Course on Sanskrit Prosody CEAS, Bucharest, 27th September to 1st October 2012

Title: Introduction to Sanskrit Prosody up to 12th Century CE with demonstration and practice Course description: Metrical form has always played an important role in the dissemination of the texts through the ages ensuring their purity, and ancient Indian literature is no exception to that. gveda comprises hymns composed in meters like Anuubh, Triubh, Jagat, etc. Though the later Vedic texts contained prose segments, Veda as a whole was named Chandas in testimony of the significance and sanctity attached to the meter. Bardic tradition carried further the banner and adapted simple meters like Anuubh for composition and recital of Itihsa and Pura. Accents were eliminated in this new course. In the next phase, thousands of verses were composed in numerous meters to take the shape of ornate and dramatic poetry and narrative texts of the classical period. Simplicity and enthusiasm found in the compositions of the early classical period was slowly replaced by complexity and acrobatics of syntax. This tendency was also reflected in the choice of progressively longer and complicated meters in the late classical period. Authors of medieval literature in Sanskrit and other Indian languages continued with the traditional meters and brought into use new ones. Prakrit and Pli literature took a comparably separate course through the centuries. Pigala codified prosody in its most suitable form that was accepted as an ancillary text of the Veda. He was followed by numerous authorities of classical poetics. Suitable names were given to meters in accordance with their tempo and mood, and they were divided into families and types. Hybrid meters were formulated to sanction the required relaxation in composition. Norms were developed with regard to employment of specific meters to narrate certain situations. Prosody, thus, provides a guideline to determine the date and value of a text. It becomes an aid to select the most appropriate reading from among a number of variants and to restore damaged verses. Considering this, the CEAS is pleased to announce a course on Sanskrit prosody. The topics intended to be covered are: Basic terminology of prosody, Rise of prosody as a branch of knowledge, Select Vedic Meters (through recorded chanting) Continuity and change: From Vedic to epic-Pura, From epic-Pura to early classical Sanskrit (up to 5th Century CE) Prosodical norms (Special use of certain meters, etc.) Early classical Sanskrit to late classical Sanskrit (from 5th to 12th Century CE)

Date: 27th September to 1st October 2012. Materials: to be provided in advance.

Subscription: Participants shall be accepted on the basis of a letter of motivation and their CV, which have to be submitted by July 1st 2012 to julieta.rotaru@bibliotecametropolitana.ro / shreenandbapat@gmail.com. The tuition fees are integrally covered by the CEAS. For early registered participants, a number of rooms may be reserved at a moderate price in the University of Bucharests Guest House. Venue: Centre of Eurasiatic and Afroasiatic Studies (CEAS) Tache Ionescu, no. 4 010352 Bucharest Romania www.bibliotecametropolitana.ro Teacher: Dr. Shreenand Bapat, Assistant Curator, Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute (BORI), 411004 Pune India shreenandbapat@gmail.com.

Hourly Schedule Basic terminology of prosody Rise of prosody as a branch of knowledge Select Vedic Meters ** Continuity and change: From Vedic to epic-Pura ^^ From epic-Pura to early classical Sanskrit (up to 5th Century CE) Prosodical norms Early classical Sanskrit to late classical Sanskrit (5th to 12th Century CE) 4 2 2 2 9 2 9

** Stress on Anuubh, and brief illustration of others ^^ Major meters only