Classical Telugu Poetry

328 Pages·2002·1.16 MB·English

00-C2162-FM 9/19/02 1:32 PM Page i
Classical Telugu Poetry
00-C2162-FM 9/19/02 1:32 PM Page ii
VOICES FROM ASIA
1. Of Women, Outcastes, Peasants, and Rebels: A Selection of Bengali Short Stories,
edited and translated by Kalpana Bardhan
2. Himalayan Voices: An Introduction to Modern Nepali Literature,translated and
edited by Michael James Hutt
3. Shoshaman: A Tale of Corporate Japan,by Arai Shinya, translated by
Chieko Mulhern
4. Rainbow,by Mao Dun, translated by Madeleine Zelin
5. Encounter: A Novel of Nineteenth-Century Korea,by Hahn Moo-Sook,
translated by Ok Young Kim Chang
6. The Autobiography of O¯sugi Sakae,translated with annotations by
Byron K. Marshall
7. A River Called Titash,by Adwaita Mallabarman, translated with an
introduction, an afterword, and notes by Kaplana Bardhan
8. The Soil: A Portrait of Rural Life in Meji Japan,by Nagatsuka Takashi,
translated and with an introduction by Ann Waswo
9. The Lioness in Bloom: Modern Thai Fiction About Women,translated, edited,
and with an introduction by Susan Fulop Kepner
10. A Poem at the Right Moment: Remembered Verses from Premodern South India,
collected and translated by Velcheru Narayana Rao and David Shulman
11. Harukor: An Ainu Woman’s Tale,by Honda Katsuichi, translated by Kyoko
Selden, with a foreword by David L. Howell
12. Tokyo: A Literary Stroll,by Lawrence Rogers
13. Classical Telugu Poetry: An Anthology,translated, edited, and with an
introduction by Velcheru Narayana Rao and David Shulman
00-C2162-FM 9/19/02 1:32 PM Page iii
Classical Telugu Poetry
An Anthology
TRANSLATED, EDITED,
AND WITH AN INTRODUCTION BY
Velcheru Narayana Rao
and
David Shulman
UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA PRESS
Berkeley Los Angeles London
00-C2162-FM 9/19/02 1:32 PM Page iv
University of California Press
Berkeley and Los Angeles, California
University of California Press, Ltd.
London, England
© 2002 by
The Regents of the University of California
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Classical Telugu poetry / translated, edited and with an introduction
by Velcheru Narayana Rao and David Shulman.
p. cm.
ISBN0-520-22598-8
1. Telugu poetry—To 1500—Translations into English.
2.Telugu poetry—1500–1800—Translations into English.
I.Narayana Rao, Velcheru, 1932– II.Shulman, David, 1949–
PL4780.65.E5 .C53 2002
894.8(cid:2)271008—dc21
2002068451
Manufactured in the United States of America
10 09 08 07 06 05 04 03 02 01
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Thepaperusedinthispublicationmeetstheminimumrequirements
of ANSI/NISO Z39.48-1992 (R 1997) (Permanence of Paper).(cid:2)(cid:3)
00-C2162-FM 9/19/02 1:32 PM Page v
We dedicate this book to our mothers
Velcheru Venkubayamma
Deana Krantman Shulman
00-C2162-FM 9/19/02 1:32 PM Page vi
00-C2162-FM 9/19/02 1:32 PM Page vii
contents
acknowledgments /
xi
note on pronunciation /
xiii
Introduction / 1
1. Nannaya / 55
Entering the Maha¯bha¯rata / 56
Udan˙ka and the Snakes / 61
2. Nanne˘cod.a / 67
On Poetry in Telugu / 68
How to Make God Fall in Love / 71
3. Pa¯lkuriki Somana¯tha / 76
The Brahmin Widow and the Untouchable God / 77
4. Tikkana / 82
The Slaying of K¯ıcaka / 83
5. Man˜cana / 102
The Brahmin Who Kept His Wife in the Basement / 102
Quick Wit / 104
The Obliging Husband / 104
6. E˘rra¯pragad.a / 106
¯¯
Vena and Pr.thu / 107
7. Na¯cana Somana¯tha / 112
Naraka and U¯rvas´i / 113
8. S´r¯ina¯tha / 118
A Definition of Poetry / 119
Burning the Three Cities / 120
The Birth of Sukuma¯ra / 127
00-C2162-FM 9/19/02 1:32 PM Page viii
9. Bamme˘ra Potana / 133
Vis.n.u the Dwarf / 135
The Rescue of Gajendra / 143
10. Annamayya / 147
Songs for the Lord of the Hills / 148
11. Allasa¯ni Pe˘ddana / 156
The Brahmin Meets the Courtesan / 158
Sanskrit and Telugu / 164
12. Kr.s.n.adevara¯ya / 166
The King’s Dream / 168
Vis.n.u-citta of Villiputtu¯r / 170
13. Nandi Timmanna / 178
Satyabha¯ma Kicks Kr.s.n.a / 179
14. Dhu¯rjat.i / 191
The Story of Natk¯ıra / 192
15. Te˘na¯li Ra¯makr.s.n.a / 201
On Becoming a Frog / 202
16. Nu¯tana-kavi Su¯ranna / 216
Beauty or Wealth? / 216
17. Pin˙gal.i Su¯ranna / 222
Beauty Unadorned / 223
18. Appakavi / 230
On Poetry and Grammar / 231
On Good Books / 235
19. Ks.etrayya / 239
Courtesan Songs / 240
20. S´atakas / 245
Dhu¯rjat.i. Ka¯l.ahast¯ıs´vara-s´atakamu / 246
Kan˜carla Gopanna [Ra¯mada¯su]. Da¯s´arathi s´atakamu / 247
Ka¯sula Purus.ottamakavi. A¯ndhra-na¯yaka-s´atakamu / 248
21. Ca¯t.uVerses / 251
22. S´a¯ha¯ji / 256
Take My Wife / 257
23. Samukhamu Ven˙kat.akr.s.n.appa Na¯yaka / 279
The Love of Indra and Ahalya¯ / 279
24. Muddupal.ani / 293
How to Read a Book / 294
Ra¯dha Instructs I.la, Kr.s.n.a’s New Bride, in the Arts of Love / 294
00-C2162-FM 9/19/02 1:32 PM Page ix
25. Tya¯gara¯ja / 297
I Can’t See You Smile / 298
Take Me for Your Guard / 298
What Did You Give Them? / 299
Reach Him Through Music / 299
Won’t You Remove the Screen? / 300
bibliography /
301
index /
305