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Kālidāsa (Devanāgarī: कालिदास) was a renowned Sanskrit poet and dramatist, author of Meghadūta, Abhijñānashākuntala and Kumārasambhava , among other well-known works. Sanskrit (sa संस्कृता वाक् saṃskṛtā vāk, for short sa संस्कृतम् saṃskṛtam) is a historical Meghadūta (literally "cloud messenger" is a Lyric poem written by Kālidāsa, considered to be one of the greatest Sanskrit poets Shakuntala RRVjpg|right|thumb|200px|Shakuntala writes to Dushyanta Kumarasambhava or Kumaarasambhavam is an epic poem written by the Hindu poet Kalidas. His place in Sanskrit literature is the same as that of Shakespeare in English. Sanskrit (sa संस्कृता वाक् saṃskṛtā vāk, for short sa संस्कृतम् saṃskṛtam) is a historical William Shakespeare ( baptised Such has been his fame that works not of his writing, such as Nalodaya and Shrutabodha, have also been attributed to him. [1] His plays and poetry were primarily based on Hindu mythology and philosophy. Hindu mythology is the large body of Mythology related to Hinduism, notably as contained in Sanskrit literature, such as the Sanskrit epics and Hindu philosophy is divided into six Sanskrit ''{{IAST|āstika}}'') schools of thought or darshanas (literally "views" Sankhya Kālidāsa is a Sanskrit name which means servant (dasa) of the goddess Kali. Kali redirects here See Kali (disambiguation for other uses Not to be confused with Kali (demon, the personification of Kali Yuga
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Life
Nothing apart from his works is known with certainty about the life of Kālidāsa, such as his period or where he lived.
Date
A terminus ante quem is given by the Aihole Prashasti of 634 AD, which has a reference to his skills; and a terminus post quem can be presumed from his play Mālavikāgnimitra in as much as the hero, King Agnimitra of the Shunga dynasty, assumed the throne of Magadha in 152 BC. Terminus post quem and the related terminus ante quem are terms used to give an approximate date for a text Aihole ( Kannada ಐಹೊಳೆ is a town in the Bagalkot district of Karnataka, India Terminus post quem and the related terminus ante quem are terms used to give an approximate date for a text Mālavikāgnimitram ( Devnagari:मालविकाग्निमित्रम्("Mālavikā and Agnimitra" is a Sanskrit play by Agnimitra (149 - 141 BCE was the second King of the Sunga Dynasty of Northern India For other uses of the term Sunga see Sunga (disambiguation The Sunga Empire (or Shunga Empire) is a Magadha Magadha (मगध formed one of the sixteen Mahājanapadas ( Sanskrit, "great countries" or regions in ancient India. The linguistic features of the Prakrit dialects used by some of the minor characters in his plays have been adduced to suggest that he could not have lived before the 3rd century AD. Prakrit (also transliterated as Pracrit) ( Sanskrit: prākṛta प्राकृत (from pra-kṛti प्रकृति according to one [2]
In his works, Kālidāsa did not mention any king as his patron, or any dynasty other than the Shunga dynasty, but several historians have credited the traditional account of Kālidāsa as one of the "nine gems" at the court of a king named Vikramāditya. For other uses of the term Sunga see Sunga (disambiguation The Sunga Empire (or Shunga Empire) is a Magadha For the Gupta king see Chandragupta II Vikramāditya Vikramaditya ( Sanskrit: विक्रमादित्य There were, however, several kings in ancient India by that name. One among them was Chandragupta II Vikramāditya of the Gupta dynasty, who assumed the throne of Magadha around 378 AD. Chandragupta II (very often referred to as Vikramaditya or Chandragupta Vikramaditya) was one of the most powerful emperors of the Gupta empire The Gupta Empire ( Hindi: गुप्त राजवंश was ruled by members of the Gupta dynasty from around 320 to 550 C Magadha (मगध formed one of the sixteen Mahājanapadas ( Sanskrit, "great countries" or regions in ancient India. Scholars have noted other possible associations with the Gupta dynasty, which would put his date in the range of 300-470 AD:
- His play about a couple in Vedic mythology, Pururavas and Urvashi, being titled Vikramorvashīya, with "Vikram" for "Pururavas", could be an indirect tribute to a patron possibly named Vikramāditya. Pururavas ( Hindi:पुरूरव, According to Vedas is a mythological entity associated with the Surya (the sun and Usha (the dawn and This article is related to Hindu mythology For the Indian film actresses with the name Urvashi see Urvashi (actress and Urvashi Sharma Urvashi Vikramōrvaśīyam ( Sanskrit: विक्रमूर्वशीय is a Sanskrit play by medieval Indian poet Kalidasa, on the Vedic love
- Kumāragupta was the son of Chandragupta II Vikramāditya. The title of Kālidāsa's epic poem, Kumārasambhava, about the begetting of Kartikeya, the god of war who was the son of Siva and Pārvati, could be an indirect tribute to either of these royal patrons. Kumarasambhava or Kumaarasambhavam is an epic poem written by the Hindu poet Kalidas. Shiva:(pronunciation; Sanskrit: शिव Śiva, lit "Auspicious one" One of the Trimurtis Shiva is the supreme God in the Shaiva Parvati ( Sanskrit: Pārvatī sa [[wiktपार्वती पार्वती]] sometimes spelled Parvathi or Parvathy, is a Hindu
- The mention of Huns in his epic poem, Raghuvamsa, could be a veiled reference to the victory over them of Kumāragupta's son and successor, Skandagupta. The Huns were an early confederation of Central Asian equestrian nomads or semi-nomads with a Turkic core of aristocracy Raghuvamsa is believed to be a lineage of warrior kings tracing its ancestry to Surya. Skandagupta (d 467 was a ruler of northern India under the Gupta dynasty. Alternatively, the campaign of Raghu in this poem may have been modeled on the celebrated campaigns of Chandragupta II Vikramāditya's father, Samudragupta. Emperor Raghu was a valorous king of the Ikshvaku dynasty. The name in Sanskrit translates to the fast one, deriving from Raghu's chariot driving abilities Samudragupta, ruler of the Gupta Empire (cAD 335 &ndash 380 and successor to Chandragupta I, is considered to be one of the greatest military geniuses in
Location
Scholars have speculated that Kālidāsa may have lived either near the Himalayas or in the vicinity of Ujjain. WikipediaWikiProject Indian cities for details --> Ujjain ( Hindi:उज्जैन (also known as Ujain, Ujjayini, Avanti The two speculations are based respectively on Kālidāsa's detailed description of the Himalayas in his Kumārasambhava and the display of his love for Ujjain in Meghadūta. Kumarasambhava or Kumaarasambhavam is an epic poem written by the Hindu poet Kalidas. WikipediaWikiProject Indian cities for details --> Ujjain ( Hindi:उज्जैन (also known as Ujain, Ujjayini, Avanti Meghadūta (literally "cloud messenger" is a Lyric poem written by Kālidāsa, considered to be one of the greatest Sanskrit poets
Dissenting views
- Dissenting scholars generally favor placing Kālidāsa's lifetime nearer to the Shunga age, perhaps in the period of a certain Vikramāditya who reigned around 100 BCE, about whom, however, practically nothing is known.
- Kālidāsa never mentioned any Guptas explicitly.
- There have been many Vikramādityas, and Kālidāsa could have been at the court of any of them, including one in the first century BCE.
- The assumption that the tribes mentioned in the campaign sections of Raghuvamsa were unknown before the Gupta campaigns is incorrect. Kālidāsa's works have not been free from interpolations and such campaign sections are notorious for having been tampered with, just as the campaigns in the Mahābhārata.
- King Agnimitra of the Shunga dynasty, about 450 years before the start of the Gupta dynasty, was a thoroughly mediocre king; had Kālidās lived some time in the Gupta age, he would have had little interest in writing Mālavikāgnimitra with a mediocre king of five centuries before as the hero. On the other hand, Kālidāsa seemed to have been aware of certain historical peculiarities of the Shunga period, such as the fact that Agnimitra's father, Pushyamitra, called himself a commander though he had usurped the throne of Magadha from the Mauryas. Pusyamitra Sunga (B ??? R 185-151 BCE D 151 BCE was the founder and first King of the Sunga Dynasty in Northern India The Maurya Empire ( 322 – 185 BCE) ruled by the Mauryan dynasty was a geographically extensive and powerful political and military
Works
Plays
Kālidāsa wrote three plays. Among them, Abhijñānaśākuntalam ("The Recognition of Shakuntala") is commonly regarded as a masterpiece. Shakuntala RRVjpg|right|thumb|200px|Shakuntala writes to Dushyanta It was among the first Sanskrit works to be translated into English, and has since been translated into many languages [3]. English is a West Germanic language originating in England and is the First language for most people in the United Kingdom, the United States
- Mālavikāgnimitra ("Mālavikā and Agnimitra") tells the story of King Agnimitra, who falls in love with the picture of an exiled servant girl named Mālavikā. Mālavikāgnimitram ( Devnagari:मालविकाग्निमित्रम्("Mālavikā and Agnimitra" is a Sanskrit play by Agnimitra (149 - 141 BCE was the second King of the Sunga Dynasty of Northern India When the queen discovers her husband's passion for this girl, she becomes infuriated and has Mālavikā imprisoned, but as fate would have it, Mālavikā is in fact a true-born princess, thus legitimizing the affair.
- Abhijñānaśākuntalam ("The Recognition of Shakuntala") tells the story of King Dushyanta who, while on a hunting trip, meets Shakuntalā, the adopted daughter of a sage, and marries her. Shakuntala RRVjpg|right|thumb|200px|Shakuntala writes to Dushyanta Dushyant or Dushyanta (दुष्यंत was a great king in classical Indian literature and mythology In Hindu mythology Shakuntala ( Sanskrit: शकुन्तला Śakuntalā) is the mother of Emperor Bharata and the wife of A mishap befalls them when he is summoned back to court: Shakuntala, pregnant with their child, inadvertently offends a visiting sage and incurs a curse, by which Dushyanta will forget her completely until he sees the ring he has left with her. On her trip to Dushyanta's court in an advanced state of pregnancy, she loses the ring, and has to come away unrecognized. The ring is found by a fisherman who recognizes the royal seal and returns it to Dushyanta, who regains his memory of Shakuntala and sets out to find her. After more travails, they are finally reunited.
- Vikramōrvaśīya ("Pertaining to Vikrama and Urvashi") tells the story of mortal King Pururavas and celestial nymph Urvashi who fall in love. Vikramōrvaśīyam ( Sanskrit: विक्रमूर्वशीय is a Sanskrit play by medieval Indian poet Kalidasa, on the Vedic love Pururavas ( Hindi:पुरूरव, According to Vedas is a mythological entity associated with the Surya (the sun and Usha (the dawn and This article is related to Hindu mythology For the Indian film actresses with the name Urvashi see Urvashi (actress and Urvashi Sharma Urvashi As an immortal, she has to return to the heavens, where an unfortunate accident causes her to be sent back to the earth as a mortal with the curse that she will die (and thus return to heaven) the moment her lover lays his eyes on the child which she will bear him. After a series of mishaps, including Urvashi's temporary transformation into a vine, the curse is lifted, and the lovers are allowed to remain together on the earth.
Poetry
Kālidāsa is the author of two epic poems, Raghuvamsa ("Dynasty of Raghu") and Kumārasambhava ("Birth of Kumāra"). Indian epic poetry is the Epic poetry written in the Indian subcontinent. Raghuvamsa is believed to be a lineage of warrior kings tracing its ancestry to Surya. Kumarasambhava or Kumaarasambhavam is an epic poem written by the Hindu poet Kalidas. Kartikay also know as Subhramanya Kartik or Kartikkeya is a central deity of the Hindu tradtion of India. Among his lyric poems are Meghadūta ("Cloud Messenger") and Ṛtusamhāra ("The Exposition on the Seasons"). Meghadūta (literally "cloud messenger" is a Lyric poem written by Kālidāsa, considered to be one of the greatest Sanskrit poets
Commentaries
Many oriental and occidental scholars have written commentaries on the works of Kālidāsa. The most studied one is Sanjeevani by Kolāchala Mallinātha Suri, written in the 15th century during the reign of the Vijayanagar king, Deva Rāya II. Mallinātha Sūri was an eminent critic known for his commentaries on five mahakavyas (great compositions of Sanskrit. The Vijayanagara Empire ( Kannada: ವಿಜಯನಗರ ಸಾಮ್ರಾಜ್ಯ Telugu: విజయనగర సామ్రాజ్యము was a South
Kalidasa in modern popular culture
- In Koodiyattam, Bhasa's plays were usually performed, but the late Koodiyattam artist and Natya shastra scholar Māni Mādhava Chākyār choreographed and performed popular Kālidāsā plays like Abhijñānaśākuntala, Vikramorvaśīya and Mālavikāgnimitra. Koodiyattam or Kutiyattam (kuːʈijaːʈːam is a form of Sanskrit theatre traditionally performed in the state of Kerala, India. Bhāsa is one of the earliest and most celebrated Indian playwrights in Sanskrit The Nātya Shastra ( Sanskrit: Nātyaśāstra नाट्य शास्त्र is an ancient Indian treatise on the Performing arts Guru Mani Madhava Chakyar ( Māni Mādhava Chākyār Devanāgarī: माणि माधव चाक्यार् മാണി മാധവ ചാക്യാര് Vikramōrvaśīyam ( Sanskrit: विक्रमूर्वशीय is a Sanskrit play by medieval Indian poet Kalidasa, on the Vedic love Mālavikāgnimitram ( Devnagari:मालविकाग्निमित्रम्("Mālavikā and Agnimitra" is a Sanskrit play by
- V. Shantaram made the movie Stree based on Kālidāsa's Shakuntala. V Shantaram, renowned Indian producer-director-actor most known for his films like Dr Shakuntala has been adapted and filmed in virtually every major Indian language.
- Legends of Kālidāsa's life have been popularized by movies such as Kaviratna Kalidasa and Mahakavi Kalidasa in Kannada and other South Indian languages. Kaviratna Kalidasa (ಕವಿರತ್ನ ಕಾಳಿದಾಸ is one of the all-time top money-grossing Films in the history of Kannada Movies Mahakavi Kalidasa (ಮಹಾಕವಿ ಕಾಳಿದಾಸ is a Kannada movie was made in mid 1950's by the then famous singer of Karnataka Honnappa Bhagavatar of Bangalore Kannada (kn [[wiktಕನ್ನಡ ಕನ್ನಡ]] Kannaḍa) is one of the major Dravidian languages of India, spoken predominantly in the state These movies are based on the legends that offer ample scope for special effects and music.
- Mohan Rakesh's play in Hindi, Āshad ka ek din(A Day In The Month Of Āshad), tries to capture the conflict between the harsh realities of the times and the ethereal beauty repeatedly portrayed in Kālidāsa's works. Mohan Rakesh (मोहन राकेश January 8, 1925 January 3, 1972) was one of the pioneers of the Nai Kahani ("New Kālidāsa leaves behind his childhood sweetheart Mallika to go to the royal court. He wins acclaim and a life of pleasure. When he comes back to Mallika expecting an eager welcome, he discovers that in the intervening years, her life has taken the harsh road never seen in his art.
- Surendra Verma's Hindi play "Athavan Sarga," published in 1976, is based on the legend that Kālidāsa could not complete his epic "Kumārasambhava" because he was cursed by the goddess Pārvati, for obscene descriptions of her conjugal life with Lord Shiva in the eighth canto. The play depicts Kālidāsa as a court poet of Chandragupta who faces a trial on the insistence of a priest and some other moralists of his time.
- "Asti Kashchid Vagarthiyam", a five act play written by Krishna Kumar in Sanskrit, was first published in 1984. The story depicts a variation of the popular legend that, prior to attaining fame, Kālidāsa was mentally challenged and his wife was responsible for his transformation. Kālidāsā, a mentally handicapped woodcutter, is married to Vidyottamā, a learned princess, through a conspiracy of two scholars who had been defeated by her in a discussion of the scriptures. On discovering that she has been tricked, Vidyottamā first banishes Kālidāsa and then relents, asking him to acquire scholarship and fame if he desires to continue the relationship. She further stipulates that on his return he will have to answer the question, Asti Kashchid Vāgārthah" ("Is there anything special in expression?"), to her satisfaction. In due course, Kālidāsa attains knowledge and fame as a poet. To prove himself to Vidyottamā, the opening verses of his works, Kumārsambhava, Raghuvansha and Meghaduta, begin with the words Asti ("there is"), Kashchit ("something") and Vāk ("expression. ")
Notes
- ^ Scholars are agreed that these were by different authors with the same name.
- ^ AA Macdonnell, "Kalidasa", article in Encyclopedia Britannica, 1902
- ^ Kalidas, Encyclopedia Americana
Further reading
- K.D. Sethna. Kaikhosru Dadhaboy (KD Sethna (born 26 November 1904) is an Indian poet scholar writer philosopher and cultural critic Problems of Ancient India, p. 79-120 (chapter: "The Time of Kalidasa"), 2000 New Delhi: Aditya Prakashan. ISBN 81-7742-026-7 (about the dating of Kalidasa)
See also
External links
- Kalidasa: Translations of Shakuntala and Other Works by Arthur W. Literature in Sanskrit begins with the Vedas, and continues with the Sanskrit Epics of Iron Age India; the golden age of Classical Drama as a distinct genre of Sanskrit literature emerges in the final centuries BC although its exact origins remain unknown Ryder
- Biography of Kalidasa
- Works by Kalidasa at Project Gutenberg
- Clay Sanskrit Library publishes classical Indian literature, including the works of Kalidasa with Sanskrit facing-page text and translation. Project Gutenberg, abbreviated as PG, is a volunteer effort to Digitize, archive and distribute Cultural works Also offers searchable corpus and downloadable materials.
- Kalidasa at The Online Library of Liberty
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