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'DIDACTIC POETRY - A MIRROR OF ETHICAL ENVIRONMENT
Dr. (Mrs.) M.V. Ramana
Didactic poetry (i.e. Niti kavya) has a very ancient origin and can be traced back to the Vedas. The sufferings of mankind on this earth and a constant search for truth thereof led to the origin of didactic poetry.
The Veidechymns - Sanjnana (in Rg. Veda), Sammanasya (in Atharvaveda) and 'Sivasamkalpam' (in the Yajurveda) proclaim universal brotherhood, harmony and integrity. In the epic period, the two epoch-making sages Valmiki and Vyasa blessed the human race with the two monumental epics the Rāmāyana and he Mahabharata which have eternal social values. The Mahabharata is infact a moral encyclopaedia
In the later classical period too, the Pancatantra and the Hitopadesa, the two great hand-books of ethics and the 'Satakatrayi' of Bhartrhari occupy a prominent place. Besides, there are quite a large number of didactic poems such as Sankarācharya's Mohamudgara, Vedāntadesika's Subhasitanivi, Subhasitavali of Vallabhadeva etc. which bear ample testimony to the ethical environment.
The Hindus, the Buddhists and the Jains have contributed their mite to enrich these literary works in form as well as content. The key-note of all the didactic works is Niti (polity), Sānti (Peace) and Vairagya (renunciation) and they extol the need for the spirit of tolerance and brotherhood. An attempt is made in this paper to show how didactic poetry has been a mirror of the ethical environment right from the Vedic age down to the present millennium.
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