TOPIC :- Discuss Kuntaka concept

of Vakrokti

•NAME :- Pandya Dharmishtha D.

• CLASS:- M.A. Part-1 (Sem-2)

• ROLL NO.:- 24

• YEAR :- 2016

• PAPER NO.:- 7 (Literary Theory &

Criticism)

• SUBMITTED:- Department of English

Introduction

Kuntaka was the Kashmiri scholar who

has enriched the Indian poetics in

Sanskrit with his precious contribution

vakrokti.

Basically speaking, the origin of vakrokti

could be founds in Bhama’s

‘kavyalankara’ and Dandi’s

‘Kavyadarsna’. But it was Kuntaka who

clearly explained vakrokti.

Kuntaka is known as the

originator of the vakrokti school

of sanskrit literary theory.

vakrokti consists of two components.

1)VAKRA

2)UKATI

According to Kuntaka,

In a Kavya which is quite opposite to the

description of a thing as it is.

In order to understand the concept of

Vakrokti, it is useful to have a glance over

the studies of the same idea given by other

scholars.

Vakrokti Is source of beauty

Dandi defines “Vakrokti as poetics figure

except Svabhavokti”.

Vamana considers “Vakrokti as a special

poetics figure based on Lakshana”.

Rudrata calls “Vakrokti a particular figure of

speech”.

Kuntaka considers “Vakrokti as striking

mode of speech”.

Vakrokti for Kuntaka is a synonym for the

principle of beauty underlying all kinds of

poetics language.

Then Kuntaka divides Vakrokti-Jivita into

four unmess. The first is the nature of a

Kavya and the characteristics of Sabada

and Artha. Kuntaka classifies Sabada

(Vakrata) into six varieties as,

Six type of Vakrokti :-

1. Arrangement of letters (Varna Vinyasa)

2. A sentence (Padaparadha)

3. Part of a word (Padapurvadha )

4. Vakya

5. Particular topic (Prakarana)

6. The whole composition (prabandha)

Kuntaka also gives few qualities (gunas) of

Vakrokti :-

1. Madhurya : It refers to the sweetness.

2. Prasad : It refers to pleasantness.

3. Lavanya : It refers to softness.

4. Abhijitya : It refers to the smoothness of

the subject matter.

5. Auchitya : It refers to propriety of

expression.

6. Saubhagya : It refers to the magic poetry.

Kuntaka gives importance to the Sabada

and Artha, at the same time he insists on

the presence of Vakrokti in poetry.

Conclusion :-

According to Kuntaka, Vakrokti alone does

not make poetry. The test of Vakrokti is the

contribution to chamatkara the aesthetic

enjoyment experience from a composition.