visit an art gallery; play ball; play with your kids…mix it up. Dosy think about the problem for some time. Then return to thinkins about the problem and try the four preceding steps again and s what new ideas emerge.

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Indian Knowledge system

 Indian Knowledge system

 (Home assignment)

A historical sketch of indian poetics

                                                           Indian poetics refers to the study of the principles of literary aesthetics in Indian literature, especially in Sanskrit and classical Indian languages. Its development spans several centuries and has influenced not just literature, but also drama, performance, and philosophy.

1.Vedic and Pre-Classical Period (1500 BCE – 200 BCE):

            Brahmanas and Upanishads: Early texts discuss the mystical and philosophical aspects of speech and sound (e.g., the concept of Vak or speech as divine).

                               Roots in the Vedas: Indian poetics finds its earliest expressions in the Rigveda, where poetic composition was associated with divine inspiration and ritual function

 Natyashastra by Bharatamuni (2nd century BCE):

           

        Often considered the foundational text of Indian poetics and dramaturgy. Introduced the concept of Rasa (aesthetic flavor/emotion), which became central to all later theories. Discussed elements of drama, dance, music, and performance

2. Classical Period (200 BCE – 1200 CE):

                                                       This is the golden age of Indian poetics, marked by the rise of various schools of literary theory. Rasa School – Bharata (expanded later by Abhinavagupta): Rasa refers to the aesthetic emotion experienced by the audience (e.g., love, heroism, sorrow). Abhinavagupta’s commentary (Abhinavabharati) further developed rasa theory, linking it to the experience of universal consciousness. Alankara School – Bhamaha, Dandin: Focused on figures of speech (alankaras) and the embellishment of poetry. Emphasized stylistic beauty over emotional depth. Dhvani School – Anandavardhana: Introduced the concept of Dhvani (suggestion), arguing that suggestion, not literal meaning, is the soul of poetry. His work Dhvanyaloka (9th century) became a milestone in Indian literary theory. Vakrokti School – Kuntaka: Proposed Vakrokti (oblique expression) as the essence of poetry. Emphasized creative use of language and stylistic deviation. Auchitya School – Kshemendra: Highlighted the importance of propriety or suitability in poetic expression (auchitya). Rīti or Guna-Dosa School – Vamana, Namyaka: Discussed poetic style (rīti) and qualities (gunas) that define great poetry. 

3. Medieval Period (1200 – 1800 CE) :

             

                                           Poetic theories expanded into regional languages like Tamil, Kannada, Telugu, Bengali, and Persian-Urdu literary cultures. Bhakti movement influenced poetry by focusing on devotion and emotional expressiveness. Poetics became increasingly didactic and devotional, moving slightly away from classical aesthetics

4. Modern Period (1800 CE – Present):

                                        Colonial impact introduced Western literary criticism and comparative aesthetics. Modern Indian writers like Rabindranath Tagore, Sri Aurobindo, and others blended classical Indian poetics with Western theories. Contemporary scholarship has revived interest in classical poetics, with scholars like S.K. De, Krishna Raghavan, and Sheldon Pollock contributing to the global understanding of Indian aesthetics. 

Key Concepts in Indian Poetics 

 Rasa – Emotional essence or mood

 Dhvani – Suggestion or implied meaning

 Alankara – Figures of speech 

 Vakrokti – Stylistic deviation or twist in expression

 Auchitya – Appropriateness or propriety 

 Rīti – Style or mode of expression 

(Eassy)

Kuntak's Vakrokti Theory 

About the Chapter: 

                           This module is about famous Sanskrit rhetorician, literary theorist Kuntaka and his theory of poetry. He belongs to Vakrokti school of Sanskrit or ancient Indian poetics. This module briefly talks about Kuntaka, his contemporary theorists, his role in poetics and linguistics. This module also discusses about famous book, Vakrokti-Jivitam by Kuntaka. In conclusion, this module talks about Kuntaka’s position in Indian literary theory. 

Introduction:

                      Kuntaka is the originator of the Vakrokti school of Sanskrit literary theory. He came after Anandvardhan of the 9th century and before Abhinavagupta of the 10th century. His time was the time of high merit of Indian poetics. Dhananjaya and Rajashekhara were his contemporary theorists. The theorists who appeared in the time of Kuntaka contributed a lot to what is in different shape is considered as modern theories of literature and language. In this context, Ganesh Devy says that Vakrorkti and the Alamkara are two Indian schools which are very close to two Western schools of thought, formalism and new criticism.

                      

                       Ganesh Devy commented, “Vakrokti is a theory of poetry which perceives poetry essentially as terms of the language of its expression. It sees the poetic language as a language of metaphor and suggestive communication”. Hence, Kuntaka’s contribution in poetic thought is not only the matter of poetry or literature but it is about understanding the language, language of poetry and its difference with the language of the common. Kuntaka’s opinions on language of poetry and overall his study on language makes his position many steps further to the future. He is considered as one of the early language theorists in India.

 Kuntaka and Vakrokti-Jivitam:

                                         Anjalika Mukhopadhyay informs in her Bangla translation of Kuntaka’s Vakrokti-Jivitam that, the manuscript of Kuntaka’s Vakrokti-Jivitam was appeared as final version with the initiative and immense work done by Sushil Kumar Dey in 1922. This manuscript was found as incomplete in four chapters. Some scholars assume this book has its fifth chapter also but it is not proved yet. Scholars assume that Kuntak was a Kashmiri, because some hints were found in this regard. It is also assumed that Kunataka was alive in the time between Anandavardhana and Abhinavagupta. He appeared before Mahimbhatta, as Mahimbhatta mentioned about him in different Slokas. If Mahimbhatta came in between 1020-1060 then Kuntaka was there in between 1000-1030. Kuntaka never mentioned Abhinavagupta and Abhinavagupta also never mentioned Kuntaka; though he talked about Vakrokti. It means either they were contemporary to each other or Kuntaka came after Abhinavagupta. Mahimbhatta, Hemachandra and Bhoja told that Kuntaka was the author of the Karika and Britti of his Vakrokti-Jivitam, though some scholars have doubt on this because the style of language found in the Karika and the Britti is completely different. 

History of Vakrokti :

                          The theory of Vakrokti is found even before Kuntaka had made it sophisticated and scientific with his rare talent. Bhamaha among the theorists who talked about Vakrokti is most ancient. Kuntaka primarily adopted Bhamaha’s idea of Vakrokti. Rudrat in his Kavyalankara (9th century) also talked about Vakrokti. Vakrokti was generally perceived as a Shabdalankar only. But it did not have much significance beyond its significance as Shabdlankar in Bhamaha, Dandin and Bamana understands. 

                                        As an alamkara Vakrokti was very inclusive to Bhamaha. He included all types of alamkara under the term of Vakrokti. According to Bhamaha Vakrokti is the soul of poetry. The way words become different from daily conversation and gives pleasure to the mind of the rasika or one who accomplishes poetry is vakrokti. Bhamaha did not accept Swabhabokti as a type of alamkara. But Dandin accepted both Swabhavokti and vakrokti as alamkara. He believed poetry means alamkara. If the daily use of language is reformulated with alamkara it becomes vakrokti and that vakrokti is led by Slesha. And this is how vakrokti creates beauty in poetry. 

                                   Sreenivas Rao in his work on Kuntaka and Indian poetics says that “later, Rudrata treats Vakrokti as a mere play of words or pretended speech”, which means that the word is meant for one thing and it is understood by the readers as another thing. It happens because of the voice and modulation of the reader of that particular poem. This difference in voice is known as Kaku, which according to Rao is ‘peculiar intonation’ (Rao, Sreenivas;). And this changes the meaning of the word. It also happens for the word having multiple meanings or at least two meanings and each meaning has its logical implications which is known as Slesha. Rao added that Vamana observes Vakrokti as an Artha-Alamkara where the hinted meaning of the word or lakshana is replaced by the similarity or Sadrishya and therefore, to Vamana Vakrokti is nothing but a metaphor. Hence the Vakrokti as an extended poetic term proposed by Bhamaha and Dandin appeared as a limited term and a figure of speech only to Rudrata and Vamana. It is Kuntaka who did the historical study of the theory of Vakrokti and placed it in a very significant theory of poetry. He made differences between the language of poetry and the language of everyday life with the reference of Vakrokti. According to him Vakrokti is a distinguishing factor of poetry and it is one of the basic qualities of poetic language, it makes the composition of words a poem. He is the true successor of Bhamaha and established Vakrokti as distinctive characteristics of all alamkaras. His concept of Vakrokti also guides the poet to select the words while composing a piece of poem. This idea is peculiar to poetry.

What is Vakrokti ?

                                    Kuntaka explains the definition of the term Vakrokti and its genealogical meaning. He mentions that, “the term Vakrokti is composed of Vakra + Ukti, where the latter (Ukti) derived from Vac-paribhashane can easily be taken to mean a poetic expression, a clever speech or a pithy statement. It is however the former component (Vakra) of the term Vakrokti, evoking diverse shades of meanings and suggestions, that is widely discussed and interpreted in various manners” (Rao, Sreenivas;) . 

                                 Kuntaka, like many other theorists, also accepted the traditional definition of poetry. And this definition says that the great juxtaposition and interwovenness of the sabda and artha makes a piece poetry. But Kuntaka claimed that this interwoven relation of sabda and artha should have a quality of Vakrata or Vaichitra. According to him the vakrota or vakrotva is the very quality of poetry and it brings pleasure in the mind of the reader after or while one is reading the poem. Vakrota is the very essence of the poetic speech or what is known as Kavyokti and it makes the life of a poetry what is known as Jivita. And that is why the title of his book is Vakrokti-Jivita, it is a biography of poetry, the title shows it talks about everything of a poetry. It speaks about the being and becoming and after life of a poem. 

                                  According to him Vakrokti is a matter of Vaidagdhya or intelligence, but not only that, it depends of the style or how the intelligence will create this matter, therefore he says that the Vakrokti is Vaidagdhya-bhangi-bhanita (Rao, Sreenivas;). Therefore, the successful creation of Vakrokti in poetry depends on the talent and skill or craftsmanship of a poet, what is known as Kavi-Koushala (poetic art). This is how Kuntaka relates the talent, skill or craftsmanship of the poet to create a successful poem which will be very unique in creating meaning and expression. 

Kuntaka’s Vakrokti: 

     

                        According to Kuntaka Vakrokti is created by “Baidagdhabhangibhanitiruchyate”, which means a poetic talent with his own creative power creates such attractive subject which being earthly, sounds heavenly to the rasika or to the readers who has authority to accomplish. Swabhabvokti defines or represents things or objects as it is there in the world of reality. Kuntaka argues there is no credit of creating Swabhabokti because it does not bring any uniqueness in the poetic thought and alamkara also cannot perform its role here in the Swabhabokti. Alamkara makes the object beautiful by putting the elements which are not there in the object.

                                  Shabda and the Artha make the body of poetry. It can be beautiful with the vakrokti. The cleverness of words should not cover the beauty of the poem. Tadwidgana, means the group of scholars who understand poetry will evaluate this highest art of creation of poetry in a poet. 

                                      Kuntaka defines poetry by saying that it is “word and sense together enshrined in a style revealing the artistic creativity of the poet on the one hand and giving delight to the man of taste on the other” (Devy, Ganesh;). This definition of poetry shows that Kuntaka carried the lineage of knowledge on Indian poetics. The previous thoughts propagated by different schools are adapted in Kuntaka’s theory on poetry.

                                 He mentions that the meaning is signified and word signifies the meaning. He elaborated his idea on word, meaning, style, metaphor and poetic language. And later he describes the good qualities of true poetry. A good poetry is something which has a unique expression, meaning which delights the readers. A poet can make a mere word unique with his creative talent. Words and meanings are adorned in poetry and they appear as an ‘artistic turn of speech’. 

                                  There are different types of Vakrokti suggested by Kuntaka in his Vakrokti-Jivitam Those are, Phonetic figurativeness (Varnavinyasa Vakrata), Lexical figurativeness (padapurvardha Vakrata), Grammatical figurativeness (pratyaya vakrata), Sentential Figurativeness (Vakyavakrata), Contextual figurativeness (Prakarana vakrata), and Compositional figurativeness (Prabandha vakrata). 

Kuntaka’s Idea of Sahitya :

Kuntaka explains the idea of Sahitya in his Vakrokti-Jivitam. He said,

 

"Sahityamanayo Shobhashalitang Prati kapyasou

 Anyunyatiriktatwamanoharinyabasthiti "

                                  Kuntaka’s above statement means that the mode of union is literature. When the word and the meaning exists together and united with each other but do not lose their own identity, characteristics but their union is so heavenly, so spiritual that do not cross the limits of each other’s boundary then they together create the beauty and that beauty is Sahitya (literature). As word and meaning meet with each other in a heavenly mode, there is no need for additional claims of Alamkara or ornament in literature. Hence, Kuntaka did not feel there was any need for Alamkara as a necessary component of literature. 

Marga or Riti or Style and Guna:

                                 According to Kuntaka, 'Sukumara Marga’ is an essential condition of Kavya. Beside Sukumara Marga, he talks about Bichitra Marga and he explains the characteristics in ten Karikas. There are another Marga which is created by the characteristics of both the above said Margas, and that is Ubhayatmak Marga. 

                                    Kuntaka talks about four kinds of Guna. Those are Madhurya, Prasada, Lavanya and Abhijatya. For example he took references from Kalidasa. Later he mentioned two more Guna, Auchitya and Soubhagya and these Gunas are common to all the above three margas.

Conclusion :

                              Kuntaka after Bhatrihari, is the most brilliant and rare talent who contributed enormously on the discourse of language study and also on the discourse of poetic language or literary language. In his understanding vakrokti is the vaidagdhyam bhangi or it is deviated or alternative to the speech act of the common people. With his study of poetic language he suggested the how of the birth of beauty. He is that genius in Indian poetics who extends himself from language study to aesthetics to adaptation theory, to translation theory what we deal with now can be rooted in Kuntaka’s work also. The different types of Vakrokti that he classified are methods of criticism of literature also. It is actually literary discourse proposed by him. He suggested a complete structure of literary study. But not only limited into that he was concerned about the reader’s response, though it is the major concern of all the Sanskrit rhetoricians. Vakrokti is Kavi-Kushalata, art and talent of the poet and poet’s creativity is termed as “Kavi-vyapara-vakrata, or art in the poetic process and this is the primary condition of a successful poetry” and therefore rasanubhuti comes into the mind of Sahridaya or the readers (Rao, Sreenivas;). Kuntaka has balanced between the poet’s role and reader’s role in appreciation of poetry. The point of view of the poet and the reader’s accomplishment both are necessary for the emergence of rasanubhuti, according to Kuntaka. 

Summary:

                     In this module we have learnt about Kuntaka and his contribution to Indian poetics. We have discussed a historical study on the term of Vakrokti and how Kuntak has successfully theorised the term and made it a primary condition of a successful poem. Kuntak’s theory is not only a theory of cherishing poetry but he contributed his thoughts to guide the future poets with his understanding of how to write a poem. We have discussed the differences of thoughts on the term Vakrokti with the reference of Kuntaka and his predecessors. We have also discussed about Kuntaka’s concept of different styles or riti of poetry and his conception about Sahitya in this module.