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Kalidasa
Kālidāsa (''fl.'' 4th–5th century CE) was a Classical Sanskrit author who is often considered ancient India's greatest poet and playwright. His plays and poetry are primarily based on the Vedas, the Rāmāyaṇa, the Mahābhārata and the Purāṇas. His surviving works consist of three plays, two epic poems and two shorter poems. Much about his life is unknown except what can be inferred from his poetry and plays. His works cannot be dated with precision, but they were most likely authored before the 5th century CE. Early life Scholars have speculated that Kālidāsa may have lived near the Himalayas, in the vicinity of Ujjain, and in Kalinga. This hypothesis is based on Kālidāsa's detailed description of the Himalayas in his '' Kumārasambhava'', the display of his love for Ujjain in '' Meghadūta'', and his highly eulogistic descriptions of Kalingan emperor Hemāngada in ''Raghuvaṃśa'' (sixth ''sarga''). Lakshmi Dhar Kalla (1891–1953), a Sanskrit scholar a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Meghadūta
} ''Meghadūta'' ( sa, मेघदूत literally ''Cloud Messenger'') is a lyric poem written by Kālidāsa (c. 4th–5th century CE), considered to be one of the greatest Sanskrit poets. It describes how a '' yakṣa'' (or nature spirit), who had been banished by his master to a remote region for a year, asked a cloud to take a message of love to his wife. The poem become well-known in Sanskrit literature and inspired other poets to write similar poems (known as "messenger-poems", or Sandesha Kavya) on similar themes. Korada Ramachandra Sastri wrote ''Ghanavrttam,'' a sequel to ''Meghduta.'' About the poem A poem of 120 stanzas, it is one of Kālidāsa's most famous works. The work is divided into two parts, Purva-megha and Uttara-megha. It recounts how a yakṣa, a subject of King Kubera (the god of wealth), after being exiled for a year to Central India for neglecting his duties, convinces a passing cloud to take a message to his wife at Alaka on Mount Kailāsa in the H ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vikramōrvaśīyam
''Vikramōrvaśīyam'' (Devanagari विक्रमोर्वशीयम्), meaning ''Ūrvaśī Won by Valour'') is a five-act Sanskrit play by ancient Indian poet Kālidāsa, who lived in the 4th or 5th Century CE, on the Vedic love story of King Pururavas and an Apsarā (celestial nymph) named Ūrvaśī, known for her beauty. As per the tradition, while the basic plot has taken elements from the sources such as the Samvāda Sūkta of the Ṛgveda, Mahābhārata and others, Kālidāsa has made significant adaptations to make the presentation more appealing while establishing his prowess as a playwright. ''Vikramorvaśīyam'' is the second of the three plays written by Kālidāsa, the first being ''Mālavikāgnimitram'' and the third being the celebrated ''Abhijñānaśākuntalam''. According to one theory, "Vikrama" in the title alludes to Kālidāsa's patron king Vikramāditya. However, there is no conclusive evidence for this, although both are said to have lived ar ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Raghuvaṃśa
(Devanagari: , lit. 'lineage of Raghu') is a Sanskrit epic poem ('' mahakavya'') by the celebrated Sanskrit poet Kalidasa. Though an exact date of composition is unknown, the poet is presumed to have flourished in the 5th century CE. It narrates, in 19 ''sarga''s (cantos), the stories related to the Raghu dynasty, namely the family of Dilipa and his descendants up to Agnivarna, who include Raghu, Dasharatha and Rama. The earliest surviving commentary written on the work is that of the 10th-century Kashmiri scholar Vallabhadeva. The most popular and widely available commentary, however, is the ''Sanjivani'', written by Mallinatha (ca.1350-1450). Contents The ''Raghuvaṃśa'' is a mahākāvya (roughly, epic poem) containing 1564 stanzas. It describes the line of kings of the Raghu dynasty (also known as the ''sūryavaṃśa'' or the solar dynasty) that includes Raghu. It is written in 19 ''sarga''s (cantos), that can be regarded as being divided into three parts:Ryder ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hemangada
Hemangada (Odia: ହେମଙ୍ଗଦ) was a powerful 4th century C.E.warrior king of the ancient Indian Kingdom of Kalinga (Odisha) who finds elaborate mention in the sixth chapter of Kalidasa's classical Sanskrit literary work, Raghuvansham. According to Kalidasa, Hemangada was present at the Swayamvara of the princess Indumati of Vidarbha as an participant while Sunanda, the counsel of the princess describes his glorious achievements, strength and his kingdom to her. Only besides the mention of Hemangada there are no details about his lineage or the dynasty he belonged to. He could be placed as a vassal of the Gupta rule in Kalinga those days but didn't either belong to the Vindhyatabi Naga or Nala rulers who were prominent or declining in other parts of ancient Tri-Kalinga region in that era. Since the whole work of Raghuvamsham is based on descriptions for the descendants of a mythical king Raghu Raghu () is a ruler of the Suryavamsha dynasty in Hinduism. According ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sanskrit Drama
The term Indian classical drama refers to the tradition of dramatic literature and performance in ancient India. The roots of drama in the Indian subcontinent can be traced back to the Rigveda (1200-1500 BCE), which contains a number of hymns in the form of dialogues, or even scenes, as well as hymns that make use of other literary forms such as animal fables However, Indian drama begins its classical stage in the 3rd-4th century BCE with the composition of the Nātyaśāstra (''lit. The Science of Drama''). Indian classical drama is regarded as the highest achievement of Sanskrit literature. The Buddhist playwright, poet and philosopher Asvaghosa, who composed the '' Buddhacarita'', is considered to have been one of the first Sanskrit dramatists along with Bhāsa, who likely lived in the 2nd century BCE, and is famous for writing two of the only surviving tragedies in Sanskrit drama. Despite its name, a classical Sanskrit drama uses both Sanskrit and Prakrit languages giving ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kumārasambhava
''Kumārasaṃbhavam'' ( sa, कुमारसम्भवम् "The Birth of Kumāra") is an epic poem by Kālidāsa. It is widely regarded as the finest work of Kālidāsa as well as the greatest kāvya poem in Classical Sanskrit. The style of description of spring set the standard for nature metaphors pervading many centuries of Indian literary tradition. ''Kumārasaṃbhavam'' basically talks about the birth of Kumara ( Kārtikeya), the son of Shiva and Parvati. The period of composition is uncertain, although Kālidāsa is thought to have lived in the 5th century. Legend say that Kālidāsa could not complete his epic Kumārasambhava because he was cursed by the goddess Pārvatī, for obscene descriptions of her conjugal life with Śiva in the eighth canto. But later it has inspired the famed sculpture of Khajuraho temples. The English renderings of these Sanskrit plays tend to avoid erotic and explicit aspects due to moral tastes of modern audience. The play depicts Kāli ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Abhijñānaśākuntalam
''Abhijnanashakuntalam'' (Devanagari: अभिज्ञानशाकुन्तलम्, IAST: ''Abhijñānaśākuntalam''), also known as ''Shakuntala'', ''The Recognition of Shakuntala'', ''The Sign of Shakuntala'', and many other variants, is a Sanskrit play by the ancient Indian poet Kālidāsa, dramatizing the story of Śakuntalā told in the epic '' Mahābhārata'' and regarded as best of Kālidāsa's works. Its exact date is uncertain, but Kālidāsa is often placed in the 4th century CE. Origin of Kālidāsa's play Plots similar to the play appear in earlier texts. There is a story mentioned in the '' Mahābhārata''. A story of similar plot appear in the Buddhist Jātaka tales as well. In the Mahābhārata the story appears as a precursor to the Pāṇḍava and Kaurava lineages. In the story King Duṣyanta and Śakuntalā meet in the forest and get estranged and ultimately reunited. Their son Bharata is said to have laid the foundation of the dynasty th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ujjain
Ujjain (, Hindustani pronunciation: �d͡ːʒɛːn is a city in Ujjain district of the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. It is the fifth-largest city in Madhya Pradesh by population and is the administrative centre of Ujjain district and Ujjain division. It is one of the Hindu pilgrimage centres of Sapta Puri famous for the '' Kumbh Mela'' held there every 12 years. The famous temple of Mahakaleshwar Jyotirlinga is located in the center of the city. An ancient city situated on the eastern bank of the Shipra River, Ujjain was the most prominent city on the Malwa plateau of central India for much of its history. It emerged as the political centre of central India around 600 BCE. It was the capital of the ancient Avanti kingdom, one of the sixteen Mahajanapadas. During the 18th century, the city briefly became the capital of Scindia state of the Maratha Empire, when Ranoji Scindia established his capital at Ujjain in 1731. It remained an important political, commercial and cult ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ancient India
According to consensus in modern genetics, anatomically modern humans first arrived on the Indian subcontinent from Africa between 73,000 and 55,000 years ago. Quote: "Y-Chromosome and Mt-DNA data support the colonization of South Asia by modern humans originating in Africa. ... Coalescence dates for most non-European populations average to between 73–55 ka." However, the earliest known human remains in South Asia date to 30,000 years ago. Settled life, which involves the transition from foraging to farming and pastoralism, began in South Asia around 7000 BCE. At the site of Mehrgarh presence can be documented of the domestication of wheat and barley, rapidly followed by that of goats, sheep, and cattle. By 4500 BCE, settled life had spread more widely, and began to gradually evolve into the Indus Valley civilisation, an early civilisation of the Old World, which was contemporaneous with Ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia. This civilisation flourished between 2500 BCE and 19 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mahabharata
The ''Mahābhārata'' ( ; sa, महाभारतम्, ', ) is one of the two major Sanskrit literature, Sanskrit Indian epic poetry, epics of ancient India in Hinduism, the other being the ''Ramayana, Rāmāyaṇa''. It narrates the struggle between two groups of cousins in the Kurukshetra War and the fates of the Kaurava and the Pandava, Pāṇḍava princes and their successors. It also contains Hindu philosophy, philosophical and devotional material, such as a discussion of the four "goals of life" or ''purusharthas, puruṣārtha'' (12.161). Among the principal works and stories in the ''Mahābhārata'' are the ''Bhagavad Gita'', the story of Damayanti, the story of Shakuntala, the story of Pururava and Urvashi, the story of Savitri and Satyavan, the story of Kacha (sage), Kacha and Devayani, the story of Rishyasringa and an abbreviated version of the ''Ramayana, Rāmāyaṇa'', often considered as works in their own right. Traditionally, the authorship of the ''M ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Prakrit
The Prakrits (; sa, prākṛta; psu, 𑀧𑀸𑀉𑀤, ; pka, ) are a group of vernacular Middle Indo-Aryan languages that were used in the Indian subcontinent from around the 3rd century BCE to the 8th century CE. The term Prakrit is usually applied to the middle period of Middle Indo-Aryan languages, excluding earlier inscriptions and the later Pali. ''Prākṛta'' literally means "natural", as opposed to '' saṃskṛta'', which literally means "constructed" or "refined". Prakrits were considered the regional spoken (informal) languages of people, and Sanskrit was considered the standardized (formal) language used for literary, official and religious purposes across Indian kingdoms of the subcontinent. Literary registers of Prakrits were also used contemporaneously (predominantly by śramaṇa traditions) alongside Classical Sanskrit of higher social classes. Etymology The dictionary of Monier Monier-Williams (1819–1899), and other modern authors however, interpr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Glade (geography)
In the most general sense, a glade or clearing is an open area within a forest. Glades are often grassy meadows under the canopy of deciduous trees such as red alder or quaking aspen in western North America. They also represent openings in forests where local conditions such as avalanches, poor soils, or fire damage have created semipermanent clearings. They are very important to herbivorous animals, such as deer and elk, for forage and denning activities. Sometimes the word is used in a looser sense, as in the treeless wetlands of the Everglades of Florida. In the central United States, calcareous glades occur with rocky, prairie-like habitats in areas of shallow soil. Glades are characterized by unique plant and animal communities that are adapted to harsh and dry conditions. See also *Treefall gap A treefall gap is a distinguishable hole in the canopy of a forest with vertical sides extending through all levels down to an average height of above ground. These ho ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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