Kalidasa

Abhay K. is the author of eight poetry collections and editor of The Bloomsbury Anthology of Great Indian Poems, The Bloomsbury Book of Great Indian Love Poems, CAPITALS and New Brazilian Poems. His forthcoming poetry collection is titled The Magic of Madagascar. His 'Earth Anthem' has been translated into over 50 languages. He received SAARC Literary Award 2013 and was invited to record his poems at the Library of Congress, Washington DC in 2018.Meghaduta or The Cloud Messenger is a masterpiece of Sanskrit literature, written by Kalidasa some 1500 years ago. This breathtaking poem of 111 stanzas is about a Yaksha, who is banished for a year to central India for neglecting his duties by Kubera-the Lord of Wealth, from his abode at the fabled city of Alaka near Mount Kailasa. The Yaksha exhorts a passing cloud to carry his message across to his beloved in the Himalayas. The cloud is assisted by sylphs, nymphs, eight-legged animals, the wish fulfilling trees, drums, celestial elephants, birds, rare flowers, trees and rivers during his journey.Skilfully translated from Sanskrit by poet-diplomat Abhay K., this new translation presents Meghaduta in a contemporary and lucid language of highest quality, retaining the emotional and lyrical content of Kalidasa's original work, giving it a fresh sense bringing together its ecological and sensual elements in the times of climate change and biodiversity loss. This bilingual edition with original Sanskrit text and English translation is a must read.