A Glint From The Kāmasūtra in al-Ǧāḥiẓ's Kitāb Al-Ḥayawān
This article investigates an apparent quotation from Vātsyāyana's (fl. late third century ce) Kāmasūtra in al-Ǧāḥiẓ's (d. 255/869) Kitāb al-Ḥayawān or ‘Book of Animals’, from its original Sanskrit form through to the guise it assumes in the Arabic text. Evidence is furnished for an oral tr...
| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
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| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Oxford University Press
[2020]
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| In: |
Journal of Semitic studies
Year: 2020, Volume: 65, Issue: 2, Pages: 605-611 |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (Verlag) Volltext (doi) |
| Summary: | This article investigates an apparent quotation from Vātsyāyana's (fl. late third century ce) Kāmasūtra in al-Ǧāḥiẓ's (d. 255/869) Kitāb al-Ḥayawān or ‘Book of Animals’, from its original Sanskrit form through to the guise it assumes in the Arabic text. Evidence is furnished for an oral transmission at the hands of non-literary circles, showing how a given statement's content may considerably be altered without its origins being effaced. The possibilities and limitations of identifying and tracing a vague representation of a Sanskrit saying in Arabic garb are illustrated here through a detailed case study of one extant specimen. |
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| ISSN: | 1477-8556 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Journal of Semitic studies
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1093/jss/fgaa010 |