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29-511: Bhasa's plays had been lost for centuries until the manuscripts were rediscovered in 1910 by the Indian scholar Ganapati Shastri . Bhāsa had previously only been known from mentions in other works, such as the Rajashekhara 's Kāvya-mimāmsā , which attributes the play Swapnavāsavadattam to him. In the introduction to his first play Mālavikāgnimitram , Kālidāsa wrote: "Shall we neglect

58-527: A lot of liberties with the story to achieve this. In the Pratima-nataka , Kaikeyi who is responsible for the tragic events in the Ramayana is shown as enduring the calumny of all so that a far noble end is achieved. His most famous plays — Pratigya Yaugandharayanam (the vow of Yaugandharayana) and Swapnavāsavadattam (Vasavadatta in the dream) — are based on the legends that had grown around

87-409: A permanent military department known as Shingchep Meira Haijouroi , paving the way for the conqueror kings of the 15th century. The warrior queen Linthoingambi successfully defeated raiding Tangkhul tribesmen while the king was absent. Her husband Meidingu Ningthou Khomba took advantage of his highly trained warriors and expanded the kingdom's territory. Their son Meidingu Senbi Kiyamba , an expert with

116-450: A student has gained competence in armed fighting. The physical side of thang-ta is eventually supplemented with breathing exercises ( ningsha kanglon ), traditional medicine ( layeng kanglon ), meditation ( hirikonba ), and the sacred dances ( thengouron ). Sparring matches are conducted in a 30-foot circular arena. There are two methods of sparring: phunaba ama and phunaba anishuba . In phunaba ama , competitors wield

145-582: Is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Thang-Ta Huiyen Lallong is a traditional Meitei martial art form. It is one of the Indian martial arts , originating from Manipur . In the Meitei language , Huiyen means war while Lallong or Lanlong can mean net, knowledge or art. Huiyen Langlon consists of two main subforms: Thang-Ta (armed combat) and Sarit Sarak (unarmed fighting). The primary weapons of Huiyen Lallong are

174-452: Is closer to Kālidāsa than it is to Aśvaghoṣa. Indian scholar M.L. Varadpande dates him as early as 4th century BCE. According to British scholar Richard Stoneman, Bhasa may have belonged to the late Maurya period at the earliest, and was already known by the 1st century BCE. Stoneman notes that the thirteen plays attributed to Bhasa are generally dated closer to the 1st or 2nd century CE. Other scholarly estimates of Bhasa's floruit range from

203-430: Is considered more difficult and is taught after the sword. The spear emphasizes phanba , an opening out of the body with two forms: nongphan to simulate the expanse of the sky and leiphal emulating the expanse of the ground. Generally speaking, the spear demands more of the lower body while the sword uses more of the upper body. Bare-handed techniques ( sarit sarak or sharit sharak ) are only taught when

232-601: Is related to tantric practices and is entirely ritualistic in nature. The second way consists of a spectacular performance involving sword and spear dances. These routines can be converted into actual fighting practices. The third way is the true combat application. Thang-Ta shares a connection with certain war-dances, often blurring the line between dance and combat forms , such as Thang-hairol (sword dance) and Khousarol (spear dance). Many ritualistic dances in Manipur were traditionally performed by martial artists such as

261-406: Is the lion posture, in which the body leans forward with one leg stretched back and the other bent forward. The feet are about shoulder-width apart and form a 45-degree angle. This stance emphasises phidup or a coil, enabling a springing action. At higher levels, exponents slice pieces of watermelons on a person's body without causing any injury. This is eventually done blindfolded. Spear technique

290-440: Is the most popular of Meitei martial arts, practiced by men and women. It is most often seen through demonstrations in cultural programs. In recent years huyen langlon has been promoted as a sport all over India and as a self-defence tactical subject. Competitions are held yearly at school, district, state and national level. The promotion of huyen langlon as a sport helped in the cause of its promotion and spread from Manipur to

319-572: The Thang (sword) and Ta (spear). The spear can be used in its non-missile form while up close, or thrown from afar. Other weapons include the shield and the axe. Unarmed combat incorporates hand strikes, kicks, and grappling ( Mukna ). Because of Manipur 's cultural similarity and geographical proximity with Myanmar , huyen langlon is closely related to Burmese bando and banshay . The Thang-Ta aspect of huyen langlon can be practiced in three ways: ritual, demonstration, and combat. The first way

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348-508: The Puya or written records handed down to posterity by the forefathers of the Meiteis , which record the history of the Manipur royalty in archaic Meitei script. The Chainarol-Puya details the ethics of duelling. The fights took place under strict rules of conduct and to violate them was shameful and sinful. When a fighter is challenged, the day for the bout is fixed to allow for time to prepare

377-757: The exact date [of Natya Shastra] may have been, it is significant that no direct reference to NS was made before the seventh century," when it became accepted as the subject of attention for many poets, writers, and theorists. The Urubhanga and Karna-bhara are the only known tragic Sanskrit plays in ancient India. Though branded the villain of the Mahabharata , Duryodhana is the actual hero in Uru-Bhanga shown repenting his past as he lies with his thighs crushed awaiting death. His relations with his family are shown with great pathos. The epic contains no reference to such repentance. The Karna-bhara ends with

406-613: The late 2nd century CE to the 4th century CE. Bhāsa's works do not follow all the dictates of the Natya Shastra . This has been taken as a proof of their antiquity; no post-Kālidāsa play has been found to break the rules of the Natya Shastra. Scenes from Bhāsa present signs of physical violence on the stage, as in plays like Urubhangam . This is strictly frowned upon by Natya Shastra. However, these facts alone don't make chronology certain. Indu Shekhar states that, "Whatever

435-519: The legendary King Udayana , probably a contemporary of the Gautama Buddha . The first person to revive Bhasa in modern Indian theatre was a Professor of Ancient Indian Drama at National School of Drama , and theatre director, Shanta Gandhi , who first directed productions of Madhyamavyayoga (1966) ("The Middle One") and Urubhanga ("The Broken Thigh") in Hindi. A decade later, his work

464-442: The loser's body may be cremated. Heads were taken as trophies, as was custom among the headhunters of northeast India. Taboos existed such as not killing an opponent who runs, begs or cries out of fear, or anyone who pleads for protection. Until this point, most of the fighters were commoners who also served as warriors. Loiyamba Shinyen (1074-1122 AD) introduced an armed force or lallup , while King Punshiba (1404-1432 AD) created

493-583: The military paid off. His warriors fought Tripura and the Burmese kingdom of Awa, expanding Meitei rule as far as Cachar . Conflict with the Burmese continued through the 18th and 19th centuries, culminating in the Chahi-Taret Khuntakpa or Seven Years Devastation. As muskets were not widely available, swords and spears remained the primary weapons of both the Burmese and Meitei armies. From 1891 to 1947 British colonists prohibited martial arts,

522-428: The play to please his wife, Avantisundarī, a woman of taste and accomplishment. Rajashekhara is perhaps the only ancient Indian poet to acknowledge his wife for her contributions to his literary career. In his Bālarāmāyaṇa and Kāvyamimāṃsā , Rajashekhara referred himself by his family name Yāyāvara or Yāyāvarīya . In Bālarāmāyaṇa , he mentioned that his great grandfather Akalajalada belonged to Maharashtra . In

551-514: The possession of weapons, duels to the death, and other violent customs among India's indigenous populations. The ban was somewhat difficult to enforce due to the region's isolation. The neighbouring Naga people in particular have practiced headhunting in living memory. Nevertheless, modernization and adoption of Christianity killed off much of the native culture, particularly after the second World War. The meditative practices of huyen langlon were nearly lost before India achieved independence. Today it

580-501: The premonitions of the sad end of Karna , another epic character from Mahabharata . Early plays in India, inspired by Natya Shastra, strictly considered sad endings inappropriate. The plays are generally short compared to later playwrights and most of them draw on themes from the Indian epics, Mahabharata and Ramayana . Though he is firmly on the side of the heroes of the epic, Bhāsa treats their opponents with great sympathy. He takes

609-585: The same work, he described his father Durduka as a Mahamantrin (minister) without providing any details. He mentioned in his works that his wife Avantisundari belonged to the Chahamana family. In his works, he described himself as the teacher of the Pratiharan emperor Mahendrapala I of Kannauj . The works attributed to poet Rajshekhara include: This article about a person notable in Hinduism

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638-476: The spear dance for funerals or the sacred Thenkou dance. The sword movements in dance are meant to either symbolize protection or to ward off evil spirits. As a result, it is part of the Manipuri classical dance . All that can be gleaned of huyen langlon's ancient history comes from hymns and legends. Folklore links the creation of huyen langlon and its related dances with the native animist gods. Manipur

667-544: The spear, eventually went on to conquer the Shan kingdom of Kyang. Meidingu Pamheiba (1709-1748 AD) is regarded as one of Manipur's greatest kings. He upgraded the lallup system, making it the duty of every male above 16 to serve the state for 10 in 40 days. Therefore each person served the state some 90 days in a year, with martial arts as part of their training. Thus Manipur had no true standing army and relied on its individual warriors for protection. Pamheiba's development of

696-435: The weapons. Allowing the opponent the first chance to fire an arrow or hurl a spear was considered particularly courageous. The duel itself was not necessarily to the death and usually ended once first blood has been drawn. However, the victor was expected to behead the loser. Either before the duel or before the beheading, the fighters would share the meals and wine prepared by their wives. If it had been so requested beforehand,

725-754: The whole of India, particularly Jammu and Kashmir. Manipur and Jammu & Kashmir are the strongest contenders at the national level. In 2009 Gurumayum Gourakishor Sharma , a leading exponent and teacher of huyen langlon, received the high Padma Shri award from the Indian Government for his contributions to the preservation and advancement of the art. The biggest training school is the Huyen Langlon Thang-Ta Academy which holds demonstrations at cultural shows. As in all Indian martial arts , training begins with stepping patterns and then basic sword strikes. The main sword stance

754-457: The works of such illustrious authors as Bhāsa, Saūmilla, and Kaviputra? Can the audience feel any respect for the work of a modern poet, a Kālidāsa?" Bhāsa's date of birth is uncertain: he likely lived after Aśvaghoṣa (1st-2nd century CE) as a verse in his Pratijna-yaugandharayana is probably from Aśvaghoṣa's Buddha-charita . He definitely lived before Kālidāsa (4th-5th century CE), who knew of his fame as an established poet. Bhāsa's language

783-643: Was a Maharashtri Prakrit and Sanskrit poet, dramatist and critic. He was the court poet of the Pratiharas of Kannauj . Rajashekhara wrote the Kāvyamīmāṃsā between 880 and 920 CE. The work is essentially a practical guide for poets that explains the elements and composition of a good poem. He is most noted for the Kārpūramañjarī , a play written in Maharashtri Prakrit . Rajashekhara wrote

812-556: Was a valley protected from neighbouring Hindu, Burmese and Chinese kingdoms by hills. The valley people were divided into seven related clans, known as yek , salai , or pana . These were the Mangang , Luwang , Khuman , Angom , Moirang , Khaba-Nganba and Sarang Leishangthem . Before their integration into a single unified Meitei community , these clans each ruled separate principalities over which they fought amongst each other. The earliest written record of huyen langlon come from

841-653: Was approached by playwright Kavalam Narayan Panikkar and theatre director, Ratan Thiyam using Manipuri dance and theatre traditions, and traditional martial art of Thang-Ta , who first performed Karna-bhara ("Karna's burden") in 1976, and later Urubhanga . Waman Kendre did an adaptation of Madhyama Vyāyoga in three different languages: O My Love in English, Mohe Piya in Hindi and Piya Bawari in Marathi. Rajashekhara (Sanskrit poet) Rajashekhara ( IAST : Rājaśekhara ; fl.  10th century )

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