Essay name: Hastalaksanadipika a critical edition and study
Author:
E. K. Sudha
Affiliation: Government Sanskrit College (Tripunithura) / Department of Sanskrit
This is an English study on the Hastalaksanadipika—a manual depicting the Mudras (gestures) of the Kerala theatre. It is a very popular text supposedly dating to the 10th century A.D. This study also touches the subject of Krsnanattam, Kathakali and Kutiyattam—some of India's oldest theatrical traditions in Kerala.
Chapter 3 - Later developments of dramatic techniques
19 (of 22)
External source: Shodhganga (Repository of Indian theses)
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discussion on bhāva he says,(p.7) 'it is said that the importance of bhāva is discussed in the Ādibharata - भा� एव प्रधानम् इत� आचार्यैः आदिभरत� चिन्तितम� इत� वदन्ति � [bhāva eva pradhānam iti ācāryai� ādibharate cintitam iti vadanti | ] ' Here the remark इत� वदन्ति [iti vadanti ] denotes that the author had not himself seen the Ādibharata. Again, while explaining the relation of the hastamudrās with the rasas, he quotes the well-known stanza - यतोः [ⲹٴ� ] etc. and says that it is given in the Ādibharata (p.80). This stanza is found in the AD of Nandikesvara and is quoted by several authors in their works. This might perhaps, originally have been in the Ādibharata. Authors like Kōhala, Bharatamuni and the works like Tandavam, Sabdaratnāvali (both are manuscripts) and the SR of Sārngadeva became the sorces of the BRB. A discussion on the hand-gestures of the BRB is relevant here. In hand-gestures the BRB follows the NS. But some deviations are also there. The NS describes 24 asamyutahastas, 13 samyutahastas and 29 nṛttahastas 66 varieties in all. The BRB mentions 40 asamyutahastas and 27 samyutahastas altogether 67in number. Among the 40 asamyutahastas the names of 24 hastas are Bharata's and seven are based on the AD and the remaining nine are based on other sources. The BRB does not enumerate all the nṛttahastas of Bharata, but mentions down that some of the hastas can be used as nṛttahastas also. 107 The BRB describes 40 asamyutahastas taking all those
mentioned in the NS, the Ardhapatāka, Mayūra, Bāṇa, Simhāsya,
Udvestita and Apaveṣṭita from the Sangitasudhakara and ten other
