THE CONCEPT OF ŚĀNTA RASA IN ABHINAVAGUPTA'S COMMENTARY ABHINAVABHARATA

Abstract

The article examines the concept of śānta rasa in Abhinavagupta's (10th–11th centuries) commentary Abginvavabgarati to the treatise on theatrical art of the Natyashastra Bhagaratamuni (2nd–5th centuries BC). The doubts of critical researchers of the Natyashastra treatise regarding the origin of the concept of śānta rasa and its validity in the aesthetic theory of Abginavagupta, according to the commentary of Abginavabgarati, are highlighted. A comparison is made between the concept of śānta rasa and other concepts of the eight rasas from Bhāratamuni's aesthetic theory, and the doubt about the lack of a corresponding stable state for śānta rasa is emphasized, which is obviously different from the methodology of introducing other rasa concepts. The cognitive character of the aesthetic experience of śānta rasa, its causes, consequences and transitional states is revealed, the difference of this concept in the understanding of Abhinavagupta from simplified representations of religious discourse, as well as discourses of yoga, Vedanta and Sankhya doctrine is emphasized. Abhinavagupta's arguments are analyzed in his characteristic process of searching for a source of a stable state for śānta rasa, through successive consideration of the opponents' points of view, study of possible hypotheses and formulation of one's own point of view. The stylistic similarity of the argumentation regarding śānta rasa to the argumentation of the commentary discussion on the rasa sutra is noted, which leaves no doubt about the originality of the concept of śānta rasa in Abhinavagupta's aesthetic theory and, at the same time, the originality of this concept. In the process of studying the understanding of the concept of śānta rasa by modern researchers of Indian aesthetic theories, it was noted that the concept of śānta rasa is perceived simplistically, despite the publications of Daniele Cuneo, who repeatedly emphasized the cognitive nature of aesthetic experience in the understanding of Abhinavagupta. It can be noted that there are at least two ways of understanding the concept of śānta rasa, one in the light of comparative aesthetic theories of India and Western aesthetics, the other in the light of descriptions of aesthetic experiences derived from Bhāratamuni's aesthetic theory, which are adapted to various religious systems, for example, the experience of devotion to God in Vaishnu traditions. This shows that the concept of śānta rasa has not yet found a recognized place in aesthetic theories.