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OCTOBER, 1918]
NOTES ON KALIDASA
(3) A difficulty in the Meghadata.
The several commentators and annotators of the Meghadûta have failed to satisfactorily solve the difficulty of reconciling the following three passages:
(१) आषाढस्य प्रथमदिवसे ( प्रशमदिवसे ) मेघमाश्लिष्टसानुं वप्रक्रीडापरिणतगजप्रेक्षणीयं ददर्श ।
(२) प्रत्यासने नभसि दयिता जीवितालम्बनार्थी जीमूतेन स्वकुशलमया हारयिष्यन्प्रवृत्तिम् । (३) शापान्तो म भुजगशयनादुस्थित शार्ङ्गपाणी शेषान्मासान्गमय चतुरो लोचने मीलयित्वा ।
V. 2.
251
V. 4.
V. 116.
Both the readings in the first passage are open to objection as being difficult to be reconciled with the other two passages. The reading . is objected to on two grounds. (A) In v. 4, Sravana is said to be rear, i. e., proximate. Suah, however, would not be the case if the Yaksha had seen the Cloud on the first day of Ashadha, because, the whole of Áshadha had to elapse before Sráva na commenced. (B) Secondly, we are told further on that the remaining period of exile was few months and that the curse was to come to an end on the eleventh Tithi of the bright fortnight of Kârttika. If we count from the first day of Ashadha, the period upto the eleventh Tithi of the bright fortnight of Kârttika comes to be four months and ten days, that is, ten days in excess of the period mentioned. These considerations lead Vallabha, one of the commentators, to reject the reading and approve of . This word literally means on the ending day': but it can be taken to mean on one of the last days.' This reading no doubt enables us to get rid of the first objection urged against ; because Sravana then becomes proximate, as required by verse 4. But the second objection reappears in a new form. With the reading there was an excess of ten days; with the reading 4 there will be found, on calculation, a deficiency of about fifteen days, even if we construe the word most literally and take the day to be the tenth Tithi of the dark fortnight of Ashadha. Thus we are left to choose between an excess of ten days over or a deficiency of about fifteen days in the required period.
•
Mallinatha who prefers the reading 4 tries to refute the objections brought against it in the following manner. As regards the first objection, he says that what is intended by seat is proximity in general of the months of Ashalha and Sravana, so that the proximity of Sravana to Ashadha may be construed to mean the proximity of Sravana to any day of Ashadha and to the first day in particular in the present case (.. ' प्रशमदिवसे इति पाउं कल्पयति तत्सङ्गतम् । नभीनासस्य प्रत्यासत्यर्थमित्युक्तमिति चेन्न । प्रत्यासात्तमात्रस्य मासप्रत्यासत्यैव प्रथमदिवसस्याप्युपपत्तेः )। As to the second objection, he says that the reading प्रशमo being equally liable to a similar objection, it is better to select the reading (
मास चतुष्टयस्या या वशिष्टस्योक्ति ईशा देवसाधिक्यारिति चेत्स्वपक्षेऽपि कथं सा विंशतिदिवसैन्यूनत्वादिति सन्तोष्टव्यम् । समाशेषद्वेषम्यमविवक्षितमिति सुहूतं 'प्रथनदिवसे ' इति । ). In short, the expresison चतुरो मासान् is not to be construed too literally but we are to have four months approximately.
So far as I know no attempt has been made to meet these difficulties by offering a better and more satisfactory explanation. I venture to offer one and it may be taken for what it is worth.
