In the flickering glow of a digital hearth, where ancient whispers meet modern musings, Ashtanayika: The Romantic Heroines from Natyasastra to Modernity by Manorama Choudhury unfolds like a sacred abhinaya—a dramatic enactment of love’s myriad hues.
Captured in a mesmerizing scholarly reverence, Choudhury, a poet-philanthropist without formal scholarly armor, revives the Ashtanayika—the eight archetypal heroines of Bharat Muni’s Natya Shastra—not as relics of a bygone era, but as living flames illuminating the human heart’s eternal dance.
From the mainstream Indian classical viewpoint, rooted in the Natya Shastra’s profound treatise on dramaturgy and aesthetics, this book emerges as a bridge across time, where shringara rasa—the king of emotions—reigns supreme, evoking rasa through shabda (words) and artha (meanings) in a symphony of poetry and analysis.
The Natya Shastra, often hailed as the fifth Veda, composed by the sage Bharat Muni around the time of the Ramayana, posits drama as a divine art form that mirrors life’s vicissitudes to foster virtue and enlightenment.
At its core lies the theory of rasa, the aesthetic relish derived from emotions (bhavas), and none is more exalted than shringara, the erotic sentiment born of love’s tender thorns and blossoms.
The Ashtanayika embody this rasa in eight distinct manifestations, each a poetic archetype of the heroine (nayika) in her romantic odyssey: the vasakasajjika (adorned and awaiting her lover), the virahotkanthita (anguished in separation), the svadhinabhartruka (content with her devoted spouse), the kalahantarita (repentant after a quarrel), the khandita (enraged by betrayal), the vipralabdha (deceived and stood up), the proshitabhartruka (lonely with her husband away), and the abhisarika (venturing out to meet her beloved).
Choudhury’s echoes this classical framework, describing how these heroines capture “every shade of human emotion” far beyond the stage, influencing art, literature, and culture for millennia.
An Odia poem on the vasakasajjika—depicting a Radha-like figure, adorned with jasmine and anticipation, her heart aflutter like monsoon winds—infuses with poetic flair, translating the nayika’s inner turmoil into lyrical alliteration that resonates even without full linguistic grasp.
Analytically, Ashtanayika transcends mere enumeration, delving into the philosophical depths of shringara as rasa raja, the primary emotion that, when fully realized in the beloved’s presence, engulfs the soul in bliss.
Choudhury parallels this with the trinal rasa—three stages of love: rati (physical attraction), preeti (emotional-physical bond), and bhakti (devotional surrender, where the soul yearns for divine union).
This mirrors the classical Tantric view of the nayika as prakriti (feminine nature) merging with purusha (masculine consciousness) to birth creation, a motif recurrent in Vaishnava poetry and the Gita Govinda of Jayadeva.
The book’s innovation lies in its multi-layered approach: blending original verses in Hindi, Urdu, and English with classical Sanskrit slokas, supported by paintings, sculptures, and symbols that evoke the heroines’ transcendence.
Choudhury’s co-author, Dr. Jay Krishna Choudhury, lends scholarly rigor through Sanskrit expertise and access to rare libraries, ensuring authenticity while making the text accessible.
Yet, from a classical standpoint, this revival honors Bharat Muni’s intent—art as a vehicle for dharma (righteousness)—by noting how the pain of viraha (separation) surpasses the joy of sambhoga (union), a poignant reminder that love’s true essence lies in its bittersweet alchemy.
Poetically, the book dances like a celestial natyam, where emotions swirl in navarasa (nine rasas), though shringara dominates as the adi rasa.
Meeting Choudhury one can’t escape seeing her as a modern nayika herself—vulnerable yet resilient, conquering fears like the dark to illuminate forgotten lore.
Analytically, Choudhury bridges antiquity and modernity by drawing scientific parallels: aligning navarasa with psychologist Paul Ekman’s basic emotions, suggesting the Natya Shastra‘s timeless psychological insight.
In the mainstream classical view, this is no anachronism; Bharat Muni’s text was a holistic science of human experience, encompassing music, dance, and drama as paths to self-realization.
The book’s reference to Odissi dance tracing roots to Natya Shastra underscores this, positioning Ashtanayika as a catalyst for interdisciplinary arts, inspiring dancers, musicians, and scholars alike.
The key point that highlight the book’s universality: emotions remain unchanged across epochs, though expressions evolve. Choudhury’s journey, sparked during the pandemic’s introspective isolation, mirrors the virahotkanthita‘s longing, transforming personal journaling into a passion project.
Challenges—lacking formal training, navigating deep research—are overcome through mentors like Dr. Arjun Purohit and spiritual validators such as Babaji Sarat Suartan Das Maharaj, ensuring the work’s sanctity.
Aligning with classical ideals of art serving society, as in the Natya Shastra‘s promotion of virtue, the book may have a role in introducing Hindu philosophy to the West anew.
As a first-of-its-kind in Indian vernaculars, blending research, poetry, and reflections, it stands as a reference guide for Indic studies, potentially gracing university curricula.
Yet, in poetic reflection, Ashtanayika whispers of love’s eternal cycle—like the monsoon that drenches and departs, leaving earth fertile with longing.
The heroines are not mere types but mirrors of the soul’s quest, where bhakti elevates romantic shringara to divine ecstasy.
In conclusion, from the Natya Shastra‘s vantage, Ashtanayika is a luminous revival, analytically dissecting love’s anatomy while poetically weaving its silken threads.
It invites readers to savor shringara‘s nectar, bridging eras in a dance of words that echoes eternity. This book, born of one woman’s odyssey, reaffirms the classical truth: art is life’s mirror, and love, its undying flame.
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ब्रेकिंग न्यूज और लाइव न्यूज अपडेट के लिए हमें फेसबुक पर लाइक करें या ट्विटर पर फॉलो करें। Pavitra India पर विस्तार से पढ़ें मनोरंजन की और अन्य ताजा-तरीन खबरें
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