A History of Sanskrit Literature c16.s2.64

c16.s2.64

Of Çaraṇa, Jayadeva tells us that he was worthy of praise for his skill in producing extempore poetry which was hard to understand (*durūhadruta*),¹ a term which will appear as the compliment it was meant to be, if we remember that Sanskrit poets were equally proud of their ability to compose on a given theme, taking as given a verse or part of it, and of the fact that their works were highly finished products which required for due comprehension and appreciation full knowledge of metre, poetics, lexicography, and grammar. The epithet is borne out by the verses we have, for they are frequently undeniable imitations of others, as in the following elaboration of a simple stanza ascribed to Amaru: