| Page 239 | Prekshaa

Author:D V Gundappa

The Unalloyed Erudition M. Hiriyanna: Writing to Elevate Himself

Then there was a matter related to Sanskrit Grammar. I had employed a certain diction in one of my writings. Actually, it was a re-edit of what I had written earlier. When Hiriyanna read it, he said, “we can justify your diction using a grammatical rule. But from the perspective of idiom, it appears that it is improper. We can accept your earlier usage. One may rethink this.”

Equally, to determine the meaning of a random poem that I’d written, his response was similar: “One may think and decide.”

The Bhakti Sutras of Narada: Part 3

दुस्सङ्गः सर्वथैव त्याज्यः । ४३
43. Always avoid bad company.

कामक्रोधमोहस्मृतिभ्रंशबुद्धिनाशकारणत्वात् । ४४
44. It (evil company) is the cause for lust, anger, attachment, decline of learning, and the destruction of the intellect.

तरङ्गायिता अपीमे सङ्गात् समुद्रायन्ते । ४५
45. The ripples (of lust, anger, attachment, etc.) take the form of the ocean because of such company.

संस्कृतसाहित्यचर्यासपर्या

यदृच्छास्वच्छविस्तीर्णामविच्छिन्नरसावहाम्।
अगाधापारपारम्यां श्रये संस्कृतवाहिनीम्॥

तदिदं मुदावहं यदाधुनिकसंस्कृतसाहित्यवरिवस्याविवेचनात्मकमत्र सत्रं प्रकल्पितम्। दिनद्वयात्मकेऽस्मिन् सारस्वतसवने समर्पितानि स्वरसानि बोधप्रदानि च नैकानि प्रस्तावनहवींषि, येन बुभुत्सवो व्युत्पिपत्सवश्च विद्वद्रसिकवैतानवह्नयः समाराधितास्स्युः। अन्यच्च प्रश्नोत्तरपुरोडाशानां संवादसोमाहुतीनां परिवादपशूनां च विनियोगेन सारस्वतसप्ततन्तुरयं सर्वथा सम्पन्न इति मन्ये।

Deepavali: A Festival of Light and Delight

A popular prayer from the Upanishads implores a movement from lies to truth, from darkness to brightness, and from death to eternal life (Brihadaranyaka Upanishad 1.3.28). The second line of this prayer – तमसो मा ज्योतिर्गमय – is no doubt a metaphor, the darkness representing ignorance and brightness representing wisdom. Ignorance often results from laziness, and the word ‘tamas’ in Sanskrit captures all these shades of meaning – darkness, lethargy, ignorance, error, illusion, etc. Deepavali, in some sense, is victory over tamas.

Sir M. Visvesvaraya

A documentary on Sir M. Visvesvaraya, an accomplished civil engineer and astute statesman who helped build the Mysore state.

A Story for a Verse - Vidyanatha

नवलक्षधनुर्धराधिनाथे
पृथिवीं शासति वीररुद्रभूपे |
अभवत्परमाग्रहारपीडा
कुचकुम्भेषु कुरङ्गलोचनानाम् ॥

The Bhakti Sutras of Narada: Part 2

In the second part of this series, we take a look at the next twenty-one sutras of Narada on bhakti (verses 22 to 42).

तत्रापि न माहात्म्यज्ञानविस्मृत्यपवादः । २२
22. Even so (in the case of the cowgirls), one can’t criticize them of being oblivious to the awareness of divinity.

‘Vaiyakarani’ Garani Krishnacharya: Peerless Grammarian

An eminent man of letters and a well-known personality, whom I loved and respected as an elder brother (Dr. B K Narayana Rao) would often say this about his guru: the positive influence that Garani Krishnacharya’s personality had on him was unmatched. Krishnacharya’s scholarship was great but even greater was the beauty of his character. He was elegant both outside and within. Everybody felt the need for his presence, his friendship, and his conversation.

Yakshagana and allied art forms - Part III

Vaachikaabhinaya (vocal communication – through words) is of two kinds – songs/ poems set to a rhythmic cycle (taala) and prose. Kuchupudi, Bhagavatamela and Kathakali have completely adopted Carnatic classical music today. This is even more prominent in Melattur Bhagavatamela. Kuchupdi has retained some special features of the Natya-sangeetha of Andhra. One can observe traces of Sopaana-Sangeetha in Kathakali, but it does not have the regional flavor that the music used in Krishnanaattam has.

ವಿಶ್ವವ್ಯಾಪಿ ದೀಪಾವಳೀ

ಭಾರತೀಯರು ಹಬ್ಬಗಳನ್ನು ವ್ರತ, ಪರ್ವ, ಮತ್ತು ಉತ್ಸವಗಳೆಂದು ಪ್ರಾಯಿಕವಾಗಿ ಮೂರು ವರ್ಗಗಳಲ್ಲಿ ಕಂಡರಿಸಿದ್ದಾರೆ. ವ್ರತ ವೈಯಕ್ತಿಕವಾದದ್ದು. ಧರ್ಮ-ಮೊಕ್ಷಗಳಿಗೇ ಅಲ್ಲಿ ಪ್ರಾಧಾನ್ಯ. ನಿಯಮ-ನಿಷ್ಠೆಗಳ ಅಂತರ್ಮುಖತೆಗೇ ಅಲ್ಲಿ ಅಗ್ರತಾಂಬೂಲ. ಪರ್ವ ಕೌಟುಂಬಿಕವಾದದ್ದು. ಇಲ್ಲಿ ಅರ್ಥ-ಕಾಮಗಳೂ ಹದವಾಗಿ ಕಲೆಯುತ್ತವೆ. ನಿಯಮ-ನಿಷ್ಠೆಗಳಿಗೆ ಹಾಳತವಾದ ಆತ್ಮೀಯತೆ, ಅಚ್ಚು-ಕಟ್ಟುಗಳೂ ಕೂಡಿಕೊಳ್ಳುತ್ತವೆ. ಉತ್ಸವವು ಸಾಮೂಹಿಕ(ಸಾಮಾಜಿಕ)ವಾದದ್ದು.