Myths, Legends and Rituals in Bhyrappa's Novels - Part 1

Myth has become a prominent term at present in literary criticism. A large group of writers, myth-critics like Robert Graves, Francis Ferguson, Maud Bodkin, Richard Chase, Northrop Frye, Joseph Campbell and others view the genres and individual plot patterns of many works of literature - including what appear on the surface to be highly sophisticated and realistic world, as recurrences of basic mythic formulas. As Northrop Frye puts it, "The typical forms of myth become the conventions and genres of literature." Archetypal critics tend to emphasise the occurrence of mythical patterns in literature on the assumption that myths are closer to the elemental archetype than the artful manipulations of sophisticated writers.  The theme of death and rebirth is said to be the archetype of archetypes.

Born and brought up in a land where mythology, mythological characters, legends, and folklore are an integral part of popular imagination and belief, it is quite natural that the literary luminary in the field of Kannada novels, S. L. Bhyrappa, makes abundant use of stories, incidents and characters from mythology, legends, folklores and stories that are either transformed or twisted through the ages. Besides this, he also uses excerpts from scriptures, and mythologies and depicts time-honoured social customs, rituals and religious rites that bring authenticity to his works.

Before analysing the use of myths in Bhyrappa‘s novels, I would like to elucidate the range of meaning of the word ‘myth’. In classical Greek ‘mythos' signified any story or plot, true or invented. In its central modern significance, however a myth is one story within a mythology, a system of hereditary stories, which were once believed to be true by a particular cultural group and which served to explain (in terms of the intentions and actions of deities and other supernatural beings) why the world is as it is and things happen as they do, to provide a framework for social customs and observances and to establish the sanctions for the rules by which people conduct their lives. Most myths are related to social rituals - set forms and procedures in sacred ceremonies - but anthropologists disagree as to whether rituals generated myths or myths generated rituals" (M.H. Abrams in ‘The literary terms and conditions’). Apart from these, the word 'myth' is used to signify any wildly held fallacy such as ‘myth of progress’, ‘the myth ofAmerican success’ etc. In our country we may talk of the ‘myth of secularism’ with this meaning.

Why does an author make use of myth? What advantage does this method offer him? The mythical method consists of seeking analogies for the present in the past and thereby allows the author to explore the contrasts and the similarities between the past and the present.

1) A myth is used as a norm, or as a pattern to measure the anarchy, confusion and degeneration of the present and attention is thus focused on modern society

2) It provides a pattern, a device for controlling and bringing order to  what is chaotic and shapeless.

3) It shows that the present spiritual predicament is an everrecurring phenomenon and hence acquires a universal significance.

4) It emphasizes the wide gulf that separates present human society from early human society, where human values were intact.

5) The use of myth enables the author to compress entire epochs into a short span of time and space, and thus provides comprehensiveness, brevity and poignancy to what the author has to convey.

6) Since traditional myths and legends are familiar to the common man as well to the erudite, the use of the mythical method helps the author to communicate his purpose and meaning easily and swiftly.

With the above mentioned points in mind, I would like to consider the use of myths, legends, and rituals in Bhyrappa’s novels. The various kinds of myths used in his novels may be categorised as:

1) Nature myths,

2) Myths related to popular beliefs or legends

3) Stories and incidents from mythologies

4) Rites and rituals from scriptures, Dharmashastras and from time-honoured, traditional customs.

Besides using myths in his novels, Bhyrappa has demystified the ‘Mahabharatha’ in ‘Parva’. And with that, he has created a new myth of his own method.

Many people have asked Bhyrappa why he has employed myths in ‘Saakshi’, even after having demystified the epic ‘Mahabharatha’. In an interview with M.S.K Prabhu (For ‘Karmaveera’, a Kannada weekly) Bhyrappa had addressed these questions.

Prabhu asks: After doing away with myths completely in ‘Parva’, you have used myths again in ‘Saakshi’; is this not an internal paradox in your point of view?’

Bhyrappa answers: ‘To me, creating literature is actually a sort of exploration of the meaning of the experience of life. Myths are the expressions of the meanings explored and arrived at by others. I felt that there is much more to be explored directly and realistically in the ‘Mahabharatha’, leaving aside the myths. Hence I did away with myths altogether in ‘Parva’. By discarding myths, much literary advantage is gained. But the motif of ‘Saakshi’ is in unveiling the faces of truth and untruth. As I went on probing, I found that it was not possible to evoke higher meaning at the actual, realistic level and thought that the range and profundity of meaning could be enhanced by using myths. Using myths means to take myths acquired from tradition, and to put them in the new contexts to get new meaning. I am neither an opponent of myths nor an enthusiastic defendant. What I needed was to enhance the depth and width of experience……”

When Prabhu asks whether the characters and other objects developed from the beginning would become insignificant at the end of ‘Saakshi’, as it takes a philosophical turn and the source of truth and untruth, reason and matter become an important issue, Bhyrappa answers, ‘Even in the last chapter that is delineated in the backdrop of myth, there are new aspects of the story. This notwithstanding, the tendencies that were found in the characters earlier would be developed as forces and principles. That means that this becomes the central vision of the whole novel. A literary work which lacks vision is a mere report. (In an interview for ‘Karmaveera’ with M.S.K Prabhu, ‘Bhyrappa Antardarashana’).

It is surprising to note that even though Bhyrappa has used various myths and legends in his many novels, only the use of myth in ‘Saakshi’ is stressed. Dealing first with the use of myth in Saakshi, I will try to analyse its use in other novels. The various benefits of employing myth in a literary work are exploited to their maximum in ‘Saakshi’, where the mythological concepts of Yamadharma, the God of death, Yamaloka, the world of the dead, Chitraguptas, the servants of Yamadharma and the thumb-sized spirit of the dead person Parameshwarayya are used to weave the texture of the story. Taking us directly to the court of Yamadharma, with Chitraguptas and the spirit of Parameshwarayya, Saakshi gives a perspective of life in this world here, of living people, from the world of the dead, with the detached consciousness of ‘Saakshi-prajne’.

The mythical concept that a person’s good and bad deeds are recorded without any bias by Chitraguptas during his lifetime and that this will be reported to Yamadharma after his death, in the presence of the spirit of the departed, is used there. Though it is a literary device, the myth enables the author to unveil very effectively the world of truth-untruth, trust, breach of trust, crime and punishment, taboos and transgressions, ethical and psychological probing of the conscience and the sheer force of evil that overpowers good. This use of myth transforms us to the puranic (mythical) world of conflict between the primodal forces of good and evil and demonic force and mild righteous power. The evil called Manjayya is destroyed physically only after ravaging much good and this happens to be the chief principle of tragedy. Manjayya’s positive qualities like courage, intelligence, and physical prowess all only help the evil in him to dominate and quicken, and that pushes him to cheat, lie, destroy families, indulge in innumerable immoral and incestuous relationships with women and finally to murder. Like the demons of the mythologies, he has positive qualities only for perpetuating evil. In Mohanlal of ‘Mandra’ all his positive achievements, positive qualities are annulled by his one weakness and moral turpitude.

 

(To be continued...)

Thanks to Gowtham Srihari for keying in the article

Author(s)

About:

Prof. Shantakumari is a teacher, writer, translator and literary critic. Her seminal work ‘Yugasaakshi’ is a critical and definitive study of S. L. Bhyrappa’s Kannada novels. ‘Chaitanyada Chilume’ and ‘Nenapu gari bicchidaaga’ are her autobiographical works. ‘Satyapathika-Socrates’ and ‘Kaggada-Kaanike’ are some of her major works. She has co-translated many of Bhyrappa's novels into English and parts of Will Durant's 'Story of Civilization' into Kannada.

Prekshaa Publications

Indian Perspective of Truth and Beauty in Homer’s Epics is a unique work on the comparative study of the Greek Epics Iliad and Odyssey with the Indian Epics – Rāmāyaṇa and Mahābhārata. Homer, who laid the foundations for the classical tradition of the West, occupies a stature similar to that occupied by the seer-poets Vālmīki and Vyāsa, who are synonymous with the Indian culture. The author...

Karnataka’s celebrated polymath, D V Gundappa brings together in the sixth volume of reminiscences character sketches of prominent public figures, liberals, and social workers. These remarkable personages hailing from different corners of South India are from a period that spans from the late nineteenth century to the mid-twentieth century. Written in Kannada in the 1970s, these memoirs go...

An Introduction to Hinduism based on Primary Sources

Authors: Śatāvadhānī Dr. R Ganesh, Hari Ravikumar

What is the philosophical basis for Sanātana-dharma, the ancient Indian way of life? What makes it the most inclusive and natural of all religio-philosophical systems in the world?

The Essential Sanātana-dharma serves as a handbook for anyone who wishes to grasp the...

Karnataka’s celebrated polymath, D V Gundappa brings together in the fifth volume, episodes from the lives of traditional savants responsible for upholding the Vedic culture. These memorable characters lived a life of opulence amidst poverty— theirs  was the wealth of the soul, far beyond money and gold. These vidvāns hailed from different corners of the erstwhile Mysore Kingdom and lived in...

Padma Bhushan Dr. Padma Subrahmanyam represents the quintessence of Sage Bharata’s art and Bhārata, the country that gave birth to the peerless seer of the Nāṭya-veda. Padma’s erudition in various streams of Indic knowledge, mastery over many classical arts, deep understanding of the nuances of Indian culture, creative genius, and sublime vision bolstered by the vedāntic and nationalistic...

Bhārata has been a land of plenty in many ways. We have had a timeless tradition of the twofold principle of Brāhma (spirit of wisdom) and Kṣāttra (spirit of valour) nourishing and protecting this sacred land. The Hindu civilisation, rooted in Sanātana-dharma, has constantly been enriched by brāhma and safeguarded by kṣāttra.
The renowned Sanskrit poet and scholar, Śatāvadhānī Dr. R...

ಛಂದೋವಿವೇಕವು ವರ್ಣವೃತ್ತ, ಮಾತ್ರಾಜಾತಿ ಮತ್ತು ಕರ್ಷಣಜಾತಿ ಎಂದು ವಿಭಕ್ತವಾದ ಎಲ್ಲ ಬಗೆಯ ಛಂದಸ್ಸುಗಳನ್ನೂ ವಿವೇಚಿಸುವ ಪ್ರಬಂಧಗಳ ಸಂಕಲನ. ಲೇಖಕರ ದೀರ್ಘಕಾಲಿಕ ಆಲೋಚನೆಯ ಸಾರವನ್ನು ಒಳಗೊಂಡ ಈ ಹೊತ್ತಗೆ ಪ್ರಧಾನವಾಗಿ ಛಂದಸ್ಸಿನ ಸೌಂದರ್ಯವನ್ನು ಲಕ್ಷಿಸುತ್ತದೆ. ತೌಲನಿಕ ವಿಶ್ಲೇಷಣೆ ಮತ್ತು ಅಂತಃಶಾಸ್ತ್ರೀಯ ಅಧ್ಯಯನಗಳ ತೆಕ್ಕೆಗೆ ಬರುವ ಬರೆಹಗಳೂ ಇಲ್ಲಿವೆ. ಶಾಸ್ತ್ರಕಾರನಿಗಲ್ಲದೆ ಸಿದ್ಧಹಸ್ತನಾದ ಕವಿಗೆ ಮಾತ್ರ ಸ್ಫುರಿಸಬಲ್ಲ ಎಷ್ಟೋ ಹೊಳಹುಗಳು ಕೃತಿಯ ಮೌಲಿಕತೆಯನ್ನು ಹೆಚ್ಚಿಸಿವೆ. ಈ...

Karnataka’s celebrated polymath, D V Gundappa brings together in the fourth volume, some character sketches of the Dewans of Mysore preceded by an account of the political framework of the State before Independence and followed by a review of the political conditions of the State after 1940. These remarkable leaders of Mysore lived in a period that spans from the mid-nineteenth century to the...

Bharatiya Kavya-mimamseya Hinnele is a monograph on Indian Aesthetics by Mahamahopadhyaya N. Ranganatha Sharma. The book discusses the history and significance of concepts pivotal to Indian literary theory. It is equally useful to the learned and the laity.

Sahitya-samhite is a collection of literary essays in Kannada. The book discusses aestheticians such as Ananda-vardhana and Rajashekhara; Sanskrit scholars such as Mena Ramakrishna Bhat, Sridhar Bhaskar Varnekar and K S Arjunwadkar; and Kannada litterateurs such as DVG, S L Bhyrappa and S R Ramaswamy. It has a foreword by Shatavadhani Dr. R Ganesh.

The Mahābhārata is the greatest epic in the world both in magnitude and profundity. A veritable cultural compendium of Bhārata-varṣa, it is a product of the creative genius of Maharṣi Kṛṣṇa-dvaipāyana Vyāsa. The epic captures the experiential wisdom of our civilization and all subsequent literary, artistic, and philosophical creations are indebted to it. To read the Mahābhārata is to...

Shiva Rama Krishna

சிவன். ராமன். கிருஷ்ணன்.
இந்திய பாரம்பரியத்தின் முப்பெரும் கதாநாயகர்கள்.
உயர் இந்தியாவில் தலைமுறைகள் பல கடந்தும் கடவுளர்களாக போற்றப்பட்டு வழிகாட்டிகளாக விளங்குபவர்கள்.
மனித ஒற்றுமை நூற்றாண்டுகால பரிணாம வளர்ச்சியின் பரிமாணம்.
தனிநபர்களாகவும், குடும்ப உறுப்பினர்களாகவும், சமுதாய பிரஜைகளாகவும் நாம் அனைவரும் பரிமளிக்கிறோம்.
சிவன் தனிமனித அடையாளமாக அமைகிறான்....

ऋतुभिः सह कवयः सदैव सम्बद्धाः। विशिष्य संस्कृतकवयः। यथा हि ऋतवः प्रतिसंवत्सरं प्रतिनवतामावहन्ति मानवेषु तथैव ऋतुवर्णनान्यपि काव्यरसिकेषु कामपि विच्छित्तिमातन्वते। ऋतुकल्याणं हि सत्यमिदमेव हृदि कृत्वा प्रवृत्तम्। नगरजीवनस्य यान्त्रिकतां मान्त्रिकतां च ध्वनदिदं चम्पूकाव्यं गद्यपद्यमिश्रितमिति सुव्यक्तमेव। ऐदम्पूर्वतया प्रायः पुरीपरिसरप्रसृतानाम् ऋतूनां विलासोऽत्र प्रपञ्चितः। बेङ्गलूरुनामके...

The Art and Science of Avadhānam in Sanskrit is a definitive work on Sāhityāvadhānam, a form of Indian classical art based on multitasking, lateral thinking, and extempore versification. Dotted throughout with tasteful examples, it expounds in great detail on the theory and practice of this unique performing art. It is as much a handbook of performance as it is an anthology of well-turned...

This anthology is a revised edition of the author's 1978 classic. This series of essays, containing his original research in various fields, throws light on the socio-cultural landscape of Tamil Nadu spanning several centuries. These compelling episodes will appeal to scholars and laymen alike.
“When superstitious mediaevalists mislead the country about its judicial past, we have to...

The cultural history of a nation, unlike the customary mainstream history, has a larger time-frame and encompasses the timeless ethos of a society undergirding the course of events and vicissitudes. A major key to the understanding of a society’s unique character is an appreciation of the far-reaching contributions by outstanding personalities of certain periods – especially in the realms of...

Prekṣaṇīyam is an anthology of essays on Indian classical dance and theatre authored by multifaceted scholar and creative genius, Śatāvadhānī Dr. R Ganesh. As a master of śāstra, a performing artiste (of the ancient art of Avadhānam), and a cultured rasika, he brings a unique, holistic perspective to every discussion. These essays deal with the philosophy, history, aesthetics, and practice of...

Yaugandharam

इदं किञ्चिद्यामलं काव्यं द्वयोः खण्डकाव्ययोः सङ्कलनरूपम्। रामानुरागानलं हि सीतापरित्यागाल्लक्ष्मणवियोगाच्च श्रीरामेणानुभूतं हृदयसङ्क्षोभं वर्णयति । वात्सल्यगोपालकं तु कदाचिद्भानूपरागसमये घटितं यशोदाश्रीकृष्णयोर्मेलनं वर्णयति । इदम्प्रथमतया संस्कृतसाहित्ये सम्पूर्णं काव्यं...

Vanitakavitotsavah

इदं खण्डकाव्यमान्तं मालिनीछन्दसोपनिबद्धं विलसति। मेनकाविश्वामित्रयोः समागमः, तत्फलतया शकुन्तलाया जननम्, मातापितृभ्यां त्यक्तस्य शिशोः कण्वमहर्षिणा परिपालनं चेति काव्यस्यास्येतिवृत्तसङ्क्षेपः।

Vaiphalyaphalam

इदं खण्डकाव्यमान्तं मालिनीछन्दसोपनिबद्धं विलसति। मेनकाविश्वामित्रयोः समागमः, तत्फलतया शकुन्तलाया जननम्, मातापितृभ्यां त्यक्तस्य शिशोः कण्वमहर्षिणा परिपालनं चेति काव्यस्यास्येतिवृत्तसङ्क्षेपः।

Nipunapraghunakam

इयं रचना दशसु रूपकेष्वन्यतमस्य भाणस्य निदर्शनतामुपैति। एकाङ्करूपकेऽस्मिन् शेखरकनामा चित्रोद्यमलेखकः केनापि हेतुना वियोगम् अनुभवतोश्चित्रलेखामिलिन्दकयोः समागमं सिसाधयिषुः कथामाकाशभाषणरूपेण निर्वहति।

Bharavatarastavah

अस्मिन् स्तोत्रकाव्ये भगवन्तं शिवं कविरभिष्टौति। वसन्ततिलकयोपनिबद्धस्य काव्यस्यास्य कविकृतम् उल्लाघनाभिधं व्याख्यानं च वर्तते।

Karnataka’s celebrated polymath, D V Gundappa brings together in the third volume, some character sketches of great literary savants responsible for Kannada renaissance during the first half of the twentieth century. These remarkable...

Karnataka’s celebrated polymath, D V Gundappa brings together in the second volume, episodes from the lives of remarkable exponents of classical music and dance, traditional storytellers, thespians, and connoisseurs; as well as his...

Karnataka’s celebrated polymath, D V Gundappa brings together in the first volume, episodes from the lives of great writers, poets, literary aficionados, exemplars of public life, literary scholars, noble-hearted common folk, advocates...

Evolution of Mahabharata and Other Writings on the Epic is the English translation of S R Ramaswamy's 1972 Kannada classic 'Mahabharatada Belavanige' along with seven of his essays on the great epic. It tells the riveting...

Shiva-Rama-Krishna is an English adaptation of Śatāvadhāni Dr. R Ganesh's popular lecture series on the three great...

Bharatilochana

ಮಹಾಮಾಹೇಶ್ವರ ಅಭಿನವಗುಪ್ತ ಜಗತ್ತಿನ ವಿದ್ಯಾವಲಯದಲ್ಲಿ ಮರೆಯಲಾಗದ ಹೆಸರು. ಮುಖ್ಯವಾಗಿ ಶೈವದರ್ಶನ ಮತ್ತು ಸೌಂದರ್ಯಮೀಮಾಂಸೆಗಳ ಪರಮಾಚಾರ್ಯನಾಗಿ  ಸಾವಿರ ವರ್ಷಗಳಿಂದ ಇವನು ಜ್ಞಾನಪ್ರಪಂಚವನ್ನು ಪ್ರಭಾವಿಸುತ್ತಲೇ ಇದ್ದಾನೆ. ಭರತಮುನಿಯ ನಾಟ್ಯಶಾಸ್ತ್ರವನ್ನು ಅರ್ಥಮಾಡಿಕೊಳ್ಳಲು ಇವನೊಬ್ಬನೇ ನಮಗಿರುವ ಆಲಂಬನ. ಇದೇ ರೀತಿ ರಸಧ್ವನಿಸಿದ್ಧಾಂತವನ್ನು...

Vagarthavismayasvadah

“वागर्थविस्मयास्वादः” प्रमुखतया साहित्यशास्त्रतत्त्वानि विमृशति । अत्र सौन्दर्यर्यशास्त्रीयमूलतत्त्वानि यथा रस-ध्वनि-वक्रता-औचित्यादीनि सुनिपुणं परामृष्टानि प्रतिनवे चिकित्सकप्रज्ञाप्रकाशे। तदन्तर एव संस्कृतवाङ्मयस्य सामर्थ्यसमाविष्कारोऽपि विहितः। क्वचिदिव च्छन्दोमीमांसा च...

The Best of Hiriyanna

The Best of Hiriyanna is a collection of forty-eight essays by Prof. M. Hiriyanna that sheds new light on Sanskrit Literature, Indian...

Stories Behind Verses

Stories Behind Verses is a remarkable collection of over a hundred anecdotes, each of which captures a story behind the composition of a Sanskrit verse. Collected over several years from...