पृष्ठम्:विक्रमोर्वशीयम् (कल्पलताव्याख्यासमेतम्).djvu/९३

पुटमेतत् सुपुष्टितम्
27
ESTIMATE OF THE PLAY.

the case of Urvashi by Chitralékhā. Thus there is a common artifice employed by the poet in the sense of enamouring his heroines for his heroes by means of some relief granted to them. It means, therefore, that this artifice restriots the application of the spirit of free love among the heroines, Anxious to prove his heroes to be chivalrous, our poet seems to create opportunities for them to oblige the respective heroines as though such chivalry is the only quality in a hero to be admired by the gentler sex. As a matter of fact this sense ought to be engendered by means of real admiration of the good parts of the hero, as is in the case of Bhavabhuti's Sitā, Shudraka's Vasantsénā, Baņa Bhatta's Pārvati and others. The artifice of throwing into obligation is, after the fashion of Kalidasa, also practised by Bharahhuri in the case of his Mālati, Dandina in the case of his Mallikā and Shreeharsha in the case of his Ratnávali.

 After this first meeting Kalidasa has in his plan the bringing out an immediate separation, which lets the seed of love gain root in the heart of the heroine. Kalidasa has a fancy of attacking the heroine's heart and bringing about an expression from the tougher element first, which is, in turn, responded by the advances on the part of the king as well. For example, Malavikā sings "दुल्लहो पिओ मे तस्सिं भव हिआ णिरासं" Act II, which is later on responded by the advances on the part of the king as well. Similarly it is Urvashi, while separated at the instance of Chitraratha in Act I, expresses her submission to the sense of love by staying over, under the pretext of her necklace tucked to a branch of a tree. There the poet introduces a light comic ("आ दृढं खलु लग्ना सा, अशक्या मोचयितुम्" P. 34). Thereafter farther and farther she goes and the hero also expresses his mind "सुराङ्गना कर्षति खण्डिताग्रात्, सूत्रं मृणालादिव राजहंसी-Act I-20 P. 37", and the poet closes the Act. Exactly its parallel is followed by the poet in Shākuntal, where Shakuntala's meeting with Dushyant is disturbed by the free movement of an elephant and then the ladies all run up to the hermitage. While thus leaving the king, the heroine expresses her attachment just like Urvashi, by saying that her valkal (barch) is stuck to the branch of a kurabak or an amaranth and her foot affected with a thorn. For Urvashi who is a celestial damsel, the poet has a pearl necklace to be stuck to a branch, while in the case of Shakuntala there is her barch garment. This is very natural and popular pretext of womankind to remain behind for feasting