371. THE ALANKARA SCHOOL 373

THE ALANKARA SCHOOL 373

above shows that in the 2nd centnry A. D. literary nu and पथ were required to be अलक्कृत. In the नाव्यशास्त्र (chap. 17. 1-5) there is an enumeration of 36 agus (in two recensions) with which the kāvya to be employed in nātya was to be endowed. These laksanas gradually faded out and some of them like ig and ar were accepted as figures of speech by certain old alankārikas like Dardin. The definition of the very first laksania called भूषण or विभूषय is 'अलक्कारंर्गुणश्चंव बङ्डमिः समलठ्कृतम्। भूषगैरिव चित्रार्थैस्तन्भषणामिति स्मृतम् ॥(नाव्यशास्त्र 17. 6, G. O. S. vol. II p. 350). This shows that the laksana qw includ- ed both भलंकारs and गुus. The Natyasastra 17. 43 (=K. M. ed. 16. 43 and G.O.S. 16. 40 vol. II. ) p.321 speaks of उपमा, रूपक, दीपक and यमक as four भलक्कारs of नाटक. Vamana uses the word alankara in two senses when he says 'काव्यं ग्राध्यमलक्काराव्। सौन्दयमलद्कारः।' काव्या. सू. I. 1. 1-2. Here अलक्कार means 'a thing of beauty.' He also explains that alankāra applies to figures of speech because they beautify kavya. Similarly, Dandin appears to use the word alankāra in a wide sense also as shown below. The foremost representatives of this school are ar and

1. Vämana here asserts that poetry is one of the fine arts which have the expression of beauty' as their goal. Contro- versies have raged round the questions: what are the characteristics of beauty, whether it is objective or subjective, whether the artist (including the poet) as creating beauty must preach morality or whether his province is different from a preacher of morality. I avoid the temptation of going into these questions. The world of Beauty is remote or at least different from the worlds of morality and Truth. Poetry as a department of Fine Arts does not directly aim at inculcating morality nor at ultimate Truth. The poet's duty as a poet is to be true to his own self and to art and to express the visions he sees as best as he can. He may indirectly convey moral ideas by means of his dramas. The sao (III. p. 224) contains the following instructive remarks: 'शृङ्गाररसाऊरुन्मुखीकृताः सन्तो हि विनेया: सुखं विनयोपदेशं गृहुन्ति। सदाचारोपदेशरूपा दि नायकादिगोष्ठी विनेयजनहि- तार्थमेव मुनिभिरवतारिता।'. Vide 'Psychology of Beauty' by Dr. B. L. Atreya in Journal of Benares H. Un. vol. VI pp. 43-55. माघ describes रमणीयता as 'क्षणे चे यन्नवतामुपति तदेव रूपं रमणीयतायाः।' IV. 17.