Rasa as aesthetic experience pdf

However, ramachandran fundamentally misunderstands rasa. These rasas comprise the components of aesthetic experience. It has been argued that this formulation is extensible from the performing arts to the visual arts. Explained rasa as inference vibhava etc as hetu sign of inference sthayi exists in original character actor imitates the sthayi through his acting 2 rasa artistic imitation of an emotional experience connoisseur infers rasa existing in original character due to imitation of vibhavas etc.

Though it is bharata who is credited with having originated the rasa theory it was abhinava upta who developed it into a systematic poetic principle. What he envisions as a grand, unified theory of human. What i think this pleasure machine as thought experiment makes clear is the rasa of aesthetic experience is very rich indeed, one that requires not only an intensity of any one or combination of those eight prime emotions experienced by an observer but also expertise in presentation in the various elements of the various arts such as drama, poetry or music. Pdf bharatas rasa sutra and the theory of rasa dhvani. The rasa siddhanta theory of aesthetic experience of bharata 5th century is based on the four kinds of abhinaya actingexpression.

In this section, i discuss the basic terms bhava and rasa, which are. A reflection on the aesthetics of indian music, with special. An aesthetic experience is one in which your senses are operating at their peak. Rasas as springs of art in indian aesthetics radhakamal. According to abhinav gupta one of the famous critics of natyashastra, rasa is the simplest and. The term has a variety of meanings among them flavor, taste, juice, and essence, but in aesthetics it is understood to refer to a distinctive type of emotional experience that can be experienced in connection with an artwork. Each rasa corresponds to a bhava, an ordinary emotion that is presented in the drama. Soasculptorinindia,forexample,mighttrytoportraythe rasa of childhood plate 2, or the rasa of romantic love, or sexual ecstasy plate 3, or. Kathleen marie higgins 2007 journal of aesthetics and art criticism 65 1. A reflection on the aesthetics of indian music, with. However, this definition is arguably circular, or at the least, dependent on some prior definition of aesthetics. This experience is quite different from conventional aesthetic experience, for it is not triggered by a material object such as a painting or sculpture. Dhvani and thus entered the ongoing aesthetic debate on nature of aesthetic pleasure.

An an aesthetic is when you shut your senses off, and deaden yourself to what is happening. Each artists work resonates strongly with the chosen rasa, while touching upon the experience of other rasas. However, the collection does contain occasional traces of a literary sensibility. While there is a recent resurgence in india of films dealing explicitly with ideas from indian. The study of indian art should begin with some question. Revisiting dhvani in the context of the aesthetics of experience in film anuradha chandra indian institute of technology, bombay in this paper, i explore an approach to cinema through some key ideas in indian poetics. From analysis to eros article pdf available in journal of aesthetics and art criticism 642. Phenomenological aspects of the indian theory of aesthetic.

In the same way he has propounded rasadvaita darsana, the nondualistic philosophy of. Aesthetic experience is, therefore, the act of tasting this rasa, of immersing oneself in it to the exclusion of all else. Chapter 4 the transcendental experience in rasa and hopkins. The theory of the rasas develops significantly with the kashmiri aesthetician andandavardhanas classic on poetics, the dhvanyaloka which introduces the ninth rasa, shantarasa as a specifically religious. Rather its source is the divine itself, and for this reason it also is truly truth. The natyashastra presents the aesthetic concepts of rasas and their associated bhavas. The power to taste rasa is a reward for merit in some previous existence. Aesthetic emotion is not directly expressed as a non.

Aesthetic and spiritual correlations in javanese gamelan music there are striking similarities and intriguing connections between the tradition of gamelan music in java and javanese mystical traditions. A rasa reader classical indian aesthetics sheldon pollock. Murali sivaramakrishnan is professor of english at pondicherry university. The theory of rasa proposed by bharata in his nat yasastra very strongly influenced the aesthetic theories that came after it. It is a kind of contemplative abstraction in which the inwardness of. Ramachandran appropriates terminology from classical hindu aesthetic theory, namely the term rasa the emotional juice or mood of an aesthetic experience ramachandran, 1999. The theory of rasa rasa literally means taste or savor, and, as used to denote the essence of poetry,l it signifies the peculiar experience that poetry affords us. Beardsleys own definition holds that an aesthetic experience is the gratification experienced upon correctly and completely experiencing an aesthetic object. Yet entertainment is an effect, but not the primary goal of arts. Abhinavagupta likens it to the string of a jeweled necklace. Rasa theory blossoms beginning with the sanskrit text natyashastra natya meaning drama and shastra meaning science of, a work attributed to bharata muni where the gods declare that drama is the fifth veda because it is suitable for the degenerate age as the best form of religious instruction. These answers emerge from the study of indian philosophy at large and indian aesthetics in particular. A gamelan is an ensemble of gongs, metalophones, drums, bowed lute, xylophone, zither, bamboo flute, and singers.

Goswamy in the introduction to his book the essence of indian art writes that the word rasa is variously rendered. As in tantric metaphysics, one tattva, siva, manifests itself in the forms of other tattvas, so the one rasa, the santa, assumes the forms of other rasas, the santa, assumes the. The theory of rasa proposed by bharata in his nat yasastra very strongly influenced the aesthetic. Western sources, namely raniero gnoli, the aesthetic experience according to abhinavagupta roma. Rasa, however, is a distinctively aesthetic kind experience in which one savors the essence of an emotion type. Shanta rasa functions as an equal member of the set of rasas but is simultaneously distinct being the most clear form of aesthetic bliss.

Aug 10, 2017 rasa is a central concept in indian aesthetic theory. Mohan thampi, rasa as aesthetic experience philpapers. The science of art a neurological theory of aesthetic experience we present a theory of human artistic experience and the neural mechanisms that mediate it. From the classical era onwards, and as definitively expounded by its chief articulator, the eleventh century kashmiri scholar abhinavagupta, indian aesthetics has focused on the articulation of and evocation of the. Rasa theory and neural mechanism new zealand journal of multi. The rasa school stresses this experiential or subjective side of poetic meaning. But we should bear in mind that the word rasa denotes, apart from the readers aesthetic experience, the creative. Bharata states the sutra defining the nature of rasa. Dhvani and rasa rasa theory and dhvani theory are the most important poetic theories of ancient india.

According to cupchik and winston 1996, aesthetic experience is a psychological process in which the attention is focused on the object while all other objects, events, and everyday concerns are suppressed. Abhinavagupta 11th century however moderated bhattanayakas claim by explaining that yogic experience. According to abhinav gupta one of the famous critics of natyashastra, rasa is the simplest and most we bewildering expression in the sanskrit language. Sep 11, 20 here the theme unites young artists from diverse regions and backgrounds, bridging the gaps between them, and the varied mediums they use, through the continuity of aesthetic experience. Rasa is a central concept in indian aesthetic theory. The theory of rasa pravas jivan chaudhury the journal of. According to the natya shastra, the goals of theatre are to empower aesthetic experience and deliver emotional rasa. When you are resonating with the excitement of this thing that you are experiencing.

As aesthetic theories, they are both concerned with what constitutes an aesthetic experience. In many cases, it aims to produce repose and relief for those exhausted with labor, or distraught with grief, or laden with misery, or struck by austere times. The rasa, the aesthetic experience, lies in the conscious. Rasa as aesthetic experience the theory of rasa as formulated by bharata and later explicated and enriched by anandavardhana and abhinavagupta constitutes the central tradition in indian aesthetics.

Any theory of art or, indeed, any aspect of human nature has to ideally have three components. Nevertheless, the purpose of this study is to explore points of agreement, if any, among the principles of wabisabi on the one hand, and the general view of rasa, on the other. The rasa, the aesthetic experience, lies in the consciousness, is experienced by the consciousness, and in a way, it itself is experiencing state of consciousness. Indian aesthetic thinking is primarily audience or readeroriented and the center of much discussion is the response of the readers. But we should bear in mind that the word rasa denotes, apart from the readers aesthetic experience, the creative experience of the poet and the essence of. Aesthetic cultivation as salvation practice i the sanskrit term for a deep feeling of basic aesthetic ideal is rasa. The primary purpose of this text is to refine the literary concept dhvani or poetic suggestion, by arguing for the existence of rasadhvani, primarily in forms of sanskrit including a word, sentence or whole work suggests a realworld emotional state or bhava, but thanks to aesthetic distance, the sensitive spectator relishes the rasa, the. Because it results in only a semblance of the full and spiritually satisfying experience of sacred aesthetic rapture bhakti rasa. May 23, 2017 in contrast to a direct emotional experience or state, aesthetic rasa is more contemplative and vicarious, a fictive emotional state that is shared and universal, all features that contribute to making its experience delightful or enjoyable. Aesthetic theory athlone contemporary european thinkers. Aesthetic and spiritual correlations in javanese gamelan music. Aesthetics 341aesthetics as the refuge of metaphysics 343aesthetic experi ence as objective understanding 345workimmanent analysis and aesthetic theory 3480n the dialectics of aesthetic experience 348universal and particular 350critique of the phenomenological research of origin 351. The theory that is best suited to explain the necessary and sufficient causes conducive to aesthetic experience of the highest kind is the rasa theory, as propounded by sagepriest bharata in his natyashastra, a sanskrit treatise on drama, and developed by the rhetorician and kashmir shaivite philosopher, abhinavagupta in his abhinavabharati.

Bharatamuni believes that the dramatic form of aesthetic experience is the most perfect fruition of aesthetic activity because drama is the synthesis of all arts. Chapter 4 the transcendental experience in rasa and hopkins the religious implications of indian aesthetic theories are very relevant to the study of the poetry of gerard manley hopkins. Poetry is a multidimensional phenomenon which cuts across many levels of human experience. Indian aesthetics dates back from second century bc to 17th century. Bharata, in a famous aphorism which, interpreted and elaborated in various ways, forms the point of departure of all later indian aesthetic thoughts, says, in essence, that rasa is born from the union of the play with the. Rasa nine artists explore aesthetic experience paintings. This thesis is a comparison of the main theoretical approaches and concepts between phenomenology and rasa theory as given in na. Sep 22, 2016 these rasas comprise the components of aesthetic experience. A gamelan is an ensemble of gongs, metalophones, drums, bowed lute. Dhavnyalokalocana and abhinava bharati point towards his quest into the nature of aesthetic experience. A word on raga, rasa and the uniqueness of aesthetic experience. The word rasa appears repeatedly in indian art manuals and has no literal translation, but roughly it means theveryessenceof. Istituto italiano per il medio e estremo oriente, 1956. As an overall organizing principle, the final itivuttaka in each of the four.