RBSE SS Rajasthani Literature key terms

The metrical, heavily Sanskritised register of old Rajasthani used mainly for heroic and historical narrative verse, especially by Charan poets. Its grammar follows strict prosodic rules rather than ordinary speech.

The simpler, speech-based register of old Rajasthani used for devotional, lyrical and love poetry. Its vocabulary and syntax stay close to spoken dialects, making it more accessible than Dingal.

A hereditary community of poets and genealogists in Rajasthan who composed heroic verse in Dingal, kept dynastic records, and served as bards and oral historians at Rajput courts.

A class of genealogist-bards who recited panegyrics and maintained family and clan pedigrees. Their compositions praised patrons' lineage and martial deeds, often in oral performance.

A prose or verse chronicle recording the history of a dynasty, clan or region, blending genealogy with legend. Famous examples include the works of Nainsi and Bankidas.

A genealogical list tracing a family or clan line from its legendary founder to living descendants. Such records were maintained by bards and form source material for Rajasthani historiography.

A sustained narrative or lyrical poem in Rajasthani, usually organised around a hero, a devotional theme or a love story. It may be long enough to be divided into cantos.

A short epic or section-poem treating a single episode rather than a full life story. It focuses on one battle, one meeting or one devotional incident with concentrated effect.

A self-contained single stanza that stands alone as a complete poem, often aphoristic or devotional. Unlike a canto, it needs no surrounding narrative to make sense.

A two-line rhymed metre widely used in Rajasthani and Hindi for proverbs, moral sayings and devotional verse. Each line typically carries a pause before its closing segment.

A two-line metre similar to the doha but with a different syllable count and internal pause, common in Rajasthani folk and devotional poetry. It suits short reflective or descriptive statements.

Devotional poetry addressed to a formless, attribute-less divine principle, without incarnations or images. It is associated with saint poets who stressed inner realisation over temple ritual.

Devotional poetry centred on a deity with form and attributes, usually Krishna or Rama, and expressed through image, story and emotional attachment. It dominates the Vaishnava bhakti stream.

The devotional movement and attitude centring on loving surrender to a personal god, expressed through song, poetry and service. In Rajasthan it produced both saint poetry and courtly devotional verse.

A devotional song, usually short and strophic, sung individually or in a group. In Rajasthani tradition it carries bhakti themes and is often attributed to saint poets.

A sixteenth-century Rajput princess and saint poet devoted to Krishna, whose Rajasthani and Braj verses express longing, surrender and disregard for social censure. Her songs remain central to Rajasthani devotional literature.

A sixteenth-century saint poet of Rajasthan whose nirgun verses criticise ritualism and caste pride and stress inner remembrance of the divine name. His followers formed the Dadu Panth.

A Braj-language Krishna poet whose works circulated widely in Rajasthan and shaped its sagun devotional style. He is studied in the syllabus for his role in the larger bhakti literary milieu.

The aesthetic emotional flavour a poem is said to evoke in a prepared reader, such as love, heroism, compassion or wonder. Rajasthani poetics classifies works by their dominant rasa.

A figure of speech or ornament of sound or sense that heightens poetic effect, such as simile, metaphor or alliteration. Traditional criticism names and classifies these devices.

The meaning or sense-content of a verse, as distinct from its literal wording and its ornamental devices. Explanations of prescribed poems usually state the bhavartha in plain prose.

A major Rajasthani dialect spoken in the Jodhpur, Bikaner and Jaisalmer region, known for its retroflex sounds and distinctive vocabulary. It has a substantial oral and manuscript literature.

The dialect of the Jaipur and Dhundhar region, also called Jaipuri. It differs from Marwari in pronunciation and vocabulary and has its own folk-song and prose traditions.

The dialect spoken in the Alwar and Bharatpur belt of north-eastern Rajasthan, transitional toward Braj and Haryanvi. Its literature is comparatively less documented than Marwari.

A literary language centred on the Mathura region that heavily influenced Rajasthani devotional poetry. Many Rajasthani saint poets composed in Braj or a mixed Braj-Rajasthani idiom.

A seventeenth-century chronicler and administrator of Jodhpur, author of a major khyat of Marwar and a geographical account of the region. He is a foundational figure in Rajasthani prose.

A Charan poet and chronicler of the Jodhpur court known for historical and heroic verse and for a khyat compiled in the early nineteenth century. His work blends record with legend.

A nineteenth-century Bundi court poet who wrote a large historical epic in Dingal and is regarded as a major late figure of the Charan tradition. His work celebrates Rajput rulers.

A medieval Rajasthani narrative poem by Padmanabha recounting the resistance of Kanhadade of Jalore against Delhi's forces. It is a key early text of heroic Dingal literature.

A term used for a type of folk theatrical or narrative performance combining song, dance and recitation. Such forms preserve oral epics and devotional stories in rural Rajasthan.

A popular operatic folk theatre form performed in northern India, including parts of Rajasthan, using sung dialogue, dance and comic interludes. Its plots often draw on legends and romances.

A folk tale transmitted orally, often featuring kings, animals, clever women or supernatural beings. Rajasthani folk tales were later collected and printed as literary texts.

Folk song, sung collectively at weddings, festivals, harvest and rites of passage. Its verses are anonymous and formulaic, and it is a major source for dialect study.

An idiom or fixed figurative expression whose meaning cannot be deduced from its component words. Grammar sections test recognition and correct use of such expressions.

A proverb, a short traditional saying that states a general observation or piece of practical wisdom. Proverbs are frequently drawn from folk speech and older verse.

Translation, especially the rendering of Rajasthani passages into standard Hindi or vice versa while retaining sense and register. The syllabus tests both comprehension and idiomatic accuracy.