Indravajrā/Upēndravajrā (Upajātiḥ)

Pattern

t · t · j · g · g
j
· t · j · g · g

Xऽ।ऽऽ।।ऽ।ऽऽ Xऽ।ऽऽ।।ऽ।ऽऽ Xऽ।ऽऽ।।ऽ।ऽऽ Xऽ।ऽऽ।।ऽ।ऽऽ

Description

Indravajrā and upēndravajrā refer to two variants of a triṣṭubh-type meter with 11 syllables per line, and hence 44 syllables in total. They differ only in that the indravajrā has a heavy syllable at the beginning of the pattern, while the upēndravajrā has a light syllable. The pattern for the indravajrā is thus:

ऽ ऽ । ऽ ऽ । । ऽ । ऽ ऽ

The pattern for the upēndravajrā is:

। ऽ । ऽ ऽ । । ऽ । ऽ ऽ

No rules are generally given for the position of the word-break (yatiḥ), but it generally falls after the fourth or fifth syllable, as in the Vedic triṣṭup.

There is a metrical type called upajātiḥ, which refers to a ‘subclass’ of meters whose lines can freely alternate with each other. The indravajrā and upēndravajrā constitute the most common upajātiḥ meter, and hence the term upajātiḥ is used for a free combination of indravajrā and upēndravajrā lines. Jayadēva (Jayadēvacchandaḥ 6.18) provides the following verse on the subject:

anantarāpāditalakṣmīśōbhaupādau bhavētāṁ vividhair vikalpaiḥ |yāsām imau śravyayatiprapañcausmr̥tāḥ smr̥tīśair upajātayas tāḥ ॥
Let there be two lines, the beauty and splendor of each following fast upon the other, with various options: the master of tradition relate that the upajātis are those in which such pairs occur, which have a word-break in the appropriate position.

Definitions

Piṅgala, Chandaḥsūtram 6.16–18:

indravajrā tau jgau g
upēndravajrā jtau jgau g
ādyāntau upajātayaḥ

Jayadeva, Chandaḥśāstram 6.16–17:

tau jgau gurūś cēd bhavatīndravajrā
upēndravajrā tu jatau jagau gaḥ

Hemacandra, Chandōnuśāsanam 2.154–156:

tau jō gāv indravajrā
jatajā gāv upēndravajrāḥ
ētayōḥ parayōś ca saṅkara upajātiś caturdaśadhā

Examples

Raghuvaṁśaḥ 2.1–2, 2.11

These examples were recited by H. V. Nagaraja Rao and recorded by Gil Ben-Herut in 2006. The translation is by Blake Wentworth.

atha prajānām adhipaḥ prabhātē jāyāpratigrāhitagandhamālyām vanāya pītapratibaddhavatsāṁ yaśōdhanō dhēnum r̥ṣēr mumōca
tasyāḥ khuranyāsapavitrapāṁsum apāṁsulānāṁ dhuri kīrtanīyā mārgaṁ manuṣyēśvaradharmapatnī śrutēr ivārthaṁ smr̥tir anvagacchat
dhanurbhr̥tō ’py asya daryārdrabhāvam ākhyātam antaḥkaraṇair viśaṅkaiḥ vilōkayantō vapur āpurakṣṇāṁ prakāmavistāraphalaṁ hariṇyaḥ

The lord of the people, whose wealth is his fame,
released the sage’s cow to the forest at dawn,
her calf safely tied up after nursing,
bearing fragrant garlands offered by his wife.
The lawful wife of the lord of men,
celebrated as the best of pure women, followed her path,
where the dust was purified by the marks of her hooves,
like Vedic knowledge follows the meaning of Vedic words.
Even though he wields a bow,
his kind-heartedness and compassion are revealed by trusting hearts;
As a result, the deer looking at his body
revealed their eyes’ great breadth.

Raghuvaṁśaḥ 2.34

This example was recited by H.V. Nagaraja Rao and recorded by Nathan Levine in Toronto in 2018. The recordings were uploaded to archive.org by Anusha Rao. The translation is my own.

alaṁ mahīpāla tava śramēṇa prayuktam apy astram itō vr̥thā syāt na pādapōnmūlanaśakti raṁhaḥ śilōccayē mūrchati mārutasya

Enough of your toils, earth-protector.
It would be useless to use your weapon now.
The violence of the wind, which is capable
of uprooting trees, cannot prevail
against a mountain.

Kumārasaṁbhavaḥ 3.34

This example was recited by H.V. Nagaraja Rao and recorded by Nathan Levine in Toronto in 2018. The recordings were uploaded to archive.org by Anusha Rao. The translation is my own.

madhu dvirēphaḥ kusumaikapātrē papau priyāṁ svām anuvarttamānaḥ śr̥ṅgēṇa ca sparśanimīlitākṣīṁ mr̥gīm akaṇḍūyata kr̥ṣṇaśāraḥ

The bee followed his beloved’s path
to drink nectar from the same flower,
and the antelope scratched the doe with his horn,
her eyes closing at his touch.