Vakrokti

Vakrokti

Introduction:

In literature, there has always been a big question about how language is used in poetry. This question has been debated by thinkers throughout history, like Plato, Aristotle, Wordsworth, and T.S. Eliot. Some, like Aristotle and Longinus, thought that poetic language should be grand and impressive. Others, like Wordsworth, believed that poetry should use everyday language. Modernist poets, like Eliot, focused on using simple language to convey deep emotions.

This debate isn't limited to Western literature. In India, too, thinkers have discussed how language is used in poetry.

One important concept in poetry is "vakrokti," which means deviant language. This is when poets use expressions that aren't straightforward. They do this to make their poetry more interesting and creative. If poetry was too straightforward, it would be dull. So, poets use language that doesn't give clear, literal meanings. This lack of clarity actually helps to make poetry more imaginative and engaging.

Here are some key aspects of how language is used in poetry, focusing on Vakrokti.

Meaning:

The term 'Vakrokti' comes from two words: 'vakra,' which means 'crooked, oblique, or unique,' and 'ukti,' which means 'expression' or 'speech.' So, ‘Vakrokti’ literally means 'crooked' or 'indirect speech.' In a broader sense, it refers to striking expression. Some scholars think Vakrokti goes back to ancient texts like the Atharvaveda and Agnipurāna, where it is used to talk about crookedness. Bānabhatta, a famous Sanskrit writer, is one of the earliest people known to use this term, using it for figurative speech.

However, it is not just about being figurative. In his work Harshacharitam, Bānabhatta wrote, “Navorartho jātiragrāmy ślesoaklistasphuto rasah, Vikatāksarabandhaścākritsnamekatra durlambham.” This means that combining originality, unique natural descriptions, subtle puns, clear emotions, and a clever arrangement of words is a real challenge in writing.

(वक्रोक्तिनिपुणेनाख्यायिकाख्यानपरिचयचतुरेण। कवितालङ्कारस्थैर्यध्वनिप्रतिपद्योर्मध्ये शिवाग्रे॥

This verse praises the proficiency of a skilled storyteller who is adept in the use of vakrokti (indirect expression) and has a deep understanding of narration and storytelling. It suggests that amidst the elements of poetry, rhetoric, and sound, such a storyteller stands at the forefront, embodying excellence.

नवोऽर्थो जातिरागम्यः स्लेषोऽक्लिष्टस्फुटो रसः। धीरोत्कृष्टाङ्गैराहारः संयोगाद्विप्रतिपद् गुणैः॥

This verse describes the qualities of a good rasa (aesthetic experience) in dramatic composition according to the Nāṭyaśāstra. It says that the rasa should be new in meaning, universal in appeal, easily understood, clear in emotion, composed of excellent elements, and expressed through appropriate conjunctions and qualities.)

Varied Interpretations of the term ‘Vakrokti’:

• Bhāmaha believes that vakrokti includes both indirect language and meaning.

• According to Vāmana, vakrokti is figurativeness based on analogy, known as "Sādrsyālaksana vakroktih".

• Kuntaka links vakrokti to the poet's creative process, suggesting it arises from skilled style (vaidagdhya) and elegance.

• He defines vakrokti as an ingenious utterance unique to poetry, different from everyday language, clever, witty, and startling. The primary goal of vakrokti is aesthetic appeal, often synonymous with beauty.

• Kuntaka uses terms like vaicitrya, cārutva, camatkāra interchangeably with vakratā, implying vakrokti also denotes beautiful expression.

• Abhinavagupta, a contemporary of Kuntaka, viewed vakrokti as a fundamental aspect present in all figures of speech.

• While vakrokti literally means crooked or indirect speech, its meaning extends beyond this narrow definition.

• Raghavan defines vakrokti as a "striking, deviating expression," while S. K. De describes it as a form of "heightened expression."

• Kuppuswami Sastri sees vakrokti as a deviation from commonplace expression, while Gnoli refers to it as the "curved or oblique diction" specific to poetry.

• Different Sanskrit scholars offer varied interpretations of vakrokti, yet they agree that poetry transcends mere linguistic structure.

• Poetry utilizes language creatively, aiming for beauty and striking expression.

• Vakrokti is regarded as the distinguishing feature of poetry, characterized by unique and charming utterances.

• It elevates poetry above common speech, enhancing its beauty and appeal.

Exponents of Vakrokti:

1. Bānabhatta:

   • Early proponent of vakrokti.

   • Considered vakrokti as the distinguishing feature of poetic language.

   • Viewed vakrokti as elevating linguistic expression to poetry status.

2. Bhāmaha:

   • Regarded vakrokti as a collective term for all poetic figures.

   • Identified it with Hyperbole (Atiśayokti) and essential for beauty in speech.

   • Emphasized its importance for poets to cultivate.

3. Dandin:

   • Recognized vakrokti's significance after Bhāmaha.

   • Differentiated between Vakrokti and Svabhāvokti (natural utterance).

   • Included all figures of speech under vakrokti except for Svabhāvokti.

4. Vāmana:

   • Limited the scope of vakrokti by defining it as figurativeness based on analogy.

   • Used vakrokti to denote a poetic embellishment involving secondary word meanings.

5. Ānandavardhana:

   • Mentioned vakrokti in Dhvanyāloka.

   • Affirmed strikingness in meaning as discernible in every poetic figure.

   • Associated vakrokti with suggestiveness, linking it to dhvani.

6. Rudrata:

   • Further limited vakrokti as a lexical figure of speech.

   • Divided it into two kinds: Kākuvakrokti and Ślesavakrokti.

7. Bhoja:

   • Classified literature into svabhāvokti, vakrokti, and rasokti.

   • Defined poetry as extraordinary expression, distinct from non-poetic language.

8. Kuntaka:

   • Greatest exponent of Vakrokti Siddhānta.

   • Elaborated vakrokti in his treatise "Vakroktijīvitam".

Kuntaka’s Vakroktijivita:

• Kuntaka elevates vakrokti as the primary aesthetic principle in poetry, equating it with beauty in all forms of poetic language. He views vakrokti as the essence of poetry, stating it's the life and soul of poetic expression, giving birth to beauty and wonder. Kuntaka shifts focus from reader experience to the poetic genius (Pratibhā), which adds uniqueness even to ordinary speech. He emphasizes that mere presence of words (śabda) and meanings (artha) doesn't make a work literary; poetic language's uniqueness is essential.

• Kuntaka highlights the importance of the poetic word, conveying intended meaning and charming sensitive readers through ornamentation and obliqueness in speech. He contrasts poetic language with common speech, noting its elegance and ability to transcend ignorance. Kuntaka views poetic language as distinctly different from ordinary speech. Ordinary language lacks elegance and grace, according to Kuntaka, possessing a rustic quality and failing to dispel ignorance.

• Vakrokti serves as the distinguishing feature of poetic language for Kuntaka, deviating from clichés through imaginative turns. Mere charm in words is insufficient for conveying ideas without harmony with poetic content, states Kuntaka. Poetry's function, according to Kuntaka, involves introducing obliqueness to create beauty and appeal to sensitive readers. Poetic creation requires poetic dexterity, enabled by the poet's pratibhā (creative faculty).

• Pratibhā, an inborn instinct, is the source of vakrokti according to Kuntaka, akin to a philosopher's stone transforming ordinary language into poetic expression. Kuntaka compares the poet to a painter, likening poetry composition to painting a picture with various rhetorical tools and styles. Recognizing the significance of vakrokti, Kuntaka presents a comprehensive philosophy of poetic expression.

Classification of Vakrokti:

Kuntaka categorized vakrokti into six groups, which can be broadly divided into two types:

a) Grammatical and  b) Non-grammatical.

(a) The grammatical aspect of vakrokti focuses on the internal structure of language and includes:

i. Phonetic obliquity (Varna-vinyāsa vakratā) —encompasses alliteration, rhyme, and all other subtle effects of sound in poetry. Kuntaka recognises onomatopoeic effects. Shakespeare’s ‘Fair is foul and foul is fair’.

ii. Lexical obliquity (Pada-pūrvārdha vakratā) —includes stylistic choice in vocabulary, metaphor, power of adjectives and veiled expressions. For example, carefully concealing a Mahapataka—“Is he despatche’d

iii. Grammatical obliquity (Pada-parardha vakratā) —involves the deft use of suffixes, especially those indicating numbers, person, and case forms. It also includes delineation of inanimate objects as animate and personification of objects—instead of saying ‘tense’—‘make my seated heart knock at my ribs’.

iv. Sentential obliquity (Vākya-vakratā)—it is the permeating presence that enters all other elements. The effect is akin to a painter’s stroke that shines out distinctively from the beauty of the material used. Most of the figures of speech are instances of it.

                                    ‘Out, out, brief candle

                                    Life is but a walking shadow, a poor player

                                    That struts and frets his hour upon the stage

                                    And then is heard no more….” 

(b) The non-grammatical aspect of vakrokti involves factors beyond language structure, such as context and composition. Kuntaka categorized this type into:

v. Episodic or Contexual obliquity (Prakarana-vakratā) - comprises all those factors which contribute to the strikingness of the context. The equivocation in the prediction of witches, culminating in the materialisation of the Birnamwood coming to Dunsinane, the  emergence of Macduff, ‘untimely ripp’d from his mother’s womb’ to kill Macbeth, the apparition of the witches and the sleep walking scene are examples of contextual figurativeness

vi. Compositional obliquity (Prabandha-vakratā) - This includes adaptation of  a story from a well-known source with new twists added to it, with a new emotional significance, deletion of unnecessary episodes, the development of even minor incidents into events of far reaching consequences and with striking quality. Kuntaka regards a literary composition as an allegory which conveys some profound moral message and this moral content is also regarded as a compositional figurativeness.

Duncan from a young and unsatisfactory monarch into a venerable old man so that his murder seems more gruesome. Conversion of a catalogue of crime and bloodshed in Holinshed into a profound study of guilt and self-destruction.

Kuntaka sees a piece of literature as a complete artwork, where the poet's creativity shines through in crafting something special. This applies to all types of art, especially timeless literary classics. Understanding a work of art from Kuntaka's viewpoint means grasping the standard literary style that the poet breaks away from in a creative manner. Unlike modern approaches, this style includes not just language but also things like context and how the piece is put together. A complete aesthetic theory considers both language and other aspects of art, with creativity being its key feature.

This six-fold vakratā is what sets poetry apart from other forms of communication, making it the essence of poetic language.