Literature

Volume Five (1949–1952) [1]

Trivikramasena carried the dead body on his shoulder for a fourth time. The vetāla started narrating another story.

The first relates to the word sampṛktau. The poet has preferred the rather rare word sampṛkti to the more common saṃyukti. Let us understand the nuances of these words. Sampṛkti is derived from the verbal root ‘pṛcī–samparke.’ It means union, mutuality and parity. On the other hand, the word saṃyukti simply means a merger or combination. The first evokes a feeling of compatibility and complementariness. The second does not.

Trivikramasena, for the third time, took the dead body, placed it on his shoulders and set out. The vetāla started narrating another story:-

This is a short list of poetic works in Sanskrit. Most of the works included here are well known to our literary tradition. This list is divided into two parts: The first part keeps in mind a lover of Sanskrit poetry who might not actively compose verses in the language. The second part comprises works that a budding Sanskrit poet who is serious about his passion ought to read. Needless, the first part is a must-read for budding poets as well.

The Purāṇas occupy a high rank amongst India’s literary contribution to the world. In addition to being written lore of the highest magnitude, the Purāṇas have also remained in the oral tradition, percolating to the grassroots.

After listening to these words, Padmāvatī thought for a while and said “It wasn’t right of you to tell me only now about your friend. I consider him now as my elder brother. So, mustn’t I receive him with due honours?”

Language is perhaps the best mode of communication available to humans. Literature—poetry in particular—is the acme of language. There are several ancient classical languages, but Sanskrit is the only one with an unbroken tradition of thousands of years. It has produced numerous poetic works of an astounding variety.

Mṛgāṅkadatta spent the night there and left for Ujjayini the following morning. On his way, he saw a terrible-looking person carrying away his minister Vikramakesarin in the skies. Looking at Mṛgāṅkadatta, he stopped at the point and let the minister down. Vikramakesarin prostrated at the king’s feet. They embraced each other. Then he told the man who had brought him, “You may reappear when I think of you. Now carry on!” before sending him away.

Bhavabhūti valued love and friendship deeply. His expression assumes a rare depth and force while describing human affection. In Mālatī-mādhava, he has pictured the unfolding of various shades of love: infatuation, the yearning and ‘sweet agony’ that follows, the physical and mental turmoil that unrequited love brings, the inexplicable thrill of union, romance, amorous escapades, and so on. Friendship finds a mirror to see itself in Mādhava and Makaranda. Kāmandakī and her disciples go out of their way to assist young lovers.