An Outline of the Metres in the Pāḷi Canon

An Outline of the Metres in the Pāḷi Canon - 59
Appendix: The Evolution of Siloka &
Tuṭṭhubha
In order to give a broader perspective on the nature of Pāḷi verse
composition a sketch is presented here of the development of two of
the metres in their Vedic, Pāli, and Classical forms. The Vedic
period probably starts around 2500 - 2000 B.C.; the Pāḷi canonical
period begins around the turn of the 6th century B.C. and continues
until the 2nd century B.C.; which is when the Epic and Classical
period roughly begins. There is some overlap, but nevertheless we
can broadly distinguish these three periods, and point out how the
metres were developing.
1) Anuṣṭubh / Siloka / Śloka
In the early part of the Ṛg Veda the Anuṣṭubh was a samavṛtta metre
showing the following structure:
⏓−⏓−¦⏑−⏑× (x 4)
sometimes light syllables are found in the 2nd, 4th & 6th positions,
though 2 successive light syllables in the 2nd & 3rd position was
normally avoided (as it was in the other periods also). Interestingly
enough, in the light of later developments, the cadence ⏑−−×,
which became the pathyā (normal) form almost never occurs.
Over time variations from this basic pattern started to emerge, which
eventually gave rise to a new metre having two dissimilar lines,
which we may describe thus:
Odd line: ⏓−⏓−¦⏑−⏓×
Even line: ⏓⏓−⏓¦⏑−⏑ × (x 2)
By the time of the Pāḷi Canon the samavṛtta Anuṣṭubh as an
independent metre has more or less fallen into disuse, and the Siloka
has emerged as a definite Addhasamavutta metre, the normal pattern
of which can be described thus: