Iṅayā-Iinai Kai (Asamyuta Hasta’s)

Hasta’s mentioned in the commentary of Cilapatikāram by Adiyārkku Nallar
(Arankētru Kādai)
Part Two
By
Uma Nagaswamy

Introduction:
In part one of this article we compared the names of Iṅayā-Iinai Kai (Asamyuta Hasta’s) and Piṅayal Kai (Samyuta Hasta’s) quoted by Adiyārkku Nallar and its Sanskrit equivalent. Now we will explore in detail the text quoted by Adiyārkku Nallar in his commentary (Cilapatikāram by U. Ve. Swaminatha Iyer, p.92-97).

Detailed explanation (Iṅayā-Iinai Kai):
.
1. Patākai
Quoted text:

Nāngu viralum tammuḷ otti nimira
Peruviral kunchithu nirpadu

Meaning:
Four fingers held straight together and thumb bent.

2. Tiripatākai (Tripatāka)
Quoted text:
Patākaiyin aṇiviral mudakkuvadu

Meaning:
Holding a Patāka hand and bending the ring finger

3. Katirikai (Kartharīmuka)
Quoted text:

Tiripatākaiyin mudankiya aṇivirar puratatakiya
Nadu viralai suttu viralōdu porunda nimirpadu

Meaning:
Holding a Tiripatākai and bending the middle finger at the back of the ring finger (in a Scissors like manner).
Note:
This description matches a slight variation of Kartarīmuka mentioned in Abinaya Darpana.

4. Tūpam (Kartarīmuka variation bending index and middle fingers)
Quoted text:

Nimirnda nadu viralum suttu viralum pādi padai aḷavu nirpadu

Meaning:
Holding a Kartharīmuka bending the middle and index finger half way

Note:
There is no equivalent gesture for Tūpam in Asumyuta Hastas. Based on its name, it is my opinion that this hasta is used to denote an incense stick.

5. Arāḷam (Arāḷa)
Quoted text:

Peruviral kunchittu, cuttu viral mudakki
oḻinda viran mūndrum nimirndu vaḷaivadu

Meaning:

Bending the thumb, tucking the index finger, holding the remaining three fingers straight in a staggered manner with a slight slant.

Note:
Variations of Arālam (Arāla) exist in different Bharatanātyam styles.

6. Iḷampirai (Ardacandra)
Quoted text:

Cuttum pedu anāmikai ciruviral ottiya agam vaḷaiya
Ottiya peruviral vittu nīngum

Meaning:

Excepting the thumb, holding the index, middle, ring and little fingers together, slightly bending the inside of all four fingers.

Note:
Iḷampirai in Tamiḻ means young moon. Its Sanskrit equivalent Ardacandra represents a half moon. It is interesting to note that the slight bend of all four fingers described in the quoted text could actually represent an earlier stage of moon’s phase rather than a half-moon.

7. Ṣukatuṇdam (Ṣukatuṇda)
Quoted text:

Cuttuviralum peru virarānum, otti ugir nunai kauvi muṉ vaḷaindu
Anāmikai mudanga, pēdodu ciruviral than miga nimirnda

Meaning:

Holding the index and thumb in a bent position, with there tips touching, bending the ring finger, while holding the middle and little fingers in a straight position.

Note:
There is a slight variation in the above description from its Sanskrit version and this is holding the tips of index and thumb fingers.

8. Mutti (Muṣti)
Quoted text:

Cuttu naduviral anāmikai ciruviral, iruga mudakkiyavatrin misai
Peruviral muruga piditta muraimai

Meaning:
Holding the index, middle, ring and little finger in a bent and tucked position, bending the thumb and placing it against the rest

9. Katakam (Katakāmukam)
Quoted text:

Peruvira nuniyum cuttuvira nuniyum vaḷainda ugir kauvvi
oḻinda mūndrum vaḻi vaḻi nimira

Meaning:
Holding the tips of bent index and thumb fingers in a tucked position, bending the remaining three fingers in a staggered position

Note:
There are three variations of the Katakāmukam taught in many styles of Bharatanātyam.


10. Sūci (Sūci)
Quoted text:

Naduviral peruviralendrivai tammil adaivuda ondri
Suttu vira nimira oḻindana vaḻi vaḻi mudangi nirpa

Meaning:
Bending the middle finger and the thumb touching its back, holding the index finger
in a straight position, remaining three fingers bent and staggered


11. Padumakōsikam (Padmakoṣa)
Quoted text:

Oppa kai vaḷait taindu viralum meipada vakandra vidiyitrākum

Meaning:
Bending all five fingers with their tips touching.

12. Kāngulam (Kāngula)
Quoted text:

Cuttum pēdum peruviran mūndrum otti mun kuviya
Anāmikai mudangi siruviran nimirnda

Meaning:
Bending the index finger, middle finger and thumb forward, tucking the ring finger inside, holding the little finger in a straight position.

Note:
Adiyārkku Nallar mentions three variations of Kāngulam as kuvi-kāngulam, mugiḻ-kāngulam and viri-kāngulam. Kuvi1 – close fingers in a conical manner (as flowers by night), mugiḻ1-a flower bud ready to bloom, viri1- a flower unfolding. It is remarkable to note that the different stages of a flowers life cycle are beautifully depicted by these variations.
1http://dsal.uchicago.edu/dictionaries/fabricius/.

13. Kapitam (Kapita)
Quoted text:

Cuttuvira nuniyum peruvira nuniyum ugir kauvi pidithu
oḻinda mūndru viralum mellena pidithu
Meaning:
Bending the index finger and thumb with their tips touching, remaining three fingers tucked in a staggered position

14. Virpidi (Ṣikarā)
Quoted text:

Cuttodu pēdi anāmikai siruviral ottiyakappāl viḷaya
Peruviral vittu nimirum

Meaning:
Bending index, middle, ring and little fingers tucked inside and holding the thumb upright

15. Kudangai (Sarpaṣiras)
Quoted text:

Ella viralum kūtti utkuḻippadu enna

Meaning:
Bending all fingers pointing inward

Note:
Kudangai in Tamiḻ also represents the base of a round pot.

16. Alāpatiram (Alapadma)

Quoted text:

Siruviral mudalākiya aīndum vaḷaindi marivadu

Meaning:
Bending all five fingers in a staggered manner

17. Piramaram (Simahamuka)

Quoted text:

Anāmikai viralum nadu viralum tammir porundi valancāya
Peru viral nadu viralinullē cēra cuttu viralum ciru viralum pinbe vaḷaindu nirpadu

Meaning:
Bending ring and middle fingers together with thumb touching the tip of middle finger while the index and little fingers bending backward.

Note:
Piramaram2 in Tamiḻ depicts a bee or a whirler. The description mentioned in the quoted text comes very close to Simahamuka hasta. I kept thinking for a really long time why Piramaram would be close to Simahamuka hasta. It struck me suddenly that if you slightly bend the middle and ring fingers holding a Simahamuka hasta toward the palm, it resembles a drum that Lord Ṣiva holds in his right hand. The way this drum I played is by whirling from one side to another which is what Bramari in Sanskrit means. I feel this is very important correlation between these two hastas.

2 http://dsal.uchicago.edu/cgi-bin/romadict.pl?query=piramaram&table=fabricius


18. Tāmpiracūdam (Katakāmuka)


Quoted text:

Nadu viralum cuttu viralum peru viralum tammil nuni otha kūdi vaḷaindu
Ciru viralum aṇi viralum mudangi nimirvadu

Meaning:
Bending middle, index fingers and thumb with their tips touching, bending little and ring fingers in a straight position

Note: This description is similar Katakāmuka. However a careful comparison with Mandala hasta described in later text reveals that this in fact is Tamracūda since both these hastas depict a circle enclosed by the thumb and middle finger.


19. Pasāsam
Quoted text:

Peru viralum cuttu viralum andri oḻinda mūndrum
tammur polindu nirpadena koḷka

Meaning:
Except the thumb and index fingers, keep the remaining three fingers in a stretched or expanded manner.

Note:
Adiyārkku Nallar describes three types of pasāsam namely akanilai pasāsam, mukanilai pasāsam and ukirnilai pasāsam (Akam- inside, Mukam-face and Ukir-nails). Akanilai pasāsam as the name indicates is described as joining the tips index and thumb fingers when the inside of index and thumb are facing each other (This could be the equivalent of Hamsa). Mukanilai Pasāsam is described as leaving a small gap between the two fingers, i.e. again the thumb and index fingers facing each other (Again a variation of Hamsa). Ukirnilai Pasāsam is described as the nails of thumb and index fingers touching (This could be a variation of Arāla).

20. Mukuḷam (Mukuḷa)
Quoted text:

Aindu viralum tammil kuvindu nimirndu nirpadu

Meaning:
Bending all five fingers in an upright tucked manner

Note:
Mukuḷam3 in Sanskrit and Tamiḻ means a flower bud ready to bloom.

3 http://dsal.uchicago.edu/cgi-bin/romadict.pl?query=mukulam&table=fabricius

21. Piṇdi (Ūrnanāba)
Quoted text:

Cuttu viral pēdi viral anāmikai ciru viral otti negiḷa mudanga
Avatrin mēlē kurukkitta peruviral katti vilangi viral vaḻi muṟaiāṟṟal

Meaning:
Bending index, middle, ring and little finger tightly and holding thumb across

Note:
Piṇdi does not have an equivalent hasta in Abhinaya Darpanam. But after careful comparison, it is my opinion that Piṇdi is the same as Ūrnanāba described in Chapter 94 of Nāṭya Sāstra. Pindi5 in Tamiḻ means a heap or a collection. In Nāṭya Sāstra, Ūrnanāba3 is described to depict gently hitting or scratching your head holding this hasta or a person with leprosy.

5 http://dsal.uchicago.edu/cgi-bin/romadict.pl?query=pinti&table=fabricius
4 Chapter 9, Nāṭya Sāstra.

22. Terinilai (Karkata half)
Quote:

Ella viralum virindu kunchittu nirpadu

Meaning:
Spreading all five fingers and bend them in a slightly slanted position

Note:
We get a clue that Terinilai represents Karkata half from a text quoted later by Adiyarkku Nallār while describing Karkatam in the Piṇayal Kai (Samyuta Hastas) list. We will revisit this discussion in the Piṇayal Kai (Samyuta Hastas) section.

23. Meinilai (Hamsapakṣam?)
Quote:

Ciru viralum, aṇi viralum, nadu viralum, cuttu viralum vittu nimira
Cuttuviranmēr peruviral cēra vaippadu

Meaning:
Slightly bending little, ring, middle and index finger and placing the thumb on top of the index finger.

Note:
This is a slight variation of Hamsapakṣam mentioned in Abhinaya Darpanam.

24. Unnam (Triṣūla)
Quoted text:

Ciru viralum peru viralum tammut oḻinda mūndru viralum vittu nimirvadu

Meaning:

Bending the little finger and thumb with their tips touching, keeping the remaining three fingers straight.

Note:
One of the meanings of Unnam in Tamiḻ is described as a pincers for tearing off flesh6. This description encompasses Triṣūla (Trident) which can also be used to tear flesh.

6 http://dsal.uchicago.edu/cgi-bin/romadict.pl?query=unnam&table=fabricius

25. Mandalam (Tamracūda)
Quoted text:

Pēdu vira nuniyum, peru vira nuniyum kūdi vaḷaindutam ukir nunai kauvi
oḻindu mundrum mokka vaḷaivadena

Meaning:

Bending middle finger and thumb with their tips touching, bending the remaining three fingers in a staggered manner.
Note:
Mandalam in Tamiḻ means a circle. When we hold either Mandala and Tamracūda hastas, one can observe a circle enclosed by the thumb and middle fingers. Therefore, it is my opinion that Mandalam is a variation of Tamracūda.

26. Caturam (Catura)
Quoted text:

Cuttu viralum nadu viralum aṇi viralum tammut cērndu iṟainja peru viral agam varavaittu siru ciral pinbe nimirndu nirpadu

Meaning:
Bending index, middle and ring fingers with thumb placed on the inside, bending the little finger backward in a straight position.

Note:
Caturam7 in Sanskrit and Tamiḻ means a square, quadrangle, skill, cleverness or sagacity.
7 http://dsal.uchicago.edu/cgi-bin/romadict.pl?query=caturam&table=fabricius

27. Māndralai (Mrigasīrṣa)
Quoted text:

Peru viralum siru viralum oḻinda mūndrum tammil otta ondri munne iṟainji nirpadu

Meaning:
Excluding the thumb and little fingers, bending the remaining three fingers forward.

Note:
Māndralai in Tamiḻ means a deer head.

28. Sangam (Sangu half)
Quoted text:

Peru viral nimira oḻinda nāngu viralum vaḷaindu nirpadu

Meaning:
Keeping the thumb straight, slightly bending the remaining four fingers.

Note:
There is no hasta equivalent to this in Abinaya Darpanam. However based on its description, one can speculate that Sangam could represent Sangu half or the single handed version of Utsanga hasta.

29. Vaṇdu (Mayuram)
Quoted text:

Peru viralum aṇiviralum vaḷaindu nuni ondri
Ciru viral mimirndu cuttu viralum nadu viralum negiḻa nirpadu

Meaning:
Bending the thumb and ring fingers with their tips touching, keeping the little finger in a straight position and slightly bending the index and middle fingers.

Note:
Vaṇdu in Tamiḻ means a wasp or any kind of beetle.

30. Ilatai (Katakāmukam?)
Quoted text:

Nadu viralum cuttu viralum kūdi nimira peru viral avarrin kīḻ varai cera
oḻinda irandu viralum vaḻi murai pinne nimirndu nirpadu

Meaning:
Keeping the middle and index fingers in a straight position, tucking the thumb beneath these two fingers and bending the remaining two fingers backward in a straight manner.

Note:
Ilatai9 in Tamiḻ means a creeper or a Tendril.

9 http://dsal.uchicago.edu/cgi-bin/romadict.pl?query=ilatai&table=fabricius

31. Kapōdam (Patāka variation thumb extending out)
Quoted text:

Patākaiyil peru viral vittu nimirvadu

Meaning:
Holding patāka, keeping the thumb in a straight position.

Note: As the name indicates, this hasta represents Kapōda half.

32. Makaramukam (Candrakalā?)

Quoted text:

Peru viralum cuttu viralum nimirndu kuda olinda mundru viralum
Tammul ondri adarkku verai nirpadu.

Meaning:
Keeping the thumb and index fingers in a straight, bending the remaining three in opposite direction.
Note:
The literal translation of this hasta is fish face. The quoted text matches with Candrakalā in an upright position. One can interpret the upright position as a fish with its mouth open.

33. Valampuri (Kūrma half?)

Quoted text:

Ciru viralum peru viralum nimirndu cuttu viralin agam vaḷaindu
Oḻinda irandum nimirndu irainji nirpadu.

Meaning:
Keeping the little fingers and thumb in a straight position, bending the index finger inside and holding the remaining two fingers in a staggered position.

Note:
There is no equivalent of this hasta in either Abhinaya Darpanam or Nāṭya Sāstra. Valampuri represents a Shank and the quoted text matched a shank like gesture. If we place the right hand facing the left holding this hasta in an upright posture, it matches Kūrma gesture of Samyuta hasta’s.

Remarks:

Based on the above comparison it is very evident that majority of the Asamyuta Hastas have either equivalent or variations there of in the Iṅayā-Iinai Kai described by Adiyārkku Nallar in his commentary. We see a clear picture of evolution of the hasta’s from those mentioned in the original Tamiḻ texts that existed in ancient times which most likely were translations of Nāṭya Sāstra. In the following part, I will correlate the Piṇayal Kai and Samyuta Hastas.

References:
1. Dr. U. V. Swaminatha Aiyar, Cilapatikaram 5th ed., 1950.
2. Nāṭya Sāstra, Chapter 9.

Hasta’s mentioned in the commentary of Cilapatikāram by Adiyārkku Nallār

(Arankētru Kādai)
Part One
By
Uma Nagaswamy

Author’s Note

It is my great pleasure to take up research on Cilapatikāram under the able guidance of my father Kalaimāmani Dr. R. Nagaswamy, a renowned Sanskrit and Tamil scholar. Without his encouragement and insight, this work would not have been possible.

Cilapatikāram has wealth of information on Dance, Music and the way of living of a commoner in ancient times. The first comprehensive commentary on Cilapatikāram available to us was written by Adiyarkku Nallār, a brilliant scholar in the early 1200 CE. Although the original text by Iḷango Adikaḷ is not available, majority of the commentary for the first canto and a part of the second canto by Adiyarkku Nallār in palm leaf manuscript has been recovered and made available to us by Dr. U.Ve. Swaminatha Iyer, a great Tamil scholar. But for him, this master piece would have been lost for ever. It is known that Adiyarkku Nallār wrote commentary for the whole text but they have not survived. An earlier commentary by Arum-pada-urai-āciryar which is available for the whole text is also given by Swaminatha iyer.

In his commentary on Arangētru Kādai, Indra viḷa and kānal vari Adiyarkku Nallār explains the technique of Dance and Music in great detail. He cites extensively from the then existing Tamil sources and it is found that some definitions vary from the Sanskrit sources. Otherwise most of his work shows the Dance and music tradition was mainly based on Sanskrit school. This article quotes texts and explanations from the book “Cilapatikāram” critically edited and published by U. Ve. Swaminatha Iyer.


Introduction

The Sangam era spanning between 200BCE and 200CE had an explosion of literary treatises by many learned poets and scholars. Among them, Cilapatikāram considered a post Sangam text enjoys a unique place as the most popular of the five epics (Aīnperum kāppiyam) and is assigned to about the 3rd century CE. The author of this epic is Iḷango Adikaḷ and is mentioned as the brother of the Chēra king Seguttuvan. Cilapatikāram is a story of a commoner unjustly accused and murdered for stealing the Pandya Queens anklets and his wife taking extreme measures to clear his name.

The story beautifully unfolds at an extremely fast pace into three Cantos describing
• Kovalan’s marriage to Kaṇṇagi
• Kovalan deserting Kaṇṇagi for Mādavi, a court dancer
• Kovalan returning to Kaṇṇagi
• Kovalan and Kaṇṇagi relocating to Madurai to start a new life
• Kovalan being unjustly accused of stealing the Pandya Queens anklets and being murdered
• Kaṇṇagi taking extreme measures to clear her husbands name

Numerous translations and commentaries are available for interested readers to explore, the most authentic and comprehensive among them being the publication by U. Ve. Swaminatha Iyer.

In this article I will explore the sections pertaining to Dance in Arangētru Kādai, a subsection of the very first Canto Pukār Kāndam. Arangētru Kādai beautifully explains the rigorous training that Mādavi undergoes before her debut stage performance and the rituals that she is required to perform on the day of her initiation. In his explanation, Adiyarkku Nallār interprets Iḷango Adikaḷ’s description of Mādavi’s training in the following way:

Avinayathodē nāṭti ceiyumidattu ceiyum muraimatān nāngu vagai padum
Kaiyum karuttum midarum carīramumena

There are four methods of performing Nātya which includes hand gestures (Hasta’s), meaning (karuttu), neck movements (midar) and bodily movement (karaṇā’s). He then explains the two types of hand gestures; Iṇayā-Iṇai Kai (single hand) and Piṇayal Kai (double hand) in great detail. In part one of this article, I have tried to map each hasta to the best of my understanding to what we know and use currently according to Abinaya Darpana. It is very evident that some of the Hasta’s do not match the method that is explained in Abinaya Darpana despite having the same names. In fact this deviation from the Sanskrit meaning of a few hasta’s is mentioned by U. Ve. Swaminatha Iyer in his introduction.

Iṇayā -Iṇai Kai (Asamyuta Hastas) – 33 single hand gestures

1. Patākai (Patāka)
2. Tiripatākai (Tripatāka)
3. Katirikai (Kartarīmuka)
4. Tūpam (Kartarīmuka variation bending index and snake fingers)
5. Arālam (Arāla)
6. Iḷampirai (Ardacandra)
7. Sukatuṇdam (Ṣukatuṇda)
8. Mutti (Muṣti)
9. Katakam (Katakāmukam)
10. Sūci (Sūci)
11. Padumakōsikam (Padmakoṣa)
12. Kāngulam (Kāngula)
13. Kapittam (Kapitta)
14. Virpidi (Sikaram)
15. Kudangai (Sarpasiras)
16. Alāpatiram (Alapadma)
17. Piramaram (Simahamuka)
18. Tāmiracūdam (Katakāmuka)
19. Pasāsam (Candrakalā)
20. Mukuḷam (Mukuḷa)
21. Piṇdi (Ūrnanāba/Hamsapakṣa?)
22. Terinilai (Karkata half)
23. Meinilai (Hamsapakṣam?)
24. Unnam (Triṣūla)
25. Mandalam (Tamracūda?)
26. Caturam (Catura)
27. Māndralai (Mrigasīrṣa)
28. Sangam (Sangu half)
29. Vaṇdu (Mayuram)
30. Ilattai (Katakāmukam?)
31. Kapōdam (Patāka variation thumb extending out)
32. Makaramukam (Candrakalā?)
33. Valampuri (Kūrma half?)

Piṇayal Kai (Samyuta Hastas) – 15 double hand gestures
1. Anjali (Anjali)
2. Putpānchali (Sarpasiras facing each other)
3. Padumānchali (Padmakoṣam facing each other)
4. Kapōdam (Kapōda)
5. Karkatakam (Karkata)
6. Savutikam (Swastika)
7. Katakāvarutam (Katakāvardana)
8. Niṭatam (Muṣti in both hands at the wrist)
9. Tōram (Dōla)
10. Urcangam (Ardacandra and Arāla at the wrist)
11. Putpapuṭam (Puṣpaputam)
12. Makaram (Matsya)
13. Sayantam (No explanation is available)
14. Abayavattam (Ṣukatuṇda in both hands against the chest, similar to ṣakata, this matches Avahitam in Bharata’s Nāṭya Sāstra)
15. Vartamānam (Mukuḷa and Kapōda facing each other)

Remarks:

Through out his commentary, Adiyarkku Nallār reveals himself as a brilliant Scholar on literature, dance, music and drama. He quotes extensively from other texts that must have existed during his period as references and directs the readers to refer to specific works for further details. Unfortunately these earlier texts are lost to us.

In Part Two of this article I will explore the remarkable details that Adiyarkku Nallār provides for each and every Hasta. In future parts I will compare the Hasta’s mentioned in Bharata’s Nāṭya Sāstra with Cilapatikāram and Abinaya Darpanam.