A History of Sanskrit Literature c11.s7.1

c11.s7.1

Though inferior in some slight degree to the *Kumārasambhava*, the *Raghuvañça* may rightly be ranked as the finest Indian specimen of the Mahākāvya as defined by writers on poetics. Daṇḍin⁴ lays down that the subject should be taken from old narratives or traditions, not therefore invented; the hero should be noble and clever; there should be descriptions of towns, oceans, mountains, seasons, the rising and setting of the sun and the moon, sport in parks or the sea, drinking, love-feasts, separations, marriages, the production of a son, meeting of councils, embassies, campaigns, battles, and the triumph of the hero, though his rival's merits may be exalted. It should not be too compressed, and it should be replete with sentiments (*rasa*) and the emotions which underlie them (*bhāva*). It should have effective transitions (*sandhi*), an allusion to the five stages of action recognized by the writers on drama, by which from its opening the movement advances after a halt to the central moment, pauses, and reaches the *dénouement*. The metres must be charming, and each Canto, which should not be too long, should end with a change of metre. The poem should begin with a prayer, paying homage or in addition invoking a blessing, or an indication of the subject-matter. It should promote the ends of Dharma, conduct, Artha, worldly success, Mokṣa, final release, and Kāma, love.