Bitextual work (or bi-textual work) is a form of writing where the same text can have different meanings due to the multiple meanings of words used in the text. Similar to a pun but at a higher intellectual level. This form of literary creations was most popular among Sanskrit writers and, due to the influence of Sanskrit literature, spread to other regional languages in India. In Sanskrit it is known as śleṣa which literally means to "embrace'. It had its origins in the sixth century CE where it flourished in India until the colonial times. In modern times, the writing of bi-textual poems is looked down upon and is considered as an inferior literary activity. [1] [2] [3]
The term "bitextual work", or more specifically "bitextual poetry", should not be confused with the term "bidirectional poetry". The latter is a genre of poetry in Sanskrit in which each stanza can be read both from left to right and from right to left, the two readings giving totally different meanings. Rāmakṛṣṇavilomakāvyaṃ of Sūryadāsa (c. 1580) is well known example of this genre of poetry.
Daṇḍin (fl. 7th–8th century) in his Kāvyādarśa , which is the earliest surviving systematic treatment of poetics in Sanskrit, illustrates the concept of sleṣa with the following verse: [4]
- असावुदयमारूढः कान्तिमान् रक्तमण्डलः ।
- राजा हरति लोकस्य हृदयं मृदुभिः करैः ॥
- asāvudayamārūdhah kāntimān raktamandalah ।
- rājāharati lokasya hrdayam mrdubhih karaih ॥
The verse can be translated into English in the following two ways illustrating the fact that it has two totally different meanings. [4]
- “This person has ascended the region of prosperity and is full of splendour; and the mandalas of districts are attached to him; and he the king captivates the hearts of the people by light taxes."
- "This resplendent moon has ascended the heavens and is full of splendor and is reddish (as he newly rises) and he captivates the people by soft rays."
The meanings arise due the different meanings of the words that appear in the verse. The word "udaya" has several meanings. In the first meaning it refers to the eastern mountain, over which the moon ascends; in the second meaning it refers to a king’s rise to power. Likewise, the word "ma\d n\d dala" means a circle, like the moon’s disc, which is the meaning used in the first translation of the verse. But it can also mean a king’s circle of allies which is the meaning chosen for the second translation. The word "kara"-s means the moon’s rays, but it also means the taxes levied by a king. In a more general setting, in the traditions of Sanskrit literature, the moon itself is imagined to be the king of the stars.
Daṇḍin has followed up the above verse with the following verse which may be thought of as the continuation of a poem: [4]
- दोषाकरेण सम्बन्धन् नक्षत्रपथवर्तिना ।
- राज्ञा प्रदोषो मामिथमप्रियं किं न बाधते ॥
- doṣākareṇa sambandhan nakṣatrapathavartinā ।
- rājñā pradoṣo māmithamapriyaṃ kiṃ na bādhate ॥
The two different translations of the verse based on its two different meanings are as follows: [3]
- "Having secured an alliance with that vicious king, whose conduct is far from noble, is there anything to stop this villain from tormenting his enemy — me?"
- "Now that he’s joined by that nocturnal king, who resides among the planets, is there anything to stop the evening from tormenting me — separated from my beloved?"
To get the different meanings, the words in the verse may have to be split up differently. For example, the word "nakṣatra" without splitting up means planet; but it can be split up as "na" + "kṣatra" which then has the meaning "not a warrior".
The earliest Sanskrit poets never used śleṣa to embellish their poems. For example, there are no śleṣa-s in Valmiki's Ramayana considered to be the first poem in Sanskrit. However one can see śleṣa-s in the mahākāva-s of the second century CE author Aśvaghoṣa, but at the same time the great fourth century poet and play-wright Kālidāsa used śleṣa-s only very rarely. Śleṣa appears prominently for the first time in the writing of the sixth century CE poet Bhāravi. The earliest literary creation which used śleṣa extensively is Vāsavadattā, a work written entirely in prose by a sixth century author by name Subandhu. Nothing much is known about the author Subandhu.The work Vāsavadattā must have been highly acclaimed and popular and this is attested by the fact that it has caused more than twenty commentaries to be written.
The following is a partial list of some of the notable bitextual works in Sanskrit whose copies are still extant. [3]