chreia (Greek: χρεία) - its meaning and Sanskrit equivalent

[Narayan Prasad]

Dear Scholars,

      Namaste.

      While translating Russian author Aleksandr Nikitenko's autobiography, I came across a word "chreia" (Greek: χρεία). Most probably this term is related to rhetoric, because he has used it in that context. The Russian-Russian dictionary also gives the meaning of «хрия» in that context only.

      I request scholars to explain its meaning and give its Sanskrit equivalent.

      In this context I would also like to know what is exactly अष्टावधान.

      Best regards

      Narayan Prasad

[Roland Steiner]

Dear Mr Prasad,

The Greek word χρεία (chreía) means "use, usefulness". It has a special meaning in Ancient Greek Rhetoric. For the sake of convenience, see:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chreia

Or, https://oxfordre.com/classics/view/10.1093/acrefore/9780199381135.001.0001/acrefore-9780199381135-e-1554

"A succinct anecdote embedding a pointed saying, so called because designed for use in rhetoric (χρησίμον τινὸς ἕνεκα, Hermog.Prog. c. 3); exercises in developing chreiai formed one of the varieties of *progymnasmata. Collections of chreiai were already being made in the 4th cent. bce, e.g. by Theocritus of Chios and *Demetrius (3) of Phalerum, and they figure prominently in some biographies of philosophers, e.g. that of *Diogenes (2) by *Diogenes (6) Laertius; the ancestry of the genre may be seen in some parts of *Xenophon (1)'s Memorabilia, and the Apophthegmata preserved in the Plutarchan corpus are a close relative. The moral tone of the chreiai is far from austere." (Christopher Pelling)

["chreiai" is the plural form (nominative) of chreia.]

> अष्टावधान

According to Sircar (Indian Epigraphical Glossary. Dehli 1966, p. 33) aṣṭāvadhāna designates "one who has the power of listening and grasping eight things at a time; Epith of a poet".

With best regards,
Roland Steiner

[Shashi Kiran B N]

Dear Sir,

Aṣṭāvadhāna is a subset of Sāhitya-avadhāna, an Indian performing art. Rooted in classical poetry and extempore versification, it involves eight questioners (pracchakas or pṛcchakas) posing challenges to a performer (avadhānī). Since the primary meaning of avadhāna is concentration, an avadhānī is a person who possesses it to a remarkable degree.The performer composes impromptu verses as answers to the questions, amidst distractions, without the aid of stationery. Aṣṭāvadhāna proceeds in four rounds. The performer composes one foot of a verse in each of the rounds; he recalls the whole verse at the end of the event and explains its meaning.    

Aṣṭāvadhāna gets its name because of the number of questioners and / or the number of components involved. A typical performance includes the following components:

1. Niṣiddhākṣarī / Niṣedhākṣarī: Composing a verse under syllabic constraints,
2. Samasyā-pūrti / Samasyā-pūraṇa: Solving a poetic challenge,
3. Datta-padī / Datta-pada: Composing a verse using four specific words,
4. Citra-kavitā: Composing a verse with multiple daunting constraints (such as a monosyllabic verse, one that adheres to a pattern of a floral bouquet, or one that envelops multiple verses),
5. Āśu-kavitā: Composing a complete verse swiftly, 
6. Kāvya-vācana: Identifying and expounding on a verse composed by a classical Sanskrit poet,
7. Saṅkhyā-bandha: Solving a 5*5 magic square intermittently throughout the performance, and
   
8. Aprastuta-prasaṅga: Engaging in an entertaining banter intermittently throughout the performance.

Since the performer must compose verses alongside solving a magic square and engaging in entertaining chat, the art form is a veritable test to his ability to multitask, think laterally, and manage various 'crises.' Several other components are designed to break the performer's concentration or exercise his erudition and creative imagination to the extreme.

[Oftentimes, people unfamiliar with Aṣṭāvadhāna confuse it with Aṣṭāvadhāna-sevā or Aṣṭa-vidhāna-sevā, an eight-step ritual offered to the deities.] 

Best regards,

Shashi Kiran B N

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[Narayan Prasad]

Sir,

   Thank you so much for the reply.

    I had a look at the works like the one mentioned in the wikipedia. Different Greek authors explain the term "chreia" with examples in many pages, e.g. "Progymnasmata: Greek Textbooks of Prose Composition and Rhetoric", translated by George A Kennedy.

    Best regards

    Narayan Prasad

[Irene Galstian]

FYI:

https://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D0%A5%D1%80%D0%B8%D1%8F

[Narayan Prasad]

Dear Sir,

      Thank you so much for the detailed meaning of the term अष्टावधान.

      About 20 years back one Telugu scholar told me about this term. We used to meet at BORI. When I greeted him with "नमस्कार!", he would say "प्रणाम!". The latter is the usual term in the Hindi belt.

      He also told me about the enmity between the Jains and Hindus and said that the Telugu poet अप्पाकवि had indicated such thing in his work (अप्पाकवीयमु?).

      

      As per Russian-Russian dictionary, chreia: (In rhetoric): speech, reasoning on a given topic, compiled according to certain rules.

      I was thinking that chreia might be translated as अष्टावधान. But this does not appear to be a suitable Skt equivalent.

   Best regards

   Narayan Prasad

[Narayan Prasad]

Thank you so much, Dr Irene Galstian.

This source esp. quotes from the early 19th century and is directly helpful in understanding the exact meaning of Chreia used by Aleksandr Nikitenko that refers to the event that took place about 1815.

Best regards.

Narayan Prasad

On Sunday, 19 April 2020 18:33:49 UTC+5:30, Irene Galstian wrote:

FYI:

https://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D0%A5%D1%80%D0%B8%D1%8F

[Nagaraj Paturi]

Thanks Dr Irene Galstain-ji.

I used Google translator to understand the Russian. 

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Nagaraj Paturi

 

Hyderabad, Telangana, INDIA.

Director,  Inter-Gurukula-University Centre , Indic Academy

BoS, MIT School of Vedic Sciences, Pune, Maharashtra

BoS, Chinmaya Vishwavidyapeeth, Veliyanad, Kerala

BoS Veda Vijnana Gurukula, Bengaluru.

Member, Advisory Council, Veda Vijnana Shodha Samsthanam, Bengaluru

Former Senior Professor of Cultural Studies, 

FLAME School of Communication and FLAME School of  Liberal Education, 

Hyderabad, Telangana, INDIA.