Use of past-tense finite verbs in classical drama
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धनंजय वैद्य
Aug 1, 2013, 6:32:14 PM8/1/13
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I have been curious about the evolution of the tenses from संस्कृत, प्राकृत to the modern North Indian/Indic languages. However, for this forum, my question is only regarding the use of various tenses in classical संस्कृत as used in various epochs.
By tenses, I am restricting myself to the "finite" forms, i.e., तिङन्त. Also I am restricting myself to the time-related forms, i.e., past, present and future-related forms.
With this narrow view, I have been leafing through the plays अभिज्ञानशाकुन्तलम् and मृच्छकटिकम् - just to start with. The motivation is as follows: unlike the epic poems which tell long-ago stories, the conversation in dramas is about current action. Speakers are expected to react to incidents within the current storyline. In the epic poems, we expect that the most common form of the past tense would be the unwitnessed past (लिट्, बभूव) and perhaps also the non-recent past (लङ्, अभवत्) and so it is when we examine them. (नारदम् परिपप्रच्छ वाल्मीकिः; नारदो ... वाक्यम् अब्रवीत् , etc.)
I expected that in dramas, there would be many instances for the use of the recent past (लुङ्, अभूत) as the characters spoke about recent actions and happenings.
I find that amongst the actual संस्कृत text (keeping aside the प्राकृतsections), लट् is extremely common, of course, because the conversation is mostly about present action. However, all past tenses are very rare. So rare that I cannot get any examples from my quick leafing. Instead of using a past tense, there seems to be a preference to use a participle, usually the passive participle (क्त, भूत) to refer to the past.
e.g. (all from the first few pages of अभिज्ञानशाकुन्तलम् )
(Director to actress after her song) आर्ये! साधु गीतम् । (Lady, good song! OR Lady, well sung! BUT NOT Lady! you sang well.)
(Dushyanta, to charioteer) दूरम् अमुना सारङ्गेण वयम् आकृष्टा: । By yonder deer we far-brought (are). OR far attracted BUT NOT Yonder deer brought us far.
(charioteer to king) मया मन्दीकृतो वेगः । By me, the speed slow-made (was) NOT I slowed the speed.
I do not count the one use of लुङ् I found later in the play, king says to jester : मा भैषी: । Fear not! BECAUSE this is not the past, but a negative command.
etc.
Not just लुङ्, I did not find much of लङ् or लिट् forms either. Even in the rare occasions when the non-recent or non-witnessed past is at issue :
(kAshyapa to king :) दुर्वाससः शापाद् इयं ... .. त्वया प्रत्याधिष्टा... । By reason of durvasas' curse, this woman... by you sent-back (was).
My quick search of shUdraka's play had similar results regarding not finding past-tense finite verbs in the संस्कृत parts of the text.
I ask of group members with wider reading. Is my quick observation true? Is is true that in the classical drama of कालिदास, शूद्रक and others, the use of the finite-verb past tense had become pretty much obsolete or rare? Even though I am consciously restricting myself to संस्कृत on this forum, this information would help me understand the development of tense usage in the प्राकृत of that time, and through to the modern North Indian/Indic languages.
Dhananjay
By tenses, I am restricting myself to the "finite" forms, i.e., तिङन्त. Also I am restricting myself to the time-related forms, i.e., past, present and future-related forms.
With this narrow view, I have been leafing through the plays अभिज्ञानशाकुन्तलम् and मृच्छकटिकम् - just to start with. The motivation is as follows: unlike the epic poems which tell long-ago stories, the conversation in dramas is about current action. Speakers are expected to react to incidents within the current storyline. In the epic poems, we expect that the most common form of the past tense would be the unwitnessed past (लिट्, बभूव) and perhaps also the non-recent past (लङ्, अभवत्) and so it is when we examine them. (नारदम् परिपप्रच्छ वाल्मीकिः; नारदो ... वाक्यम् अब्रवीत् , etc.)
I expected that in dramas, there would be many instances for the use of the recent past (लुङ्, अभूत) as the characters spoke about recent actions and happenings.
I find that amongst the actual संस्कृत text (keeping aside the प्राकृतsections), लट् is extremely common, of course, because the conversation is mostly about present action. However, all past tenses are very rare. So rare that I cannot get any examples from my quick leafing. Instead of using a past tense, there seems to be a preference to use a participle, usually the passive participle (क्त, भूत) to refer to the past.
e.g. (all from the first few pages of अभिज्ञानशाकुन्तलम् )
(Director to actress after her song) आर्ये! साधु गीतम् । (Lady, good song! OR Lady, well sung! BUT NOT Lady! you sang well.)
(Dushyanta, to charioteer) दूरम् अमुना सारङ्गेण वयम् आकृष्टा: । By yonder deer we far-brought (are). OR far attracted BUT NOT Yonder deer brought us far.
(charioteer to king) मया मन्दीकृतो वेगः । By me, the speed slow-made (was) NOT I slowed the speed.
I do not count the one use of लुङ् I found later in the play, king says to jester : मा भैषी: । Fear not! BECAUSE this is not the past, but a negative command.
etc.
Not just लुङ्, I did not find much of लङ् or लिट् forms either. Even in the rare occasions when the non-recent or non-witnessed past is at issue :
(kAshyapa to king :) दुर्वाससः शापाद् इयं ... .. त्वया प्रत्याधिष्टा... । By reason of durvasas' curse, this woman... by you sent-back (was).
My quick search of shUdraka's play had similar results regarding not finding past-tense finite verbs in the संस्कृत parts of the text.
I ask of group members with wider reading. Is my quick observation true? Is is true that in the classical drama of कालिदास, शूद्रक and others, the use of the finite-verb past tense had become pretty much obsolete or rare? Even though I am consciously restricting myself to संस्कृत on this forum, this information would help me understand the development of tense usage in the प्राकृत of that time, and through to the modern North Indian/Indic languages.
Dhananjay
Naresh Cuntoor
Aug 3, 2013, 12:36:05 AM8/3/13
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From my limited reading, it seems to be a similar story in several Bhasa's dramas as well. kartari / karmaNi kta is used quite frequently and not lakaaras. Same thing in Venisamhara of Bhatta Narayana who is of a different vintage.
It seems like gadya granthas use lakaaras much more. I remember seeing a whole lot of liT in Bhoja Prabandha of Ballala Deva. If memory serves, he is in the same ballpark (+/- 200 years say) as Bhatta Narayana.
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Muthusubramanian NV
Aug 5, 2013, 6:24:37 AM8/5/13
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It is also intersesting to note that (in my limited reading), the usage of ktavatu is also very limited in the context of past as we commonly use in the spoken Sanskrit language promoted by SB. To summarise, it seems all past tense uses kta pratyaya in either karmaNi or kartari forms.
--
Regards,
Muthusubramanian N V,
Design Engineer,
Texas Instruments, India
परोपकारार्थमिदं शरीरम् |
Regards,
Muthusubramanian N V,
Design Engineer,
Texas Instruments, India
परोपकारार्थमिदं शरीरम् |
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