Baital Pachisi
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

''Vetala Panchavimshati'' ( sa, वेतालपञ्चविंशति,
IAST The International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration (IAST) is a transliteration scheme that allows the lossless romanisation of Indic scripts as employed by Sanskrit and related Indic languages. It is based on a scheme that emerged during ...
: ) or ''Betaal Pachisi'' ("''Twenty-five (tales) of Betaal''"), is a collection of tales and
legend A legend is a Folklore genre, genre of folklore that consists of a narrative featuring human actions, believed or perceived, both by teller and listeners, to have taken place in human history. Narratives in this genre may demonstrate human valu ...
s within a
frame story A frame is often a structural system that supports other components of a physical construction and/or steel frame that limits the construction's extent. Frame and FRAME may also refer to: Physical objects In building construction *Framing (con ...
, from
India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
. It is also known as internationally Vikram-Betaal. It was originally written in
Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...
. One of its oldest
recension Recension is the practice of editing or revising a text based on critical analysis. When referring to manuscripts, this may be a revision by another author. The term is derived from Latin ''recensio'' ("review, analysis"). In textual criticism (as ...
s is found in the 12th Book of the ''
Kathasaritsagara The ''Kathāsaritsāgara'' ("Ocean of the Streams of Stories") (Devanagari: कथासरित्सागर) is a famous 11th-century collection of Indian legends, fairy tales and folk tales as retold in Sanskrit by the Shaivite Somadeva. ...
'' ("Ocean of the Streams of Story"), a work in Sanskrit compiled in the 11th century by
Somadeva Somadeva Bhatta was an 11th century writer from Kashmir, and author of the '' Kathasaritsagara''. Not much is known about him except that his father's name was Rama and he composed his work (probably during the years 1063–1081 CE) for the ente ...
, but based on yet older materials, now lost. This recension comprises in fact twenty-four tales, the frame narrative itself being the twenty-fifth. The two other major recensions in Sanskrit are those by Śivadāsa and Jambhaladatta. The Vetala stories are popular in India and have been translated into many Indian vernaculars. Several English translations exist, based on Sanskrit recensions and on
Hindi Hindi (Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been de ...
,
Tamil Tamil may refer to: * Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia **Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils **Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia * Tamil language, nativ ...
,
Bengali Bengali or Bengalee, or Bengalese may refer to: *something of, from, or related to Bengal, a large region in South Asia * Bengalis, an ethnic and linguistic group of the region * Bengali language, the language they speak ** Bengali alphabet, the w ...
and
Marathi Marathi may refer to: *Marathi people, an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group of Maharashtra, India *Marathi language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Marathi people *Palaiosouda, also known as Marathi, a small island in Greece See also * * ...
versions. Probably the best-known English version is that of Sir
Richard Francis Burton Sir Richard Francis Burton (; 19 March 1821 – 20 October 1890) was a British explorer, writer, orientalist scholar,and soldier. He was famed for his travels and explorations in Asia, Africa, and the Americas, as well as his extraordinary kn ...
which is, however, not a translation but a very free adaptation.


Plot

The legendary king
Vikramāditya Vikramaditya (IAST: ') was a legendary king who has been featured in hundreds of traditional stories including those in ''Baital Pachisi'' and '' Singhasan Battisi''. Many describe him as ruler with his capital at Ujjain (Pataliputra or Prati ...
(Vikrama) promises a '' vamachari'' (a tantric sorcerer) that he will capture a ''
vetala A vetala ( sa, वेताल ') or Betal is a Bhairava form of Shiva in Hindu mythology, usually defined as a knowledgeable (fortune telling) paranormal entity said to be dwelling at charnel grounds. The vetala is comparable to the vampires o ...
'' (or ''Baital'' or
Betal Betal or Vetal ( Konkani: वेताळ), a Bhairava form of Shiva is a popular god in Goa, Sindhudurg district of Maharashtra and Karwar of Karnataka in India. Betal is also known as Vetoba in the Konkan area of Maharashtra and Goa, and in ...
), a celestial spirit
Pishacha Pishachas ( sa, पिशाच, ') are flesh-eating demons in Dharmic religions, appearing in Buddhist and Hindu mythologies. A pishacha is a malevolent being that has often be referred to as the very manifestation of evil. Mythology The Mah ...
, celestial spirit or a
Bhairava Bhairava (Sanskrit: भैरव ) or Kala Bhairava is a Shaivite and Vajrayāna deity worshiped by Hindus and Buddhists. In Shaivism, he is a powerful manifestation, or avatar, of Shiva associated with annihilation. In Trika system ''Bhairava ...
, who hangs upside-down from a tree and inhabits and animates dead bodies. King Vikrama faces many difficulties in bringing the vetala to the tantric. Each time Vikram tries to capture the vetala, it tells a story that ends with a riddle. If Vikrama cannot answer the question correctly, the vampire consents to remain in captivity. If the king knows the answer but still keeps quiet, then his head shall burst into thousand pieces. And if King Vikrama answers the question correctly, the vampire would escape and return to his tree. He knows the answer to every question; therefore the cycle of catching and releasing the vampire continues twenty-four times. On the twenty-fifth attempt, the Vetala tells the story of a father and a son in the aftermath of a devastating war. They find the queen and the princess alive in the chaos, and decide to take them home. In due time, the son marries the queen and the father marries the princess. Eventually, the son and the queen have a son, and the father and the princess have a daughter. The vetala asks what the relation between the two newborn children is. The question stumps Vikrama. Satisfied, the vetala allows himself to be taken to the tantric. On their way to the tantric, Vetala tells his story. His parents did not have a son and a tantric blessed them with twin sons on a condition that both be educated under him. Vetala was taught everything in the world but often ill-treated. Whereas his brother was taught just what was needed but always well treated. Vetala discovered that the tantric planned to return his brother to his parents and Vetala instead would be sacrificed as he was an '' 'all-knowing kumara' '' and by sacrificing him the tantric could be immortal and rule the world using his tantric powers. Vetal also reveals that now the tantric's plan is to sacrifice Vikram, beheading him as he bowed in front of the goddess. The tantric could then gain control over the vetala and sacrifice his soul, thus achieving his evil ambition. The vetala suggests that the king asks the tantric how to perform his obeisance, then take advantage of that moment to behead the sorcerer himself.
Vikramāditya Vikramaditya (IAST: ') was a legendary king who has been featured in hundreds of traditional stories including those in ''Baital Pachisi'' and '' Singhasan Battisi''. Many describe him as ruler with his capital at Ujjain (Pataliputra or Prati ...
does exactly as told by the vetala and he is blessed by Lord
Indra Indra (; Sanskrit: इन्द्र) is the king of the devas (god-like deities) and Svarga (heaven) in Hindu mythology. He is associated with the sky, lightning, weather, thunder, storms, rains, river flows, and war.  volumes/ref> I ...
and Devi
Kali Kali (; sa, काली, ), also referred to as Mahakali, Bhadrakali, and Kalika ( sa, कालिका), is a Hinduism, Hindu goddess who is considered to be the goddess of ultimate power, time, destruction and change in Shaktism. In t ...
. The vetala offers the king a boon, whereupon Vikram requests that the tantric's heart and mind be cleaned of all sins and his life be restored as a good living being and that the vetala would come to the king's aid when needed.


Variation

A variation of this story replaces the vetal with a minor celestial who, in exchange for his own life, reveals the plot by two tradesmen (replacing the sorcerer) to assassinate Vikrama and advises Vikrama to trick them into positions of vulnerability as described above. Having killed them, Vikrama is offered a reward by the goddess, who grants him two spirits loyal to Her as his servants.


Other media


Films

It was adapted into 1951 Hindi film ''Jai Maha Kali (Vikram Vaital)'' by
Dhirubhai Desai Dhirajlal Hirachand Ambani (28 December 1932 – 6 July 2002), popularly known as Dhirubhai Ambani, was an Indian business tycoon who founded Reliance Industries. Ambani took Reliance public in 1977 and was worth US$2.9 billion in 2002 upon h ...
starring
Lalita Pawar Lalita Pawar (18 April 1916 – 24 February 1998) was a prolific Indian actress, who later became famous as a character actress, appearing in over 700 films in Hindi, Marathi and Gujarati cinema. She holds a Guinness world record of longest ac ...
,
Nirupa Roy Nirupa Roy (born Kokila Kishorechandra Bulsara; 4 January 1931 – 13 October 2004) was an Indian actress who had appeared in Hindi films. Noted for her portrayals of tragedy and sorrow, Roy was known for her acting ability, and was uncharitab ...
,
Shahu Modak Shahu Modak (25 April 1918 – 11 May 1993) was an Indian actor who acted in many Hindi as well as Marathi movies. Shahu Modak was mostly famous for the mythological characters that he played. He mostly played the roles of Krishna, and Jñāneś ...
, Raj Kumar, and
S. N. Tripathi Shri Nath Tripathi (14 March 1913 – 28 March 1988) was an Indian composer, whose active years were from the 1930s to the 1980s. Tripathi's multi-faceted work range included being a composer, writer, actor, and director of films. His debut film ...
. It was remade in 1986 as ''
Vikram Vetal Vikram may refer to: * Vikram (name), a male name in the Hindu community * Vikram (1986 Tamil film), ''Vikram'' (1986 Tamil film) * Vikram (1986 Telugu film), ''Vikram'' (1986 Telugu film) * Vikram (2022 film), ''Vikram'' (2022 Tamil film) * Vikra ...
'', by
Shantilal Soni Shantilal Soni also referred as S. L. Soni (28 November 1930 – 2004) was a noted film director, producer and writer from Bombay. He was a Gujarati by birth. He has directed more than 22 films, starting his career in 1960 with ('' Sinhal Dweep Ki ...
, starring
Vikram Gokhale Vikram Gokhale (14 November 1945 – 26 November 2022) was an Indian film, television and stage actor, noted for his roles in Marathi theatre, Hindi films and television. He was the son of the Veteran Marathi theater and film actor, Chandrakant ...
, Manhar Desai, and
Deepika Chikhalia Dipika Chikhlia Topiwala is an Indian actress known for playing Devi Sita in Ramanand Sagar's television series Ramayan and for acting in other Indian TV serials. She was also known for her debut film ''Sun Meri Laila'' (1983), opposite Raj Ki ...
. The 2017 Tamil film ''
Vikram Vedha ''Vikram Vedha'' is a 2017 Indian Tamil-language neo-noir action thriller film written and directed by Pushkar–Gayathri and produced by S. Sashikanth under his banner YNOT Studios. The film stars R. Madhavan, Vijay Sethupathi, Shraddha Sri ...
'' was a modern-day adaptation of the story with the characterization of King Vikramadithyan and the celestial spirit Vedhalam derived from that plot. The title of the film was also derived from the two key characters from the folktale.


Television

In 1985, the story was developed by
Sagar Films Sagar Pictures Entertainment is an Indian film and television production company based in Mumbai, India. It was founded by Ramanand Sagar and is a part of the Sagar Group of companies owned by the Sagar family. Sagar Pictures is also a dubbing ...
as a television serial titled ''
Vikram aur Betaal ''Vikram Aur Betaal'' is an Indian television series that aired on DD National in 1985 & re-telecast in 1988 after the hit Series Ramayan. The series contained stories from Indian stories. The concept of the program was based on ''Baital Pac ...
'', starring
Arun Govil Arun Govil ( ; born 12 January 1958) is an Indian actor who works in Hindi films and television. He is best known for portraying the role of Lord Rama in Ramanand Sagar's epic Television Series '' Ramayan'' and King Vikramāditya in ''Vikram ...
as Vikrama and Sajjan Kumar as the Vetala. It was aired on
Doordarshan Doordarshan (abbreviated as DD; Hindi: , ) is an Indian public service broadcaster founded by the Government of India, owned by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and one of Prasar Bharati's two divisions. One of India's largest bro ...
, the public television broadcaster of India. A remake of that serial by the new generation of Sagar Films, titled ''Kahaniyaan Vikram aur Betaal Ki'', was aired on the Indian satellite channel
Colors Color (American English) or colour (British English) is the visual perceptual property deriving from the spectrum of light interacting with the photoreceptor cells of the eyes. Color categories and physical specifications of color are associa ...
. Indian animator
Rajiv Chilaka Rajiv Chilaka also known as Rajiv Chilakalapudi and Sitarama Rajiv Chilakalapudi is the founder and CEO of Hyderabad-based Green Gold Animations and the creator of a few cartoons including Krishna cartoon series and ''Chhota Bheem'' which has n ...
directed ''Vikram Betal'', a television film for
Cartoon Network Cartoon Network (often abbreviated as CN) is an American cable television channel owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. It is a part of The Cartoon Network, Inc., a division that also has the broadcasting and production activities of Boomerang, Car ...
in 2004 which was produced by his
Green Gold Animations Green Gold Animation Pvt Ltd, is a Hyderabad-based Indian Animation company, with offices in India, Singapore, Philippines and the United States. It is known for creating the '' Chhota Bheem'' television series and the ''Krishna'' film series. G ...
. Another 2006 supernatural sitcom ''
Vicky & Vetaal ''Vicky & Vetaal'' is an Indian Supernatural Sitcom series which premiered on Disney Channel India. The series is produced by Cinevistaas Limited was launched on 7 October 2006 as the first major original production of the network, and Disney' ...
'' was inspired by the ''Baital Pachisi''. A web series titled ''The Vetala'' was released in 2009, written and directed by
Damon Vignale Damon Vignale is a Canadian writer, director, and producer working in film and television. He has directed the films ''Little Brother of War'' and ''The Entrance''. He released the web series ''The Vetala'' in 2009, drawn from the Baital Pachisi, ...
. The series reveals a CGI vetala character in the final episode. 2018 Hindi TV adaptation ''
Vikram Betaal Ki Rahasya Gatha ''Vikram Betaal Ki Rahasya Gatha'' (which is also known as Vikram-Betaal) is an Indian television epic series created by Peninsula Pictures, based on Baital Pachisi. The series has aired on &TV and digitally on ZEE5 platform, starring Aham Shar ...
'' was aired on &TV, where actors
Aham Sharma Aham Sharma (born 22 July 1989) is an Indian actor from Salimpur, Bihar, India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country ...
and
Makrand Deshpande Makarand Deshpande (born 6 March 1966) is an Indian actor, writer, and director in Hindi, Kannada, Marathi, Telugu, Malayalam, Tamil cinema, and Indian Theatre. He is often seen in supporting and pivotal roles in various films like ''Jungle'', ...
as playing the role of King
Vikramaditya Vikramaditya (IAST: ') was a legendary king who has been featured in hundreds of traditional stories including those in ''Baital Pachisi'' and ''Singhasan Battisi''. Many describe him as ruler with his capital at Ujjain (Pataliputra or Pratis ...
and Betaal respectively.


Literature

The children's ''
Chandamama ''Chandamama'' was a classic Indian monthly magazine for children, famous for its illustrations. It also published long-running mythological/magical stories that ran for years. Originally, "Chandamama" was started in Telugu by Chakrapani and ...
'', featured a serial story titled
New Tales of Vikram and Betal
' for many years. As the title suggests, the original premise of the story is maintained, as new stories are told by Vetala to King Vikrama. In the novel, ''
Alif the Unseen ''Alif the Unseen'' is a 2012 cyberpunk fantasy novel by American writer G. Willow Wilson. In the novel, a Middle Eastern hacker named Alif discovers a book of djinn tales which may lead to a new age of quantum computing. The novel won the 2013 ...
'', a character named Vikrama the Vampire appears as a jinn. He tells how thousands of years ago, King Vikrama had set off to defeat the Vetala, a vampire jinn terrorizing one of his villages. Vikrama won the Vetala's game of wits, but forfeited his life. The Vetala now inhabits his body.


Recensions, editions, and translations


Sanskrit

Both the Kṣemendra and Somadeva recensions derive from the unattested ''"Northwestern" Bṛhatkathā'', and include the Vetala Tales as a small part of their huge inventory. The recensions of Śivadāsa and Jambhaladatta contain only the Vetala Tales and have an unknown relationship to each other and to the other Sanskrit recensions. ;Kṣemendra's ''Bṛhatkathāmanjarī'' (1037 CE) *Anonymous Sanskrit summary of Kṣemendra ;Somadeva's ''
Kathāsaritsāgara The ''Kathāsaritsāgara'' ("Ocean of the Streams of Stories") (Devanagari: कथासरित्सागर) is a famous 11th-century collection of Indian legends, fairy tales and folk tales as retold in Sanskrit by the Shaivite Somadeva. ' ...
'' (1070 CE) * — ''Books VI, VII & VIII''; and ''Books IX–XVIII'' (1866) ** ** — ''Tawney's translation of Brockhaus text, but with corrections and additions based on Durgāprasād (below)'' ** — ''Tawney's translation of Brockhaus text, but with corrections and additions based on Durgāprasād (below)'' * ** ** — ''English translation of about half of Somadeva's Vetala Tales.'' ;Jambhaladatta (11th–14th century CE) * ;Śivadāsa (11th–14th century CE) * ** — ''Translation of Śivadāsa recension.'' ** — ''Translated from Uhle's Sanskrit edition.''


Hindi

Some time between 1719 and 1749, Ṣūrat Kabīshwar translated Śivadāsa's Sanskrit recension into
Braj Bhasha The Braj language, ''Braj Bhasha'', also known as Vraj Bhasha or Vrij Bhasha or Braj Bhāṣā or Braji or Brij Bhasha or Braj Boli, is a Western Hindi language. Along with Awadhi (a variety of Eastern Hindi), it was one of the two predominant ...
; this work was subsequently translated in 1805 under the direction of John Gilchrist into the closely related
Hindustani language Hindustani (; Devanagari: , * * * * ; Perso-Arabic: , , ) is the '' lingua franca'' of Northern and Central India and Pakistan. Hindustani is a pluricentric language with two standard registers, known as Hindi and Urdu. Thus, the lan ...
by
Lallu Lal Lallu Lal (1763–1835) was an academic, author and translator from British India. He was an instructor in the Hindustani language at Fort William College in Hastings, Calcutta. He is notable for ''Prem Sagar'', the first work in modern literary ...
and others. This was a popular work that played an early role in the development of Literary Hindi and was selected as a Hindustani test-book for military service students in the
East India Company The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (the Indian subcontinent and Southea ...
. Thus it became the basis of several Hindi editions, and Indian vernacular and English translations; many of these frequently reprinted. * ** — ''Reprinted several times between 1848 and 1921 (some later editions as ''Baital Pachisi'').'' ** — ''A new edition of the Hindí text, with each word expressed in the Hindústaní character immediately under the corresponding word in the Nágarí; and with a perfectly literal English interlinear translation, accompanied by a free translation in English at the foot of each page, and explanatory notes.'' ** — ''A new and corrected Edition, with a vocabulary of all the words occurring in the text.'' *** — ''Translated from Dr. Forbes's new and correct edition.'' *** — ''Translated from the Hindi text of Dr. Duncan Forbes.'' ** — ''Not a translation, but a retelling "more Burtonian than Indian",Rajan 1995 lxii. based on one or more of the Hindustani editions or translations.'' * — ''Translated from the Brujbhakha into English.''


References


External links

*
Vikram & Vetaal
- containing the Singhasan Battisi and the Baital Pachisi (Annotated): Translation by
Arthur W. Ryder Arthur William Ryder (March 8, 1877 – March 21, 1938) was a professor of Sanskrit at the University of California, Berkeley. He is best known for translating a number of Sanskrit works into English, including the Panchatantra and the Bhagav ...
* *
Original Sanskrit text
by Somadeva in
Harvard-Kyoto The Harvard-Kyoto Convention is a system for transliterating Sanskrit and other languages that use the Devanāgarī script into ASCII. It is predominantly used informally in e-mail, and for electronic texts. Harvard-Kyoto system Prior to the ...
transliteration {{Baital Pachisi Sanskrit literature Fantasy anthologies Collections of fairy tales Indian fairy tales Indian folklore Indian literature 11th-century Indian books Indian legends