Gatha Saptashati
Encyclopedia
The Gāhā Sattasaī or Gaha Kosha ( Gāthā Saptaśatī) is a collection of poems in Maharashtri Prakrit. The poems mostly have love as a theme. Many of the poems are by women.
The collection is attributed to the king Hāla
, as are about forty of the poems in it. It is estimated to date from between 200 BCE and 200 CE. It consists of 700 single-verse poems, divided into 7 chapters of 100 verses each. It names 278 poets; about half the poems are anonymous. All the poems are couplets, and most are in the arya metre
.
The first critical edition of the Sattasaī was by Albrecht Weber
in 1881. It is based on seventeen manuscripts, and contains 964 poems in total, of which 430 are common to all manuscripts. Weber was also the first person to translate the poems into a European language (into German), but his translation was published in journals and not as a separate book. The only English translation to include 700 verses (1–700 of Weber's edition) is by Radhagovinda Basak in 1970. There is also a Sanskrit translation of the Sattasaī with commentary, made available by the Rashtriya Sanskrit Sansthan
.
The collection is attributed to the king Hāla
Hala
Hala can refer to:* Hala , an Arabic given name meaning "sweetness"* An informal salutation or greeting in the Arabic language* Hāla, an Indian king of the Satavahana dynasty* Hala , a clan of India and Pakistan...
, as are about forty of the poems in it. It is estimated to date from between 200 BCE and 200 CE. It consists of 700 single-verse poems, divided into 7 chapters of 100 verses each. It names 278 poets; about half the poems are anonymous. All the poems are couplets, and most are in the arya metre
Arya metre
Āryā meter is a meter used in Sanskrit and Prakrit verses. A verse in āryā metre is in four metrical feet called pādas. Unlike the majority of meters employed in classical Sanskrit, the āryā meter is based on the number of mātrās per pāda...
.
The first critical edition of the Sattasaī was by Albrecht Weber
Albrecht Weber
Albrecht Friedrich Weber was a German Indologist and historian.He was born in Breslau, where his father was a Professor of Political Economy. He studied in that town, Bonn, and in Berlin, 1842-1845, busying himself especially with literature and Sanskrit archaeology. He received a doctor's degree...
in 1881. It is based on seventeen manuscripts, and contains 964 poems in total, of which 430 are common to all manuscripts. Weber was also the first person to translate the poems into a European language (into German), but his translation was published in journals and not as a separate book. The only English translation to include 700 verses (1–700 of Weber's edition) is by Radhagovinda Basak in 1970. There is also a Sanskrit translation of the Sattasaī with commentary, made available by the Rashtriya Sanskrit Sansthan
Rashtriya Sanskrit Sansthan
Rashtriya Sanskrit Sansthan is an educational organization in New Delhi, India. It was founded in 1970 to propagate, develop and encourage Sanskrit learning and research. It is a deemed university and is fully funded by the government of India...
.
Samples
Other books
- Sanskrit Gatha Saptashati, a Sanskrit translation of the Gaha Sattasai, with commentary
External links
- Hala: Sattasai at GRETILGRETILThe Göttingen Register of Electronic Texts in Indian Languages is a comprehensive repository of e-texts in Sanskrit and other Indian languages.It contains several texts related to Indology, such as philosophical texts...