According to Jane, this is a "brief poem that holds the intention of my whole life and that of my poems. "  Here is Jane singing the song of acceptance, practicing to choosing to make the unwanted wanted.



A Cedary FragranceEven now,
decades after,
I wash my face with cold water –

Not for discipline,
nor memory,
nor the icy, awakening slap,

but to practice
choosing
to make the unwanted wanted.


by Jane Hirshfield, from Given Sugar, Given Salt, 2001 Here is Jane reading this poem. Start at around 2:00 -

Balance
- Jane Hirschfield

Balance is noticed most when almost failed of -
in an elephant's delicate wavering
on her circus stool, for instance,
or that moment
when a ladder starts to tip but steadies back.
There are, too, its mysterious departures.
Hours after the dishes are washed and stacked,
a metal bowl clangs to the floor,
the weight of drying water all that altered;
a painting vertical for years
one morning - why? - requires a restoring tap.
You have felt it disappearing
from your own capricious heart -
a restlessness enters, the smallest leaning begins.
Already then inevitable,
the full collision,
the life you will describe afterward always as "after"

God's Garden by Robert Frost

Thoughts on God’s Garden 

In a Disused Graveyard

Once the goddess Parvati wanted to become beautiful, more beautiful, most beautiful. She was already quite beautiful, but her present beauty did not satisfy her. She wanted to become beautynon pareil.

Parvati knew that this kind of beauty could be acquired only by virtue of intense prayer and meditation. She decided to leave her husband, Shiva, and go into seclusion so that she could practise spiritual disciplines without interruption.

Before leaving, she asked Nandi not to allow any woman who looked like her to enter Lord Shiva’s place. She said, “Many times my Lord has been deceived by women who take my form and try to approach him. You have to be absolutely sure that it is I who have returned, and nobody else. Otherwise, I am sure that in my absence some women will try to fool you.”

After issuing her strict instructions, Parvati withdrew into the forest for an indefinite length of time. 

All her jewellery and lovely garments she left behind so that she could give her full attention to prayer and meditation.

A few months later, an asura or demon, who happened to pass by Shiva’s place, noticed the gigantic gates outside it. The demon asked one of the guards, “Whose place is this?”

“It is Lord Shiva’s place,” the guard replied.

“I would like to be admitted,” said the demon haughtily.

“It is absolutely forbidden,” said the guard. “I have received special instructions from Parvati and nobody may be admitted.”

Kumarsambhava -- the epic poem of Kalidas.  On this page, first there is a synopsis of Kumarsambhava.  Following is the translation of this Epic poem of Kalidas, which starts with the birth of Parvati.  In the end there is the original sanskrit version of Kumarsambhava.

I had been doing some research on Gauri, and so I thought of reading some of the original text.  I am lucky to have studies Sanskrit in high school for 4 years so I can understand some of this in the original language.  Here it is in one place for future researchers.

SYNOPSIS OF KUMARSAMBHAVA

One of Kalidasa's greatest works is 'Kumarasambhava'. Critics maintain that Kalidasa wrote only the first eight chapters of the epic poem. The work describes the marriage of Lord Shiva and his consort Parvati. It begins with a fine description of that giant among mountains, the Himalaya. Kalidasa writes: "Himalaya is rich in life. Living there are the Siddhas. Kinnaras and Vidyadhara beauties. Clouds in front of the caves look like curtains. You can trace the track of lions' by looking at the precious stones spilled from the heads of elephants and not by bloodstains. You have to know the paths they tread by recognizing 'Sarala' trees against whose stem the elephants rub themselves attracted by the sweet milk exuded by the trees. All the things needed for a sacrifice ('Yajna') are available here. Brahma (the God of creation) himself has made this the king of the mountains." It is not only a place for lovers who want to find happiness in life; it is also an ideal retreat for those who want to meditate.

Parvati is the daughter of Parvataraja, the King of the Himalayas. In course of time she blossomed into a girl of matchless beauty. She was very good-looking, like a fine portrait drawn by a master-painter. Women wear jewelry with a feeling that their beauty is enhanced by it. But the neck of Parvati appeared to enhance the beauty of the necklace itself. Parvati's speech was sweet as the playing of the Veena. And her bearing reminded one of a deer.

Narada, a great sage in our epics, is a wandering minstrel. He once came to the court of Parvataraja, and predicted that the king's daughter would marry Lord Shiva. But Parvataraja was doubtful whether Lord Shiva would accept the bride. Neither he
volunteered to ask Shiva nor did the latter came forward to ask for the hand of Parvati. Shiva was in penance atop one of the biggest mountains in the Himalayas. Parvataraja sent his daughter to serve the Lord who acquiesced to have her near him. Parvati served him with utmost, pure hearted devotion; she would daily cleanse his place of penance, and keep ready the articles of 'Tapas' like pure water, leaves of grass, flowers, etc.

While Shiva sat thus in penance, a 'Rakshasa' named Tarakasura began to trouble the Devas. They, in panic, went to Lord Brahma, the creator of the universe, and sought salvation. He told them that Parvati had. To marry Lord Shiva and that the son born out of their wedlock would be able to defeat demon Taraka. But then, how to make Lord Shiva, in deep penance to awake physically and consent to marry Parvati?

Devendra is the king of the Devas. One of the Gods at his court was Kama (Manmatha) whose wife was the beautiful Rati. Kama had the capacity to make any one desire to marry.Devendracommanded him to see that Lord Shiva would develop a wish to marry Parvati. Kama, Rati and their friend Vasanta (Lord of spring) set about the task.

Though it was not the season, Kama created all the glory and beauty of the spring. Mild, pleasant breeze began to blow from the south. Flowers were sprinkling down from 'Ashoka' trees. Birds and the bees began to savor the fresh flower of the young mango leaves.

But all this would not deter Lord Shiva from his penance. Kama went there. Shiva was
doing his penance sitting on a tiger-skin under a Devadaru tree. Kama was overwhelmed on seeing the exquisite grace of Lord and the cupid's bow and arrow fell down without his being aware of it. At this time, Parvati arrived on the scence to attend to her daily chores of service to the Lord. She wore a saree colored like the bright red rays of the Sun. Nice spring flowers adorned her plait. A diamond chain shone on her forehead. Her gait was like that of a delicate flower- creeper.

This great beauty of Parvati inspired Kama, who hitherto was somewhat, dejected, again to strive to fulfil his task. Parvati raised her hands to offer her garland of lotus flowers to Shiva who also eagerly came out of his penance to accept the offering. Kama was waiting for such a moment and exercised his 'sword of love'. Shiva eyed Parvati once and immediately realised that he had been weaned away. From his penance. How could this happen?

Kama, Cupid, was ready with his and arrow for action.

Lord Shiva was angry and opened his Third Eye. A great fire flowed forth. Kama was burnt to ashes and Shiva then disappeared. Rati, seeing her husband destroyed collapsed unconscious. Parvati's father sorrowfully took her to his home.

Regaining consciousness after some time, Rati lamented that she too would end her life. Then a voice from the sky told her that Kama would come back to life when Lord Shiva married Parvati.

Meanwhile,Parvati sat for a highly strenuous penance. She would setup a huge fire around her and standing amidst the fire in blazing Sun would stare at the Sun God. She would sit unmoved in pouring rain and biting cold and winds. To test this damsel engaged in such severe penace,

Lord Shiva himself appeared before her in the guise of a 'Brahmacharf (a young lad who had his 'Upanayana' or sacred thread ceremony) and began to pour abuse on Shiva thus; "Why do you wish to accept the hand of one whose bracelet is a snake? Why do you, a damsel in glorious silk, seek unison with one wearing an elephant-skin? Don't people laugh to see you driving around with Him sitting on an old, emaciated ox? Add to his grotesqueness his three eyes! Why did you? Have to choose such a groom?"

Not knowing that the lad was Shiva in disguise, Parvati naturally was angry with him for abusing Shiva. She asked her aide to' send the boy away and she herself rose to leave the place. Shiva then appeared to her in his true form. Parvati on seeing his divine form was overwhelmed. She stood glued to the ground not knowing what to do. The poet's description of this scene is extraordinarily beautiful.

Parvati sent word through her maid to Shiva to ask him to talk to her father about their marriage. Shiva thereupon sent a message to him through the seven great Sages. The king of the Himalayas gladly agreed. The marriage took place in a grand style.

The part authored by Kalidasa in 'Kumarasambhava' ends here. The remaining episodes such as the birth of the son Kumara to Shiva and Parvati, his becoming the Commander of the Devas' forces and the slaying of the demon Tarakasura are written by another poet.

Kalidasa's works are known for their triple qualities -- a sense of beauty, a capacity for appreciation of the aesthetic values and our traditional culture. Kalidasa's portrayals of the great Himalayan mountain and of the mode in which the season of spring (vasanta') blossomed are some of the most lyrical expressions in the language. His descriptions are vivid and heart-warming; it is as if we are seeing the events happening before us. Kalidasa's portrayal of Parvati's grace and beauty magnificently shows his ability as a poet. Rati's lament upon Kama being consigned to flames moves us to tears. Kalidasa is equally at ease in portraying the happy marital life of Shiva and Parvati as a couple   deeply in love as also of picturing the grace and beauty of both nature and man,   Feelings of joy and sorrow and all other emotions.
Crowning all these pen-pictures of things that are beautiful and sweet in life is Kalidasa's extolling of a noble culture. What does 'culture' mean? It is a sense of decent behavior - in body and mind;  it is the blossoming of the mind and heart to savor the rich and colorful beauty around us -- such as the color and fragrance of flowers which gladden the hearts of one and all. The thought, word and action of a man's mature mind give happiness to others. Besides describing these in a masterly style and imagination, Kalidasa also exhibits his powers of perception while recognizing what we can call as 'beauty in action and behavior'.  Episodes such as the Parvataraja's not going by himself to see Shiva even when sage Narada tells him that Parvati was to marry Shiva, his agreeing for Parvati's desire to go to serve Shiva, her sitting for penance, his acceptance of Shiva's offer, sent through the seven Sages, to marry Parvati -- all these enable us to weave in our minds his personality shining with full grace and honor. Parvati allows no distraction of her mind and engages herself with singular devotion; she sits for a strenuous penance to make Shiva accept her and would not tolerate anyone abusing Him. All these show the high culture in which she is molded. Though stirred a bit on noticing the beauty of Parvati, Shiva, in his anger at being disturbed in his penance, burns down Kama, puts Parvati's mind and thoughts to test, sends the seven Great Sages to Parvataraja -- thus exhibiting his maturity ofmind. In fact, Shiva was not enamoured  by the physical beauty of Parvati and only destroyed Kama who attempted to make him desire her physically. Actually he admired her several fine, noble qualities and her devout penance. Both he and Parvati were performing penance and leading a life of sacrifice -- i.e., 'tapasya'. Both were embodiments of purity. Born to them was Kumara. His parents' penance fortified him with strength to destroy the demon Taraka.
Kalidasa's poem gives us a vivid picture of what a good, meaningful life a man could and should lead as propounded by our learned ancestors.

THE BIRTH OF THE WAR-GOD

The Birth of the War-god is an epic poem in seventeen cantos. It consists of 1096 stanzas, or about 4400 lines of verse. The subject is the marriage of the god Shiva, the birth of his son, and the victory of this son over a powerful demon. The story was not invented by Kalidasa, but taken from old mythology. Yet it had never been told in so masterly a fashion as had been the story of Rama's deeds by Valmiki. Kalidasa is therefore under less constraint in writing this epic than in writing The Dynasty of Raghu. I give first a somewhat detailed analysis of the matter of the poem.

First canto. The birth of Parvati.--The poem begins with a description of the great Himalaya mountain-range.



God of the distant north, the Snowy Range
  O’er other mountains towers imperially;
Earth's measuring-rod, being great and free from change,
  Sinks to the eastern and the western sea.
Whose countless wealth of natural gems is not
  Too deeply blemished by the cruel snow;
One fault for many virtues is forgot,
  The moon's one stain for beams that endless flow.
Where demigods enjoy the shade of clouds
  Girding his lower crests, but often seek,
When startled by the sudden rain that shrouds
  His waist, some loftier, ever sunlit peak.
Where bark of birch-trees makes, when torn in strips
  And streaked with mountain minerals that blend
To written words ’neath dainty finger-tips,
  Such dear love-letters as the fairies send. p. 158
Whose organ-pipes are stems of bamboo, which
  Are filled from cavern-winds that know no rest,
As if the mountain strove to set the pitch
  For songs that angels sing upon his crest.
Where magic herbs that glitter in the night
  Are lamps that need no oil within them, when
They fill cave-dwellings with their shimmering light
  And shine upon the loves of mountain men.
Who offers roof and refuge in his caves
  To timid darkness shrinking from the day;
A lofty soul is generous; he saves
  Such honest cowards as for protection pray.
Who brings to birth the plants of sacrifice;
  Who steadies earth, so strong is he and broad.
The great Creator, for this service' price,
  Made him the king of mountains, and a god.
[paragraph continues] Himalaya marries a wife, to whom in course of time a daughter is born, as wealth is born when ambition pairs with character. The child is named Parvati, that is, daughter of the mountain. Her father takes infinite delight in her, as well he may; for



She brought him purity and beauty too,
  As white flames to the lamp that burns at night;
Or Ganges to the path whereby the true
  Reach heaven; or judgment to the erudite.
She passes through a happy childhood of sand-piles, balls, dolls, and little girl friends, when all at once young womanhood comes upon her.



As pictures waken to the painter's brush,
  Or lilies open to the morning sun,
Her perfect beauty answered to the flush
  Of womanhood when childish days were done. p. 159
Suppose a blossom on a leafy spray;
  Suppose a pearl on spotless coral laid:
Such was the smile, pure, radiantly gay,
  That round her red, red lips for ever played.
And when she spoke, the music of her tale
  Was sweet, the music of her voice to suit,
Till listeners felt as if the nightingale
  Had grown discordant like a jangled lute.
[paragraph continues] It is predicted by a heavenly being that she will one day become the wife of the god Shiva. This prediction awakens her father's pride, and also his impatience, since Shiva makes no advances. For the destined bridegroom is at this time leading a life of stern austerity and self-denial upon a mountain peak. Himalaya therefore bids his daughter wait upon Shiva. She does so, but without being able to divert him from his austerities.

Second canto. Brahma's self-revelation.--At this time, the gods betake themselves to Brahma, the Creator, and sing a hymn of praise, a part of which is given here.



Before creation, thou art one;
Three, when creation's work is done:
All praise and honour unto thee
In this thy mystic trinity.
Three various forms and functions three
Proclaim thy living majesty;
Thou dost create, and then maintain,
And last, destroyest all again.
Thy slow recurrent day and night
Bring death to all, or living light.
We live beneath thy waking eye;
Thou sleepest, and thy creatures die.
Solid and fluid, great and small,
And light and heavy--Thou art all;
Matter and form are both in thee:
Thy powers are past discovery. p. 160
Thou art the objects that unroll
Their drama for the passive soul;
Thou art the soul that views the play
Indifferently, day by day.
Thou art the knower and the known;
Eater and food art thou alone;
The priest and his oblation fair;
The prayerful suppliant and the prayer.
[paragraph continues] Brahma receives their worship graciously, and asks the reason of their coming. The spokesman of the gods explains to Brahma how a great demon named Taraka is troubling the world, and how helpless they are in opposing him. They have tried the most extravagant propitiation, and found it useless.



The sun in heaven dare not glow
With undiminished heat, but so
As that the lilies may awake
Which blossom in his pleasure-lake.
The wind blows gently as it can
To serve him as a soothing fan,
And dare not manifest its power,
Lest it should steal a garden flower.
The seasons have forgotten how
To follow one another now;
They simultaneously bring
Him flowers of autumn, summer, spring.
Such adoration makes him worse;
He troubles all the universe:
Kindness inflames a rascal's mind;
He should be recompensed in kind.
And all the means that we have tried
Against the rogue, are brushed aside,
As potent herbs have no avail
When bodily powers begin to fail. p. 161
We seek a leader, O our Lord,
To bring him to his just reward--
As saints seek evermore to win
Virtue, to end life's woe and sin--
That he may guide the heavenly host,
And guard us to the uttermost,
And from our foe lead captive back
The victory which still we lack.
[paragraph continues] Brahma answers that the demon's power comes from him, and he does not feel at liberty to proceed against it; "for it is not fitting to cut down even a poison-tree that one's own hand has planted." But he promises that a son shall be born to Shiva and Parvati, who shall lead the gods to victory. With this answer the gods are perforce content, and their king, Indra, waits upon the god of love, to secure his necessary co-operation.

Third canto. The burning of Love.--Indra waits upon Love, who asks for his commands. Indra explains the matter, and asks Love to inflame Shiva with passion for Parvati. Love thereupon sets out, accompanied by his wife Charm and his friend Spring. When they reach the mountain where Shiva dwells, Spring shows his power. The snow disappears; the trees put forth blossoms; bees, deer, and birds waken to new life. The only living being that is not influenced by the sudden change of season is Shiva, who continues his meditation, unmoved. Love himself is discouraged, until he sees the beauty of Parvati, when he takes heart again. At this moment, Shiva chances to relax his meditation, and Parvati approaches to do him homage. Love seizes the lucky moment, and prepares to shoot his bewildering arrow at Shiva. But the great god sees him, and before the arrow is discharged, darts fire from his eye, whereby Love is consumed. Charm falls in a swoon, Shiva vanishes, and the wretched Parvati is carried away by her father.

Fourth canto. The lament of Charm.--This canto is given entire.
p. 162



The wife of Love lay helpless in a swoon,
  Till wakened by a fate whose deadliest sting
Was preparation of herself full soon
  To taste the youthful widow's sorrowing.
Her opening eyes were fixed with anxious thought
  On every spot where he might be, in vain,
Were gladdened nowhere by the sight she sought,
  The lover she should never see again.
She rose and cried aloud: "Dost thou yet live,
  Lord of my life?" And at the last she found
Him whom the wrathful god could not forgive,
  Her Love, a trace of ashes on the ground.
With breaking heart, with lovely bosom stained
  By cold embrace of earth, with flying hair,
She wept and to the forest world complained,
  As if the forest in her grief might share.

"Thy beauty slew the pride that maidens cherish;
  Perfect its loveliness in every part;
I saw that beauty fade away and perish,
  Yet did not die. How hard is woman's heart!
Where art thou gone? Thy love a moment only
  Endured, and I for ever need its power;
Gone like the stream that leaves the lily lonely,
  When the dam breaks, to mourn her dying flower.
Thou never didst a thing to cause me anguish;
  I never did a thing to work thee harm;
Why should I thus in vain affliction languish?
  Why not return to bless thy grieving Charm?
Of playful chastisements art thou reminded,
  Thy flirtings punished by my girdle-strands,
Thine eyes by flying dust of blossoms blinded,
  Held for thy meet correction in these hands? p. 163
I loved to hear the name thou gav’st me often
  'Heart of my heart.' Alas! It was not true,
But lulling phrase, my coming grief to soften:
  Else in thy death, my life had ended, too.
Think not that on the journey thou hast taken
  So newly, I should fail to find thy track;
Ah, but the world! The world is quite forsaken,
  For life is love; no life, when thee they lack.
Thou gone, my love, what power can guide the maiden
  Through veils of midnight darkness in the town
To the eager heart with loving fancies laden,
  And fortify against the storm-cloud's frown?
The wine that teaches eyes their gladdest dances,
  That bids the love-word trippingly to glide,
Is now deception; for if flashing glances
  Lead not to love, they lead to naught beside.
And when he knows thy life is a remembrance,
  Thy friend the moon will feel his shining vain,
Will cease to show the world a circle's semblance,
  And even in his waxing time, will wane.
Slowly the mango-blossoms are unfolding
  On twigs where pink is struggling with the green,
Greeted by koïl-birds sweet concert holding--
  Thou dead, who makes of flowers an arrow keen?
Or weaves a string of bees with deft invention,
  To speed the missile when the bow is bent?
They buzz about me now with kind intention,
  And mortify the grief which they lament.
Arise! Assume again thy radiant beauty!
  Rebuke the koïl-bird, whom nature taught
Such sweet persuasion; she forgets her duty
  As messenger to bosoms passion-fraught. p. 164
Well I remember, Love, thy suppliant motion,
  Thy trembling, quick embrace, the moments blest
By fervent, self-surrendering devotion
  And memories like these deny me rest.
Well didst thou know thy wife; the springtime garland,
  Wrought by thy hands, O charmer of thy Charm!
Remains to bid me grieve, while in a far land
  Thy body seeks repose from earthly harm.
Thy service by the cruel gods demanded,
  Meant service to thy wife left incomplete,
My bare feet with coquettish streakings banded--
  Return to end the adorning of my feet.
No, straight to thee I fly, my body given,
  A headlong moth, to quick-consuming fire,
Or e’er my cunning rivals, nymphs in heaven,
  Awake in thee an answering desire.
Yet, dearest, even this short delay is fated
  For evermore a deep reproach to prove,
A stain that may not be obliterated,
  If Charm has lived one moment far from Love.
And how can I perform the last adorning
  Of thy poor body, as befits a wife?
So strangely on the path that leaves me mourning
  Thy body followed still the spirit's life.
I see thee straighten out thy blossom-arrow,
  The bow slung careless on thy breast the while,
Thine eyes in mirthful, sidelong glance grow narrow,
  Thy conference with friendly Spring, thy smile.
But where is Spring? Dear friend, whose art could fashion
  The flowery arrow for thee? Has the wrath
Of dreadful Shiva, in excess of passion,
  Bade him, too, follow on that fatal path?"
Heart-smitten by the accents of her grief
  Like poisoned darts, soothing her fond alarm,
Incarnate Spring appeared, to bring relief
  As friendship can, to sore-lamenting Charm.
And at the sight of him, she wept the more,
  And often clutched her throat, and beat her breast;
For lamentation finds an open door
  In the presence of the friends we love the best.

Stifling, she cried: "Behold the mournful matter!
  In place of him thou seekest, what is found?
A something that the winds of heaven scatter,
  A trace of dove-grey ashes on the ground.
Arise, O Love! For Spring knows no estranging,
  Thy friend in lucky hap and evil lot;
Man's love for wife is ever doubtful, changing;
  Man's love for man abides and changes not.
With such a friend, thy dart, on dainty pinion
  Of blossoms, shot from lotus-fibre string,
Reduced men, giants, gods to thy dominion--
  The triple world has felt that arrow sting.
But Love is gone, far gone beyond returning,
  A candle snuffed by wandering breezes vain;
And see! I am his wick, with Love once burning,
  Now blackened by the smoke of nameless pain.
In slaying Love, fate wrought but half a slaughter,
  For I am left. And yet the clinging vine
Must fall, when falls the sturdy tree that taught her
  Round him in loving tenderness to twine.
So then, fulfil for me the final mission
  Of him who undertakes a kinsman's part;
Commit me to the flames (my last petition)
  And speed the widow to her husband's heart. p. 166
The moonlight wanders not, the moon forsaking;
  Where sails the cloud, the lightning is not far;
Wife follows mate, is law of nature's making,
  Yes, even among such things as lifeless are.
My breast is stained; I lay among the ashes
  Of him I loved with all a woman's powers;
Now let me lie where death-fire flames and flashes,
  As glad as on a bed of budding flowers.
Sweet Spring, thou camest oft where we lay sleeping
  On blossoms, I and he whose life is sped;
Unto the end thy friendly office keeping,
  Prepare for me the last, the fiery bed.
And fan the flame to which I am committed
  With southern winds; I would no longer stay;
Thou knowest well how slow the moments flitted
  For Love, my love, when I was far away.
And sprinkle some few drops of water, given
  In friendship, on his ashes and on me;
That Love and I may quench our thirst in heaven
  As once on earth, in heavenly unity.
And sometimes seek the grave where Love is lying;
  Pause there a moment, gentle Spring, and shower
Sweet mango-clusters to the winds replying;
  For he thou lovedst, loved the mango-flower."

As Charm prepared to end her mortal pain
  In fire, she heard a voice from heaven cry,
That showed her mercy, as the early rain
  Shows mercy to the fish, when lakes go dry:
"O wife of Love! Thy lover is not lost
  For evermore. This voice shall tell thee why
He perished like the moth, when he had crossed
  The dreadful god, in fire from Shiva's eye. p. 167
When darts of Love set Brahma in a flame,
  To shame his daughter with impure desire,
He checked the horrid sin without a name,
  And cursed the god of love to die by fire.
But Virtue interceded in behalf
  Of Love, and won a softening of the doom:
'Upon the day when Shiva's heart shall laugh
  In wedding joy, for mercy finding room,
He shall unite Love's body with the soul,
  A marriage-present to his mountain bride.'
As clouds hold fire and water in control,
  Gods are the fount of wrath, and grace beside.
So, gentle Charm, preserve thy body sweet
  For dear reunion after present pain;
The stream that dwindles in the summer heat,
  Is reunited with the autumn rain."
Invisibly and thus mysteriously
  The thoughts of Charm were turned away from death;
And Spring, believing where he might not see,
  Comforted her with words of sweetest breath.
The wife of Love awaited thus the day,
  Though racked by grief, when fate should show its power,
As the waning moon laments her darkened ray
  And waits impatient for the twilight hour.

Fifth canto. The reward of self-denial.--Parvati reproaches her own beauty, for "loveliness is fruitless if it does not bind a lover." She therefore resolves to lead a life of religious self-denial, hoping that the merit thus acquired will procure her Shiva's love. Her mother tries in vain to dissuade her; her father directs her to a fit mountain peak, and she retires to her devotions. She lays aside all ornaments, lets her hair hang unkempt, and assumes the hermit's dress of bark. While she is spending her days in self-denial, she is visited by a Brahman youth, who compliments her highly upon her rigid devotion, and declares that her conduct proves the
p. 168
truth of the proverb: Beauty can do no wrong. Yet he confesses himself bewildered, for she seems to have everything that heart can desire. He therefore asks her purpose in performing these austerities, and is told how her desires are fixed upon the highest of all objects, upon the god Shiva himself, and how, since Love is dead, she sees no way to win him except by ascetic religion. The youth tries to dissuade Parvati by recounting all the dreadful legends that are current about Shiva: how he wears a coiling snake on his wrist, a bloody elephant-hide upon his back, how he dwells in a graveyard, how he rides upon an undignified bull, how poor he is and of unknown birth. Parvati's anger is awakened by this recital. She frowns and her lip quivers as she defends herself and the object of her love.



Shiva, she said, is far beyond the thought
  Of such as you: then speak no more to me.
Dull crawlers hate the splendid wonders wrought
  By lofty souls untouched by rivalry.
They search for wealth, whom dreaded evil nears,
  Or they who fain would rise a little higher;
The world's sole refuge neither hopes nor fears
  Nor seeks the objects of a small desire.
Yes, he is poor, yet he is riches' source;
  This graveyard-haunter rules the world alone;
Dreadful is he, yet all beneficent force:
  Think you his inmost nature can be known?
All forms are his; and he may take or leave
  At will, the snake, or gem with lustre white;
The bloody skin, or silk of softest weave;
  Dead skulls, or moonbeams radiantly bright.
For poverty he rides upon a bull,
  While Indra, king of heaven, elephant-borne,
Bows low to strew his feet with beautiful,
  Unfading blossoms in his chaplet worn.
Yet in the slander spoken in pure hate
  One thing you uttered worthy of his worth: p. 169
How could the author of the uncreate
  Be born? How could we understand his birth?
Enough of this! Though every word that you
  Have said, be faithful, yet would Shiva please
My eager heart all made of passion true
  For him alone. Love sees no blemishes.
[paragraph continues] In response to this eloquence, the youth throws off his disguise, appearing as the god Shiva himself, and declares his love for her. Parvati immediately discontinues her religious asceticism; for "successful effort regenerates."

Sixth canto. Parvati is given in marriage.--While Parvati departs to inform her father of what has happened, Shiva summons the seven sages, who are to make the formal proposal of marriage to the bride's parents. The seven sages appear, flying through the air, and with them Arundhati, the heavenly model of wifely faith and devotion. On seeing her, Shiva feels his eagerness for marriage increase, realising that



All actions of a holy life
Are rooted in a virtuous wife.
[paragraph continues] Shiva then explains his purpose, and sends the seven sages to make the formal request for Parvati's hand. The seven sages fly to the brilliant city of Himalaya, where they are received by the mountain god. After a rather portentous interchange of compliments, the seven sages announce their errand, requesting Parvati's hand in behalf of Shiva. The father joyfully assents, and it is agreed that the marriage shall be celebrated after three days. These three days are spent by Shiva in impatient longing.

Seventh canto. Parvati's wedding.--The three days are spent in preparations for the wedding. So great is Parvati's unadorned beauty that the waiting-women can hardly take their eyes from her to inspect the wedding-dress. But the preparations are complete at last; and the bride is beautiful indeed.
p. 170



As when the flowers are budding on a vine,
  Or white swans rest upon a river's shore,
Or when at night the stars in heaven shine,
  Her lovely beauty grew with gems she wore.
When wide-eyed glances gave her back the same
  Bright beauty--and the mirror never lies--
She waited with impatience till he came:
  For women dress to please their lovers' eyes.
[paragraph continues] Meanwhile Shiva finishes his preparations, and sets out on his wedding journey, accompanied by Brahma, Vishnu, and lesser gods. At his journey's end, he is received by his bride's father, and led through streets ankle-deep in flowers, where the windows are filled with the faces of eager and excited women, who gossip together thus:



For his sake it was well that Parvati
  Should mortify her body delicate;
Thrice happy might his serving-woman be,
  And infinitely blest his bosom's mate.
[paragraph continues] Shiva and his retinue then enter the palace, where he is received with bashful love by Parvati, and the wedding is celebrated with due pomp. The nymphs of heaven entertain the company with a play, and Shiva restores the body of Love.
Eighth canto. The honeymoon.--The first month of marital bliss is spent in Himalaya's palace. After this the happy pair wander for a time among the famous mountain-peaks. One of these they reach at sunset, and Shiva describes the evening glow to his bride. A few stanzas are given here.



See, my belovèd, how the sun
  With beams that o’er the water shake
From western skies has now begun
  A bridge of gold across the lake.
Upon the very tree-tops sway
  The peacocks; even yet they hold p. 171
And drink the dying light of day,
  Until their fans are molten gold.
The water-lily closes, but
  With wonderful reluctancy;
As if it troubled her to shut
  Her door of welcome to the bee.
The steeds that draw the sun's bright car,
  With bended neck and falling plume
And drooping mane, are seen afar
  To bury day in ocean's gloom.
The sun is down, and heaven sleeps:
  Thus every path of glory ends;
As high as are the scalèd steeps,
  The downward way as low descends.
[paragraph continues] Shiva then retires for meditation. On his return, he finds that his bride is peevish at being left alone even for a little time, and to soothe her, he describes the night which is now advancing. A few stanzas of this description run as follows.



The twilight glow is fading far
  And stains the west with blood-red light,
As when a reeking scimitar
  Slants upward on a field of fight.
And vision fails above, below,
  Around, before us, at our back;
The womb of night envelops slow
  The world with darkness vast and black.
Mute while the world is dazed with light,
  The smiling moon begins to rise
And, being teased by eager night,
  Betrays the secrets of the skies.
Moon-fingers move the black, black hair
  Of night into its proper place,
Who shuts her eyes, the lilies fair,
  As he sets kisses on her face.
p. 172
[paragraph continues] Shiva and Parvati then drink wine brought them by the guardian goddess of the grove, and in this lovely spot they dwell happily for many years.

Ninth canto. The journey to Mount Kailasa.--One day the god of fire appears as a messenger from the gods before Shiva, to remonstrate with him for not begetting the son upon whom heaven's welfare depends. Shiva deposits his seed in Fire, who departs, bent low with the burden. Shortly afterwards the gods wait upon Shiva and Parvati, who journey with them to Mount Kailasa, the splendid dwelling-place of the god of wealth. Here also Shiva and Parvati spend happy days.

Tenth canto. The birth of Kumara.--To Indra, king of the gods, Fire betakes himself, tells his story, and begs to be relieved of his burden. Indra advises him to deposit it in the Ganges. Fire therefore travels to the Ganges, leaves Shiva's seed in the river, and departs much relieved. But now it is the turn of Ganges to be distressed, until at dawn the six Pleiades come to bathe in the river. They find Shiva's seed and lay it in a nest of reeds, where it becomes a child, Kumara, the future god of war.

Eleventh canto. The birth of Kumara, continued.--Ganges suckles the beautiful infant. But there arises a dispute for the possession of the child between Fire, Ganges, and the Pleiades. At this point Shiva and Parvati arrive, and Parvati, wondering at the beauty of the infant and at the strange quarrel, asks Shiva to whom the child belongs. When Shiva tells her that Kumara is their own child, her joy is unbounded.



Because her eyes with happy tears were dim,
  ’Twas but by snatches that she saw the boy;
Yet, with her blossom-hand caressing him,
  She felt a strange, an unimagined joy.
The vision of the infant made her seem
  A flower unfolding in mysterious bliss; p. 173
Or, billowy with her joyful tears, a stream;
  Or pure affection, perfect in a kiss.
[paragraph continues] Shiva conducts Parvati and the boy back to Mount Kailasa, where gods and fairies welcome them with music and dancing. Here the divine child spends the days of a happy infancy, not very different from human infancy; for he learns to walk, gets dirty in the courtyard, laughs a good deal, pulls the scanty hair of an old servant, and learns to count: "One, nine, two, ten, five, seven." These evidences of healthy development cause Shiva and Parvati the most exquisite joy.

Twelfth canto. Kumara is made general.--Indra, with the other gods, waits upon Shiva, to ask that Kumara, now a youth, may be lent to them as their leader in the campaign against Taraka. The gods are graciously received by Shiva, who asks their errand. Indra prefers their request, where- upon Shiva bids his son assume command of the gods, and slay Taraka. Great is the joy of Kumara himself, of his mother Parvati, and of Indra.

Thirteenth canto. Kumara is consecrated general.--Kumara takes an affectionate farewell of his parents, and sets out with the gods. When they come to Indra's paradise, the gods are afraid to enter, lest they find their enemy there. There is an amusing scene in which each courteously invites the others to precede him, until Kumara ends their embarrassment by leading the way. Here for the first time Kumara sees with deep respect the heavenly Ganges, Indra's garden and palace, and the heavenly city. But he becomes red- eyed with anger on beholding the devastation wrought by Taraka.



He saw departed glory, saw the state
  Neglected, ruined, sad, of Indra's city,
As of a woman with a cowardly mate:
  And all his inmost heart dissolved in pity.
He saw how crystal floors were gashed and torn
  By wanton tusks of elephants, were strewed p. 174
With skins that sloughing cobras once had worn:
  And sadness overcame him as he viewed.
He saw beside the bathing-pools the bowers
  Defiled by elephants grown overbold,
Strewn with uprooted golden lotus-flowers,
  No longer bright with plumage of pure gold,
Rough with great, jewelled columns overthrown,
  Rank with invasion of the untrimmed grass:
Shame strove with sorrow at the ruin shown,
  For heaven's foe had brought these things to pass.
[paragraph continues] Amid these sorrowful surroundings the gods gather and anoint Kumara, thus consecrating him as their general.

Fourteenth canto. The march.--Kumara prepares for battle, and marshals his army. He is followed by Indra riding on an elephant, Agni on a ram, Yama on a buffalo, a giant on a ghost, Varuna on a dolphin, and many other lesser gods. When all is ready, the army sets out on its dusty march.

Fifteenth canto. The two armies clash.--The demon Taraka is informed that the hostile army is approaching, but scorns the often-conquered Indra and the boy Kumara. Nevertheless, he prepares for battle, marshals his army, and sets forth to meet the gods. But he is beset by dreadful omens of evil.



For foul birds came, a horrid flock to see,
  Above the army of the foes of heaven,
And dimmed the sun, awaiting ravenously
  The feast of demon corpses to be given.
And monstrous snakes, as black as powdered soot,
  Spitting hot poison high into the air,
Brought terror to the army underfoot,
  And crept and coiled and crawled before them there.
The sun a sickly halo round him had;
  Coiling within it frightened eyes could see p. 175
Great, writhing serpents, enviously glad
  Because the demon's death so soon should be.
And in the very circle of the sun
  Were phantom jackals, snarling to be fed;
And with impatient haste they seemed to run
  To drink the demon's blood in battle shed.
There fell, with darting flame and blinding flash
  Lighting the farthest heavens, from on high
A thunderbolt whose agonising crash
  Brought fear and shuddering from a cloudless sky.
There came a pelting rain of blazing coals
  With blood and bones of dead men mingled in;
Smoke and weird flashes horrified their souls;
  The sky was dusty grey like asses' skin.
The elephants stumbled and the horses fell,
  The footmen jostled, leaving each his post,
The ground beneath them trembled at the swell
  Of ocean, when an earthquake shook the host.
And dogs before them lifted muzzles foul
  To see the sun that lit that awful day,
And pierced the ears of listeners with a howl
  Dreadful yet pitiful, then slunk away.
[paragraph continues] Taraka's counsellors endeavour to persuade him to turn back, but he refuses; for timidity is not numbered among his faults. As he advances even worse portents appear, and finally warning voices from heaven call upon him to desist from his undertaking. The voices assure him of Kumara's prowess and inevitable victory; they advise him to make his peace while there is yet time. But Taraka's only answer is a defiance.



"You mighty gods that flit about in heaven
  And take my foeman's part, what would you say?
Have you forgot so soon the torture given
  By shafts of mine that never miss their way? p. 176
Why should I fear before a six-days child?
  Why should you prowl in heaven and gibber shrill,
Like dogs that in an autumn night run wild,
  Like deer that sneak through forests, trembling still?
The boy whom you have chosen as your chief
  In vain upon his hermit-sire shall cry;
The upright die, if taken with a thief:
  First you shall perish, then he too shall die."
[paragraph continues] And as Taraka emphasises his meaning by brandishing his great sword, the warning spirits flee, their knees knocking together. Taraka laughs horribly, then mounts his chariot, and advances against the army of the gods. On the other side the gods advance, and the two armies clash.

Sixteenth canto. The battle between gods and demons.--This canto is entirely taken up with the struggle between the two armies. A few stanzas are given here.



As pairs of champions stood forth
To test each other's fighting worth,
The bards who knew the family fame
Proclaimed aloud each mighty name.
As ruthless weapons cut their way
Through quilted armour in the fray,
White tufts of cotton flew on high
Like hoary hairs upon the sky.
Blood-dripping swords reflected bright
The sunbeams in that awful fight;
Fire-darting like the lightning-flash,
They showed how mighty heroes clash.
The archers' arrows flew so fast,
As through a hostile breast they passed,
That they were buried in the ground,
No stain of blood upon them found. p. 177
The swords that sheaths no longer clasped,
That hands of heroes firmly grasped,
Flashed out in glory through the fight,
As if they laughed in mad delight.
And many a warrior's eager lance
Shone radiant in the eerie dance,
A curling, lapping tongue of death
To lick away the soldier's breath.
Some, panting with a bloody thirst,
Fought toward the victim chosen first,
But had a reeking path to hew
Before they had him full in view.
Great elephants, their drivers gone
And pierced with arrows, struggled on,
But sank at every step in mud
blade liquid by the streams of blood.
The warriors falling in the fray,
Whose heads the sword had lopped away,
Were able still to fetch a blow
That slew the loud-exulting foe.
The footmen thrown to Paradise
By elephants of monstrous size,
Were seized upon by nymphs above,
Exchanging battle-scenes for love.
The lancer, charging at his foe,
Would pierce him through and bring him low,
And would not heed the hostile dart
That found a lodgment in his heart.
The war-horse, though unguided, stopped
The moment that his rider dropped,
And wept above the lifeless head,
Still faithful to his master dead. p. 178
Two lancers fell with mortal wound
And still they struggled on the ground;
With bristling hair, with brandished knife,
Each strove to end the other's life.
Two slew each other in the fight;
To Paradise they took their flight;
There with a nymph they fell in love,
And still they fought in heaven above.
Two souls there were that reached the sky;
From heights of heaven they could spy
Two writhing corpses on the plain,
And knew their headless forms again.
As the struggle comes to no decisive issue, Taraka seeks out the chief gods, and charges upon them.

Seventeenth canto. Taraka is slain.--Taraka engages the principal gods and defeats them with magic weapons. When they are relieved by Kumara, the demon turns to the youthful god of war, and advises him to retire from the battle.



Stripling, you are the only son
  Of Shiva and of Parvati.
Go safe and live! Why should you run
On certain death? Why fight with me?
Withdraw! Let sire and mother blest
Clasp living son to joyful breast.
Flee, son of Shiva, flee the host
  Of Indra drowning in the sea
That soon shall close upon his boast
  In choking waves of misery.
For Indra is a ship of stone;
Withdraw, and let him sink alone.
[paragraph continues] Kumara answers with modest firmness.



The words you utter in your pride,
  O demon- prince, are only fit; p. 179
Yet I am minded to abide
  The fight, and see the end of it.
The tight-strung bow and brandished sword
Decide, and not the spoken word.
[paragraph continues] And with this the duel begins. When Taraka finds his arrows parried by Kumara, he employs the magic weapon of the god of wind. When this too is parried, he uses the magic weapon of the god of fire, which Kumara neutralises with the weapon of the god of water. As they fight on, Kumara finds an opening, and slays Taraka with his lance, to the unbounded delight of the universe.
Here the poem ends, in the form in which it has come down to us. It has been sometimes thought that we have less than Kalidasa wrote, partly because of a vague tradition that there were once twenty-three cantos, partly because the customary prayer is lacking at the end. These arguments are not very cogent. Though the concluding prayer is not given in form, yet the stanzas which describe the joy of the universe fairly fill its place. And one does not see with what matter further cantos would be concerned. The action promised in the earlier part is completed in the seventeenth canto.
It has been somewhat more formidably argued that the concluding cantos are spurious, that Kalidasa wrote only the first seven or perhaps the first eight cantos. Yet, after all, what do these arguments amount to? Hardly more than this, that the first eight cantos are better poetry than the last nine. As if a poet were always at his best, even when writing on a kind of subject not calculated to call out his best. Fighting is not Kalidasa's forte; love is. Even so, there is great vigour in the journey of Taraka, the battle, and the duel. It may not be the highest kind of poetry, but it is wonderfully vigorous poetry of its kind. And if we reject the last nine cantos, we fall into a very much greater difficulty. The poem would be glaringly incomplete, its early promise obviously disregarded. We should have a Birth of the War- god in which the poet stopped before the war-god was born.
There seems then no good reason to doubt that we have the epic substantially as Kalidasa wrote it. Plainly, it has a unity which is lacking in Kalidasa's other epic, The Dynasty 
p. 180
of Raghu, though in this epic, too, the interest shifts. Parvati's love-affair is the matter of the first half, Kumara's fight with the demon the matter of the second half. Further, it must be admitted that the interest runs a little thin. Even in India, where the world of gods runs insensibly into the world of men, human beings take more interest in the adventures of men than of gods. The gods, indeed, can hardly have adventures; they must be victorious.The Birth of the War-god pays for its greater unity by a poverty of adventure.
It would be interesting if we could know whether this epic was written before or after The Dynasty of Raghu. But we have no data for deciding the question, hardly any for even arguing it. The introduction to The Dynasty of Raghu seems, indeed, to have been written by a poet who yet had his spurs to win. But this is all.
As to the comparative excellence of the two epics, opinions differ. My own preference is for The Dynasty of Raghu, yet there are passages in The Birth of the War-god of a piercing beauty which the world can never let die.

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