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	The scheme below shows the form of the ''śloka'' in the classical period of Sanskrit literature (4th–11th centuries CE):		The scheme below shows the form of the ''śloka'' in the classical period of Sanskrit literature (4th–11th centuries CE):

	~~[[File:Shloka Hemistich.jpg\|Shloka scheme]]~~

	The ''pathyā'' and ''vipulā'' half-verses are arranged in the table above in order of frequency of occurrence. Out of 2579 half-verses taken from [[Kalidasa]], [[Bharavi]], [[Magha (poet)\|Magha]], and [[Bilhana]], each of the four admissible forms of ''śloka'' in this order claims the following share: 2289, 116, 89, 85;<ref>Macdonell, Arthur A., ''A Sanskrit Grammar for Students'', Appendix II, p. 233 (Oxford University Press, 3rd edition, 1927)</ref> that is, 89% of the half-verses have the regular ''pathyā'' form. Macdonell's chart given above is too restrictive with regard the first four syllables in a ''vipulā'' verse. For example, the first quarter verse of the ''Rāmayaṇa'' (critical edition) contains a ''na-vipulā'' and scans ⏑ – – – ⏑ ⏑ ⏑ – (''tapaḥsvādhyāyanirataṃ''). Other examples are easy to find among classical poets, e.g., ''Rāmacarita'' 1.76 ''manyur dehāvadhir ayaṃ'' – – – – ⏑ ⏑ ⏑ –. In the ma-vipulā, a caesura is not obligatory after the fifth syllable, e.g., ''Śiśupālavadha'' 2.1a ''yiyakṣamāṇenāhūtaḥ'' ⏑ – ⏑ – – – – –.		The ''pathyā'' and ''vipulā'' half-verses are arranged in the table above in order of frequency of occurrence. Out of 2579 half-verses taken from [[Kalidasa]], [[Bharavi]], [[Magha (poet)\|Magha]], and [[Bilhana]], each of the four admissible forms of ''śloka'' in this order claims the following share: 2289, 116, 89, 85;<ref>Macdonell, Arthur A., ''A Sanskrit Grammar for Students'', Appendix II, p. 233 (Oxford University Press, 3rd edition, 1927)</ref> that is, 89% of the half-verses have the regular ''pathyā'' form. Macdonell's chart given above is too restrictive with regard the first four syllables in a ''vipulā'' verse. For example, the first quarter verse of the ''Rāmayaṇa'' (critical edition) contains a ''na-vipulā'' and scans ⏑ – – – ⏑ ⏑ ⏑ – (''tapaḥsvādhyāyanirataṃ''). Other examples are easy to find among classical poets, e.g., ''Rāmacarita'' 1.76 ''manyur dehāvadhir ayaṃ'' – – – – ⏑ ⏑ ⏑ –. In the ma-vipulā, a caesura is not obligatory after the fifth syllable, e.g., ''Śiśupālavadha'' 2.1a ''yiyakṣamāṇenāhūtaḥ'' ⏑ – ⏑ – – – – –.

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	A Shloka has to be composed in a specific metre (chanDas), with a specific number of lines with a specific number of words per line, each word could be a manTra. For example, vishNu sahasranAma is in anushtupchanDas (two lines of four words each).		A Shloka has to be composed in a specific metre (chanDas), with a specific number of lines with a specific number of words per line, each word could be a manTra. For example, vishNu sahasranAma is in anushtupchanDas (two lines of four words each).

	A manTra, on the other hand, is prefixed by omkAra (primordial sound) and suffixed by the essential nAma (name) and the salutary word '''nama''' (salutation) between the prefix and the suffix. No metre is prescribed. The lyrics in any Vaarnic or matric metres are shlokas. Stanzas from Vedic hymns are not shloka, despite a common mistake.<ref>{{Cite book\|last=Yelle\|first=Robert A.\|date=2004-03-01\|title=Explaining Mantras\|doi=10.4324/9780203483381\|isbn=9780203483381}}</ref>		A manTra, on the other hand, is prefixed by omkAra (primordial sound) and suffixed by the essential nAma (name) and the salutary word '''nama''' (salutation) between the prefix and the suffix. No metre is prescribed. The lyrics in any Vaarnic or matric metres are shlokas. Stanzas from Vedic hymns are not shloka, despite being a common mistake to think this.<ref>{{Cite book\|last=Yelle\|first=Robert A.\|date=2004-03-01\|title=Explaining Mantras\|doi=10.4324/9780203483381\|isbn=9780203483381}}</ref>

	==Metrical pattern==		==Metrical pattern==

74.72.191.4 at 16:34, 27 August 2021

2021-08-27T16:34:11Z

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{{short description|Sanskrit verse in Anustubh metre}}
'''Shloka''' or '''śloka''' ({{lang-sa|श्लोक}} '''{{transl|sa|ISO|Ślōka}}''' , from the root {{transl|sa|ISO|śru}}, {{lit|hear}}<ref name="Sanskrit Slokas With Meaning in Hindi">[https://www.motivatorindia.in/2019/12/sanskrit-slokas-with-meaning-hindi.html '''Sanskrit Slokas With Meaning in Hindi''']</ref><ref name=Macdo>Macdonell, Arthur A., ''A Sanskrit Grammar for Students'', Appendix II, p. 232 (Oxford University Press, 3rd edition, 1927).</ref>) is a poetic form used in [[Sanskrit]], the classical language of India. In its usual form it consists of four ''pādas'' or quarter-verses, of 8 syllables each,<ref>W. J. Johnson (2010), ''Oxford Dictionary of Hinduism''.</ref> or (according to an alternative analysis) of two half-verses of 16 syllables each.<ref name=Macdo/> The metre is similar to the [[Vedic Sanskrit|Vedic]] ''[[anuṣṭubh]]'' metre, but with stricter rules.

The ''śloka'' is the basis for Indian epic verse, and may be considered the Indian verse form ''par excellence'', occurring as it does far more frequently than any other metre in classical [[Sanskrit prosody|Sanskrit poetry]].<ref name=Macdo/> The ''śloka'' is the verse-form generally used in the ''[[Bhagavad Gita]]'', the ''[[Mahabharata]]'', the ''[[Ramayana]]'', the [[Puranas]], [[Smriti]]s, and scientific treatises of Hinduism such as ''[[Sushruta Samhita]]'' and ''[[Charaka Samhita]]''.{{Sfn|Arnold|1905|p=11, 50 with note ii(a)}}<ref name="Friedrich Max Müller 1860 67–70"/><ref>{{cite journal | last1=Vishwakarma | first1=Richa | last2=Goswami | first2=PradipKumar | title=A review through Charaka Uttara-Tantra | journal= AYU | volume=34 | issue=1 | year=2013 | pages=17–20 | doi=10.4103/0974-8520.115438 | pmid=24049400 | pmc=3764873 }}</ref> The ''Mahabharata'', for example, features many verse metres in its chapters, but 95% of the stanzas are ''ślokas'' of the ''anuṣṭubh'' type, and most of the rest are ''[[tristubh]]''s.{{Sfn|Hopkins|1901|p=192}}

One of the Vedic metres is called anushtubha. It has 32 syllables with particular accents. It is the literary ancestor of the shloka which also has 32 syllables but no particular rhyme or accent. A reason for the name shloka is that Maharshi Valmiki who wrote the Ramayana once observed a pair of birds singing to each other in a tree. A hunter came by and shot the male. On seeing the sorrow (shoka) of the widowed bird, he was reminded of the sorrow Sita felt on being separated from Shri Rama and began composing the Ramayana in shlokas. For this he is called the Adikavi (first poet.)<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.advaita-vedanta.org//archives/advaita-l/2004-March/012774.html|title=[Advaita-l] Difference bet. slokas and Mantras|last=Vyas|first=Jaldhar H.|date= 2004-03-10|access-date=2020-01-19}}</ref>

The ''[[anuṣṭubh]]'' is found in Vedic texts, but its presence is minor, and ''[[Tristubh|triṣṭubh]]'' and ''[[Vedic metre|gayatri]]'' metres dominate in the ''[[Rigveda]]''.<ref>{{cite book|author=Kireet Joshi| title=The Veda and Indian Culture: An Introductory Essay| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1CJlM2nhlt0C| year=1991| publisher=Motilal Banarsidass| isbn=978-81-208-0889-8|pages=101–102}}</ref> A dominating presence of ''ślokas'' in a text is a marker that the text is likely post-Vedic.<ref name="Friedrich Max Müller 1860 67–70">{{cite book|author=Friedrich Max Müller|title=A History of Ancient Sanskrit Literature|url=https://archive.org/details/historyofancient00mlle|year=1860|publisher=Williams and Norgate|pages=[https://archive.org/details/historyofancient00mlle/page/67 67]–70}}</ref>

The traditional view is that this form of verse was involuntarily composed by [[Valmiki|Vālmīki]], the author of the ''[[Ramayana]]'', in grief on seeing a hunter shoot down one of two birds in love (see [[Valmiki]]).<ref name=monierwilliamssloka>{{cite book|author=Monier Monier-Williams|title=A Sanskrit-English Dictionary|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_3NWAAAAcAAJ&pg=PA1029|year=1923|publisher=Oxford University Press|pages=1029–1030}}</ref>

In a broader sense, a ''śloka'', according to Monier-Williams, can be "any verse or stanza; a proverb, saying".<ref name=monierwilliamssloka/>

==Difference between shloka and mantra==

A Shloka has to be composed in a specific metre (chanDas), with a specific number of lines with a specific number of words per line, each word could be a manTra. For example, vishNu sahasranAma is in anushtupchanDas (two lines of four words each).

A manTra, on the other hand, is prefixed by omkAra (primordial sound) and suffixed by the essential nAma (name) and the salutary word '''nama''' (salutation) between the prefix and the suffix. No metre is prescribed. The lyrics in any Vaarnic or matric metres are shlokas. Stanzas from Vedic hymns are not shloka, despite a common mistake.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Yelle|first=Robert A.|date=2004-03-01|title=Explaining Mantras|doi=10.4324/9780203483381|isbn=9780203483381}}</ref>

==Metrical pattern==
Each 16-syllable [[hemistich]] (half-verse),
of two 8-syllable ''[[Pada (foot)|pādas]]'', can take either a ''pathyā'' ("normal") form or one of several ''vipulā'' ("extended") forms. The form of the second [[Foot (prosody)|foot]] of the first ''[[Pada (foot)|pāda]]'' (II.) limits the possible patterns the first foot (I.) may assume.

The scheme below shows the form of the ''śloka'' in the classical period of Sanskrit literature (4th–11th centuries CE):

[[File:Shloka Hemistich.jpg|Shloka scheme]]

The ''pathyā'' and ''vipulā'' half-verses are arranged in the table above in order of frequency of occurrence. Out of 2579 half-verses taken from [[Kalidasa]], [[Bharavi]], [[Magha (poet)|Magha]], and [[Bilhana]], each of the four admissible forms of ''śloka'' in this order claims the following share: 2289, 116, 89, 85;<ref>Macdonell, Arthur A., ''A Sanskrit Grammar for Students'', Appendix II, p. 233 (Oxford University Press, 3rd edition, 1927)</ref> that is, 89% of the half-verses have the regular ''pathyā'' form. Macdonell's chart given above is too restrictive with regard the first four syllables in a ''vipulā'' verse. For example, the first quarter verse of the ''Rāmayaṇa'' (critical edition) contains a ''na-vipulā'' and scans ⏑ – – – ⏑ ⏑ ⏑ – (''tapaḥsvādhyāyanirataṃ''). Other examples are easy to find among classical poets, e.g., ''Rāmacarita'' 1.76 ''manyur dehāvadhir ayaṃ'' – – – – ⏑ ⏑ ⏑ –. In the ma-vipulā, a caesura is not obligatory after the fifth syllable, e.g., ''Śiśupālavadha'' 2.1a ''yiyakṣamāṇenāhūtaḥ'' ⏑ – ⏑ – – – – –.

Two rules that always apply are:<ref name=Hahn>[[:de:Michael Hahn|Michael Hahn]]: [https://www.academia.edu/6353023/Michael_Hahn_A_brief_introduction_into_the_Indian_metrical_system_for_the_use_of_students_ "A brief introduction into the Indian metrical system for the use of students"].</ref>
:1. In both ''pādas'', in syllables 2–3, u u is not allowed.
:2. In the second ''pāda'', in syllables 2–4, – u – is not allowed

Noteworthy is the avoidance of an iambic cadence in the first ''pāda''. By comparison, syllables 5–8 of any ''pāda'' in the old Vedic ''[[anuṣṭubh]]'' metre typically had the iambic ending u – u x (where "x" represents an ''[[anceps]]'' syllable).

In poems of the intermediate period, such as the [[Bhagavad Gita]], a fourth ''vipulā'' is found. This occurs 28 times in the Bhagavad Gita, that is, as often as the third ''vipulā''.<ref>Morton Smith, R. (1961). [https://www.jstor.org/stable/24646839 Ślokas and Vipulas]. ''Indo-Iranian Journal'' Vol. 5, No. 1 (1961), pp. 19-35.</ref> When this ''vipulā'' is used, there is a word-break (caesura) after the fourth syllable:<ref name=Hahn />

:| x x x –, | – u – x ||

The various ''vipulā''s, in the order above, are known to scholars writing in English as the first, second, third and fourth ''vipulā'',<ref>Keith (1920), p. 421.</ref> or the paeanic, choriambic, molossic, and trochaic ''vipulā'' respectively.<ref>Morton Smith (1961), p. 19.</ref> In Sanskrit writers, they are referred to as the ''na-'', ''bha-'', ''ra-'', and ''ma-vipulā''.<ref name=Hahn /> A fifth ''vipulā'', known as the minor Ionic, in which the first ''pāda'' ends | u u – x |, is sometimes found in the ''Mahābhārata'', although rarely.<ref>Hopkins, p. 222.</ref>

Statistical studies examining the frequency of the ''vipulā''s and the patterns in the earlier part of the ''pāda'' have been carried out to try to establish the preferences of various authors for different metrical patterns. It is believed that this may help to establish relative dates for the poems, and to identify interpolated passages.<ref>Morton Smith (1961).</ref><ref>Brockington (1998), pp. 117–130.</ref>

==Examples==
A typical ''{{transl|sa|śloka}}'' is the following, which opens the [[Bhagavad Gita]]:

:{{transl|sa|dharma-kṣetre kuru-kṣetre}}
:{{transl|sa|samavetā yuyutsavaḥ}}
:{{transl|sa|māmakāḥ pāṇḍavāś caiva}}
:{{transl|sa|kim akurvata sañjaya}}

:| – – – – | u – – – |
:| u u – – | u – u – ||
:| – u – – | u – – u |
:| u u – u | u – u u ||

:"([[Dhritarashtra|Dhṛtaraṣṭra]] said:) In the place of righteousness, at [[Kurukshetra|Kurukṣetra]],
:gathered together and desiring battle,
:my sons and the sons of Pandu,
:what did they do, Sanjaya?"

From the period of high classical Sanskrit literature comes this benediction, which opens [[Bāṇabhaṭṭa]]'s biographical poem ''[[Harshacharita|Harṣacaritam]]'' (7th century CE):

:{{transl|sa|namas-tuṅga-śiraś-cumbi- candra-cāmara-cārave /}}
:{{transl|sa|trailokya-nagarārambha- mūla-stambhāya śambhave //}}

:| u – – u | u – – u | – u – u | u – u – ||
:| – – u u | u – – u | – – – – | u – u – ||

:"Praise be to [[Shambhav|Śambhu]], beautified by the [[fly-whisk|chowrie]] moon touching his lofty head;
:like a foundation pillar of a city that is the universe."<ref>Translation from Daniel H. Ingalls (translator) (1965): ''Sanskrit Poetry, from Vidyākara's Treasury''. (Harvard).</ref>

When a ''śloka'' is recited, performers sometimes leave a pause after each ''pāda'', at other times only after the second ''pāda''. (See External links.)

==See also==
* [[Sanskrit prosody]]
* [[Subhashita]]
* [[Vedic metre]]
* [[Anustubh]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

===Bibliography===
*{{cite book|last= Arnold|first= Edward Vernon|year= 1905|url= https://archive.org/stream/vedicmetreinitsh00arnouoft#page/viii/mode/2up| title= Vedic Metre in its historical development| publisher=Cambridge University Press (Reprint 2009)|isbn= 978-1113224446}}
*Brockington, John (1998). [https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=HR-_LK5kl18C&pg=PR5&source=gbs_selected_pages&cad=2#v=onepage&q&f=false ''The Sanskrit Epics'']. Brill.
* {{cite book | first=Charles Philip | last=Brown | author-link=Charles Philip Brown | title = Sanskrit prosody and numerical symbols explained | publisher = Trübner & Co. | place = London | year = 1869 | url = https://archive.org/details/sanskritprosody00browgoog}}
*{{Cite book| first=H.T.| last=Colebrooke| contribution=On Sanskrit and Prakrit Poetry| title=Miscellaneous Essays| volume=2| location=London| publisher=Trübner and Co.| year=1873| pages=57–146}}
*{{Cite book| first=Michael| last=Coulson| title=Teach Yourself Sanskrit| series=Teach Yourself Books| publisher=Hodder and Stoughton| year=1976}}
*D'Avella, Victor B. (2019) [https://www.academia.edu/40126201/Notes_on_the_Sanskrit_%C5%9Aloka_ "Notes on the Sanskrit ''Śloka''"]. (Introduction to Alaṅkāraśāstra Sommersemester 2019.)
*Keith, A. Berriedale (1928). [https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.23671/page/n5 ''A History of Sanskrit Literature'']. (Oxford University Press).
*{{Cite book| first=E.W.| last=Hopkins| chapter=Epic versification| title=The Great Epic of India| publisher=C. Scribner's Sons| location=New York| year=1901}}
*{{cite book | year=1886 | title = A Sanskrit grammar for beginners | author1=Müller, Friedrich Max | author-link=Max Muller | author2=Arthur Anthony Macdonell | author2-link=Arthur Anthony Macdonell | edition=2 | publisher=Longmans, Green | page=[https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.382597/page/n196 178] | url=https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.382597}} [https://web.archive.org/web/20110722135736/http://www.buddhanet-de.net/ancient-buddhist-texts/Textual-Studies/Prosody-Articles/Macdonell-Sanskrit.pdf PDF]
* Murthy, G. S. S. (2003). [https://www.jstor.org/stable/41694750 "Characterizing Classical Anuṣṭup: A Study in Sanskrit Prosody"]. ''Annals of the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute'', Vol. 84 (2003), pp. 101–115. (On JSTOR)
* Sharma, Arvind (2000). [https://www.jstor.org/stable/24663308 "Of ''Śūdras'', ''Sūtas'', and ''Ślokas'': Why is the ''Mahābhārata'' preeminently in the ''Anuṣṭubh'' Metre?"]. ''Indo-Iranian Journal'', Vol. 43, No. 3 (2000), pp. 225–278.
*{{cite book| author=Wilson, Horace Hayman| title=An introduction to the grammar of the Sanskrit language| url=https://archive.org/details/introductiontogr00wilsuoft| year=1841| publisher=Madden}}

==External links==
*[[:de:Michael Hahn|Michael Hahn]]: [https://www.academia.edu/6353023/Michael_Hahn_A_brief_introduction_into_the_Indian_metrical_system_for_the_use_of_students_ "A brief introduction into the Indian metrical system for the use of students"] (pdf)
* [http://learnsanskrit.org/prosody Introduction to Sanskrit prosody] LearnSanskrit.Org
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nraSfax0h_c Chanting of opening of Bhagavad Gita] (starts at 0:46).
*[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bnsA9XWBXPI 3 ślokas read by Dr R. Ganesh] (including the one from ''Harṣacaritam'')

[[Category:Sanskrit words and phrases]]
[[Category:Genres of poetry]]
[[Category:Hindu texts]]
[[Category:Poetic rhythm]]
[[Category:Indian poetics]]