A History of Sanskrit Literature c11.s9.1

c11.s9.1

In Kālidāsa we have unquestionably the finest master of Indian poetic style, superior to Açvaghoṣa by the perfection and polish of his work,¹ and all but completely free from the extravagances which disfigure the later great writers of Kāvya. Daṇḍin ascribes to his favourite style, the Vaidarbha, qualities which we may fairly sum up as firmness and evenness of sound, avoiding harsh transitions and preferring gentle harmonies; the use of words in their ordinary sense and clearness of meaning; the power to convey sentiment; beauty, elevation, and the employment of metaphorical expressions. He assures longevity to a poem which, in addition to conforming to the rules for a Mahākāvya, is rich in ornaments (*alaṁkāra*), and Kālidāsa is not sparing in his use of these means of adding grace to his work. But he has the fundamental merit that he prefers suggestion to elaboration; his successors too often thought that they could only prove their capacity by showing all of what it was capable; he was content to produce a definite effect, and to leave well alone; his was the golden mean of Virgil between rustic simplicity and clumsiness and that over-refinement which is specially fatal.² Thus it results that his miniature-painting in its polished elegance often attains relative perfection.