Ruby in the dust : poetry and history in Padmāvat by the South Asian Sufi poet Muḥammad Jāyasī / Thomas de Bruijn.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Bruijn, Thomas de.

Contributor:

Dr. Craig Baxter Memorial Fund.

Language:

English

Hindi

Subjects (All):

Malika Mohammada Jāyasī, active 1540--Criticism and interpretation.

Malika Mohammada Jāyasī.

Malika Mohammada Jāyasī, active 1540.

Criticism and interpretation.

Malika Mohammada Jāyasī, active 1540. Padmāvata--Criticism and interpretation.

Physical Description:

371 pages ; 24 cm

Place of Publication:

[Leiden] : Leiden University Press, [2012]

Language Note:

Text in English with some Hindi extracts.

Summary:

Ruby in the Dust presents an innovative reading of the Indian mystical romance Padmavat (1540). It describes the semantic polyphony of Jayasi's seminal work from the perspective of the poet's role in the literary field, as mediator between the interests of his spiritual and worldly patrons. The contextual outlook of De Bruijn's interpretation corrects the identification with modern, nationalist notions of Hindu and Muslim identity that have dominated readings of Padmavat until now. De Bruijns reading reveals the confluence of poetry and history that inspired the many retellings of the tale of Padmavati and Ratansen in Persian and other Indian languages. Book jacket.

Contents:

Part 1

Chapter 1 The poet and the literary field 29

1.1. Jayasi as a 'religious hero' in hagiographical sources 30

1.2. The dates of the poet 34

1.3. The poet's religious inspiration 37

1.4. Royal patronage and contemporary politics 45

1.5. The other works by Jayasi 49

Conclusion 61

Chapter 2 Text, transmission and reception 71

2.1. Critical editions 71

2.2. Diversity: Script, circulation, context 75

2.3. Context and performance 78

2.4. Translations and adaptations 84

2.5. Modern reception 89

2.6. European reception 92

Conclusion 94

Chapter 3 The literary context of Padmavat 101

3.1. A composite literary background 102

3.2. Specific models for Padmavat 108

3.3. Sufi romances and other sources 110

3.4. Nam yogi imagery 114

3.5. Padmavat and the Persian masnavis 120

3.6. Oral storytelling traditions in Persian 129

3.7. References to the story of Ram 132

Conclusion 142

Chapter 4 Structure and meaning in Padmavat 149

4.1. The caupai-doha format 150

4.2. Division and structure of the narrative 153

4.3. Defects as structural elements 155

4.4. Intertext and variations on common narrative elements 162

4.5. The production of meaning: Indian and Persian aesthetic models 166

4.6. Setting the stage: The prologue and the description of Simhal 174

Conclusion 194

Part 2

Chapter 5 A poem of love 205

5.1 The representation of prem 205

5.2 Prem, seva, sat and their dark mirror images 207

5.3 Love as seva 209

5.4 The virtue of sat 221

5.5 The passion of joban 221

5.6 Viraha: The painful longing for love 226

5.7 Love and sacrifice 229

Conclusion 235

Chapter 6 The metaphoric scheme of light 241

6.1. Dawn of the divine light 241

6.2. The ruby, the diamond and the jewel 244

6.3. Padmini, the lotus-woman 247

6.4. Darkness and light, sun and moon 251

6.5. The experience of darsan 254

Conclusion 256

Chapter 7 The messenger 259

7.1 The locations of the story 259

7.2 Messengers and mediators as servants 261

7.3 Mediating the morals of service 265

Chapter 8 Conclusion: Jayasi and the literary field 271

8.1 Circulation of culture 272

8.2 The perspective of the literary field 273.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 277-294) and index.

Local Notes:

Acquired for the Penn Libraries with assistance from the Dr. Craig Baxter Memorial Fund.

ISBN:

9087281129

9789087281120

9789400600317

9400600313

OCLC:

794553856

Publisher Number:

99951532762