UPSC Prelims 2024 Q63: Bhasa's Sanskrit Plays — Explained
Which one of the following is a work attributed to playwright Bhasa?
- Kavyalankara
- Natyashastra
- Madhyama-vyayoga
- Mahabhashya
Answer: (c) Madhyama-vyayoga
Statement-wise explanation
- a: incorrect — Bhamaha wrote the Kavyalankara, not Bhasa. It is a treatise on poetics, one of the earliest works on poetic ornaments (alankara), and is usually dated to the 6th or 7th century CE. It is a work of theory, not a play.
- b: incorrect — Tradition credits the sage Bharata with the Natyashastra. It is a detailed manual on theatre covering dance, music, poetics and aesthetics, and is dated broadly between the 1st century BCE and the 3rd century CE. It explains how plays are made and staged, but it is not itself a play.
- c: correct — Madhyama-vyayoga is one of the 13 Sanskrit plays that Pandit T. Ganapati Sastri found in manuscript in Trivandrum and published in 1912 as Bhasa's work. It is a one-act vyayoga, a heroic play type. Its story comes from the Mahabharata. Ghatotkacha seizes the 'middle' son of a Brahmin, and Bhima, the middle Pandava, turns up to take his place, which leads to father and son meeting again.
- d: incorrect — Patanjali wrote the Mahabhashya, the 'Great Commentary' on Panini's Sanskrit grammar, the Ashtadhyayi, and on Katyayana's notes on it. Patanjali is usually placed in the 2nd century BCE. It is a work of grammar, not drama.
How to eliminate
You can narrow this down without knowing Bhasa's full list of plays. The question asks for a work by a playwright, so look for the title that sounds like a play. Three options are well-known treatises from other fields. Natyashastra means the 'science of drama'. It is Bharata's theory of theatre, not a play. Mahabhashya means the 'great commentary'. It is Patanjali's work on Panini's grammar. Kavyalankara means 'ornaments of poetry'. It is a work of poetics, and 'alankara' is a clue that it is literary theory. Only Madhyama-vyayoga contains the name of a type of play: a vyayoga is a one-act heroic play and is one of the ten play types (rupakas) in Sanskrit dramaturgy. Once you see that the other three are theory texts, only one option fits. Fact to remember: Madhyama-vyayoga, Urubhanga, Karnabhara, Dutavakya and Svapnavasavadatta are all among the 13 'Trivandrum plays' credited to Bhasa.
Know more
Bhasa and the Trivandrum plays
Bhasa is one of the earliest known Sanskrit playwrights and is placed before Kalidasa. For centuries he was known only because later writers named him. Kalidasa, for example, praises him in the prologue of Malavikagnimitram. In 1912, Pandit T. Ganapati Sastri published 13 plays from palm-leaf manuscripts found in Kerala and credited them to Bhasa. Scholars still debate whether Bhasa wrote all 13. Many of these plays survived through Kutiyattam, Kerala's temple theatre in Sanskrit, which UNESCO proclaimed a Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity in 2001 and placed on its Representative List in 2008.
| Source of story | Plays credited to Bhasa |
|---|---|
| Mahabharata | Madhyama-vyayoga, Urubhanga, Karnabhara, Dutavakya, Dutaghatotkacha, Pancharatra |
| Ramayana | Pratima-nataka, Abhisheka-nataka |
| Krishna legend | Balacharita |
| Udayana legends | Svapnavasavadatta, Pratijna-yaugandharayana |
| Folk tales and invented stories | Charudatta, Avimaraka |
Why Bhasa stands out
- Urubhanga ("The Broken Thigh") ends in a tragedy, and Karnabhara comes close to one. This breaks the Natyashastra rule against showing death or a sad ending on stage.
- Many of his plays are short one-act pieces of types such as the vyayoga.
Do not mix up these authors and texts
| Text | Author | Field |
|---|---|---|
| Natyashastra | Bharata | Dramaturgy and aesthetics (rasa) |
| Ashtadhyayi | Panini | Grammar |
| Mahabhashya | Patanjali | Commentary on Panini |
| Kavyalankara | Bhamaha | Poetics (alankara school) |
| Abhijnanashakuntalam | Kalidasa | Drama |
| Mrichchhakatika | Shudraka | Drama, based on Bhasa's Charudatta |
NCERT Concepts to Revise
- Kutiyattam: Bhasa's plays survived mainly through Kutiyattam's repertoire in Kerala, where the 13 Trivandrum plays were found.
- Natyashastra: One option is this treatise, so you need to know whether it is a theory text or a play, and who wrote it.
- Kalidasa: Kalidasa praised Bhasa as an earlier master, which helps you place Bhasa in the history of Sanskrit drama.
- Ashtadhyayi: Another option is a commentary on this grammar text, so knowing the text helps you tell grammar works from plays.