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The Bhāva Process: an Approach to Understanding the Process of Characterization in the Nāṭyaśāstra a Dissertation Submit

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The Bhāva Process: an Approach to Understanding the Process of Characterization in the Nāṭyaśāstra a Dissertation Submit THE BHĀVA PROCESS: AN APPROACH TO UNDERSTANDING THE PROCESS OF CHARACTERIZATION IN THE NĀṬYAŚĀSTRA A DISSERTATION SUBMITTED TO THE GRADUATE DIVISION OF THE UNIVERSITY OF HAWAI‘I AT MĀNOA IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY IN THEATRE May 2019 By Joshua M. Leukhardt Dissertation Committee: Kirstin Pauka, Chairperson Julie Iezzi Paul Mitri Jesse Knutson Ramdas Lamb Keywords: Nāṭyaśāstra, rasa, bhāva, nāṭyarasa, sthāyibhāva, Bhāva Process ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to express my sincere gratitude to the many people who enabled me to complete this dissertation. In Hawai‘i, I want to express my gratitude to my committee members for their valuable input, instruction, and words of encouragement. From way in my dusty past, I wish to thank my fellow graduate student kula (both in the Melanesian and Sanskrit meanings): Kulthida, Trinh, and M. A., who were there at the start to provide me with encouragement and camaraderie. I am forever indebted to my writing coach and syntax liberator Janna Taylor who not only inspired me but figured out a way to transform the things in my brain into decipherable, comprehensible, and readable text. She made the completion of this dissertation possible. A huge thank you to Joe. Without his support and encouragement, I would still be in the roundabout and would have never finished. Thanks to my parents for their love and instilling in me a love of ancient cultures and civilizations (from my Mom), and an inquisitive miNdset (from my Dad). These traits are now part of my dharma. Finally, I would like to thank my family Leslie, Sasha, Clover, Oscar, and Griffin for their patience, support, and sacrifice during this long endeavor. They worked just as hard as I did to finish this. i ABSTRACT This dissertation analyzes and applies the characterization process found in the Nāṭyaśāstra to introduce and promote accessibility to Sanskrit play production, or theatre performance connected with the terminology and characterization concepts in the Nāṭyaśāstra. The aim of this work is to provide an accessible guide for theatre practitioners unfamiliar or unacquainted with this genre of theatre. This study first lays out a context and theoretical foundation of rasa and bhāva, specifying their roles as theatrical elements and systemizing their procedural objectives in a production. This analysis presents Rasa Theory to practitioners or theatre scholars not accustomed with Sanskrit poetics, or philosophy. Then the “Bhāva Process” of characterization, developed from chapters 6 and 7 of the Nāṭyaśāstra, is correlated with terms and concepts from the Stanislavski System in order to relate the Natyasastra terminology to Western acting terms and concepts. Based on those concepts and prescriptions, two application models, the “Generic Temperament Chart” and an “Individualized Temperament Chart,” provide specific attributes, traits, and action choices the performer employs in developing characterization. These models are put into practice using examples primarily from the classical Sanskrit play, Śākuntala. The findings reveal similarities of the “Bhāva Process” to contemporary Western characterization approaches. The findings also show the usefulness of the Temperament Charts in deciphering the codification found in the Nāṭyaśāstra and reveal that the creation of an archetypal character has more flexibility than the restrictiveness suggested in the Nāṭyaśāstra. The dissertation prompts a re-thinking of using this ancient process, moving forward to application and production. ii TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ............................................................................................................. i ABSTRACT .................................................................................................................................... ii LIST OF TABLES ........................................................................................................................ vii CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................... 1 Purpose of Study ......................................................................................................................... 1 Background ................................................................................................................................. 2 Definition of Keywords .............................................................................................................. 7 Justification ............................................................................................................................... 14 Limitations ................................................................................................................................ 16 Literature Review ...................................................................................................................... 19 Methodology ............................................................................................................................. 24 CHAPTER 2: RASA THE SEED AND THE FRUIT. .................................................................. 32 Nāṭya-Rasa ................................................................................................................................ 32 The Nature of Rasa, Rasa as Objective ................................................................................ 33 History of Rasa ..................................................................................................................... 38 Abhinavagupta’s Legacy .......................................................................................................... 44 The Location of Rasa ............................................................................................................ 47 Bhaṭṭa Lollaṭa – Putting the Spotlight on the Sthāyibhāva ................................................... 49 Śrī Śaṅkuka – Logical Inference of the Character’s Mood ................................................... 50 Bhaṭṭa Nāyaka – A Three-Function Theory .......................................................................... 51 Dhanañjaya and the Daśarūpaka .......................................................................................... 53 Abhinavagupta’s Critical Reconstruction ............................................................................. 54 The Rasa 10 – Nāṭyarasa Requirements .................................................................................. 57 iii The Rasa Directive ............................................................................................................... 57 The Rasa 10 .......................................................................................................................... 58 Bharata’s Bhāvas ...................................................................................................................... 61 Causative Bhāva – “bhāvayanti iti bhāvāḥ” ......................................................................... 61 A Theoretical and Poetical Coda .......................................................................................... 63 CHAPTER 3: BHĀVA PROCESS ............................................................................................... 64 Purpose of the Chapter .............................................................................................................. 64 Revisiting the Bhāva Components: An Overview ................................................................ 65 The Bhāva Process Components ............................................................................................... 70 The Vibhāva .......................................................................................................................... 70 The Anubhāva ....................................................................................................................... 79 The Sāttvikabhāva ................................................................................................................. 86 The Vyabhicāribhāva ............................................................................................................ 91 The Sthāyibhāva .................................................................................................................. 106 CHAPTER 4: BUILDING THE TEMPERAMENT CHART .................................................... 120 Previous Work and Launching Points: Mehta and Rao .......................................................... 120 Starting the Biographical Information: Gender and Social Class ........................................... 121 Hero and Heroine Types Associated with Gender and Social Classes .............................. 123 Designating an Order .......................................................................................................... 126 Occupational Type .............................................................................................................. 127 Primary Temperament – The Primary Sthāyibhāva ................................................................ 128 Subdivision, Specifications or Bases .................................................................................. 128 Secondary Temperaments (Any Secondary Sthāyibhāvas) .................................................... 129 Summary: First step, a completed simple biography .............................................................
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