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A Study of the Metre of Pàràyanavagga

Tuññhubha

In the Vedic period the Tuññhubha was the most important metre used in verse composition, about 2/3 of the verses in the »g Veda are in this metre. In the Vedic period there are two main forms to the metre, which can be described thus:

they are distinguished by the position of the caesura, which comes after either the 4th or the 5th syllable, and is normally followed by 2 shorts which begin the second half of the line.

In the Pucchà and epilogue of Pàràyanavagga there are 228 lines in Tuññhubha metre. ⁰¹ When we compare these with the Vedic models we will find that there are some interesting continuities and also discontinuities.

The Tuññhubha Opening:

As we can see from the description given above in the Vedic period there are 2 main forms of the opening, they are ÅÜÛÜ, & ÅÜÜÜ ⁰² . In the Vedas these openings are roughly equal in number. Both of these openings also occur in Pàràyanavagga. The first is by far the most common form, but the second, though becoming rare ⁰³ , is found on a significant number of occasions, see 1045e, 1052b, 1070a, 1071b, 1072b, 1073a, 1082a, 1096d, 1120c, 1149d ⁰⁴ . As this is continuous with the Vedic form of the metre, it seems that we should accept it as a genuine form of the metre. In the early period therefore, readings that meet the requirements of this opening should be regarded as legitimate, and when establishing texts there is no pressing need to take alternative readings that have almost certainly been introduced by scribes who were seeking to regularize the metre according to classical norms.

There is a third form of the opening that occurs in the Pucchà, which shows the following pattern ÜÛÛÜ, these can be found at the following lines: 1050c, 1082b, 1096c, 1097e, 1120e, 1122f; see also 1056b, 1104b.

Of the instances that are listed here 4 concern the compound jàtijaràya (ÜÛÛÜÐÛ), one other has the compound santipadaü (ÜÛÛÜ); and another has the reading upadhinidànà (ÛÛÛÛÜÜ); in these cases it would not be difficult to rectify the metre by reading jàtã, santã, & upadhã, it is therefore perhaps of some significance that no such reading is found in any of the editions. The other 2 readings open with the word bhikkhu, where to read bhikkhå, would violate the context, producing a plural where a singular is needed.

In the Vedic period this opening is regarded as irregular ⁰⁵ . But in the Pàëi verses it appears fairly frequently, and shows a definite form, always beginning with a long syllable, so that I feel that we have to regard it as a genuine syncopated variation of the opening in the Pàëi period.

Tuññhubha Breaks:

The most important difference in the early Pàëi period is the dominance of the bhagaõa break ÜÛÛ which in fact becomes the norm in the classical period. In the tables that follow it will be seen that it is this characteristic, and not the position of the caesura, that distinguishes the metre (only the regular breaks are listed in this first table, breaks that are considered to be irregular in form will be listed later).

caesura at the 4th:

,ÜÛÛ (57 lines, constituting 24% of the total)

1044e, 1046e, 1048bd, 1051b, 1052de, 1056c, 1057d, 1059bc, 1060bd, 1063abd, 1064b, 1069b, 1070d, 1071d, 1072d, 1073c, 1075abc, 1076d, 1078d, 1080ef, 1081eh, 1082d, 1083bd, 1090abc, 1091bd, 11096a(b)cd, 1102c, 1121c, 1123c, 1133b, 1134abd, 1142b, 1143b, 1144abd, 1146ab

,ÛÛÜ (21 lines, 10% of the total)

1043f, 1045f, 1047e, 1049a, 1052f, 1055b, 1057d, 1061a, 1064d, 1068b, 1069acd, 1075d, 1079g, 1097(b), 1101c, 1102d, 1103b, 1142a, 1146c

,ÜÛÜ (19 lines, 8% of the total)

1049b, 1058b, 1059a, 1060(a), 1070a, 1071b, 1072b, 1074ac, 1077d, 1082g, 1083g, 1091a, 1101b, 1104bd, 1120c,1133c, 1134c

,ÛÛÛ (8 lines, 3.5% of the total)

1078a, 1079a, 1080a, 1081a, 1082a, 1102a, 1122b, 1143c

,ÜÜÛ (4 lines, 2% of the total)

1056b, 1101a, 1133ad

caesura at the 5th:

Û,ÛÛ (13 lines, 6% of the total)

1058a, 1070c, 1074bd, 1076a, 1077b, 1078b, 1082b, 1097e, 1120ae, 1122f, 1123a

Ü,ÛÜ (6 lines, 3% of the total)

1048c, 1056a, 1060c, 1072a, 1078c, 1097a, 1149d

Ü,ÛÛ (34 lines, 15% of the total)

1046d, 1049(c), 1050(a)c, 1051acd, 1052c, 1056d, 1059d, 1065abd, 1071c, 1072c, 1073a, 1079b, 1082c, 1083c, 1097(a)d, 1102b, 1103a, 1104ac, 1120bd, 1121d, 1122ace, 1123bd, 1142c

Ü,ÜÛ (1 line)

1077c

caesura at the 6th:

ÜÛ,Û (40 lines, 18% of the total)

1045(e), 1046c, 1047(bd), 1050b, 1052ab, 1055c, 1057(a), 1058c, 1061b, 1063c, 1064a, 1070b, 1071a, 1076c, 1079cd(f), 1080bcd, 1081bcd(g), 1082ef, 1083(a)ef, 1090d, 1091c, 1121ab, 1142d, 1143ad, 1144c, 1149c

From this we can see that the bhagaõa break - regardless of where the caesura falls - forms 57% of all Tuññhubha lines in the Pucchà and Epilogue.

The irregular lines are also of some interest in helping to define the parametres of the prosody. The first break listed below is particularly interesting, as a long 6th has been normally considered to be wrong in terms of the metre. As there seems to be a regular form to this break ⁰⁶ , with the caesura after the long 6th, followed by a short syllable, it appears that the break should be regarded as acceptable:

ÜÜ,Û (8 lines, 4% of the total)

1048a, 1049d, 1050d, 1055d, 1073bd, 1077c, 1103c ⁰⁷

replacement of 2 presumed short syllables by one long one:

Û,Ü 1068d,

Ü,Ü 1064c, 1068c, 1076b, 1103d

extended form, having the caesura at the 5th, and restarting from the same syllable, giving a line of 12 syllables:

Ü,ÜÛÛ 1044d,

Û,ÜÛÛ 1047c, 1081f,

Û,ÛÛÜ 1120a, 1123a

irregular ⁰⁸ :

1045d, 1046e, 1047a, 1057c, 1058d, 1060a, 1065c, 1079e, 1080f, 1101d, 1122d, 1146d

It is characteristic of the early Vedic period that the mixing of Tuññhubha and Jagatã lines was normally avoided. Of the 228 lines counted above, only 16 are in the Jagatã metre, which therefore constitute less than 7% of the total, this shows that although by the early Pàëi period Jagatã lines were allowed in what were otherwise Tuññhubha verses, nevertheless they were not part of the normal parametres of the prosody ⁰⁹ , and seem to have been allowed only as an expedient.

When we put this analysis together we can define the Tuññhubha metre in the early Pàëi period thus:

with the syncopated opening ÜÛÛÜ sometimes appearing, and the break ÜÜ,Û occasionally giving a long 6th syllable. It is on the basis of this description that the present text has been established. ¹⁰