KALIDASA

käˌlĭdäˈsə, fl. 5th cent.?, Indian dramatist and poet. He is regarded as the greatest figure in classical Sanskrit literature. Except that he was retained by the Gupta court, no facts concerning his life are known. His three surviving plays are Sakuntala (or Shakuntala), Vikramorvasi, and Malavikagnimitra. These court dramas in verse (nataka) relate fanciful or mythological tales of profound romantic love intensified and matured by adversity. Sakuntala, which is generally considered his masterpiece, tells of a maiden, Sakuntala, whom King Dushyanta marries. The king is bewitched so that he forgets his bride until a ring he gave her is discovered in the body of a fish. In Kalidasa's two epics, Raghuvansa and Kumarasambhava, delicate descriptions of nature are mingled with battle scenes. The other poems of Kalidasa are shorter and almost purely lyrical. Meghaduta [cloud messenger] is a description of the regions of India crossed by a cloud traveling between a tree spirit and his wife. Ritusamhara describes the course of pastoral love through the six seasons into which Indians divided the year.

See B. S. Miller, The Theatre of Memory (1984); studies by M. B. Harris (1936) and K. Krishnamoorthy (1972).

____________________

The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition Copyright© 2004, Columbia University Press. Licensed from Lernout & Hauspie Speech Products N.V. All rights reserved.

-25309-

Top...
Search the Library
Books
Journals
Magazines
Newspapers
Encyclopedia
Advanced Search
About Questia
Questia is the world's largest online academic library offering full-text books, journals, and articles on thousands of topics.

Join Now...
Questia Books and Articles on: Kalidasa
We found: 345 results
By media type:
 

Books:

 

278  

 

Journal articles:

 

48  

 

Magazine articles:

 

10  

 

Newspaper articles:

 

1  

 

Encyclopedia articles:

 

8  
 

books on: Kalidasa  - 278 results

       More book Results: 1-10 11-20 21-30 31-40 41-50 >>  
 
1.
Arthur C. Clarke: A Critical Companion
Book by Robin Anne Reid; Greenwood Press, 1997
Subjects: Clarke, Arthur Charles--1917---Criticism And Interpretation, Fiction, Science Fiction, English--History And Criticism
...more and greater structures than anyone else: Kalidasa and Vannevar Morgan. Kalidasa and Morgan are point-of-view characters who...comment on the extent to which the projects of Kalidasa/ Morgan have become legends, showing not only...
2.
Dictionary of World Biography: The Ancient World - Vol. 1
Book by Frank N. Magill; Fitzroy Dearborn, 1998
Subjects: World History
KALIDASA Born: c. 100 B.C. or c. A.D...love within the framework of Hinduism, Kalidasa is generally regarded as Indias greatest...more in line with the spirit and style of Kalidasa. It is quite possible that Kalidasa flourished...
3.
Cyclopedia of World Authors
Book by Frank N. Magill, Dayton Kohler; Harper & Row, 1958
Subjects: Literature--Bio-Bibliography
...concerning the life of the Indian poet and dramatist Kalidasa or Kalidasa abound, but almost no facts are known about him...place of birth. A long-popular legend which made Kalidasa one of the "nine gems," or wise men, at the brilliant...
4.
A Treasury of the Theatre - Vol. 1
Book by John Gassner; Simon and Schuster, 1951
Subjects: Drama, Drama--Collections
Kalidasa 5TH CENTURY? I ndias Shakespeare is Kalidasa, who was called the "Bridegroom of Poetry," a title...Cloud Messenger , is rich in observation and delicacy. Kalidasa probably lived at the beginning of the fifth century, in...
5.
Querying the Medieval: Texts and the History of Practices in South Asia
Book by Ronald Inden, Jonathan Walters; Oxford US, 2000
Subjects: South Asia--Civilization
...scrutiny was the poet and dramatist, Kalidasa, construed as a "genius" at expressing...achievements of these great Emperors; as ever Kalidasa effects his aim not by direct means but...the imperial dynasty by his Aeneid, so Kalidasa extols the sway of the Guptas and the...
More book Results: 1-10 11-20 21-30 31-40 41-50 >>

Top...
 

journal articles on: Kalidasa  - 48 results

       More journal Results: 1-10 11-20 21-30 31-40 41-48 >>  
 
1.
Shakuntala: A Play by Kalidasa
Journal article by David Mason; Asian Theatre Journal, Vol. 24, 2007
Subjects: Shakuntala: A Play by Kalidasa (Video recording)--Video recording reviews, Video recordings--Video recording reviews
Shakuntala: A Play by Kalidasa. by David Mason SHAKUNTALA: A Play by Kalidasa. Directed by Betty Bernhard, Kailash Pandya, and Sasidharan Nair. Insight Media, 2004. DVD, $159. The latest Insight Media catalogue of non-Western drama...
2.
Die Bildersprache Kalidasas Im Kumarasambhava
Journal article by Stephanie W. Jamison; The Journal of the American Oriental Society, Vol. 124, 2004
Subjects: Books--Book reviews, Die Bildersprache Kalidasas im Kumarasambhava (Book)--Book reviews
...model, but applies it to the work of Kalidasa, not only the most famous poet Sanskrit...theoretical categories and analyses (though Kalidasa, as the earliest of the great court...from Vinod Aggarwal (The Imagery of Kalidasa, 1985). With this list in place...
3.
Theatre De l'Inde Andenne
Journal article by Stephanie W. Jamison; The Journal of the American Oriental Society, Vol. 127, 2007
...scholar not given to eulogistic hyperbole: "Avanavagupta on Kalidasa and the Theatre," JAOS 117 1997 343-46); a translation of the plays of Kalidasa: Le theatre de Kalidasa (1996); an edited collection of article: Theatres indiens...
4.
Basics of Spiritual Altruism
Journal article by Sangeetha Menon; Journal of Transpersonal Psychology, Vol. 39, 2007
...sense the monologues presented by poet Kalidasa (6th c. AD) in his masterpieces like...self to the components of nature (as in Kalidasa) or wellbeing (as in the case of Maitreyi...conversing with nature in the works of Kalidasa. It is also noteworthy that the complexity...
5.
Tagore's 'Lokashahitya': The Oral Tradition in Bengali Children's Rhymes
Journal article by Suchismita Sen; Asian Folklore Studies, Vol. 55, 1996
Subjects: Bengal--Folklore, legends, etc., Bengali poetry--Analysis, Children's poetry--Analysis, Oral tradition--Analysis, Poets--Criticism, interpretation, etc., Tagore, Rabindranath--Criticism, interpretation, etc.
...well-known literary epic or kavya by Kalidasa. It describes the voyage of a monsoon...nectar amrita in a silver cup. 20. Kalidasa, the poet who composed the Meghaduta...transport of love: The Meghaduta of Kalidasa. Berkeley: University of California...
More journal Results: 1-10 11-20 21-30 31-40 41-48 >>

Top...
 

magazine articles on: Kalidasa  - 10 results

       More magazine Results: 1-10 >>  
 
1.
India's Special K: An Actor-Based Form of Sanskrit Theatre Has Grabbed Headlines in the Indian State of Kerala-And Abroad
Magazine article by Anita Ratnam; American Theatre, Vol. 22, May-June 2005
Subjects: Indian arts--Fairs and festivals, Indian arts--Performances, Indian arts--Protection and preservation, Kerala, India--Fairs and festivals, Kerala, India--Performances
...dramatists like Asvaghosha, Bhasa, Sudraka, Kalidasa and Mahendravikramavarman, kutiyattam...seven acts of the famous Sanskrit play by Kalidasa, Abhijnana Sakuntalam (The Recognition...Language ceased to be a barrier. Because Kalidasa is the best known of all Indias ancient...
2.
Written out of History: Many of Civilisation's Crowning Glories Originated in the East. Yet You'd Be Unlikely to Learn This from Reading Western Historians. Ziauddin Sardar on the Books We Ignore
Magazine article by Ziauddin Sardar; New Statesman, Vol. 133, November 8, 2004
Subjects: Books--Book reviews, Human Accomplishment: The Pursuit of Excellence in the Arts and Sciences, 800 B.C. to 1950 (Book)--Book reviews, The Eastern Origins Of Western Civilisation (Book)--Book reviews
...and literature, names such as Shenhui, al-Mutanabbi and Kalidasa are seen as being on a par with Aristotle, Ovid and Goethe...Iqbal The Secrets of the Self Kakuichi The Tale of the Heike Kalidasa The Recognition of Sakuntala Ibn Khaldun An Introduction to...
3.
Franco Alfano: Remembered More for Turandot Than for His Own Works
Magazine article by Neil Crory; Opera Canada, Vol. 47, January 2006
Subjects: Alfano, Franco, Composers, Italy, Opera, Opera companies, Personal profiles, Puccini, Giacomo, Rome Opera
...aficionados, however, seem to agree that the composers magnum opus is Sakuntala, based on the writings of the Indian poet Kalidasa (c. 353 - 420). Originally known as La leggenda ai Sakuntala, the opera premiered in Bologna in 1921. But fate dealt...
4.
Aspects of Alfano
Magazine article by Franco Sciannameo; Musical Times, Vol. 143, Winter 2002
Subjects: Alfano, Franco, Composers, Letters, Personal profiles
...revised version, retitled Don Juan de Manara, was performed in Florence in 1941. But it was La leggenda di Sakuntala, after Kalidasa, on his own libretto, that established Alfano as a stronger presence on the international operatic scene. The opera was...
5.
The Gandhi Connection: The Mahatma Secured India's Independence Some 60 Years Ago with the Assistance of Nandalal Bose and Rabindranath Tagore
Magazine article by K.G. Subramanyan; USA Today (Society for the Advancement of Education), Vol. 136, May 2008
Subjects: Bose, Nandalal--History, Gandhi, Mahatma--History, Indian history, Religious leaders--History, Tagore, Rabindranath--History
...expressed great reservations about the well-known works of some of the established masters of Sanskrit literature, such as Kalidasa. From a distance, however, he did appear to recognize the sanctity of this centuries-old art tradition, regardless of...
More magazine Results: 1-10 >>

Top...
 

newspaper articles on: Kalidasa  - 1 result

 
 
1.
'Stairway' to the Light; Himalayan Religious Icons Shine with Spiritual Beauty
Newspaper article; The Washington Times, October 25, 2003
...200 years on "the roof of the world" - as the Himalayas, including 29,035-foot-tall Mount Everest, are called. Kalidasa (circa A.D. 400) , the greatest of Indias poets, characterized the Himalayas as " a stairway to Heaven, " writes organizing...


Top...
 

encyclopedia articles on: Kalidasa  - 8 results

       More encyclopedia Results: 1-8 >>  
 
1.
Kalidasa
Encyclopedia article; The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition, 2009
KALIDASA ka lida s , fl. 5th cent.?, Indian dramatist and poet. He is regarded...descriptions of nature are mingled with battle scenes. The other poems of Kalidasa are shorter and almost purely lyrical. Meghaduta cloud messenger is a description...
2.
Asian Drama
Encyclopedia article; The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition, 2009
...c.3d cent. a.d.) while among the most renowned were Kalidasa , Bhavabhuti (c.8th cent. a.d.), and King Harsha...to the negative aspects of the supernatural; the plays of Kalidasa convey a sense of the natural world with a fine simplicity...
3.
Shakuntala
Encyclopedia article; The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition, 2009
SHAKUNTALA see Kalidasa . ____________________ Copyright 2009 Columbia University Press. Used with the permission of Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.
4.
Tagore, Sir Rabindranath
Encyclopedia article; The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition, 2009
...speculation. Tagore drew on the classical literature of India, especially the ancient Sanskrit scriptures and the writings of Kalidasa . His prodigious output includes approximately 50 dramas, 100 books of verse (much of which he set to music), 40 volumes...
5.
Sakuntala
Encyclopedia article; The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition, 2009
SAKUNTALA see Kalidasa . ____________________ Copyright 2009 Columbia University Press. Used with the permission of Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.
More encyclopedia Results: 1-8 >>

Top...
 About Questia   ::   Privacy   ::   Contact