Kalidas

Birth place

Lachhmi Dhar Kalla (1891–1953), a Sanskrit scholar and a Kashmiri Pandit, presents Kashmir as the birthplace of Kalidasa, in his book The birth-place of Kalidasa (1926). According to Kalla, Kalidasa's works suggest that he was deeply familiar with the Himalayas, and refer to some customs and superstitions unique to Kashmir. Kalla asserts that Kalidasa mentions some sites that can be identified with places in Kashmir, and were not very famous outside Kashmir. Further, Kalidasa's works mention plants (such as saffron and deodar), animals (such as musk deer), and geographical features (such as tarns and glades) characteristic of Kashmir. Kalla also states that the character Śakuntalā is an allegorical dramatisation of Pratyabhijna philosophy (a branch of Kashmir Shaivism). Kalla states that Kalidasa refers to certain legends of Kashmiri origin; for example, in the Raghuvamsha, a lion describes himself as a friend of "Nikumbha", who according to Kalla is same as a mythical being mentioned in the Nilamata Purana of Kashmir. According to Kalla, the Huna incursions in Kashmir forced Kalidasa to migrated southwards and seek royal patronage in Ujjayini.