The Art and Science of Avadhanam in Sanskrit

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The Art and Science of Avadhanam in Sanskrit is a definitive work on Sahityavadhanam, a form of Indian classical art based on multitasking, lateral thinking, and extempore versification. Dotted throughout with tasteful examples, it expounds in great detail on the theory and practice of this unique performing art. It is as much a handbook of performance as it is an anthology of well-turned verses, as much a sourcebook of literary history as a manual of practical criticism. Analytical and appreciative in tandem, this work appeals equally to the laity and learned.

The co-author of this treatise is a master of the ancient art of Avadhanam, having performed over 1,200 Astavadhanams and five Satavadhanams across three languages - Kannada, Sanskrit, and Telugu. He is also credited with reviving the art in Kannada. This treatise at once authentic, insightful, and comprehensive-is perhaps the first of its kind in English, replete with literary citations, epigraphical evidence, and experiential perspectives of performers.

Satavadhani Dr. R Ganesh (b. 1962, Bengaluru) is one of India's foremost Sanskrit poets and scholars. He writes and lectures extensively on various subjects pertaining to India and Indian cultural heritage. He is a master of the ancient art of Avadhanam, where he faces a group of eight (in Astavadhanam) or hundred (in Satavadhanam) questioners and in response to their many queries, composes extempore poems set to metre, solves poetic challenges, solves a magic square, keeps track of the count of a randomly rung bell, and so forth. Ganesh performs Avadhanam primarily in Kannada, Sanskrit, and Telugu. (He is credited with reviving the art in Kannada.) He has performed more than 1,200 Astavadhanams and five Satavadhanams thus far. He is fluent in several languages including Sanskrit, Pali, Prakrit, Kannada, Telugu, Tamil, Hindi, Greek, Latin, and Italian. He is well versed in the Vedas, Vedangas, Upanisads, Dharma-sastra literature, various classical texts on the arts like the Natya-sastra, and literature in classical Sanskrit. Ganesh holds a bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering and a master's degree in Metallurgy as well as in Sanskrit. Hampi University awarded him a D.Litt. for his thesis, 'Kannadadalli Avadhana kale. Tumkur University awarded him an honorary doctorate (D. Litt.) He is recipient of several awards and recognitions including the Badarayana-Vyasa Puraskar from the President of India for his contribution to the Sanskrit language.

Sanskrit literature with its unique history of several millennia has enriched world culture by invaluable treasures. The art of Avadhanam is a unique feature that has been assiduously pursued and cultivated in its rich tradition.

Sanskrit literature also projects a unique image of kavi, quite distinct from the image of the 'poet' in the Western tradition. Amara kosu (3.817-19), one of the most authentic ancient lexicons in Sanskrit, synonymously juxtaposes pandita and kavi. It enumerates various terms having the same level of connotation, yielding the following gamut of synonyms: vidvan, vipascit, dosajna, sudhi, kovida, budha, dhira, manisi, Jna, prajna, sankhyavan, kavi, pandita, and so on. In fact, the word pandita is synonymous with kavi. A kavi is a pandita and a pandita is a kavi. The concepts of pandita and kavi are quite different from what we understand today as the scholar and as the poet. Quite unlike the modern notions, the tradition does not hold any dichotomy between the two. Avadhanam is the quality common to both. Avadhanam was nurtured by the genius of the panditas or kavis and was cultivated as a sastra (knowledge system), a vidya (a branch of learning) and a kala (an art). Eventually it developed into a unique tradition.

Avadhanam has carved a unique niche for itself among classical Indian arts. Being the culminating-point of creative imagination, erudition, retention, and spontaneity, it involves the intellect to the highest extent among performing arts. The enjoyment and education that it offers are unparalleled. Although Avadhanam has been an integral part of Indian literature from many centuries, there has been no systematic attempt to present it to the English-speaking world. The present work is a humble attempt to fill this lacuna.

The Art and Science of Avadhanam in Sanskrit focuses on Sahityavadha nam, a major sub-variety of this art rooted in classical poetry and versifi cation. While there exist multiple forms of Avadhanam related to Vedas, music, dance, and painting, we have chosen to expound on it from the perspective of classical versification. The reason for this is simple-it marks the highest reaches of this art and presents it at its versatile best. Since lateral thinking and impromptu composition are embedded in its very structure, Sahityavadhanam is one of the finest representatives of classical performing art. Indeed, "the best works of art are created in difficult media: it is harder to shape marble than wax."

**Contents and Sample Pages**