Research Journal of English Language and Literature (RJELAL) A Peer Reviewed International Journal - http://www.rjelal.com Vol.1.Issue.3.;2013 304 KIRAN GANDHI SIKKA THE INVARIANCE PRINCIPLE OF METAPHOR:A CASE STUDY OF MAHARSHI RAMANASPOETRY KIRAN GANDHI SIKKA Associate Professor in English,B. P. S. M. Girls College, B.P.S.M. Women University in Haryana, India ABSTRACT Metaphorasacoreconceptofliterarystudiescontinuestocommandserious attention.Itispervasiveineverydaylanguageandspeechwhichmakesitatoolof analysisparexcellence.Itisthisindispensabilityofmetaphorwhichmakesuslook atpoetryfromadifferentpointofview.Nomoreornamentalandadeviceof adornment, it is the basis of conceptualization. The cognitive view defines metaphor asunderstandingoneconceptualdomainintermsofanotherconceptualdomain. Theknowledgethatonederivesfromsourcedomainismappedontothetarget domain. This is particularly perceptible in religious poetry where most of the target domainsGod,soul,life,deathandSelfareabstractandneedconcreteideas fromthesourcedomainstomakethemexplicit.MaharshiRamanaspoetryisno exception. This particular view brings two postulations to mind: 1.Isknowledgemappedfromtheimageschemaofsourcedomainfully compatible with the target domain?2.Doalltheaspectsandelementsofsourcedomainfullymapontotarget domain or is this mapping partial? Thepresent paper tries to find answers tothese questions in MaharshiRamanas poetry in view ofthe invariance principle in metaphor. The analytical framework is basedonGeorgeLakoffviewsinContemporaryTheoryofMetaphor(1993),Zoltn Kvecsess discussioninMetaphor: A Practical Introduction( 2010) and Olaf JaekelssummaryoftenetsofcognitiveviewinHypothesesRevisited:The Cognitive Theory of Metaphor Applied to Religious Texts(2002).Key words: Invariance Principle, Metaphor, Maharshi Ramana, Poetry INTRODUCTION Metaphor is a core concept of literary studies as well aseverydaylanguage.Hence,itcontinuesto command serious attention as can be seen from the voluminousworkappearingonthesubject.Itisan acceptablepropositionthatmetaphorhastaken stridesintomanyfieldsotherthanliterature. However, its pervasiveness and ubiquity in our daily communicationissocommonthatweoftenfailto noticeit.Theprocessesofmetaphorsare everywhereatworkinlanguage,toborrowthe wordsfromDavidPunter(1977:3).Metaphors havebecomeanintegralpartofcommunication.Religious poetry alsoabounds in metaphors as the abstract concepts in this kind of poetry fail to unfold theirmeaningswithoutmetaphors.Metaphorsstepintothejourneyofliteraltoliterarymodeof language.They are partial if not fullequivalents to bstractideasbeyondexpression.Howmuchthis mapping of elements from source domain is utilized bythetargetdomain?Howmuchknowledgeis actuallycompatiblebetweenthesourceandtarget domains?Howmanyaspectsofthiskindof transferenceare invariant? These are the questions dealtwithinthepurviewofinvarianceprinciplein Maharshi Ramanas poetry.Thepaperfirst defines invarianceprinciple,appliesitsmainpreceptsto MaharshiRamanaspoetryandtriestoreacha conclusionastohowsuccessfullytheinvariance RESEARCH ARTICLE ISSN 2321 3108 KIRAN GANDHI SIKKA Article Info: Article Received: 31/08/2013 Revisedon: 10/09/2013 Accepted on: 12/09/2013 Research Journal of English Language and Literature (RJELAL) A Peer Reviewed International Journal - http://www.rjelal.com Vol.1.Issue.3.;2013 305 KIRAN GANDHI SIKKA principleworksinreligioustextsparticularly Maharshi Ramana. Thecognitiveviewofmetaphordefinesmetaphor byitstwoaspects:sourceandtargetdomains.The domain which supplies knowledge is source and thedomain on which the knowledge is applied is target.Theconcretesourcedomainmapsitselementsof knowledgeontoabstracttargetdomainstomake theideasclear.Itis,however,questionable whether all the elements of a source domain can be applied to the target domain.Thefull compatibility betweenbothsourceandtargetdomainsissomewhatimpossible.Generallyspeaking,only someoftheelementsofsourceareeligibleforthe mappingontothetargetastheimagestructureof thetargetdomainabsorbsonlythatmuch knowledgefromsourcedomainwhichfitsintothe imagescompatibleandwellmatchedwithtarget.AnexamplefromMaharshiRamanawouldmakeit clear. Religious poetry in India makes use of fruit as averycommonsourcedomain.Soisthecasein Maharshi Ramanas poetry. Fruit has many elements whichactassourcedomainripe,raworrotten. Thefollowingexampleexplainstheinvariance principle.MaharshiinhispoemTheMarital Garland of Letters says: I am not a fruit which is overripe and spoiltdraw , me, then into the inmost recess and fixme intoeternity. (The Collected Works: 89) Howmuchknowledgefromthesourcedomainof fruitcanbemappedontothetargetofhumanmind which is ready to embrace God?Of course the ripefruitwhichisneitheroverripenorrotten.MaharshiRamanaspoetrygenerallymakesuseof thissourcedomainoffruitforthematurityof humansoul.Theothermetaphorsrelatedwith invarianceprinciplehavebeendiscussedinMaharshis poetry later in the paper. The Invariance PrincipleLakofff defines invariance principle as: Metaphorical mappingspreservethecognitivetopology(thatis, the image-schema structure ) of the source domain, inawayconsistentwiththeinherentstructureof the target domain. ( Lakoff : 215) TheInvarianceprincipleisoneofthemaintenets of cognitive view of metaphor.Theother important tenetsareUnidirectionality,Necessity,Creativity, Domain, Focus, Ubiquity, Diachrony and Model. The invarianceprincipleformsthebasicanalytical frameworkforanalysisofMaharshiRamanas poetry in the present paper.The invariance principle claims that only some of the aspectsofsourcedomainmapontothetarget domainastheimage-schematicstructureofthe targetdoesnotrequiretheuseofallaspectsof sourcedomain.Sotherearenofixed correspondences between these two domains. If the sourcedomaintriestomaptheelementsnot requiredbytargetdomain,thetargetmayblockor resistthisarrangement.Thistypeoftransference needsonlythoseaspectswhicharecoherentwith theknowledgemappedfromthesourcedomain. MetaphorsinMaharshispoetryarenotonetoone equivalentofthesourceandtargetdomainsaslifesintricaciescannotbereducedtosuchsimple structures.Heremetaphorgoesfurtherand challengesthenotionsoffixedresemblancesandsimilaritiesandunfoldsthedramaofhuman existence in a significant way.Thereisaninherentimagestructureinthetarget domainwhichgoeswellwithsomeelementsofsourcedomain.PaulRicoeurrefutestheviewthat thetheoryofresemblanceisindissolublylinkedto thatofsubstitutioninmetaphor(1977:4). Metaphor does notwork simplyon the principle of resemblanceandsubstitution.Itismarkedby variousprocessesbycognition.Cognitionisthe processofmentalthinkingbywhichunderstanding occurs.Itincludessuchaspectslikeawareness, perceptionandjudgment.Thesefacultiesofmind havetheirroleintransferringtheknowledgefrom onedomaintotheother.Whenthetransference betweenthetwodomainsofmetaphoroccurs,a kindofunavoidabletensiontakesplace.Ricoeur recognizesthatthevariabilityofsemanticvalues, theirsensitivitytocontexts,theirreducibly polysemiccharacteroflexicaltermsinordinary languagearepermanentandfruitfulfunctioning of ordinarylanguage ( 380). Hence they also have a pertinent role to play in metaphors. Theconceptualizationofmetaphorinhumanmind isacomplexphenomenonandrightlysoin Maharshispoetry.Thespiritualpathdelineatedby himfindsanexpressionintheconceptual metaphors.Maharshispoetryworksattwolevels: Research Journal of English Language and Literature (RJELAL) A Peer Reviewed International Journal - http://www.rjelal.com Vol.1.Issue.3.;2013 306 KIRAN GANDHI SIKKA a)itworksatthelevelofperceivedrealityofthe worldwhichcreatesmetaphorsrelatedwiththe thingsastheyareintheworld.Ithebody experiencesthisknowledgeoftheworldand expresses it in metaphors of body. b) it also works at thelevelofknowledge,consciousnessand awarenesswhichItheSelfrealizes.Metaphorsin Maharshicaptureboththestates:theworldasitis and the reality of Self as it should be. Languagehasthisinherentquality,itexpressesthingsastheyare anditexpressesideasastheyaremanifested beyond senses. Maharshis LifeThereisaneedtogointosomedetailsof Maharshislifeforthereaderswhoarenotfamiliar withhisantecedents.Hislife-historyhasa significantroleingeneratingmetaphorsinhis poetry.ThejourneyofMaharishislifestartsfrom TiruchuziinTamilnadu,SouthIndia.Bornon30th Dec.,1879inanordinarymiddleclassfamilyto parentsAllagmmalandSundara,hehadanormal childhood.Hewasnotveryacademicallyinclined andhadnoinklingofthefuturespiritual transformation.Howeverlifetakesthecourseasit hastoandasithasbeenpredestined.Godhad otherthingsinstoreforhim.Hisfatherdiedwhen he was twelve years old. The familyhad to move to hisuncleshousewherehespentafewyears without any remarkable incident. After a few years a strangehappeningchangedhislifeforever.An intenseexperiencewhichhadrepercussionsonhis futurechangedthecourseofhislife.Despitebeing perfectlyphysicallyhealthy,hehadanexperience of near death. He felt the inert lifeless body and had afeelingthathewasabouttodie.Heawakenedto the immanent reality of a soul which never dies. He realizedtheimportofwhatShriKrishnasaidin BhagvadGita regarding the immortality ofsoul.Thesoulisnotkilledwhenthebodyiskilled,na hanyatehanyamnearre(Bhagavad-Gita:2.20). Lifetranscendsintheformofsoulminglingwith God.Anotherincidentalsotransformedhislife.He heardabouthillArunachalafromarelative. ArunachalaisasacredplaceforHindusin TiruvannamalaiinSouthIndiaandisfamousfor Arunachalatemple.Thiscallfrommountainmade him leave his home forever. Both these incidents left an indelible impact on his life. Maharshis PoetryMaharshislife,hisphilosophyandhisinstructions weresointermingledwithoneanotherthathis poetryimbibesallofthemthroughmetaphorsto provideuswaystoenterthatrealmoftruth.This realmoftruthisnotafleetingbriefmomentof fancy but an eternal state of consciousnessand Bliss whichleadsusoutoftangledthoughtsandvain imaginings(Osborne:295).Maharshispoetryis sacredasthepoet-saintbecomesarecipient,an instrumentthroughwhichflowutterancesofTruth of sublime beauty and purity. (Osborne, 2000: 225) .Itisinthisbackgroundofthematicconcernsof Maharshi Ramana that his poetry unfolds metaphors ofvarioustypes.Maharshineverwrotepoetryasa deliberateeffortashewasaSaintinsearchof higherrealitiesoflife.Someofhispoemscame spontaneouslytohimthoughhehimselfwondered whathehadtodowithpoetry.Theyareprofound andemotionalpoemswrittenaboutindissoluble unionofsoulwithGod.HeaddressedhisfirstfivepoemstoSriArunachalatitledFiveHymnstoSri Arunachala.The poems begin with an invocation to GodGanesha.TheMaritalGarlandofLettershas ametaphorofmarriage,butitssignificanceliesin thesymbolicunionofsoul-brideandGod.The Necklet of Nine Gems consistsof nine stanzas with thesametheme.ElevenVersestoSriArunachala, Eight Stanzas to Sri Arunachala and Five Stanzas to SriArunachalaaretheotherpoemsinthe collection.TheEssenceofInstructionisa beautifulpoemthatteachesapreciouslessonof howtoconductlifetoreachGod.RealityinForty Verses,FiveVersesonTheSelfandsomemiscellaneousPoemsalsoformthebulkofhis poetry. Some other poemsare short andsomewhat casualinapproach.Thesepoemsarevaluableand stand out for its excellent metaphorical import. They alsohaveamysticismwhichcanbecapturedonly throughmetaphors.Theyare:TheSongof Poppodum,Self Knowledge, Nine Stray Verses ,TheSelfinTheHeart.Occasionalpoemsalso formasmallpartofhispoetrybutdonotlackin philosophicalimport.OnSubramanya,VirupakshaCave,Ganesa,Dipawali, Liberation,Silence,OneLetter,SleepWhile AwakeandAJnaniandHisBodyareafewof them.Someoftheversesarealsoadaptationsand Research Journal of English Language and Literature (RJELAL) A Peer Reviewed International Journal - http://www.rjelal.com Vol.1.Issue.3.;2013 307 KIRAN GANDHI SIKKA translations of the poetry Maharshi appreciated. For the present paper, only some of the poems from The Collected of Sri Ramana Maharshi ( 2010) have been taken up for study.MaharshisPhilosophy:BeingConsciousnessBliss MaharshisphilosophyistiedtotheSelf-realization ofaconstantawarenessofidentitywithAtman, whichhecallsbyothernamessuchasSelf,Spirit, Godandtheabsolute(TheCollectedWorksXIII). Maharshirealizedthatbeingisoneandmanifested intheworldinvariousforms.Itisanallinclusive consciousnessofunitywithGod.Maharshibelieved inthedoctrineofnon-dualityAdvaita.Theworldis not real as a separate self existing entity. It does not existforitsownsafeasasourceofactivitiesof body.Aslongasmanthinkshimselftobelivingin theworld,itcausesbondageintheformofself conceit,nescience,impurityandego.Whatisthat whichmakesbodyconscious?Whathappenstothe bodywhenitdies?Theanswerstothesequestions lie in his method of Self-enquiry. Self-enquiry ThephilosophyofSriRamanaliesintheenquiry into the nature of self, the content of the notion I. NormallythesphereofIvariesbecauseofmany factors.WeoftenassociateIwithname,fameor ego.HoweverthesefactorsarenottherealIas theyareextraneous.Tobelievethatoneisbody,is fallacious.Thebodyundergoesmanychangesfrom childhoodtooldageandfinallydies.The circumstancesinwhichthebodylivesalsochange. Sometimesthey cause happiness and at others they makeonesad.Mansdesiresleadhimtoapathof dissatisfaction.Mansego,hisignoranceandhis bloatedself-imageleadhimtoaneternalpoolof sorrow. The door to happiness lies in the realization of the immanence of soul within God.Man needs to make a constant enquiry into the nature of I which is not body but an effulgent awareness. One has to offer theego in the fire of wisdom andwhat comes outisconsciousnessandbliss.Itisinthis backgroundofMaharshisphilosophythat invariance principle works in Maharshis metaphors.Invariance Principle in Maharshis Metaphor Invariance principle in Maharshis metaphors works onthebasisofknowledgemappedfromconcrete sourcedomaintotheabstracttargetdomain.The predominantmoodinMaharshismetaphoristhat ofahumansoulaspiringtomeetGod.Bothare abstracttermsthereforetheyneedsomething concrete to unfold theirmeanings. All the examples given below are concrete source and abstract target domains.TheexampleshavebeencitedfromThe Collected Works of Sri Ramana Maharshi. (2010) , an anthology of poems published by Sriramanasramam. a)Thishill,thelodestoneoflives, arreststhemovementsofanyone whoalsomuchasthinksofit, draws him face to face with it, and fixeshimmotionlesslikeitself,to feeduponhissoulthusripened.(100)b)Assnowinwater,letmemeltas loveinthee,whoareloveitself, Oh Arunachala! (94) c)Mymindhasblossomed, (Then)scentitwiththyfragrance andperfectit,OhArunachala!(90) d)WhenshallI(become)likethe etherandreachThee,subtleof being,thatthetempestof thoughtsmayandOh Arunachala?( 89) e)Notfindingthefloweropen,Thou didststay,nobetterthana (frustrated)bee,OhArunachala! (87) f)BeThoumystayandmysupport lestIdroophelplesslikeatender creeper, Oh Arunachala! (89) g)Whenthepotiscarried,the spacewithinthepot,thoughconceivedofascarried,isitnot only the pot that is carried. (168) h)Better than spells of meditation Is one continuous current, Steady as a stream, Or downward flow of oil ( 110) Sr. No.Source domainAspectusedTarget domain Research Journal of English Language and Literature (RJELAL) A Peer Reviewed International Journal - http://www.rjelal.com Vol.1.Issue.3.;2013 308 KIRAN GANDHI SIKKA a) (i)Lodestone (ii)Feed (iii)Ripened Magnetic quality nutritionMaturing God To nourish Souls maturity b)(i) Snow (ii) Water melting dissolving snow Human being God c) (i) Blossom (ii) Scent blooming of flower fragrance Mindfreeofworldly entanglements grace bestowed by God d)(i) Ether (ii) Tempest Theregionsofspacebeyond earth,thereforeallpervading storm eagernessofhumansoul to meet God mind full of disturbances e)(i) Flower (ii) Honey bee blossoming sucking flowers mind free of impurities Godembracinghuman beings f)(i) creeper Weak and needs support support of Godg)Earthen potAcontainertocarryorhold somethingHuman body needs Gods consciousnessh)(i) Stream (ii) Oil Flowing steadily flowing down Continuous meditationMindturninginwardto seekthesourceofGods consciousness Allthemetaphorscitedaboveexemplifythatonlysomeaspectsareusedfortargetdomainfromthe knowledgeextractedfromthesourcedomains.A lodestonehasamagneticpropertytoattractiron. This property is invariant. Both the source and target domainsarerelatedtoeachotherbythisvery quality.Thisparticularelementcannotbechanged orreversed.Thesecondsourcedomainfromthe categoryoffoodisanequivalentofGodnourishing onlythosesoulswhoarematureandspiritually inclined.Ripeningisalsoassociatedwithfruitandhasbeenusedforthetargetdomainofsouls maturity. Snowactsasatargetdomainforhumansoulor mind.Thesnowmeltsinwater,itisirrefutable. Similarlythehumanmindwhichisfreefrom impuritydissolvesinGodimmediately.Snow dissolvesonlyinwater.Thehumansouldissolves onlyinGod.Themappingofsourcedomainonto thetargetdomainiscoherentwiththeimage- schemastructureandisinvariantasitcannotbe possible vice-versa. Plantanditsvariouselementsarethecommon sourcedomainsusedforreligiouspoetry.Ithas otherelementslikeseed,branch,twigandbud. Althoughitmeansvariousthingsatvarioustimes, herefloweringmeansthematurityofsoul.The devotee requests God to bestow his grace on himas aflowerfulloffragrancecatchestheattentionof everyone who passesnearby.Etherhasapropertyofbeinghighlyvolatileand inflammable.Itevaporatesveryeasily.Inancient medievalcivilization,thiselementwasbelievedto bealloverinthespace,abovetheMoonanda componentofstarsandplanets.Itsomnipresence was its special property. Here both the properties of etherhavebeenusedfortheeagernessofhuman soul to be a part of universal consciousness which is God.TempestagainrecursinMaharshispoetry whichsignifiestheturbulenceofhumansoulwhich isstrugglinghardtobeonewithGod.Thestormin theseahastostop;similarlytheupheavalsin humanmindshavetostoptogainastateof permanent peace. It is quite interesting to note that Maharshis poetry displayssomemetaphorswhichoccurtimeand again.Flowerisoneofthem.Ofcoursethe metaphorhaspositiveconnotations.Inreligious poetry,flowerissymbolicofsoulsmaturity.The Research Journal of English Language and Literature (RJELAL) A Peer Reviewed International Journal - http://www.rjelal.com Vol.1.Issue.3.;2013 309 KIRAN GANDHI SIKKA same happens here also. Honeybee sucks only those flowerswhicharefullofsapotherwisetheflower wouldbeofnouseforbees.Godalsolovesonly those human beings who have the essence of desire, maturityandwillingnesstomeetHim.Thebee wouldneversitonaflowerwhichhasnotbloomed orisdry.Themetaphorofcreeperhoweverhas beenusedinonlyinitsbasicsensewhichis invariant. Acreeper needs support of tree. The pot is a source domain for the target domain of body. In itself,thepotislifeless.Itdoesnothaveitsown energy.Bodyalsodoesnothaveitsownenergy.It worksbecauseofGod.Particularlytheelementof inertnesshasbeenmadeuseofforthetarget domain of body. As this is the only element required fromthesource.Thepotmayalsobeusedasa containertoholdanything.Bodymayalsobeused as a container to hold consciousness from God. Only thismuchknowledgewillbecoherentbetweenthe two domains, hence invariant.The current of a stream and downward flow of oil aretwometaphorswhichsuggestthewayone shouldconcentrateonIthought.Thecurrentofa streamflowssteadily;similarisamindwho concentratesonItheSelfevenwhenoneisliving in the world. Oil always flows down, similarly a mind flowsdownandfinallyfindsthesourceintheform ofSelfwhichisself-luminous.Thisistheultimate goalofhumanlifeandcanreleasemanfrom bondage ofmiseries.Both the source domains used hereindicatethattherequiredelementstobe mappedontothetargetarerestricted.Waterhas otherpropertiesalso,forexample,itsoaks,it splashes and it falls down like rain as they do not go withthegivenstructureofthetarget.Noneof thesearerequiredhere.Oilmayburn,maycook foodandmaybeusedforlubricationbutnoneof the additional knowledge about oil is required. Thus,theinvarianceprincipleinalltheexamples citedabovetakesonlyrequiredelementsfromthe sourcedomainontothetargetdomaincoherent withtheimagestructureofthetargetdomain.The rest of the elements are not required so their usage isblocked.Someoftheelementsinthesource domainareaninevitablepartofthetarget, thereforetheyareindispensable.Therestofthe elementsarenotneededsonotputintouse.For example the bud has no use for honeybee, therefore Maharshidoesnotmakeuseofthesame.Similarly snow,ice,rainandsteamareallformsofwater. Maharshihoweverneedsonlytheknowledge requiredaboutsnow,thereforeitmakessenseto usesnowasitmeltsinwater.Themagneticquality ofirongivesitanextraedgetoqualifyasatoolto attractotherthingsmadeofiron.Theseamaybe placid, stormy, surging withwaves and a habitat for sea animals and pearls. But Maharshi uses its stormy aspectforthetargetdomainofhumanmindwhich isturbulent.Themappingiscompatiblewiththe targetdomain.Maharshihasmadeuseofother aspectsofwaterintheformofsteamandseain othercontexts.Hereotherelementsofwaterwill causeanincompatibilityaswellasanillegitimate transferandincoherence,thereforebringan awkward and wrong import.Thisprincipleoffersahypothesisthatonlysome aspectsofsourcedomaincangowiththetarget domain.Howfartheseaspectsgotoexplainthe targetdomaindependsontheparticularcontext. Theinherentpotentialityoflanguagerestrictsthe useofelementsofsource.Theexamplestaken fromMaharshispoetrycorroboratetheinvariance principlethatthereshouldneitherbeanyconflict noranyincoherencebetweenthetwopartsofthe domains: the part that tells us what can be mapped fromthesourceandthepartthattellsuswhat cannotandwhy.Onlyanalysisofoneexample wouldsufficetoprovethis.Snowmeltsinwater. Onlysnowhasthatelementwhichcanbring metaphoricalimporttothesentence.Steamorrain as elements of water can be used elsewhere for the purpose of clouds forming from water or rain falling downservingassourcedomains.Butthis knowledgeisnotdesirablehere,soitisblocked. This is what invariance principle does. Zoltn admits thattheinvariancehypothesisdoesnotoffer solutionstoallthecasesbuttheabovecitedcases areaproofthattherequiredknowledgewhichis compatible with the target would serve the purpose and not otherwise.Many other examples can be quoted to support this viewbuttheaboveexamplesarefullproofto confirm the postulations given in the beginning. The abstract concepts of life may be partially mappedby concrete source domains as the intricacies of life are not within the reach of language. Whatever remains Research Journal of English Language and Literature (RJELAL) A Peer Reviewed International Journal - http://www.rjelal.com Vol.1.Issue.3.;2013 310 KIRAN GANDHI SIKKA behindcanbecaughtbymetaphors.Thecognitive viewofmetaphorsuccessfullyreachestheareas whereliterallanguagecannot.Theinvariance principleisonlyoneofthemaintenetsof conceptual metaphor. So it may explain some of the areasofmetaphorsconceptualizationalthoughnot allthemysteriesofmetaphor.Therestofthe metaphors may need other explanations .Thepaperunfoldstheproblembyresortingtothe view that the conceptual metaphors consist of a set of mappings between a source and a target. Certain aspectsofboththedomainswillbebroughtintocorrespondencewitheachotherinsuchawaythat theysuccessfullygeneratemeaningscompatiblein that particular context. Any additional or extra effort touseotherelementswouldnotonlybefutilebut alsoruinthewholecommunicationorapieceof literature.Sincepoetryisfragileanddifficultto handle,theinvarianceprinciplecomestoitsrescue byitsabilitytoblocktheknowledgewhichisnot required. Theinvarianceprinciplehelpsusnotonlytolook afreshatthefixednotionsofsimilaritybutalso provide insights to look into the crevicesand gaps in thetheoryofonetooneresemblance.The invarianceprinciplehasitssignificancenotonlyin dailylanguagebutalsoimportantinpoetryasitis anareawhichgoesbeyondliteralboundariesto entertherealmofunknown.Noidenticalrelationshipispossiblebetweenideasandthe invarianceprincipleexplainsthoseinexplicable boundaries which make poetry what it is . Works Cited Jaekel,Olaf,HypothesesRevisited:TheCognitive TheoryofMetaphorAppliedtoReligious Texts . 02/2002 .metaphorik de. 20-42Kvecses, Zoltn, Metaphor: A Practical Introduction Oxford: Oxford University Press. 2010. Lakoff,George,ContemporaryTheoryof Metaphor,Ortony,Andrew(ed.)Metaphor andThought.Cambridge:Cambridge University Press, 1993.202-251Osborne,Arthur.ForThosewithLittleDust. Tiruvannamalai: Sri Ramanasramam. 2012Prabhupad,Swami.Bhagvad-GitaAsItIs.< http://vedabase.net/bg/> accessed 31.5.2013 Punter,David,.Metaphor:TheNewCriticalIdiom. London andNewYork: RoutledgeTaylor and Francis Group. 2007. Ricoeur,Paul,TheRuleofMetaphor.LondonandNew York Routledge Classics. 1977. TheCollectedWorksofSriRamanaMaharshi. .Tiruvannamalai: Sri ramanasram. 2010.