Megha Sandesa of Kalidasa with the Commentary Pradipa of Daksinavartanatha (An Old and Rare Book)

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About the Book Daksinavartanatha, the author of the Megha sandesapradipa is the earliest South Indian commentator of the message poem. Asa commentator and text critic he has showed the way to his successors like Mallinatha, Purnasarasvati and Paramesvara. Mallinatha, the greatest commentator of classical poems in Sanskrit has admitted that he would follow in the footsteps of the early commentator. The most noteworthy aspect of the Pradipa commentary is that the author has commented only on the genuine stanzas of Kalidasa, which according to him consists of 110 stanzas. The commentary is remarkable for its lucidity and originality.

About the Author DR. N.P. UNNI (b. 1936) has the unique distinction of being the first candidate to be awarded a Ph. D. degree in Sanskrit by the University of Kerala.

After a long teaching career he joined the University of Kerala as Curator in the reputed Oriental Research Institute and Manuscripts Library. Later he became Reader in the Department of Sanskrit and is currently Professor and Head of the Department.

Dr. Unni has more than 12 books to his credit and has contributed papers to many prominent Journals in Indology. His publi cations include: Sanskrit Dramas of Kulase khara-A Study, New Problems in Bhasa Plays and History of Mushikavamsa which incidentally earned for him a prestigious award from the University of Kerala.

Introduction The Meghasandesa of Kalidasa is often described and Justifiably too, as the lyric par excellence and it has deservedly won world-wide recognition. It is conceived by the master poet as a lyric of love as well as that of nature at the same time. And it is this that distinguishes it from the usual patterns noted generally in Sanskrit literature. "The very conception of the theme of a lover in exile sending a message of loyalty, sympathy and hope to his beloved, through a cloud, is a magnificent feat of the poetic imagination. And the fiction is maintained and elaborated in detail with masterly consistency and propriety. The first part of the poem is devoted to a description, by the Yakṣa, of the path to be pursued by the cloud in its progress from the exile to his wife in his native city of Alaka. It is a wonderful gallery of pictures of the Indian scenery and coloured by the feeling, tone and imagination of the lover in exile. The second part describes the city of Alaka, the residence of his wife, her appearance, and her reaction to the messenger and his message, all as imagined by the Yaksa. The longing of the exile for his beloved is symbolic and suggestive of human love at its purest and most intense; and the agony of separation, the hope of reunion, the comfort of reciprocation and confidence in mutual loyalty, expressed in the poem, have captivated, soothed and charmed untold generations of lovers, and lovers of poetry, in this country. The poem is bound to occupy an honoured place in the gallery of the world's masterpieces in lyric poetry".¹

**Contents and Sample Pages**