A Political Satire for All Times: Reading HÄ syÄ rṇava-prahasanaá¹ or the Ocean of Mirth of JagadÄ“Å›vara Bhaá¹­á¹­Ä chÄ rya

Jyotirmaya Sharma

Studies in Indian Politics, 2019, vol. 7, issue 1, 16-32

Abstract: HÄ syÄ rṇava, the Ocean of Mirth, a medieval Sanskrit political satire, delineates three central themes that require serious consideration. First, the Indic traditions underline the centrality of order in a polity. This preoccupation is underlined by the supremacy of the RÄ jadharma-daṇḠanÄ«ti framework. A great deal of violence and cruelty inheres within this framework. Second, if the order is the site for violence and force, it follows that a glimpse of freedom, unshackled from the conventional implications of the puruá¹£Ä rthas can only be had in upholding the desirability of disorder. Finally, the Indic traditions can transgress and express dissent with the help of a plurality of philosophical and conceptual alternatives rather than hankering after a single set of foundational values or an inevitable normativity.

Keywords: Violence; freedom; Rajadharma-daṇḠanÄ«ti; order; disorder; chaos; puruá¹£Ä rthas (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:sae:indpol:v:7:y:2019:i:1:p:16-32

DOI: 10.1177/2321023019838647

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