PELS
English
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I.
Classical Indian Literature
Gupta Era (320 C.E.- 550 C.E.)
Gupta
dynasty
was
founded
by
Chandra Gupta I
development of Mahayana Buddhism
Classical Age in north India
cave paintings at Ajanta
Sakuntala, Jataka, Panchatantra and Kamasutra were
written
Aryabhatta’s Astronomy
Kumardevi and Chandragupta I
minted by their son Samudragupta
335-370 C.E
Gold Dinar
weight: 7.8 gm
obverse: king and queen
Gupta Empire (400 A.D.)- Ayodhya, Pataliputra,
Simhala
Mahayana Buddhism
Buddhism split into two sects- Mahayana and
Hinayana (Theravada).
Mahayana- laid stress on the concept of the
Bodhisattva or `one destined to be the Buddha' and
also conceived of Eternal Buddhas who resemble
gods or deities
Hinayana- regarded the Buddha as a man and had a
doctrine, Theravada, stressing the salvation of the
individual
interaction of Mahayana philosophy and Hinduismgave rise to Tantric Buddhism or Vajrayana
Ajanta Caves
during the 4th century C.E. in a remote valley, work
began on the Ajanta Caves to create a complex of
Buddhist monasteries and prayer halls
as centuries passed, numerous Buddhist monks and
artisans dug out a set of twenty-nine caves,
converting some to cells, and others to monasteries
and Buddhist temples
these caves are adorned with elaborate sculptures
and paintings which have withstood the ravages of
time
depict the stories of Buddhism spanning from the
period from 200 B.C.E. to 650 C.E.
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29 caves were built by Buddhist monks using simple
tools like hammer & chisel
elaborate and exquisite sculptures and paintings
depict stories from Jataka tales
also house images of nymphs and princesses
Samskrta- the Language of Classical Literature
Samskrta: Sanskrit
“perfected, classified refined”
“correct speech”
codified and frozen in the Astadhyahi: the rules of
grammar
considered ideal language for classics
Prakrta: Prakrit
“original or natural”
dialects that changed and developed with spoken
language
Kavya
Kavya – the “poetry” of the classical canon
permeated with the culture of the Gupta courts
Kavi, learned poets, wrote under the patronage of
kings for audiences of connoisseurs
sahrdaya – “with heart, responsive”
rasika – “enjoyer of aesthetic mood”
highly formulated norms and conventions
many works on poetic theory
Kavya Genres
Mahakavya: great poem or court epic– contains lyric
stanzas with elaborate figures of speech and
emphasizes description
Natya: drama
employs both prose and verse
includes Sanskrit and Prakrit
wider range of characters
lyrical description more than dramatic action
Muktaka: short lyric poems
Bhartrhari: pointed epigrams
Kalidasa: idyllic verses on nature
Amaru: erotic vignettes
Katha or Akhyika: narrative tales
Pancatantra: collection of animal fables
Somadeva’s Kathasaritsagara (Ocean to the Rivers
of Story): picaresque, marvelous tales, romances
Niti
aims for human conduct, worldly wisdom
the Nagaraka – gentleman, citizen, courtier –
cultivated life as art with the 4 aims for human
conduct:
Dharma: religious duty
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Artha: wealth, politics, public life
Kama: erotic pleasure and the emotions
Vitsyayana’s Kamasutra
Moksa: liberation from the chain of birth and death
in which souls are trapped because of Karma
Karma implies fluid relationships between divine,
human and animal worlds
gods become human, humans may achieve
bodhisattva status or may be reincarnated as
animals
Women in Classic Literature
courtly ideal wives like Sita – chaste, loyal,
submissive, long-suffering
wives in merchant-class stories – chaste,
independent, powerful
Courtesans – erotic, beautiful, intelligent, ruthless,
rapacious, independent
religious contemplatives – figures of authority and
free agents
Visnusarman’s Pancatantra (CA. 2nd-3rd C.E.)
Pancatantra: The Five Strategies
collection of folk tales and fables within frame tales
brought by Arabs into Europe – model and source
for 1001 Nights, Boccaccio’s The Decameron,
Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales, Grimms’ Fairy
Tales, La Fontaine’s Fables, etc.
central concern is niti – conduct – political
expediency and social values
Visnusarman allegedly used the fables to teach 3
dim-witted princes the science of politics
The Pancatantra’s 5 Strategies
Book I : “The Loss of Friends”
“Leap and Creep”
“The Blue Jackal”
“Forethought, Readywit and Fatalist”
Book II : “The Winning of Friends”
Book III: “Crows and Owls”
strategies of alliance and war
“Mouse-Maid Made Mouse”
Book IV: “Loss of Gains”
Book V: “Ill-Considered Action”
“The Loyal Mungoose”
Natya: Drama
Drsyakavya: poetry to be seen as opposed to
sravyakavya: poetry to be heard
Bharata’s Natyasastra – authoritative text on
dramatic aesthetics and theory
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Abhinaya: “a symphony of languages” – verbal text,
stylized gesture, facial expression, eye movement,
music, dance
8 fundamental emotions, bhava, expressed in 8
major rasas, stylized representations of the
emotions – universal rather than particular
no tragedy in Indian drama – impossible in the
Hindu and Buddhist conception of the universe of
karma linking humans with nature and the cosmos
through networks of volition, action and response –
open-ended cycles of time
Dramatic Conventions
performed at seasonal festivals and celebrations
such as weddings, the dramas were regarded as rites
of renewal and order
characters are types, not individuals
contrasts and complements among diverse
elements:
lyric verse and prose dialogue
erotic and heroic moods
heroic king and gluttonous buffoon
Sanskrit spoken by noblemen, Prakrit spoken by
women, children and men of lower caste
domestic and public worlds; worlds of the court
and of nature; worlds of the human and divine
emotional universes of men and women
Kalidasa (fl. 4th- 5th C.CE.)
the dramatist and poet is regarded as the greatest
figure in classical Sanskrit literature
three surviving plays are Abhijnanasakuntala
(Sakunatala and the Ring of Recognition),
Vikramorvasi, and Malavikagnimitra
these court dramas in verse, nataka, relate fanciful
or mythological tales of profound romantic love
intensified and matured by adversity.
in Kalidasa's two epics, Raghuvansa and
Kumarasambhava, delicate descriptions of nature
are mingled with battle scenes
other poems of Kalidasa are shorter and almost
purely lyrical.
Sakuntala
Nataka: heroic romance – play about love between a
noble hero and a beautiful woman
dominant mood: the erotic rasa: tension between
duty, dharma, and desire, kama
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King Dusyanta falls in love with Sakuntala, daughter
of the nymph Menaka and foster daughter of the
ascetic hermit-sage, Kanva.
II. Indian Culture and Music
People
people with different clothing
people with different religions
people with different foods
people with different celebrations
Government
India is the world’s largest democracy
Famous Indians
Gandhi, India’s greatest peacemaker, who influenced
Martin Luther King, Jr.
Where people live
many Indian people live in villages in rural India
oher people in India live in large cities, like
New Dehli, the capital
Mumbai (West)
Home of Bollywood, India’s Hollywood
Kolkata (East)
Deccan (Southern Plateau), with cities like
Bangalore and Chennai
Mughal Empire- last and the strongest Islamic
empire in India
Agra and the Taj Mahal
Agra is a large city in northern India
home of India’s greatest historical monument, the
Taj Mahal
Transportation
Planes
Trains
Cars
Rickshaws
Camel & donkey carts
Bicycles
Walking
Traditional Music
Hindustani means classical music of North India
Carnatic means classical music of South India
Traditional Elements of Indian Music
Melody (raga)
Drone (harmony)
Rhythm (tala)
Indian Instruments
String
Wind
Percussion
Food
rice
vegetables
seafood
meat-however, cows are considered sacred by
Hindus, many of whom are vegetarian
Masala-spices
tea-common drink
Religious Beliefs
Hinduism
Buddhism
Islam (Muslims)
Sikhism
Christianity
Judaism
History
Indian civilization is ancient
Indus Valley Civilization- one of the first civilizations
on earth
Vedic period- a time in Indian history when the
7yHindu religion and caste system began in India
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