Mudrarakshasa

The Mudrarakshasa ("The Signet of the Minister") is a historical play in Sanskrit by Vishakhadatta that narrates the ascent of the king Chandragupta Maurya to power in India.

Mudrarakshasa is dated variously from the late 4th century^[1] to the 8th century.^[2]

Plot

Chanakya's pact with lord of the Himalayas, Parvateshwar, from the Northwest ensures his victory over Nanda.

Parvateshwar and Chandragupta plan to divide up the old possessions of Nanda. Next, Parvateshwara dies poisoned by Nanda's daughter and his son Malayaketu succeeds him. Malayaketu, together with Rakshasa, the last minister of Nanda, demands the inheritance of all the old territories of the Nanda.

The drama begins when Malayaketu and his allies (the kings of Persia, Sindh and Kashmir) are poised to attack Pataliputra (present day Patna), the capital of Chandragupta.

The outcome arrives when Chanakya, by the use of guile, manages to attract Rakshasa to the Maurya side, thus undoing the coalition of Malayaketu.

The historical authenticity of the Mudrarakshasa is somewhat supported by the description of this period of history in Classical Hellenistic sources: the violent rule of the Nanda, the usurpation of Chandragupta, the formation of the Maurya Empire.

Commentary

Dhundiraja, the author of Jataka Bharanam, had written a commentary on Mudrarakshasa.

Adaptations

There is a Tamil version based on the Sanskrit play.^[3]

The later episodes of the TV series Chanakya were based mostly on the Mudrarakshasa.

A film in Sanskrit was made in 2006 by Manish K. Mokshagundam, using the same plot as the play but in a modern setting.^[4]

The play was performed (as Rakshasa's Ring) by students of the Missouri Southern State University's theatre program in November 2002.^[5]

Editions

• Antonio Marazzi (1871), Teatro scelto indiano tr. dal sanscrito (Italian translation), D. Salvi e c. 
• Kashinath Trimbak Telang (1884), Mudrarakshasa With the Commentary of Dhundiraja (written in 1713 CE) edited with Sanskrit text, critical and explanatory notes, introduction and various readings, Tukârâm Javajī . Second edition 1893, Fifth edition 1915. Sixth edition 1918, reprinted 1976 and by Motilal Banarsidass, 2000.
• Ludwig Fritze (1886), Mudrarakschasa: oder, Des kanzlers siegelring (German translation), P. Reclam jun. 
• Victor Henry (1888), Le sceau de Râkchasa: (Moudrârâkchasa) drame sanscrit en sept actes et un prologue (French translation), Maisonneuve & C. Leclerc 
• Moreshvar Ramchandra Kāle (1900), The Mudrárákshasa: with the commentary of Dhundirája, son of Lakshmana (and a complete English translation) 
• K. H. Dhruva (1923), Mudrārākshasa or the signet ring: a Sanskrit drama in seven acts by Viśākhadatta (with complete English translation) (2 ed.), Poona Oriental Series (Volume 25) . Reprint 2004, ISBN 81-8220-009-1 First edition 1900
• Vasudeva Abhyankar Shastri; Kashinath Vasudeva Abhyanker (1916), Mudraraksasam: a complete text; with exhaustive, critical grammatical and explanatory notes, complete translation, and introduction, Ahmedabad 
• Ananta Paṇḍita (1945), Dasharatha Sharma (critical introduction), ed., Mudrarakshasapurvasamkathanaka of Anantasarman (with an anonymous prose narrative), Bikaner: Anup Sanskrit Library 
• P. Lal (1964), Great Sanskrit Plays, in Modern Translation, New Directions Publishing, ISBN 978-0-8112-0079-0 
• J. A. B. van Buitenen (1968), Two plays of ancient India: The little clay cart, The minister's seal, Columbia University Press  Review
• Sri Nelaturi Ramadasayyangaar (1972), Mudra Rakshasam, Andhra Pradesh Sahitya Academy  (In Telugu script, with Telugu introduction and commentary) Another version
• Michael Coulson (2005), Rākṣasa's ring (translation), NYU Press and Clay Sanskrit Library, ISBN 978-0-8147-1661-8 . Originally published as part of Three Sanskrit plays (1981, Penguin Classics).

References