The Bhasa-Laksana Chapter of Gitalankara

Summary

H. C. Bhayani’s article examines the Bhasa‑Lakṣaṇa (‘Characteristics of Language’) chapter of the Gītālaṅkāra, a medieval treatise on music and poetics. The Gītālaṅkāra synthesises aesthetic theory with technical discussions of melody and rhythm; the Bhasa‑Lakṣaṇa section specifically outlines linguistic norms for poetic and lyrical composition. Bhayani begins by situating the Gītālaṅkāra within the broader tradition of alaṅkāra‑śāstra and notes its unique integration of linguistic, musical and rhetorical disciplines. The article provides a translation of key passages and analyses their implications. The author of the Gītālaṅkāra insists on grammatical correctness (śuddhi), clarity (spashtatā) and elegance (kānti) as essential qualities of poetic language. He warns against using overly colloquial words or regional dialects in high poetry, yet acknowledges the expressive power of Prakrits in certain genres. Bhayani compares these prescriptions with those in earlier treatises like Bharata’s Nāṭyaśāstra and later works such as Śārṅgadeva’s Saṅgītaratnākara, noting both continuities and innovations. The article also highlights the tension between prescriptive theory and creative practice. Many celebrated poets deliberately flouted linguistic norms to achieve particular effects; for example, Jayadeva uses vernacular expressions in his Gītagovinda to heighten intimacy. Bhayani argues that the Bhasa‑Lakṣaṇa chapter reflects a conservative strand within Sanskrit aesthetics that sought to police linguistic purity, even as actual literary production became more experimental. By unpacking the conceptual vocabulary of the Gītālaṅkāra, the article contributes to our understanding of how medieval theorists negotiated the relationship between language and music. It also sheds light on the sociolinguistic attitudes of the period, revealing anxieties about the encroachment of vernaculars into elite literary domains.