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An epic poem, or simply an epic, is a lengthy narrative poem typically about the extraordinary deeds of extraordinary characters who, in dealings with gods or other superhuman forces, gave shape to the mortal universe for their descendants.
Prakrit is a group of vernacular Middle Indo-Aryan languages that were used in the Indian subcontinent from around the 3rd century BCE to the 8th century CE. The term Prakrit is usually applied to the middle period of Middle Indo-Aryan languages, excluding earlier inscriptions and Pali.
Sanskrit literature broadly comprises all literature in the Sanskrit language. This includes texts composed in the earliest attested descendant of the Proto-Indo-Aryan language known as Vedic Sanskrit, texts in Classical Sanskrit as well as some mixed and non-standard forms of Sanskrit. Literature in the older language begins with the composition of the Ṛg·veda between about 1500 and 1000 BCE, followed by other Vedic works right up to the time of the grammarian Pāṇini around 6th or 4th century BCE.
In Indian literature, Kāma-shastra refers to the tradition of works on Kāma: Desire. It therefore has a practical orientation, similar to that of Arthashastra, the tradition of texts on politics and government. Just as the latter instructs kings and ministers about government, Kāmashastra aims to instruct the townsman (nāgarika) in the way to attain enjoyment and fulfillment.
Tolkāppiyam, also romanised as Tholkaappiyam, is the most ancient extant Tamil grammar text and the oldest extant long work of Tamil literature. It is the earliest Tamil text mentioning Gods, perhaps linked to Hindu deities.
Daṇḍi or Daṇḍin was an Indian Sanskrit grammarian and author of prose romances. He is one of the best-known writers in Asian history.
The Sangam literature, historically known as 'the poetry of the noble ones', connotes the early classical Tamil literature and is the earliest known literature of South India. The Tamil tradition and legends link it to three legendary literary gatherings around Madurai and Kapāṭapuram: the first lasted over 4,440 years, the second over 3,700 years, and the third over 1,850 years. Scholars consider this Tamil tradition-based chronology as ahistorical and mythical. Most scholars suggest the historical Sangam literature era, also called the Sangam period, spanned from c. 300 BCE to 300 CE, while others variously place this early classical Tamil literature period a bit later and more narrowly but all before 300 CE. According to Kamil Zvelebil, a Tamil literature and history scholar, the most acceptable range for the Sangam literature is 100 BCE to 250 CE, based on the linguistic, prosodic and quasi-historic allusions within the texts and the colophons.
Kāvya refers to the Sanskrit literary style used by Indian court poets flourishing between c.200 BCE and 1200 CE.
Bharavi was a 6th century Indian poet known for his epic poem Kirātārjunīya, one of the six mahakavyas in classical Sanskrit.
Mahākāvya, also known as sargabandha, is a genre of Indian epic poetry in Classical Sanskrit. The genre is characterised by ornate and elaborate descriptions of scenery, love, battles and so on — in short, everything that tests a poet's skill at description. Typical examples of mahākāvya are the Kumarasambhava and the Kiratarjuniya.
Medieval Kannada literature covered a wide range of subjects and genres which can broadly be classified under the Jain, Virashaiva, Vaishnava and secular traditions. These include writings from the 7th century rise of the Badami Chalukya empire to the 16th century, coinciding with the decline of Vijayanagara Empire. The earliest known literary works until about the 12th century CE were mostly authored by the Jainas along with a few works by Virashaivas and Brahmins and hence this period is called the age of Jain literature,. The 13th century CE, to the 15th century CE, saw the emergence of numerous Virashaiva and Brahminical writers with a proportional decline in Jain literary works. Thereafter, Virashaiva and Brahmin writers have dominated the Kannada literary tradition. Some of the earliest metres used by Jain writers prior to 9th century include the chattana, bedande and the melvadu metres, writings in which have not been discovered but are known from references made to them in later centuries. Popular metres from the 9th century onwards when Kannada literature is available are the champu-kavyas or just champu, vachanasangatya, shatpadi, ragale, tripadi, and kavya.
Shudraka was an Indian playwright, to whom three Sanskrit plays are attributed: Mrichchhakatika, Vinavasavadatta, and a bhana, Padmaprabhritaka. According to the prologue of Mrichchhakatika, he was a king; according to one theory, he may have been a third century Abhira king. According to another theory, Shudraka is a mythical figure, and the authorship of plays attributed to him is uncertain. Col. Wilfred has identified him with Simuka, the founder of Satavahana dynasty and placed him in 200 B.C.
Magha was a Sanskrit poet at King Varmalata's court at Shrimala, the then-capital of Gujarat. Magha was born in a Shrimali Brahmin family. He was the son of Dattaka Sarvacharya and the grandson of Suprabhadeva. His epic poem (mahākāvya) Shishupala Vadha, in 20 sargas (cantos), is based on the Mahabharata episode in which Krishna uses his chakra (disc) to behead the defiant king Shishupala. He is thought to have been inspired by, and is often compared with, Bharavi.
Bhaṭṭikāvya is a Sanskrit-language poem dating from the 7th century CE, in the formal genre of the "great poem" (mahākāvya). It focuses on two deeply rooted Sanskrit traditions, the Ramayana and Panini's grammar, while incorporating numerous other traditions, in a rich mix of science and art, poetically retelling the adventures of Rama and a compendium of examples of grammar and rhetoric. As literature, it is often considered to withstand comparison with the best of Sanskrit poetry.
The Kavyadarsha by Dandin is the earliest surviving systematic treatment of poetics in Sanskrit.
Bhamaha was a Sanskrit poetician believed to be contemporaneous with Daṇḍin. He is noted for writing a work called the Kavyalankara. For centuries, he was known only by reputation, until manuscripts of the Kāvyālaṃkāra came to the attention of scholars in the early 1900s.
Bṛhatkathā is an ancient Indian epic, said to have been written by Guṇāḍhya in a poorly-understood language known as Paiśācī. The work no longer exists but several later adaptations — the Kathāsaritsāgara (कथासरित्सागर), Bṛhatkathāmañjarī (बृहत्कथामंजरी) and Bṛhatkathāślokasaṃgraha (बृहत्कथाश्लोकसंग्रह) in Sanskrit, as well as the Peruṅkatai and Vasudevahiṃḍi in vernaculars — make commentary on the piece.
The sandesha kavya or a duta kavya is a literary form and genre of Sanskrit poetry. Described as a messenger poem, the narrative of a sandesha kavya commonly consists of an exiled lover sending a message to a separated beloved through a messenger, who could be a natural element such as a bird, a cloud, the wind, or a human being. The genre combines the themes of love and separation with descriptions of the landscapes of the natural world. Kalidasa's Meghaduta is regarded to be the most popular example of this literary form.
Guṇāḍhya is the Sanskrit name of the sixth-century Indian author of the Bṛhatkathā, a large collection of tales attested by Daṇḍin, the author of the Kavyadarsha, Subandhu, the author of Vasavadatta, and Bāṇabhaṭṭa, the author of the Kadambari. Scholars compare Guṇāḍhya with Vyasa and Valmiki even though he did not write the now long-lost Brihatkatha in Sanskrit; the loss of this text is one of the greatest losses of Indian literature. Presently available are its two Kashmiri Sanskrit recensions, the Brihatkathamanjari by Kshemendra and the Kathasaritsagara by Somadeva.
Riddles have at times been an important literary or folk-literary form in South Asia. Indeed, it is thought that the world's earliest surviving poetic riddles are those found in the Sanskrit Rigveda.
References
- ↑ Ruth E. Kott (October 2010). "Language duel". University of Chicago Magazine. Retrieved 25 June 2024.
- ↑ Darshi Shah. "Emerging Field of Poetry: Slesa or Bi-textual poetry: 6 Important Insights". www.universitytimes.in. Retrieved 25 June 2024.
- 1 2 3 Yigal Bronner (2010). Extreme Poetry: The South Asian movement of Simutaneous Narration. New York: Columbia University Press.
- 1 2 3 Dandi (1964). Kavyadarsa by Dandi with commentary by Jeevananda Vidyasagara Bhattacharya and Introduction and Notes in English by A. Narayana Ayer. Madras: V. Ramaswamy Sastrulu & Sons. p. 186. Retrieved 25 June 2024.