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Regarding the characteristics of the Sanskrit drama, Shri Arabindo says "A great charm of poetic beauty and subtle feeling and atmosphere, reaching its most accomplished type in the Sakuntala of Kalidase, the most perfect and captivating drama in all literature - or an interesting turn of sentiment and action, a skilful unobstrusive development according to the recognised principle and carefully observed formula of the art, in temperate measure without violent noise of incident or emphatic stress on situation or crowded figures, the movement subdued to a king of suavity and calm, a delicate psychology, not a strongly marked characterisation such as is commonly demanded in the dramatic art of Europe, but a subtle indication by slight touches in the dialogue and 8 action, these are the usual characteristics." The plot according to Bharata is the body of a drama. 9 " itivrttam tu kavyasya sariram prakirtitam It is conntituted mainly of five arthaprakrtis and avasthas and their 7 K.S.Ramaswami Sastri, The Indien Concept of the Beautiful, Ch.XV, p.156, Trivandrum, 1947. 8 The Foundations of Indian Culture, Ch. III, p.349, Pondicherry, 1959. 9 Natya Shastra, Vol.III, Ch.XIX, V.1, p.1, 0.0.5., 1954.

harmonious blending known as sandhis end their various 13 sandhyangas. The sage says that a plot, which is not properly designed can effect in the world of drama only, what a lame men can accomplish in the battlefield. angahino naro yadyuddharambhe'ksamo bhavet ! angahinam tatha kavyam na prayogaksamam bhavet || 10 Bharata gives the greatest importance to the sentiment. He says that there can be no work of art without the delinestion of sentiment in it. Abhinavagupta elucidates the point further and says that the sage undoubtedly meant that rase is 11 the soul of drama though he does not express it verbally. Bharata lays down that theplaywright must bring the various incidents of the plot together solely with reference to the sentiment appropriate to them. yathasandhi tu karyani kartavyanyetanyangani natake kavibhih kavyakusalaih rasabhavamaveksya tu || Again, while enumerating the essentials of a play, he gives the first place to rasa. rasa bhavadyabhinayadharmi vrtti pravrttayah ! siddhih svarastathatodyam ganam rangadha sangrahah || 10 S Vol.III, V.53, p.32. 11 Dhvanyaloka locene, uddyota-III, p. 401, Benares, 1940. 12 On.ait. Ch. XIX, V.104, p.61. 13 Natya Shastra, Vol. I, Ch.VI, V.10, p.263. 12 13

14 Anandavardhana expounds the same point when he says that the dramatist, while adapting a story from the epics for his drama, should abandon such of its parts, as are inconsistent with the sentiment to be delineated. He tells that the playwright should so construct the plot that it fits well with the sentiment. He also states that the dramatist should not merely follow the rules of dramaturgy for which, he combines the sandhis and sandhyangas to constitute his drama. He should see that they help the manifestation of the senti- 14 ment. Thus one can find that what the Sanskrit drama aims foremost is the evocation of the sentiment in the sahrdays. All the other factors in the drama should be made subservient to it. It is further laid down that in every Sanskrit drama, there should be a dominent sentiment and all the other senti- 15 ments should be subordinated to it.. As the Sanskrit dramatists concentrated more on the depiction of the sentiment in the drama, other factors like characterisation have consequently suffered. Characterisation as found in the plays of Shakespeare or in those of other Western dramatists is not met with in Sanskrit. dramas. Only the comic or tragico-comic element has been developed in the Sanskrit drama and no Sanskrit play presents the failure of the 14 Dhvanyaloka, Ch. III, V.12, p.329, Benares. 15 The Indian Concept of the Beautiful, Ch. XV, p.157.

la hero in his endeavours. This might be due to the Indian concept of Karma which insists that no action will go unrewarded and the fruit of one's labours will certainly come 16 in this life or another. This optimistic attitude of the people of India towards life is responsible to a great extent for the absence of tragic end in the Sanskrit drama. In comparing the Sanskrit drama to its Greek and English counterparts, the Western critics have subjected the former to a merciless and scathing criticism. While their criticism is nevertheless illuminating, many of them betray a lack of understanding of the Indian mind andthe Indian outlook on life. Will Durant says: "About national types of art, there can be no disputation. We can judge them only from the provincial standpoint of our own and mostly through the prism of translation. It is enough that Goethe, ablest of all Europeans to transcend provincial and national barriers found the reading of Sakuntala among the profound experiences 17 of his life."