Bengali regionalism invades Sanskrit literature

The Bengali-speaking population of the world is often split (by a sub-population hailing mostly from present-day West Bengal, Republic of India, and identifying as Hindu) into two loosely defined socio-lingual groups: Ghoti (ঘটি; घटि) and Bangal (বাঙাল; बाङ्गाल) corresponding roughly to the western and eastern parts of the Bengal region. These two groups differ in their spoken dialects, cuisines, and customs (both secular and religious even if they can be subsumed under the Bengali Hindu umbrella), and have historically enjoyed exchanging innovative insults. 

For a long time, Calcutta, the heartland of Ghoti culture, has also been home to a significant Bangal population who migrated to the city in several waves for various political and economic reasons, and retain many of their cultural idiosyncrasies to this day. The anonymous quotes I am offering today bear testimony to the fact that the Ghoti intelligentsia of this city, which had become a seat of Sanskrit learning in the 19th century under the aegis of the British, were not content with venting their anti-Bangal venom in their mother-tongue only.

(1) Devanagari script:

स्थाने सिंहसमा रणे मृगसमा देशान्तरे जम्बुका
आहारे बककाकशूकरसमाश्छागोपमा मैथुने|
रूपे भूतपिशाचकीशसदृशाः क्रूराः खला दुर्मुखा
बाङ्गाला यदि मानवा हरि हरि प्रेतास्तदा कीदृशाः||

Harvard-Kyoto transliteration:

sthAne siMhasamA raNe mRgasamA dezAntare jambukA
AhAre bakakAkazUkarasamAzchAgopamA maithune| 

rUpe bhUtapizAcakIzasadRzAH krUrAH khalAH durmukhA
bAGgAlA yadi mAnavA hari hari pretAstadA kIdRzAH||

Loose translation: They are like (aggressive) lions in their comfort zone, (timid) deer on the battlefield, and (cunning) jackals when they are abroad. They are comparable to cranes, crows, and hogs in their eating habits, and to goats in sexual activity. With looks similar to those of bhutas, pishachas and apes, they are cruel, criminal, and foul-mouthed. If these Bangals are human beings – O Lord! – then what must ghosts be like?

Notes: The words bhUta (भूत), pizAca (पिशाच), and preta (प्रेत) are sometimes used interchangeably, and are often translated as ghost, ghoul, demon, spirit, etc. Incidentally, both the words bangal (বাঙাল) and bhut (ভূত) are mild expletives in Bengali, sometimes uttered in conjunction with each other, describing someone perceived as "an unrefined rustic".

आहारे बककाकशूकरसमाः : The comparison to crows and hogs evidently implies gluttony, indiscriminate eating, and bad table manners, but I am not sure why the baka (बक) is included in this list. This word, usually translated as "crane", denotes a fish-eating aquatic bird that is infamous in Indic literature for standing still, as if meditating, in order to catch its prey by surprise (बकचर, बकधार्मिक, बकव्रतिन्, etc. = hypocrite), so our poet is perhaps insinuating that the people he is chastising here earn their bread by deceptive means. It is also possible that the original version had vRka (वृक) instead of बक; वृक, referring to a (predatory or scavenging) nocturnal carnivorous quadruped, occurs in literature as ancient as the hymns of the Rigveda and is often interpreted as "wolf", hence it would arguably be a better fit than बक in this context. 

Source:  I have reconstructed this couplet from two sources. Bangla Prabad, "Bengali adages", Second Edition, edited by Sri Sushil Kumar De and published by A. Mukherjee and Co. Ltd. in 1952, contains a slight variant of the last quarter only (बाङ्गाला यदि मानुषा हरि हरि प्रेतास्तदा कीदृशाः) as Entry 5561. The full stanza, with the word बाङ्गाला replaced with an ellipsis, is available in the anthology Kavita Kusumanjali (কবিতা-কুসুমাঞ্জলি; कविताकुसुमाञ्जलि), "an offering of flower-like poems", compiled by Dwarakanath Bidyaratna (द्वारकानाथविद्यारत्न) and published in 1914 CE (Verse 110 of Volume I). In his commentary, the compiler remains playfully evasive about the group of people targeted by the verse, urging his readers to fill in the missing word by themselves!

(2) Devanagari script:

आशीर्वादं न गृह्णीयात् पूर्वदेशनिवासिनाम्*|
शतायुरिति वक्तव्ये हतायुरिति भाषिणाम्||
Variant: *वङ्गदेशनिवासिनाम्

Harvard-Kyoto transliteration:

AzIrvAdaM na gRhNIyAt pUrvadezanivAsinAm| 

zatAyuriti vaktavye hatAyuriti bhASiNAm||

Loose translation: One should never accept blessings from inhabitants of the eastern lands, for when it is appropriate to say

शतायु(र्भव) shatAyur(bhava), "May you live to be a hundred years old!",

they end up saying

हतायु(र्भव) hatAyur(bhava), "May your life be cut short!",

Notes:  It might be argued that the above verse is not necessarily targeted at Bangal people: The debuccalization of sibilants is not a feature shared by all Bengali dialects that would be labeled "Bangal" today, and is found in other languages such as Assamese too. Indeed, the first variant of the verse noted above contains the less restrictive toponym पूर्वदेश. But, to the Ghoti population (which the author and the intended audience presumably belonged to), this peculiarity of pronunciation is a distinctly Bangal stereotype.

Source: I found this snippet (and variants) online; apparently, it has been quoted by preeminent Bengali linguists such as Padma Bhushan Suniti Kumar Chatterji and Dr. Muhammad Shahidullah in their treatises.

Final notes:  It is also worthwhile to mention here that the terms Vanga (वङ्ग) and Banga (बङ्ग), along with the derivative Bangaala (बङ्गाल), which are nowadays used as synonyms of the English word Bengal, historically referred to areas that are in present-day Bangladesh.

Literary tobacciana 3

Disclaimer: This is not an endorsement of the consumption of tobacco in any form, but the documentation of a lesser-known sub-genre of Indic literature.

This is the third installment in my series on Sanskrit belles lettres on tobacco-related products; the first two are this and this.

(1) Just in case you thought that the nail-parer was the only thing that Sanskrit poets had (jocularly) likened to the most sacred of all rivers, here is a snippet where tobacco has received a similar treatment. Note that the Ganges has a slew of appellations (त्रिपथगा, त्रिपथगामिनी, त्रिमार्गगा, त्रिस्रोतस्, etc.) that mean "she who takes three routes", alluding to the three (major) streams of the river according to Indic mythology: the Milky Way in the heavens, the good old Ganges on the surface of the earth, and the enigmatic subterranean Bhogavati that flows past the capital city of the Nagas.

Devanagari text:

क्वचिद्धुक्का क्वचित्थुक्का क्वचिन्नासाग्रवर्तिनी|

एषा त्रिपथगा गङ्गा पुनाति भुवनत्रयम्|| 

Harvard-Kyoto transliteration:

kvaciddhukkA kvacitthukkA kvacinnAsAgravartinI| 

eSA tripathagA gaGgA punAti||

– Anonymous

Loose translation: Somewhere in the form of (vapors inhaled from) a hookah (क्वचिद्धुक्का=क्वचित्+हुक्का), somewhere in the form of quids (see notes), and somewhere (starting) at the tip of the nose (in the form of snuff) – this is how the goddess Ganga takes three routes (to enter the body), and (thus) sanctifies all three worlds.

Source:  Navarasa (नवरस), "the nine poetic sentiments", a Hindi treatise on poetics authored by Babu Gulabrai and published (second edition) in 1933, Chapter 4. Samayocitapadyamalika provides the variant (verse 27 of the chapter focusing on words that start with the consonant k (क्)):

तमालं त्रिविधं प्रोक्तं कलौ भागीरथी यथा| क्वचिद्धुक्का क्वचित्थुक्का क्वचिन्नासाग्रगामिनी||

which spells out that it is tobacco (तमाल; see this post) that is being compared to the Ganges.

Notes:  I have already discussed, in my previous couple of posts, the consumption of tobacco by the first and third means mentioned in the above verse. Many tobacco-addicts prefer to take it orally (chewing, dipping), one of the (less damaging) side-effects of this practice being excessive salivation causing them to spit repeatedly – this is probably why our author has denoted this form of tobacco consumption by thukkA (थुक्का), cognate with Hindi थूक and Sanskrit थूत्कार, "spitting"; I am not sure if the word थुक्का is used in this sense in any Indic tongue.

(2) The following is another interesting demonstration of how to use homonymous descriptors to engage in poetic mischief!

Devanagari text:

सुपर्णपरिसेवितस्तदनु साधुपूगान्वितो 
द्विजावनमहापटुस्तदनु सारसन्धानभाक्|
सदैव सुधयाशनं भवति यस्य विष्णोः सम-
-स्तमाखुरिति सेव्यतां भवति वै यतो*रागिता||

Harvard-Kyoto transliteration:

suparNaparisevitastadanu sAdhupUgAnvito
dvijAvanamahApaTustadanu sArasandhAnabhAk| 

sadaiva sudhayAzanaM bhavati yasya viSNoH sama-
-stamAkhuriti sevyatAM bhavati vai yato*rAgitA||

– Anonymous

Interpretation: Tobacco (see notes below) should be enjoyed / served (the verbal root सेव् has both these meanings) for it is comparable to Vishnu in the following ways:

1. सुपर्णपरिसेवितः : suparNa (सुपर्ण), "one who has beautiful feathers / wings", is one of the names of the mythical being Garuda (गरुड), sometimes depicted as an eagle-like or vulture-like bird and sometimes as a bird-human hybrid, who serves as the mount or vehicle of Vishnu; so, when it applies to this deity, the word under consideration should be read as "served well by Garuda"; parNa does not just mean feather or wing, it also denotes a leaf in general and the betel leaf in particular (and, is in fact, the origin of the word paan), so, in relation to tobacco, the same word means "thoroughly enjoyed in conjunction with a good-quality betel leaf".
2. साधुपूगान्वितः : The two meanings of pUga (पूग) applicable here are "assemblage" and "areca nut", the correct interpretations of the adjective in this context thus being "accompanied by an assemblage of holy / virtuous beings" (Vishnu) and "mixed with  (pieces of) good-quality areca nuts" (tobacco).
3. द्विजावनमहापटुः : dvija (द्विज) is "twice-born", hence a fancy word for tooth and also for any man belonging to one of the castes in which the sacred thread ceremony, regarded as a second birth, is a compulsory rite of passage (in more recent times, its denotation has become restricted to an initiated / practicing / "good" Brahmin); the undeserved qualifier applied to tamAkhu (तमाखु), द्विजावनमहापटु, "adept at protecting the teeth", is based on the long-standing misconception in South Asia that tobacco is conducive to good dental health (the use of tobacco-laced "dental care" products is still a major problem in many Indian states) while Vishnu is "adept at protecting the twice-born" in most Indic belief systems.
4. सारसन्धानभाक् : -sandhAnabhAk (-सन्धानभाक्), "sharing a union (with)", should be interpreted here as "combined with" and (figuratively) "characterized by / associated with"; the editor of the anthology where I found this verse (see below) tells us that, in the case of tobacco, sAra (सार) refers to khadirasAra (खदिरसार), i.e. catechu (Hindustani: कत्था; Bengali: খয়ের) whereas, when characterizing Vishnu, it takes on its common meaning of "superior / essential / substantial entity" ('श्रेष्ठवस्तु मोक्षादि') since Vishnu is the giver of the best boons to his devotees.
5. सदैव सुधयाशनं भवति यस्य : sudhA (सुधा) can denote either slaked lime / limewater or amrita, the elixir or immortality which the residents of heaven are said to partake of. Hence, the clause under consideration means "which is always consumed in conjunction with slaked lime" when used to describe tobacco, and "whose meals always consist of amrita" when talking about Vishnu (there is no mention in mythology, to the best of my knowledge, of Vishnu consuming amrita; the description here is presumably based on words like सुधाभुज् / सुधाभोजिन्, "amrita-consumer", for heavenly beings).
6. भवति . . . यतो*रागिता : For Vishnu, the last couple of words should be read as यतोऽरागिता = यतः + अरागिता "who causes dispassion / equanimity"; for  tobacco, the reading should be यतो रागिता = यतः + रागिता "which imparts color (to the teeth, mouth and lips)". rAga (राग), among other things, means "affection / passion" and "color / dye".

Source:  Subhashita Ratna Bhandagara, Chapter on Tobacco (तमाखुः), Verse 5; Subhashita Ratnakara मिश्रप्रकरण, "chapter on miscellaneous verses", Verse 89.

Notes: It is evident that the particular tobacco product being glorified here is the zarda (ज़र्दा), a mixture of pieces of tobacco leaves with slaked lime and spices which is boiled, dried, and then blended with chopped areca nuts. It is a popular ingredient of the betel quid (paan), and produces "profuse red-colored" saliva called pIk (पीक) in Hindi –  the true culprit, however, is not tobacco but the combination of areca nuts and lime (and the catechu that is often thrown into the mix). There are several references in Indic literature, older than the appearance of tobacco in the Subcontinent, of women chewing paan quids and using the betel juice thus produced to paint their lips red.

Literary tobacciana 2

Disclaimer: This is not an endorsement of the consumption of tobacco in any form, but the documentation of a lesser-known sub-genre of Indic literature.

While my previous post was about an elaborate tobacco-smoking device, today's quotes, both penned by the Bengali scholar Purnachandra De Udbhatasagara in the late 19th / early 20th century, relate to a more primitive (but no less popular) means of administering nicotine to oneself: taking snuff. The word nasya (नस्य) originally referred to any substance with (purported) health benefits that is taken in through the nostrils (it occurs in this sense in the proto-medical treatises of Sushruta and Charaka), but was specialized in more recent times to denote snuff, at least in the eastern languages (Maithili, Oriya, Bengali, Assamese). 

(1) Devanagari text:

नस्यं भूसुरसूरिसेवितमलं नस्यं सुसेवे स्वयं
नस्येनैव विकाशते कविकुलं नस्याय तस्मै नमः|
नस्याच्छस्यतमं न चास्ति भुवने नस्यस्य वश्योऽस्म्यहं
नस्ये मे नियतं विराजतु मनो हे नस्य मामुद्धर||

– उद्भटसागर

Harvard-Kyoto transliteration:

nasyaM bhUsurasUrisevitamalaM nasyaM suseve svayaM
nasyenaiva vikAzate kavikulaM nasyAya tasmai namaH| 

nasyAcchasyatamaM na cAsti bhuvane nasyasya vazyo(a)smyahaM
nasye me niyataM virAjatu mano he nasya mAmuddhara||

– Purnachandra De Udbhatasagara

Loose translation: Snuff is greatly enjoyed by Brahmins and scholars; I myself enjoy Snuff; it is by (the grace of) Snuff that the literary community flourishes; I offer my salutations to that Snuff; there is nothing worthier of praise in the world than Snuff; I am in the thrall of Snuff; May my mind dwell on Snuff eternally; O Snuff! Deliver me!

Source: Udbhata Sagara Part II Verse 241

Notes:  The word used for "Brahmin" here is bhUsura (भूसुर), "earth-god". 

This snippet is evidently a parody of a class of devotional verses (that double as mnemonic devices for students of grammar) in which the name of a deity is repeated, suffixed with all case-endings in the correct order; here is an example from the same anthology (Udbhata Sagara Part II Verse 15) in adoration of Ramachandra:

रामो राजमणिः सदा विजयते रामं रमेशं भजे रामेणाभिहता निशाचरचमू रामाय तस्मै नमः|

रामान्नास्ति शुभायनं परतरं रामस्य दासोऽस्म्यहं रामे चित्तलयः सदा भवतु मे भो राम मामुद्धर|| 

(2) Devanagari text:

अब्धिं गोष्पदवत् पविं यवसवत् सूर्यञ्च खद्योतवन्
मेरुं मृत्कणवद् दवं तुहिनवद् भूमीपतिं भृत्यवत्|
चिन्तारत्नचयं शिलाशकलवद् देहं निजं भारवद्
भक्तः पश्यति यस्य तद् विजयतां नस्यं परब्रह्मवत्||

– उद्भटसागर

Harvard-Kyoto transliteration:

abdhiM goSpadavat paviM yavasavat sUryaJca khadyotavat
meruM mRtkaNavad davaM tuhinavad bhUmIpatiM bhRtyavat|

cintAratnacayaM zilAsakalavad dehaM nijaM bhAravad
bhaktaH pazyati yasya tad vijayatAM nasyaM parabrahmavat||

– Purnachandra De Udbhatasagara

Loose translation: Glory to Snuff which is just like Parabrahman for one devoted to Snuff views the ocean as a puddle, the thunderbolt as a bunch of grass, the Sun as a firefly, the mythical mountain Meru as a particle of earth, wildfire as snow, the king as a servant, the greatest of worries as mere gravel, and one's own body as a burden.

Source:  Udbhata Sagara Part III Verse 397.

Notes:  The word that I have translated as puddle above is goSpada (गोष्पद) which primarily denotes a small puddle formed by water filling up a bovine animal's hoof-print! I have translated pavi (पवि) and yavasa (यवस) in accordance with the commentary provided in the printed version of the anthology that I consulted.

Parabrahman, a word used in many philosophical traditions of the Indian Subcontinent, is usually translated as something along the lines of "supreme / ultimate / universal reality" although it is understood somewhat differently by different schools of thought. It is said that when one realizes Parabrahman, one starts seeing the insignificance of items, individuals, and ideas generally considered grand or formidable, and becomes eager to free oneself from all worldly ties (so that one's corporeal existence itself feels like an encumbrance). On the other hand, nicotine, being a stimulant drug, can induce euphoria as well as lightheadedness / dizziness (देहं निजं भारवद् . . . पश्यति).

Literary tobacciana 1

Disclaimer: This is not an endorsement of the consumption of tobacco in any form, but the documentation of a lesser-known sub-genre of Indic literature.

Ever since its introduction by Portuguese traders in the early 17th century, tobacco has been used in many forms and for various purposes across the Indian Subcontinent. The word tobacco (or, more appropriately, the original Portuguese tabaco) has been adopted and transmogrified variously by the speakers of different Indian languages, and has thus found its way into writings in Sanskrit (or Sanskritized vernaculars) as tamAkhu (तमाखु), tamAkU (तमाकू), tamAla (तमाल) which correctly refers to a few types of black-barked tree (mainly this), and tAmrakUTa (ताम्रकूट), "copper-crest", or tAmrakuTTaka (ताम्रकुट्टक), "copper-cutter" – possibly folk etymology for Hindustani tambaaku (तम्बाकू), Bengali tamak (তামাক), etc.! At least one commentator has also identified kalanja (कलञ्ज) occurring in some treatises as a word for tobacco although this term has other usages too.

The name hookah for the popular class of contraptions for smoking tobacco vapors was borrowed from Hindustani by the British, although it is ultimately of Arabic origin. Various styles of hookah have been used by different socio-economic groups in South Asia, but the most popular variety in rural Bengal is the simple handheld hookah – "a coconut shell or an earthen pot with a short wooden or bamboo pipe fixed on it and a chilum [sic] on the top of the pipe. A chilum or kalki is a hollow cone-shaped container to hold the dressed tobacco and alight charcoal on it. . . . Smoking by ordinary hooka is conducted by inhaling through a hole made on the upper part of the shell or pot. As one inhales, the burned tobacco releases smoke from the chilum and goes down the chilum through the pipe and into the mouth of the smoker via the bubbled water in the shell or pot." (Banglapedia: see figure on the page; also, to be clear, it is the smoke, not the tobacco, that goes down the pipe and bubbles up through the water into the user's mouth).

The following verses invoke spiritualism and erotism, respectively, in extolling the virtues of this humble artifact.

(1) This verse was, in all probability, meant to be a riddle.

Devanagari text:

लोकानां गदशान्तये समजनि श्रीताम्रकूटोऽमृताद्
ब्रह्मेशोऽपि कमण्डलुं श्रवणतो धुस्तूरपुष्पं ददौ|
श्रीकृष्णो मुरलीञ्च वह्निवरुणौ तत्रावतीर्णौ स्वयं
वीणावादकनारदो गुड़गुड़ं ब्रह्माक्षरं गायति||

– कविचन्द्र

Harvard-Kyoto transliteration:

lokAnAM gadazAntaye samajani zrItAmrakUTo(a)mRtAd
brahmezo(a)pi kamaNDaluM zravaNato dhustUrapuSpaM dadau| 

zrIkRSNo muralIJca vahnivaruNau tatrAvatIrNau svayaM
vINAvAdakanArado guDaguDaM brahmAkSaraM gAyati||

– Kavichandra

Loose translation: In order to allay human suffering, His Holiness Tobacco is born from the elixir of immortality; Brahma has offered his water-pot, Shiva a thorn-apple flower from behind his ear, and Krishna his flute; Vahni, the fire-god, and Varuna, the water-god, have incarnated themselves while Narada, playing his vina, chants mystical syllables therein (see notes below). 

Source:  Udbhata Sagara Part III Verse 395; Vidyakara Sahasrakam gives a slight variant, where tobacco is not mentioned at all, in Verse 869 :

लोकानां गदशान्तये भुवि मुहुः स्वर्वासिनां मन्त्रणे ब्रह्मेशोऽपि कमण्डलुं श्रवणतो धुस्तूरपुष्पं ददौ|

दैत्यारिर्मुरलीञ्च वह्निवरुणौ तत्रावतीर्णौ ततो वीणाभिर्ननु नारदो हरिरिति ब्रह्माक्षरं गायति||

(I have slightly modified the reading from the printed text I consulted to eliminate obvious grammatical errors.)

Notes:  The poet attributes the genesis of the handheld hookah to the collaborative effort of several divinities, perhaps in facetious imitation of the popular myth of the Mahishamardini incarnation. This is more evident in the Vidyakara Sahasrakam version which states that the Trinity embarked on this project on the earth (भुवि) following the counsel of the denizens of paradise (स्वर्वासिनां मन्त्रणे). Brahma's kamandalu is the water-bearing shell or pot at the base of the contrivance, Shiva's thorn-apple (Datura) flower is the funnel-shaped chillum on top (note that these flowers are also called devil's trumpets for their horn-like shape), and Krishna's flute is the pipe that connects them. The incarnation of the fire-god alludes to the burning of tobacco in the chillum and that of Varuna refers to the water in the pot, the burblings of which are likened to the incantations of the itinerant divine sage-musician Narada. It must also be mentioned that the thorn-apple is highly toxic, and its seeds have historically been abused in many parts of South Asia as narcotics (hence the association with Shiva), so the author might also be alluding to the stimulating and addictive nature of tobacco vapors when he mentions this plant.

I found the second quarter of the couplet a bit confusing at first, but I think it should be read as: ब्रह्मा कमण्डलुं ददौ, ईशोऽपि श्रवणतो धुस्तूरपुष्पं (ददौ).

The anthologist Purnachandra De identifies the author simply as Kavichandra – this name is shared by many littérateurs who lived in Bengal in different periods of history. I believe our poet is the Kavichandra (possibly a pen-name) who had gained reputation as a humorist and extempore versifier in 19th century Bengal.

(2) Devanagari text:

तल्पानल्पविभूषणा रसजुषां यूनां मनोमोहिनी
नेत्रान्तैरपि दृश्यते सुरसिकैः स्तोकं गुरूणां भिया|
अन्तर्लोलरसा बहिःकठिनता स्पर्शात् प्रमोदप्रदा
हुक्केयं नवकामिनीव रमते ब्रूते कलं चुम्बिता||

Harvard-Kyoto transliteration:

talpAnalpavibhUSaNA rasajuSAM yUnAM manomohinI
netrAntairapi dRzyate surasikaiH stokaM guruNAM bhiyA| 

antarlolarasA bahiHkaThinatA sparzAt pramodapradA
hukkeyaM navakAminIva ramate brUte kalaM cumbitA||

– Anonymous

Loose translation: She is a grand ornament for the bed, and enchants the minds of youthful epicures; bons vivants, afraid of their elders, still keep stealing glances at her out of the corner of the eye; filled with turbulent fluid (or restless passion) inside, she is tough on the outside but gives excessive joy when touched, and warbles sweetly when kissed – this hookah is just as delightful as a new bride!

Source:  Udbhata Shloka Maalaa, Chapter on "additional verses" (परिशिष्टश्लोकाः), Verse 66.

Notes:  If it was not clear already, the "tough" exterior is that of the coconut-shell or earthenware bowl that contains water, and this water gurgles when someone "kisses" the tiny opening in the upper part of the bowl close to the pipe. When not in use, the hookah is often left on the bed. And young addicts are forced to eye it only briefly and furtively since smoking (or even expressing the desire to do so) in the presence of seniors would be inappropriate.

Poetic afflatus

Kumbhakarna, the gargantuan younger brother of the ten-headed rakshasa king Ravana, is one of the most memorable (and tragicomic) characters from the epic poem Ramayana. Because of a strange course of events, which you are probably familiar with, he was doomed to sleep for months at a stretch and wake up for a short period mainly to feed himself before going back to his sleeping quarters. A lot has been written over the ages about the pains that Ravana and his associates had to take in order to wake Kumbhakarna up before time, when his participation in the battle with Ramachandra became imperative. But there is one significant aspect of this gluttonous hypersomniac's unconventional lifestyle that no one would have got wind of, had the poet-anthologist Lakshmana Bhatta Ankolakara not aired it in the following pair of verses.

(1) Devanagari script:

रे रे लोकाः कुरुध्वं श्रवणपुटपिधानं द्रुतं हस्तयुग्मैः
शैलाः सर्वेऽपि यूयं भवत गुरुतराः सावधाना धरित्र्याम्|
शीघ्रं रे रावण त्वं विरचय वसनैर्नासिकानां पिधानं
सुप्तोऽयं कुम्भकर्णः कटुरवविकटं शर्धते दीर्घमुच्चैः||

Harvard-Kyoto transliteration:

 re re lokAH kurudhvaM zravaNapuTapidhAnaM drutaM hastayugmaiH
zailAH sarve(a)pi yUyaM bhavata gurutarAH sAvadhAnA dharitryAm|

zIghraM re rAvaNa tvaM viracaya vasanairnAsikAnAM pidhAnaM
supto(a)yaM kumbhakarNaH kaTuravavikaTaM zardhate dIrghamuccaiH||

Loose translation: O people! Hurry up and cover your ears with your hands! O mountains! Be extremely careful (as you support yourselves) on the earth! O Ravana! Quickly cover all your (ten) noses with pieces of cloth! For this Kumbhakarna in his sleep is releasing a long, loud, and harsh-sounding draft of flatus.

Notes: The first three quarters of the couplet speak to the loudness, force, and odor of the subject's flatulence; the second quarter, where a warning is being issued to mountains about the possibility of being blown away, could also (perhaps) be rendered "O mountains!  Beware and make yourselves heavier (or press down more firmly) upon the earth!"; I have translated कटुरवविकटं merely as "harsh-sounding" ("hideous on account of its annoying sound"), but it could also mean "pungent and harsh-sounding" (कटु+रवविकटं) in this context.

(2) Devanagari script:

गताः केचित् प्रबोधाय स्वपन्तं कुम्भकर्णकम्|
तदधःपवनोत्सर्गादुड्डीय पतिताः क्वचित्||

Harvard-Kyoto transliteration:

 gatAH kecit prabodhAya svapantaM kumbhakarNakam| 

tadadhaHpavanotsargAduDDIya patitAH kvacit||

Loose translation: Some people went to awaken the sleeping Kumbhakarna but, when he broke wind, flew away and fell down somewhere (else).

Source: 17th century Padyaracana Chapter 13 Verses 4 and 5; Subhashita Ratna Bhandagara, Chapter on comedy, Verses 56 and 11.

Notes: In my opinion, the language is a bit clumsy. Subhashita Ratna Bhandagara replaces स्वपन्तं with स्वयं तं; the latter expression in this context would indicate that these hapless minions of Ravana volunteered for this dangerous task.

---

Final notes: Lakshmana Bhatta does not appear to be a highly talented poet (feel free to disagree), but that does not mean we should not cherish his legacy: He is one of the few people who have left behind definitive proof that some of our 17th century ancestors (whom we tend to associate with a grand literary tradition) enjoyed toilet humor as much as the kindergarteners of today! 

Incidentally, the 17th century English poet John Suckling also did not shy away from referring to gross bodily functions in his famously witty literary creations:

Love is the fart 

Of every heart; 
It pains a man when 't is kept close, 
And others doth offend when 't is let loose.

For further snippets of crass humor gleaned from English literature, visit this blog (not mine) and, for educational videos on flatulence, watch this playlist that I have compiled.