62 AgVAGHOSA AND EARLY BUDDHIST KAVYA
harem, with a daintiness of elaboration which is far removed from the epic :
vibabhaii karalagnavenur any a: stanavisrastasitdhguka gay ana rjusatpaaapanktijustapadma : jalaphenaprahasattatd nadlva.
' And one lay resplendent, holding a flute in her hand, while her white garment slipt from her bosom, like unto a river whose banks laugh with the foam l of her waves, and in whose lotuses long rows of bees delight' Acvaghosa unquestionably is at his best in simple and elegant description by which a clear picture is presented to the eyes :
tathapi pdplyasi nirjite gate : digah praseduh prababhau
nigdkarah divo nipelur bhuvi pnspavrstayo : raraja yoseva vihalmasa
nigd. ' So when the evil one had retired worsted, the sky became calm, the moon shone forth, flowers fell in rain from heaven on the earth ; night shone clear like a maiden free from stain.' When the charioteer returns :
punafv kumdro vinivrtta ity atho : gavdksamdldh pratipedire
','tgandh vivikiaprstham ca nigamya vajinam : punar gavaksani pid-
liaya cukrugnh. ' " 'Tis the prince returned ", said the women and rushed to their windows, but, seeing the steed's back bereft of its master, closed them again and wailed aloud.' Yacodhara, who is more akin to Sita than Sundarl, laments her husband's new lot :
gucau gayitvd gayane hiranmaye : prabodhyamdno nigi titr-
yanisvanaik kathatn bdfa svapsyali so 'dya me vrati: pataikadegdntarite
mahlthle. ' How can he skep to-night, my faithful one, on one poor mat covering the banb earth, he who hath slept aforetime on a couch of gold undefileld, and whom music hath aroused from his slumbers ? ' Afvaghosa is also a master of simple pathos :
mahatyd irsmiyd duhkhair garbhendsmi yayd dhrtah ' tasyd iiisphalayatndydh kvdham mdtuh kva sd mama.
1 Cf. Meghaduta, 50.
