67. HISTORY OF INDIAN ÆSTHETICS 73

HISTORY OF INDIAN ÆSTHETICS 73

philosophy, Tantra and poetics and acquired all that the tradition had. With this intellectual equipment he was able to appreciate better and to follow the new point of view to attempt the æsthetic problem and to ultimately formulate a new æsthetic theory from the phenomeno- logical point of view of the Saiva Philosophy in such details that it is really difficult to substantially improve upon it. For a proper understanding of Abhinavagupta's æsthetic theory it is necessary to have full knowledge of his philosophical background. We shall, therefore, in the next chapter, give a brief account of the philosophical doctrines, which influenced his æsthetics.

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