Syllables of Sky

I am proud to introduce (not review, at this time!) to you all, a recently published book: Syllables of Sky: Studies in South Indian Civilization in Honor of Velcheru Narayana Rao ( Oxford University Press, Delhi 1995) edited by Prof. David Shulman of the Hebrew University. Shulman is a professor of Indian Studies and comparative Religion and has to his credit books such as Tamil Temple Myths(1980), The King and the Clown in the South Indian Myth and Poetry (1985) etc., to name a few, and a number of scholarly papers on South Indian literature and Dravidian philology.

What makes this book special? First: This collection of original essays by outstanding scholars of south India, as the blurb succinctly puts it (and as a practicing physicist, I vouch for it too!), introduces the work of Velcheru Narayana Rao, “who has revolutionized our understanding of the classical literary culture of that region.” Secondly, the topics in the book, perhaps for the first time present the ‘Andhra-centric’ vision of south India, which “in itself an indication of the fertilizing impact Narayana Rao’s work has had on various disciplines of South Asian studies.” Finally, the essays in the book (with the exception of A. K. Ramanujan’s interpretive study of a Kannada tale, posthumously published) were specially written by scholars of South Asian Studies from across the world in honor of Velcheru Narayana Rao. That should make all of us proud; especially me, for having Narayana Rao as a friend and mentor for over forty years.

The book is divided into four sections: South Indian Folklore and Literary Theory, Classical Literature, Anthropology/Religion, and South Indian History and History of Art.

Shulman writes the opening essay. A beautiful one indeed! It is an affectionate biography, emphasizing the intellectual evolution of Narayana Rao as an outstanding scholar of south Asian studies. It is very aptly titled: Toward a New Indian Poetics: Velcheru Narayana Rao and the Structure of Literary Revolutions. It is probably not out of place to remind that Narayana Rao’s seminal thesis work (1978), now a must-study for postgraduate students in Telugu literature, was entitled, ‘Telugulo Kavitaa Viplavaala Swaroopam.’

An essay by Wendy Doniger, Professor of History of Religions at the University of Chicago entitled ‘The Criteria of Identity in a Telugu Myth of Sexual Masquerade,’ topped off by ‘the most delightful tale’ of Rambha-Nalakuubara (Pingali Surana’s Kalaa Poornodayam) as narrated to her by Narayana Rao. It talks about the sexual masquerades such as Nala-Damayanthi; Cyavana, Sukanya and the Asvins; Varuthini and Pravara, and of course, the central piece, the Rambha-Nalakuubara story. She ends her essay with an affectionate note: I would recognize Narayana Rao anywhere, anytime, by the stories he knows.

Shulman’s scholarly piece on Manucaritra, (in the essay entitled ‘First Man, First Mother: Telugu Humanism in the Age of Krishnadevaraaya’) the beautiful re-rendering of the Varuudhini- Pravara, the birth of the Manus, etc., are expertly done. Shulman seems to be a master-story teller. Shulman makes an interesting study of Peddana’s treatment of the need for the “wholly human Brahmin Pravara, a kind of spiritual alter ego whose presence is critical to the anthropogony.” Narayana Rao’s suggestion that “one of the distinguishing features of Bhakti literature is that the author supplies only half of what is said and the audience must supply the other half,” has intrigued Professor George Hart (University of California, Berkeley) and prompted him to research on the ‘general attempt of the classical Indian authors to distance themselves from what they write.’ He presents an essay in the volume, entitled ‘Archetypes in Classical Indian Literature and Beyond.’

David Knipe of the University of Wisconsin makes an interesting study of the planet Saturn (Sani) in the Southeast Indian folklore. The meat for the work was obtained during Knipe’s travels in Eat Godavari District. He talks about Sani, Sani Dosha, (including the so-called yelinati Sani, as the Telugus say). Being a scholar of some repute in vedic traditions and traditional medicine, his essay makes a delightful reading for us, who are mostly ‘techies,’ treading into deeper realms arts & literature.

Because of space constraints, I would only briefly mention other equally scholarly essays in the volume.

There is an essay by Bh. Krishnamurti, former vice-chancellor of University of Hyderabad and one of the world’s foremost Dravidian linguists, entitled ‘Shift of Authority in Written and Oral Texts: The Case of Telugu,’ and a very intriguing study of Animal-Husband Tales from India by Stuart Blackburn of the University of London.

A very warm and interesting study on the female ruler-ship, particularly centering on Rudramadevi, the Female King is by Cynthia Talbot of the Northern Arizona University. She opens with a quote from the MahaaBhaarata: “The country where a woman, a child, or a gambler rules sinks helplessly as stone raft in a river.” It was alleged in the introduction that she has been influenced by Narayana Rao’s ‘powers of persuasion’ to focus her studies on medieval Andhra, although she came to Madison to do research on some aspect of North Indian History. Phillip Wagoner of the Wesleyan University, who studied Telugu with Narayana Rao, wrote an essay on the temple architecture in Andhra from the Kakatiya period. Sanjay Subrahmanyam of the Delhi School of Economics contributed an article on the Tirumalai-Tirupathi Temple. Don Handelman, an anthropology professor at the Hebrew University contributed an essay on ‘Gangamma’s visit’ to Tirupathi. Gangamma, it seems, is spoken of as the sister of our famous wealthy Lord Venkatesvara of Tirupathi. Joyce Flueckiger of the Emory University School of Theology has a very interesting essay on a female muslim healer from Hyderabad. Paula Richman of Oberlin College wrote on the ‘shared poetic conventions among Tamil religious communities.’

No doubt, these articles, in future, one by one and as a whole, will be critically reviewed and will be critiqued in scholarly journals. Sometime next year, after my return from India in the middle of January 1996, I will (I am a physicist, and can get away by saying any stupid thing I please on literature, art and what not!) attempt a serious review of at least some of the essays. If I fail to do justice, then at least I could say with pride that ‘after all, my contribution is that I had been friends with Narayana Rao for four decades! Does any one need anything more!!’ But for now, this introduction should be sufficient to evince some interest in all our literary friends on TELUSA.

The book should be available in India at Oxford University Press Book Stores or their affiliates for Rs 525. The choice for the title of the book is derived from the poem `Suraveethi likhitaksharambulu’– syllables inscribed on the sky — in Dhuurjati’s KaalahastheeswaraSathakam, — which Narayana Rao and Hank Heifetz (University of California Press, Berkeley 1987) have translated into English.

This book is a great tribute to a great but very unassuming scholar, in deed!

Veluri Venkateswara Rao

Tue, 12 Dec 95 18:01:22 CST
(Text taken from Telusa archives.)