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Tofa-e-Dil.Festschrift Helmut Nespital

herausgegeben von / edited byDIRK W. LNNE

Band II: KulturwissenschaftenVolume II: Cultural Studies

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Inhalt / Contents

Helmut Nespital . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . IX-XII

Nachruf . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . XIII-XIV

Verffentlichungen von / Publications of Prof. Dr. Helmut Nespital . . . . . . . . . . . . XV-XIX

Vorwort / Preface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . XXI

Band I: Sprache & LiteraturVolume I: Language & Literature

Elena BASHIR Khowar-Wakhi Contact Relationships . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Hannelore BAUHAUS-LTZKE arad Jo: Alle frchten sich vor Virginia Woolf . . . . . 19

Gouriswar BHATTACHARYA The Bengali Muslim Author, Syed Mustafa Siraj . . . . . 25

Klaus BRUHN A Collection of Sentences for the Student of Sanskrit III . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

Vit BUBENIK On the Origins and Evolution of the Middle Voice in Indo-Iranian Languages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67

Georg BUDDRUSS More Khowar Proverbs and Idioms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87

Klaus BUTZENBERGER Non-standard Metrical Terminology in chandoviciti-literature: Some Introductory Remarks on the Jnray and the Ratnamaj Chandoviciti . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105

Ramswarup CATURVEDI (Linguistik Thought and

Criticism) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127

Cecilia COSSIO The Writer and the Cinema: Three Angles from the Hind Scene . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133

Theo DAMSTEEGT Ajeya and Anticolonialism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153

Rahul Peter DAS The Science of Stealing (Steyastra) in Ancient India and its Study . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167

Diana DIMITROVA The Treatment of Women and Gender in the Playsh k ek din and dhe adhre by Mohan Rke (1925-1972) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177

Ines FORNELL Wenn Misstrauen und Angst das Handeln bestimmen: Drei Hindi-Kurzprosawerke zu spezifischen Aspekten der Kommunalismus-Problematik im heutigen Indien . 189

Annette VAN DER HOEK The Akepa Song of Seasons by Keavadsa . . . . . . . . 211

Peter Edwin HOOK The Hindi Compound Verb and the Constitution of India . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 227

Monika HORSTMANN Kartographie der Erinnerung: Alk Sarvgs Roman Kali-kath: vy bips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 237

Premalatha JAYAWARDENA-MOSER & Karl MOSER Zur Bedeutung des Verbalaspekts in Verbkomposita des Singhalesischen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 249

Dieter B. KAPP Fnfzig Tamil-Sprichwrter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 265

Dirk W. LNNE Der Irrealis im konditionalen Satzgefge des Hindi . . 273

Angelika MALINAR Rdhramaa Caraa Ds und die Caitanya-Nachfolge in Orissa: ber die Textualisierung von Charisma . . . 295

Jan MAREK Khwaja Moinuddin, Founder of Modern Urdu Drama in Pakistan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 315

Konrad MEISIG Lexikographische Notizen zur Hindi-Literatur, I: Yashpal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 323

Annie MONTAUT On the aoristic behaviour of the Hindi/Urdu simple past:from aorist to evidenciality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 345

Thomas OBERLIES Die Prakrit-Sprachen und das vedische Sanskrit . . . . . 365

Christina OESTERHELD Das exemplarische Leben einer arf Muslimin:die Fasna-i Ndir Jahn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 373

Mariola OFFREDI A Note on Modern Hindi Poetry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 391

Tatiana ORANSKAIA Ein Echo des Tagesgeschehens im Theaterstck . . . . . 415

Ruth Laila SCHMIDT Compound Tenses in the Shina of Indus Kohistan . . . 433

Johannes SCHNEIDER Tathgatarakitas Mtyuhpaka, ein Sdhana der grnen Tr . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 453

Ulrike STARK In search of the missing self: the hero as failure and the writer's self-reflexive quest in Manzur Ahtesham's Dstn-e lpat (1995) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 471

Danuta STASIK On the Nature of Rma in Tulsds's Rmcaritmnas . 487

Ingo STRAUCH Arthastra und Caurastra: Diebeskunst und Magie im alten Indien . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 501

Jaroslav STRNAD Hindi dictionaries and the Hindi lexicographical corpus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 531

Renate SYED Hind tanman, hind jvan ... Zur Dichtung des indischen Premierministers Aal Bihr Vjpey . . . . . 545

Jaroslav VACEK Dravidian and Altaic fire B glow B light(tVL-, dVL-, nVL-; VL-) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 561

Band II: Kulturwissenschaften Volume II: Cultural studies

Helene BASU Die Zusammenkunft der Dichter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 579

Elisabeth CONZELMANN Speisefolge und Geschmack. Zum kulinarischen Code im ehemaligen Frstentum Mandi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 593

Carola EHLERS Im Namen der Gttin. Zum Problem der Identitt im Devmhtmyam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 617

Harry FALK & Juergen NEUSS The Kamancapra caturmukhaliga . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 635

Adalbert J. GAIL Vom Ursprung sdindischer Bilder aus dem Geiste des Tanzes. Ein Beitrag zum Verstndnis von Coa-Bronzen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 649

Hans HARDER Das bengalische Third Theatre: ein avantgardistisches, sozialkritisches Konzepttheater . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 661

Klaus HESSE Haus und Huser in Mandi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 675

Katja HOFMANN Viu-Gajendramokaa: Materialsammlung und typologische Studie . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 699

Dirk H.A. KOLFF Jacob Haafner's Journey in a Palanquin: A Passionate Farewell from a Colonial Ancien Rgime . . . . . . . . . . . 727

Lothar LUTZE Die Erzhlspirale als eine Grundform mndlichen Erzhlens . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 749

Gerd J.R. MEVISSEN Hitherto Unnoticed Images of Tripurntaka in theRjasihevara (Kailsantha) Temple, Kanchipuram . 755

Georg PFEFFER Sprache und Religion bei den Stmmen Mittelindiens . 769

Falk REITZ Is the Origin of the Granite Crosses in Kerala Indigenous or Foreign? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 799

Kerrin Grfin SCHWERIN Besuche am Grab eines Mrtyrers - Salar Masud und die Muslims in Audh - . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 821

Gaya Charan TRIPATHI ber Hayagrva, den pferdekpfigen Gott in der indischen Mythologie . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 845

Lukas WERTH Castes among South Asian Muslims, Caste in South Asian Islam, Caste in Pakistan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 857

Mitarbeiter der Festschrift / Contributors to the Festschrift . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 887

R.K.K. RAJARAJAN

Sanskrit and Tamil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 783Stpaharaam: Changing Thematic Idioms in

1 For the date and translations of the Vlmki Rmyaa, see BROCKINGTON 1984: 1, fn. 1.2 For the date and translations of the Kampa Rmyaa, see ZVELEBIL 1974: 146-7 and 1992:

65-69.3 Kampar deals with the original six kas, viz. Bla, Ayodhy, Araya, Kikindh, Sundara

and Yuddha and not the last one, Uttaraka.4 Kampar versifies the story against the ecological and cultural setting of the Tamil country. The

Citraka is the Govindarja shrine within the Naarja temple at Citamparam according to the TamilAvrs who showed the way to Kampar and present distinct allusions to the Rmyaa events fromthe Bla to Yuddhakas. For a case study see SHULMAN 1981: 21-53; KALIDOS 1998: 17-24.

TOFA-E-DIL $ FESTSCHRIFT HELMUT NESPITAL 2001: 783-797

Stpaharaam:Changing Thematic Idioms in Sanskrit and Tamil

R.K.K. Rajarajan

Stpaharaam Abduction of St (Skt. apaharaam, Tam. vavvutal or apakaricarrying away, stealing) is an important event in the Rmyaa which leads to thedestruction of Rvaa and his abode, Lak. First versified by dikavi Vlmki (c. 500B.C.)1, the Rmyaa was recast in various Asian languages of which Tamil is one ofthe best and earliest adaptations. The author of the Tamil Rmyaa is kavicakravart-Kampar (12th century A.D.)2, the work is entitled as Irmvatram The Descent ofRma and popularly known as Kampa Rmyaa. Kampar, after nearly 1700 years,gives his own version of the story. Regarding the layout of the book in various kas3

there is not much difference between Vlmki and Kampar, the total number of versesis lesser in the latter account. Certain thematic elements are thoroughly rewritten byKampar of which Stpaharaam is one.4 To say very formally Rvaa's abduction ofSt in Vlmki's version involves a physical contact whereas there is no such transac-tion in Kampar. The mutation in Kampar is due mainly to an ethical issue. In Tamiltradition a woman's chastity is instantly lost when she is touched by a man other thanher husband. It seems it was not so in the Sanskritic tradition around the 6th centuryB.C. The present paper examines the literary motifs in both Sanskrit and Tamil, theirethics and their influences on the arts of India.

784 R.K.K. Rajarajan

5 The present study follows the SASTRIGAL/SASTRI 1958 in Sanskrit and the English translationby SHASTRI 1957, GRIFFITH 1963, POLLOCK/GOLDMAN 1991.

6 Also Stharaa (hara means taking away, seizing, attracting) but the original text whichgives the subtitle followed in the paper is more apt.

7 So mahkavi Klidsa's mini-epic is called Raghuvaa. For an account of the Rmyaastory see BASHAM 1954: 412-15. For the gist of the Irmvatram see ZVELEBIL 1974: 146-59,KALIDOS 1998: 22.

8 The painting from Mattancherry Palace, Cochin, is a good example for rpaakh-bhaga (seeBANERJEE 1986: fig. 98-B) based on Kampar's version. DASH (1994) describes the polarities of Rma'spunishment of rpaakh by quoting Vlmki. But the event is more complicated in case of Kampar'sIrmvatram, where rpaakh was punished by Lakmaa on Rma's order. The former loppedrpaakh's nose, ears, and mammalian glands, too. To quote MEENAKSHISUNDARAN (1961: 47)Kampa follows Cilappatikram in giving us a vision of chastity. In the Tamil tradition cutting thebreast is already known from Ilakovaikal's epic heroine Kaaki of Cilappatikram. It is consideredto be a prediction of inauspicious (Tam. amakalam) happening (see OBEYESEKERE 1973, RAJARAJAN2000), which caused the holocaust of Maturai, when Kaaki removed her mammalian gland. With theabove sequence in mind Kampar must have repeated the same idea, to suggest the destruction of Lak.

It is in Book III (Arayaka) of the Rmyaa that Stpaharaam (sarga 49)occurs.5 The antecedents of Stpaharaam6 may finically be presented here. Rma, sonof Kausaly and Daaratha, King of Ayodhy, was born in the Solar Race of kings whichbegan with Ikvku and proceeded through Raghu7. He had three brothers, Lakmaa,Bharata and atrughna, born to Sumitr and Kaikey, the wives of Daaratha. Rma wasthe first born and a man of character. At the prime of their youth, Rma and Lakmaawere sent with a powerful sage, Vivmitra, to destroy demons, especially Tak.Vivmitra takes the princes to Mithil where King Janaka was holding a contest for themarriage of his foster-daughter, St. Rma is successful at the tour de force and takesthe hand of St. Back in Ayodhy, Daaratha initiates the formalities for Rma'scoronation as yuvarja heir-apparent. In the meantime Kaikey, the step-mother ofRma is induced by an evil-minded servant, Manthar. Thus Kaikey forces her husbandto exile Rma for fourteen years so that her own son, Bharata, could take his place. Rmaobeys the regal order and proceeds to the forest followed, at their individual insistence,by St and Lakmaa. In the woods Rma's work was to clear the way for is to upholdtheir avocations without the nuisance of demons. Moving from place to place, killingdemons along the way, they reach Pacavat (identified with Nik in Maharashtra),where they settle down. On the way a demon, Virdha, was punished. One day, r-paakh, sister of the demon King of Lak, Rvaa, arrived at the place and was in-fatuated by the beauty of Rma and Lakmaa. Unable to bear her doting and insultingfutile actions, Lakmaa cuts off the nose and ears. In Irmvatram it is not only thenose and ears but also the breasts of the demoness that are mutilated.8 She flew back toLak in great fury and instigated her brother Rvaa to kidnap St, describing to

Stpaharaam: Changing Thematic Idioms ... 785

9 St's is a very complex figure in the Vlmki version. Her character differs according to theplot of the story, she is depicted as submissive or aggressive or demanding. Her behaviour towardsLakmaa is very aggressive, (VR, AK, s. 43, v. 22-24) she accuses him in many ways, even that hewants to possess her. GOLDMAN (1980: 169) terms St's behaviour as blatant accusation of oedipaldesires. Immediately after Lakmaa leaves the place follows St's abduction. She pretends to beviolent with Rvaa only with her harsh words. But her behaviour is very submissive, as she knowsfor her it is not possible to defeat the great demon king. So she cries out for Rma's help. For a briefstudy on the behaviour of St see SUTHERLAND 1989.

10 See HILTEBEITEL (1980-81: 196) compares St (apaharaam) with Draupad (kesmba-rkaaa), the heroine of Mahbhrata. In both the cases its by hair - as with Draupad - and by thethigh, HILTEBEITEL gives a brief note on the ornaments of St, which she had during her exile withRma.

him the beauty of the princess. Rvaa proceeds to Pacavai with an assistant,Mrca. Mrca disguised himself a golden deer which St wanted to possess. Rmawent hunting for the deer, and when the beast was shot dead, it imitated the voice ofRma and cried out for help. St compels Lakmaa to go and help his brother.9 Inthe meantime Rvaa entered their cottage, Citraka. He spoke to St, trying toarouse her libido. St scorned him, so Rvaa started threatening her and assumedhis original form with ten heads and twenty arms.

Rvaa wanted to carry St off to Lak. According to Vlmki, Rvaa with hisleft hand caught hold of the tresses of St and with the right hand held her thighs10.To quote:

vmena St padmk mrdhajeu karea sa /rvostu dakienaiva parijagrha pin //

(DIVANJI 1963, Vlmki Rmya [VR], rayaka [AK],sarga [s] 47, verse [v] 16).

Rvaa lifted St up and clasping her, ascended a golden chariot, his vehicle. Keep-ing her in his grip, Rvaa flew in his chariot. There appeared a powerful kite, Jayu,to stop the outrage. He attacked Rvaa and shattered his chariot. Rvaa fought withthe mighty bird and finally cut off its wings and feet. Even while fighting, Rvaaholds St passionately to his breast (ta praha nidhyake, VR, AK, s. 50, v.23). At the climax of his fight with Jayu, Rvaa has to release St. St wentweeping to the fallen bird and hugged the poor creature. Rvaa's chariot having beendestroyed, he seized St once again and ascended into the air in levitation keepingher tightly in his lap. The nature of physical touch between Rvaa and St ispictured by Vlmki in a few lokas as follows:


11 In the Virdha episode (3.1.17-46), Rma kills Virdha before he can actually touch St, aform of the story more acceptable to devotees since it preserves St's purity, BROCKINGTON (1984:253). See the adaptations and translations that clearly pinpoint that Virdha covets St (GRIFFITH1963: 230-1, SHASTRI 1957: 4-6, POLLOCK/GOLDMAN 1991: 88-90, HART/HEIFETZ 1988: 41). Maybe it is only in some folk stories the above concept prevails.

12 The Mewar painting from the Oriental Research Institute, Udaipur, Rajasthan has anillustration (cf. BANERJEE 1986: fig. 89).

13 Nca literally means low, mean, base, vile etc..14 Yojana is a measure of land; sometimes regarded as equal to 4 or 5 English square(?) miles,

but not correctly (see MONIER-WILLIAMS 1979: 858).

jagmdya ckam Rvao (VR, AK, s. 52. v. 25)Rvaa lifted St and flew into the sky

sa parvajya Vaidehm vmenkena Rvaa (VR, AK, s. 52, v. 37)Rvaa pressed Vaidehi to his left side.

The helpless St cries aloud and solicits the help of Rma and Lakmaa but to noavail (aya hi kpay Rmo m trtumabhisagata, VR, AK, s. 52, v. 6). Thenshe curses Rvaa for his outrageous act. To quote:

dm garhita karma katha ktv na lajjasestriyca haraa nca rahite tu parasya ca (DIVANJI 1963, VR, AK, s. 51, v. 6).

It is a shameless act to lift a woman, which only base outcastes would do. Thus Stherself characterizes the cowardice of Rvaa.

On two earlier occasions in the Arayaka, St both involuntarily and volun-tarily comes into physical contact with other men. They are Virdha and Jayu. Vir-dha was a gandharva known as Tumburu, who was by Kubera to become a demonbecause of his misbehaviour with Rambh. He lifts St with the intention ofmarrying her.11 But Lakmaa and Rma fight with him and rescue St. He wasdestined to be defeated by Rma and thereby got his curse nullified. In this case eventhough St is physically lifted (VR, AK, s. 3) no question of ethics arises. WhenJayu is fallen after the combat with Rvaa, St hugs the poor bird to consolehim.12 This voluntary touch is motherly. But what Rvaa did was to lift a helplesswoman who was in solitude and that too under the spell of his relentless libido. SoSt brands him a nca base outcaste.13

In the Kampa Rmyaam, Stpaharaam occurs in the eighth paalam chap-ter of the raniyakam. Rvaa appears before St in disguise as a mendicant andattempts to console her. When persuasion fails, he threatens to take her away. Finallyhe plucked one yojana14 of the land upon which the cottage was situated and placed


15 Then, right there, in his evil, without touching her whose ornaments were lovely, remembering the curse that he was never to seize a woman, he dug out a yojana of earth below and around her with his strong arms high as columns. He lifted it onto his tall chariot and the woman with dense bangles, her precious life obscured, fainted away like lightening fallen to the earth. Then he hurried to fly off across the sky.

(Irmvatram, raniyakam, v. 3490-1; translation follows: HART/HEIFETZ 1988: 231).16 This word does not convey any meaning but a degraded or improper or person of lower status

could be addressed a (you base creature).17 NAGASWAMY (1980: 409) refers to the verses.

it on his chariot. He did not touch St because of a curse imposed by Brahm(T. Aya) which prohibited him touching women other than his wives. To quote:

u yiai tyava yiaiyaitt aya ml urai cintaiceyttt eal m uyar t valiylk nilam ycaai ku ml

(Irmvatram, Araniyakam, v. 3490)15

In the Tamil Rmyaa, St uses harsh words but not nca. She addresses Rvaawith the vituperative term, a16 and during the encounter with Jayu, the mightybird admonishes him with harsh words, too. During the fight between Rvaa andJayu, the latter had shattered the chariot. So after the fall of Jayu, Rvaa liftedthe cottage with the piece of land and flies away. St lay forlorn on the ground of thecottage (Maiait taaiyum maantu cmpinl, ibid., v. 3555). The fallen Jayulooked above and said to himself, The fence of dharma is shattered, what is going tohappen (in future)? (taruma vliyaic/ cintiar ml iicceyal enkol, ibid.,v. 3559). Kapu chastity was the breathspell of St (ibid., v. 3560).

The above account in the Tamil Rmayaa has been necessary since Rvaa didnot dare to touch St, and also because of the curse imposed on him by Brahm. Helifted the earth along with the cottage and St, and took her to Lak. This is mainlybecause of the Tamil cultural tradition of the 12th century A.D. according to which awoman would lose her kapu if touched by an alien. But it is clear that in theimmortal past as well, i.e., in the 5th century B.C., such an idea did prevail. In theearliest stratum of Tamil literature, Cakam (c. 2nd century B.C. to 2nd centuryA.D.), there is a reference to the abduction of St by the demon, Rvaa.17 The poemreads as follows: Ctaiyai/valittakai arakka vavviya u (Puannu no. 378,


18 Vavviya could be the equal of hara or apaharaam. The Tamil Lexicon (Vol. VI, p. 3540)gives the following meanings of vavvu or vavvutal: to snatch, to take hold of and to carry off.So it is an equal of apaharaam which means around the early centuries of the Christian era inTamilnadu the Vlmkiyan version of the story was popular.

19 BASHAM (1954: 168) mentions the eight forms of marriage. They are Brhma, Daiva, ra,Prjpatya, Gndharva, sura, Rkasa (marriage by capture) and Paica. See HARA 1974:296-306 for a detailed study on rkasa form of marriage, their dharmya lawfullness and nindyaunlawfullness. It's clear that the Katriyas even approved the violence that is implied by therkasa marriage (cf. KALIDOS 1997: 391-94).

20 For a gist on Vlmki-Rmyaa, Irmvatram and Rmacartiamnasa, see NAIDU 1980:320.

Fig. 1 Sitpaharaam, uga terra-cotta, Kauambi. (After BANERJEE 1986:Fig. 110).

cf. MARR 1985: 95 for translation). It simply means St was lifted by the demon, itis not clear how, but it could as well be an echo of the Vlmki tradition.18

If ethics comes into the picture, the question of whose ethics becomes a problem toreckon with. It may not be unethical from the demon's point of view. There were eightforms of marriages in those time of which one was rkasa (and Rvaa was a rkasaking)19 which allowed an abduction. But in the case of St, she was married, unwillingand was not a rkas herself. So Rvaa commited a heinous crime by kidnapping Stwithout the knowledge of Rma and Lakmaa, using disgraceful tricks like a coward

(cf. HARA 1974: 304-5). This issue raised byKampar received literary reaction in other regionsof India.20 The Adhytma Rmyaa, popular inKerala, emphasizes the no-physical-contact aspect.Rma at the time of the deer hunt foresees St'sabduction and asks her to hide in the fire. Thus theperson Rvaa lifted was only My-St. AfterLakdahana, My-St plunges herself into fireand the original immaculate St arises. In theRmcaritamnas of Tulasds as well, though itfollows the Vlmkiyan account of lifting St, it isadded that St plunged herself into fire evenbefore the haraam. Thus down to the time ofTulasds (16th century A.D.) the ethical issue re-lating to the Stpaharaam event has beendebated.

The earliest Stpaharaam in art is a terracottafigurine of the uga period from Kaumb, dat-able in the 2nd century A.D (SENGUPTA 1971-72,


21 All the three authors have included and mentioned the image (fig. 1) under study. SENGUPTA(1971-72) elaborately describes the image and identifies it as Rvaa kidnapping St, by citingmany verses from Vlmki Rmyaa.

Fig. 3 Stpaharaam, Kailsa (Rrakta), Ellora. (After Markel 2000: 63, fig. 10).

Fig. 2 Stpaharaam, Kailsa (Rrakta), Ellora. (AfterMarkel 2000: 63, fig. 10).

BANERJEE 1986: fig. 110, KALA 1988: fig. 16)21. Rvaa is presented like a hideousdemon who carries the helpless St in both arms (Fig. 1). Most of the scholars say,when Rvaa was kidnapping St, she intentionally scatters her ornaments on theground so that Rma and Lakma could trace the route. But SENGUPTA's argumentdiffers from the others and is more acceptable, especially for this figurine. St's orna-ments fell down on the earth, as Rvaa carried away St in puspakavimna at agreat speed and she also struggled considerably to get rid of Rvaa. In order to con-vey the nature of the scuffle, St's ornaments (Tam. para) are shown scattered allaround. Vlmki's (VR, AK, s. 50, 27-31) poetical description of the ornaments fall-ing down is also the identification of the force which Rvaa uses in the act of apa-haraa. Here the artist conveys the above scene in the same poetical manner but withdelicate, graphical representation. Rvaa is represented in a huge demonic form andSt in his hands as a small figure. He holds her left hand with his left, while his right


22 SANFORD's (1974: 26-7) statement is worth mentioning, there was an earlier version whichKamban used as a model, which would detract from his image as innovator. Even then we would notknow whether this earlier version was Tamil or Sanskrit. All that could be said with certainty wouldbe that a version resembling Kamban's, but different from Valmiki's, was present in early SouthIndian art. The earliest sculptural version of Srpnakh's beautiful appearance, is from the Guptaperiod (cf. BANERJEE 1986: fig. 98). Thus depicting rpnakh as beautiful woman prevailed beforeKampar's time but not in Vlmki's version.

Fig. 4 Stpaharaam, Virpka temple(Early Western Calukya), Paadakal. (Photo:author).

hand grips both her left leg and hip. St with her right foot placed on his right handtries to free herself from his clutch.

An array of miniature carvings appear in the monolithic section of the Kailsatemple at Ellora (GAIL 1985; MARKEL 2000). The St's abduction Entfhrung findsa place in this narrative panel. There are four scenes: (i) Rvaa approaching St, (ii)

Rvaa pulling St by holding her rightarm, (iii) St in the chariot while Rvaafights with Jyu, and (iv) Rva and Sttogether in the chariot. There is physical con-tact in this illustration, but it is not strictly fol-lowing the Vlmki tradition (Figs. 2 and 3).As pointed out by MARKEL (2000: 70, fn. 8)rpaakh's beautiful appearance in therelief, instead of the ugly one as narrated inthe Vlmki's version is in accordance withKampar's version.22 In any case, this is oneof the most impressive plastic illustrations ofearly medieval art.

Of the early medieval specimens, twomore deserve to be mentioned. The first fromthe Virpka temple at Paadakal of theEarly Westerm Calukya period and the sec-ond from the monolithic Kailsa in Ellora.One of the niches on the south face of theVirpka houses the Stpaharaam (Fig.4). On the south face of the monolithic Kai-lsa at the pda section, close to the porch,Sitpaharaam has been depicted. The latteris of the Rrakta period. The Virpksa(cf. WECHSLER 1994: 33, fig. 6), being


23 For brief study on the temple's history, style, architecture and sculpture, see Annual Report ofthe Mysore Arch. Dept. 1935: 6-12 and EVANS 1997.

24 See also SANFORD (1974: 27) who refers to the Stpaharaam in Halebidu, which strictlyfollows Kampar's version.

Fig. 5 Stpaharaam, Amtevara temple atAmtapura. (Photo: G. MELZER).

constructed earlier obviously served as a model for the Kailsa temple at Ellora. In boththe theme is the same: Rvaa and St in a chariot while Jyu attacks Rvaa.

There are three panels illustratingStpaharaam on the Amtevara templeat Amtapura, Karnataka.23 Two illustra-tions are depicted on the west face and oneon the southern entrance of the mukha-maapa (cf. EVANS 1997: figs. 21, 22and 39). The figures 21 and 39, aredepicted following the original Rmya-a, where Rvaa is shown in physicalcontact with St. But the figure 22 understudy (our Fig. 5) follows Kampar's ver-sion. Rvaa is depicted with ten headsand twenty hands and fighting with Jayuwhile carrying St above his head in hisupper hands. St is shown seated inside ahouse, which Rvaa has unearthed. TheHoysaa artist must have been aware ofKampar's Irmvatram, a good exampleis the Saptalacchedana shooting the

seven trees as EVANS (1997: 64) herself identifies citing MANI (1984: 478).24 So it isclear that in Amtapura, we see the influence of both Vlmki's and Kampar'sversions as well.

The most picturesque illustration is from the Kagra paintings (MILLER 1994: 15-26), dated in A.D. 1775-80, now in the Brooklyn Museum (Fig. 6). The ten-headedand multi-armed Rvaa is killing Jayu whose wings have been cut by a lancewhile the chariot is shattered. Rvaa with his prvahastas holds St tightly inembrace. Then he is found flying, carrying St in the grip of his front right arm.


Fig. 6 Rvaa-Jayu yuddha and Stpaharaam, Kagra miniture, Brooklyn Museum.(After MILLER 1994: 21, Fig. 4).

Fig. 7 Stpaharaam, Malwa school, Bharat Kala Bhavan, Varnas. (After MORLEY1981: 245, Pl. R).


25 Another illustration from MORLEY (1981: 246, fig. 537) is very interesting, Rvaa is shownwith a full coat in the Moghul-Maratha fashion. While St is seen in a bag which is hanging uponthe left shoulder of Rvaa. There is no reference why St is depicted in a bag.

26 Two more illustrations of the Nyaka (17th century) Toaimn (18th century) paintingsdepicting Stpaharaam deserve worth mentioning. They are from Aakar Kyil (cf. VIJAYA-VENUGOPAL 1987: 412-19), Maturai district and Tirukkaram, Putukkai district. The entire ceilingof the mukhamapa of Gkarevara temple, Tirukkaram is decorated with the Rmyaapaintings and remain unreported. Presently I am working on the above panels for my post-doctoralwork. NAGASWAMY (1980: 430) gives a list of ten temples, where Rmyaa paintings are depicted.

Fig. 8 Stpaharaam and fall of Jayu, Marha painting, Rmasvmi temple,Kumpaknam. (After NANDA 1997: pl. 9).

Vlmki says it is the left arm. On the peak of a mountain some monkeys are seatedwhile St drops her valuables. This is one of the best representations of Stpaha-raam following the Vlmki tradition.

There are two paintings in the Bhrat Kal Bhavan at Vras, dated in the 17thcentury, from Malwa. In one (Fig. 7) Rvaa seems to be in levitation, carrying Ston the palm of his left hand. She is seated comfortably. He is perhaps crossing thehabitat of the monkeys, i.e. Kikindh, where St is said to have dropped her orna-ments. These ornaments are found in the left corner of the illustration. Below treesand swans are depicted. This painting is of particular interest because it is closer toKampar's version of Stpaharaam. The extended left hand of Rvaa and theseated posture of St should be noted. Does this indicate that he has unearthed thepiece of territory upon which the cottage was standing (MORLEY 1981: 245, Pl. R).25

The Rmasvmi temple at Kumpakam in its pradakipatha accommodatesa continuous row of the Rmyaa paintings.26 Originally painted in the 18th century


Fig. 9 Rvaa approaching St, Vavr. (Photo: author).

A.D. by the Nyaka rulers of Tacvr, due to erosion some of them were repaintedby the Marha rulers of Tcvr. There are two illustrations of Stpaharaam ofthe Nyaka (NANDA et al. 1998: Pl. 8) and Marha (ibid. 1998: Pl. 9; our Fig. 8),18th and 19th centuries respectively. In the Nyaka painting Daagrva-Rvaa isseated with St in his golden chariot. Jayu attacks and ruins the chariot. Jayuhimself is depicted fallen. The label in Tamil reads, Jayu-Rvaa-yuttam (Skt.yuddha = Tam. caai). The Marha illustration is very clear. Daagrva-Rvaa isseated on the chariot in sukhasana pose, while St like in Tamil fashion with a sareeand blouse, is standing nearby. In the Tamil tradition, women in the presence of menare not expected to be seated, be he a friend or foe. Jayu is attacking the chariot andhas partly ruined it. It could not be ascertained with accuracy whether these twopaintings follow the Vlmki or Tamil tradition as far as the apaharaam is con-cerned. In both cases there is no intimate contact. With reference to the dress, it mightbe suggested that the Tamil tradition is emphasized.

It is in the temple cars(Tam. tr, Skt. ratha) thatthe Tamil tradition is betterportrayed. Dated not earlierthan the 17th century A.D.these chariots are veritableabodes of Hindu icono-graphy (KALIDOS 1989). Acontinuous array of the R-myaa carvings in woodappear in these chariots ofwhich the best examplesmay be found in the follow-ing trs: Kal Aakar atMaturai (RAJARAJAN 1998:329-48), Rmasvmi atKumpakam (DALLAPIC-

COLA 1991: 77-80, 1994: 11-24), Mriyamman at Tippi (KALIDOS 1991: Figs. 5-9)and Kdaa Rma at Vavr. At least ten specimens on the Stpaharaam event arereported (KALIDOS 1989: 352) of which one from the Kdaa Rma temple at Vavris in tune with the Tamil tradition (Fig. 9): Rvaa approaching the cottage, as amendicant, St is depicted standing away and receiving him from the cottage steps. St


27 It is noteworthy that in Kampa's hands the demon Rvaa frequently takes on proportionsof a heroic figure, and contrasts favourably with the rather weak and unimpressive Rma. LikeMilton, Kamba was of the devil's party without knowing it, BASHAM 1954: 475-6.

is shown wearing a saree and blouse, which highlights the Tamil traditional fashion.The other temples with Stpaharaam are: Mriyamma at Tippi, Povaradarjaat Rcipuram, Balasubrahmaya at Periyakulam (cf. KALIDOS 1989: 397-400),Rmasvmi at Kumpakam (cf. DALLAPICCOLA 1991, 1994), Prasanna Vekaea atGuaslam, Rmantha at Rmevaram, Naccataitavittaruiyasvmi at Devadnam andr Sailappar at ivasailam. In case of the second typology, i.e., St seated on achariot, she is usually attired in the typical Tamil fashion in a saree and seated posturewith head bowed, which conforms to the Tamil cultural tradition (cf. DALLAPICCOLA

1994: Fig. 11). There is no physical contact between Rvaa and St though seated inclose quarters. These might suggest the notion that the images follow the Tamil versionof Rmyaa in keeping with the cultural setting of the region.

Vlmki and Kampar stand at the polarities of two cultural traditions, separatedby the time and space of nearly two millennia. Vlmki's Rma is a true ryan, thetorch-bearer of its cultural usages, taking the cultural values in two directions beforeand after his marriage toward Bihar and Lak. What Rvaa did may be fair fromthe demonic cultural point of view (cf. ZVELEBIL 1988: 126-34, viewing Rvaa asa noble Dravidian demon-hero)27 but what Rma finally does is to establish the ryandharma which is accepted by the monkey (Sugrva) and bird (Jayu) tribes, inclu-ding Rvaa's brother Vibhaa. However with the lapse of time, Kampar at theother end of the millennium polarity accepts the ryan ideology and will not allowRvaa to touch St. Several other versions of the Rmyaa (e.g. Adhytma- andRmcaritmanas) indirectly echo the same idea and it is very interesting to find thesemotifs receiving the serious attention of ilpis through the plastic and pictorial arts ofIndia through the ages.

Acknowledgements

I gratefully acknowledge the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, Bonn, whichoffered me the prestigious Humboldtian Fellowship to work at the Institut fr IndischePhilologie und Kunstgeschichte, Freie Universitt Berlin. My sincere thanks to myguide, Prof. Dr. Adalbert J. Gail, and friends, especially Gerd J.R. Mevissen, Dr. FalkReitz, Dr. Ingo Strauch, Vandana Nadkarni, Gudrun Melzer and Dirk W. Lnne.


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