Course in Indian Poetics
Taught by Navtej Johar
Every Thursday July 30th – September 17th (6:30 pm – 8 pm)
The introductory eight-week Course in Indian Poetics will touch upon poetics from the perspective of Sanskrit grammar, aesthetic theory, as well as practice. Considering that it is the Grammarians who, first and foremost, ascribe resonance to the object, the word, and the word-image, it is imperative that we gain a working understanding of the basic linguistic constructs through which they proceed to distil speech unto silence, i.e. resonance. The course will be structured around the bhava-rasa theory of the Natya Shastra and have a two-fold focus, it will a) explore the reciprocal possibilities of the vibhava—the poetic object that provokes the bhava, or the emotion, and b) examine how the inclusion of the ninth rasa – santa rasa in the 10th century, may have radicalized the original model of eight rasa proposed by Bharata. Alongside theory, we will also sample sacred-erotic poetry that enjoyed a special place within the bhakti as well as the performative traditions. Each session will also include visualizations (dharanas) from the Vijnana Bhairava Tantra, as it belongs to the same Saiva school out of which emerges the santa rasa, to give us a practical lead into the framework that mixes poetics with mysticism.
The course will be offered primarily in English with a liberal inclusion of Hindi, though proficiency in the latter is not mandatory. We will meet once a week on Thursday evenings, from 6.30 pm – 8pm
The course is not strictly academic, will require reading, approx. 20 – 30 pages per week. Each session will begin with a recap of these readings. Participants will be expected to submit a paper or a presentation at the end of the eight weeks.
Readings will be shared a week in advance for every session. The reading list is subject to change depending upon the direction our conversations will take.
FAQs related to the Course:
- Dates of the course: every Thursday from 30th July to 17th September (6:30pm to 8pm)
- The fee for the eight-week course is INR 10,000& 150 USD for foreign participants.
- Discounted rate for students is INR 6, 000 & 100 USD(copy of valid student id is required to avail discount)
- The difference accounted in the fee structure between foreign and Indian participants includes the conversion and routing fee in international transfers.
- The entire fees will have to be paid on or, before 30th July.
- For participants paying in Indian Rupees, the bank details will be shared through email; and for those paying in foreign currency, please write to us specifically for international transfer details.
- The sessions will be offered via Zoom or, Google Meet. The links will be shared an hour before each session.
- Sessions will also be recorded and accessible for the next 72 hours. This is for the benefit of those who are unable to attend the live session on particular days.
- Participants will have to sign a form which will confirm that no private recordings and sharing of any material related to the class will be done under any circumstances.
If you have any more questions please contact us at studioabhyas2000@gmail.com or info@abhyastrust.orgcall 9599575830