Saṃskṛta-nāṭaka - Kālidāsa - Abhijñāna-śākuntalam (Part 6)

From the discussion carried out so far, I hope the reader does not come to the conclusion that Kālidāsa is conservative or is always other-worldly in his thoughts; he lays emphasis on family life, especially in children, as evident from his literary works; he always professes dharma to be practised at all levels; one must do it with dedication and through the proper process; all such activities are dependent on the availability of resources, especially on money; if we are dedicated and follow the right set of procedures, resources will naturally follow (7.29). “Humans are fond of celebration” (6, Sānumatī). However, neither joys nor sorrows are permanent; the rising and setting of the Sun and the Moon is a visible example – even such divine and heavenly bodies undergo ups and downs (4.2). Thus, we must take both happiness and sadness in our stride, without losing calm – this appears to be Kālidāsa’s motto of life, which he has arrived at, after deep contemplation; this, in fact, is also entirely Bhāsa’s perception of life; Kālidāsa, however, does not belittle material enjoyment; we can infer this from his gentle criticism of dry conservatism, strict adherence to caste, creed, and sects; he is soft and careful in laying bare his analysis; he does so with extreme caution.[1]

These feelings of the poet, especially those connected with socio-cultural aspects of Indian life, can be observed in greater detail and proportion in his poetic works than in his plays; it is also natural that in the analysis of a poetic work, one pays more attention to alaṅkāras, descriptions[2], chandas, etc. Let us spare some effort to examine the varieties of metrical patterns, i.e., chandas the poet employs. Starting from the plays penned by playwrights such as Aśvaghoṣa, we find plays filled with various long and short metrical patterns; however, we must hasten to add that no one has employed chandas with as much attention to propriety as Kālidāsa. For instance, examine the verse, na khalu na khalu … (1.10) – it is set to the Mālinī meter; the six short syllables with which the line begins suggests the urgency and anxiety of the speaker; it is apt for the description of an instance of sudden interruption and abrupt stopping of an activity. The verse kva vayaṃ kva parokṣa-manmatho (3.18) set to the Vaitālīya meter elegantly captures the manner in which the vidūṣaka can be perplexed by the speaker. The famous verse in Śārdūla-vikrīḍitam, ‘pātuṃ na prathamaṃ….’ (4.9) is filled with syllables that are long and ‘heavy’ (gurus); such syllables aptly capture the sage Kaṇva’s heavy and sorrowful heart; the composition of the verse is such that there is melancholy embedded in every syllable – it cannot be recited at high speeds; syllables need to be naturally stressed and elongated, adding to the fatherly affection and pain of separation. The verse that follows is set to aparavaktrā, ‘anumata-gamanā śakuntalā…’ and beautifully embodies the excitement that Kaṇva feels when he sees that flora and fauna around has permitted Śakuntalā’s going; the sweet call of a cuckoo indicates the ‘permission’ accorded by the vana-devatās; even if we try to recite this slowly, the verse will invariably embody some amount of concern and care. An even more interesting verse is Kaṇva’s blessings to his foster daughter; he says, ‘amī vediṃ…’ that is set to ṛk-chandas, a variety of triṣṭubh; this verse is sufficient to create the atmosphere of a ṛṣi’s āśrama and brings to mind vedic scholars. The ṛk-chandas does not appear to have been used in the composition of any other play.

It would only be appropriate to conclude our analysis of Kālidāsa’s plays with the advice provided by Sage Kaṇva to his daughter Śakuntalā before she heads to her husband’s place. Amongst other things, the poet has captured the qualities of an ideal Indian gṛhiṇī – married woman in his play. The verse may appear quite overused because every other poet and playwright has borrowed ideas from this verse whenever he needs to describe a gṛhiṇī. The imitations of this verse by later-day poets only reveal its importance. The verse goes as follows –

śuśrūṣasva gurūn kuru priya-sakhī-vṛttiṃ sapatnī-jane

bharturviprakṛtāpi roṣaṇatayā mā sma pratīpaṃ gamaḥ|

bhūyiṣṭhaṃ bhava dakṣiṇā parijane bhāgyeṣvanutsekinī

yāntyevaṃ gṛhiṇī-padaṃ yuvatayaḥ vāmāḥ kulasyādhayaḥ|| 4.18

Though Kaṇva lived in the forest, he was worldly wise; is there anything that the wise ones cannot perceive? dhīmatāṃ kaścid-aviṣayo nāma!

To be continued ...
The current series of articles is an enlarged adaption of Prof. A. R. Krishnasastri's Kannada treatise Saṃskṛta-nāṭaka. They are presented along with additional information and footnotes by Arjun Bharadwaj.