Kohala in the Sanskrit textual tradition (Study)
by Padma Sugavanam | 2011 | 95,782 words
This page relates 鈥楧ate of Kohalamatam鈥� of the thesis dealing with Kohala鈥檚 contribution to the Sanskrit textual tradition of ancient Indian performing arts. The study focuses specifically on music (Gita), dance (Nritya), and drama (Natya). Although Kohala鈥檚 original works have not been found, numerous references to him across Lakshana-Granthas (treatises) and works by modern scholars indicate his significance.
Go directly to: Footnotes.
Part 1(a).7 - Date of Kohalamatam
Due to the unknown identity of the author of Kohalamatam and the lack of any proper colophon, the date of this work has to be fixed purely through the available internal evidences. References to Dattila and 惭补迟补峁単补 are found while discussing 迟腻濒补 and 谤腻驳补 respectively.
In fact there is a quotation from 叠峁沨补诲诲别艣颈 on the subject of 谤腻驳补 with a specific mention of the name of 惭补迟补峁単补.
啶い啶權啶椸鈥斷ぐ啶距啶ぞ啶班啶椸じ啷嵿く 啶う啷嵿ぐ啷傕お啶� 啶え啷嵿え啷嬥啷嵿い啶� 啶ぐ啶むぞ啶︵た啶た啶� 啷� 啶ㄠた啶班啶啶い啷� 啶むじ啷嵿ぎ啶距き啶苦ぐ啷嵿げ啶曕啶粪啶げ啶曕啶粪ぃ啶膏啶啶むぎ啷� 啷�
尘补迟补峁単补岣�鈥�谤腻驳补m膩rgasya yadr奴pa峁� yannokta峁� bharat膩dibhi岣� | nir奴pyate tasm膩bhirlak峁alak峁峁嘺sa峁儁utam ||
鈥擳his quotation from 惭补迟补峁単补 is found in Fol. 11 of the manuscript of Kohalamatam (T822). The same verse is also seen in 叠峁沨补诲诲别艣墨 of 艢r墨 惭补迟补峁単补muni: 1994: p.76
This would imply that this work was written post-惭补迟补峁単补, i.e. post 7th century C.E.
In the chapter discussing 惫腻诲测补, there is a mention of 笔谤补迟腻辫补 i.e. Jagadekamalla, the author of 厂补峁単墨迟补肠奴岣嵞乵补峁卛. Further, Kohalamatam contains excerpts from other works like 厂补峁単墨迟补尘补办补谤补苍诲补 and 厂补峁単墨迟补蝉补尘补测补蝉腻谤补. 厂补峁単墨迟补蝉补尘补测补蝉腻谤补 belonged to the 12th century C.E. Based on this it can be surmised that Kohalamatam was written post 12th century C.E. Regarding 厂补峁単墨迟补尘补办补谤补苍诲补, the date of its emergence has been under some debate. While some scholars like M. Ramakrishna Telang date it before 艢腻谤峁単补诲别惫补[1], others claim it to be between 12th and 14th century C.E. The custom of including only 驳墨迟补 and 惫腻诲测补 in the definition of Sa峁叢的俨� (as opposed to the earlier view of 鈥�驳墨迟补m 惫腻诲测补m n峁泃yam trayam sa峁叢的俨筸ucyate鈥�) was started by 濒补办峁峁嘺驳谤补苍迟丑补蝉 such as 搁腻驳补迟补迟惫补惫颈产辞诲丑补 of 艢谤墨苍颈惫腻蝉补 and Sa峁叢的俨筽膩rij膩ta of Ahobala in the 16th century C.E. Since 厂补峁単墨迟补尘补办补谤补苍诲补 also follows this trend, it can be said that 厂补峁単墨迟补尘补办补谤补苍诲补 also belongs to a period around the 15th -16th Century C.E. This in turn would mean that the earliest Kohalamatam could have existed around the 16th century C.E. If this work does belong to the vicinity of the 16th century C.E., it is indeed very strange that there is no mention of 艢腻谤峁単补诲别惫补 or any information that has been taken from Sa峁叢的俨箁atn膩kara.
V. Raghavan says that the work Kohalamatam has been referred to in the context of 迟腻濒补, in a work called 狈腻峁瓂补蝉补谤惫补蝉惫补诲墨辫颈办腻[2] (which is also called 膧诲颈产丑补谤补迟补) by 狈腻谤腻测补峁嘺 艢颈惫补测辞驳颈苍. The date of this work is unknown. But this work refers to other 濒补办峁峁嘺驳谤补苍迟丑补蝉 such as Sa峁叢的俨�-惫颈诲测腻-惫颈苍辞诲补, T膩lakal膩vil膩sam, Sa峁叢的俨筸a峁噄darpa峁嘺m, Sa峁単墨t膩r峁嘺va etc. which incidentally are also mentioned in the work 罢腻濒补办补濒腻产诲丑颈 of Acyutar膩ya. Since this work belongs to the 16th century C.E., the above mentioned works might have also existed around the same time. This too supports the theory that Kohalamatam existed in the vicinity of the 16th century C.E.
Footnotes and references:
[1]:
厂补峁単墨迟补尘补办补谤补苍诲补:1920: Intro: p. x
[2]:
Collected writings on Indian Music: 2007: Vol. II: p.249