shakuntala_ryder.pdf part 1

Kalidasa Shakuntala translated by Arthur W. Ryder In parentheses Publications Sanskrit Series Cambridge, Ontario 1999.

DRAMATIS PERSONAE King Dushyanta. Bharata, nicknamed All-tamer, his son. Madhavya, a clown, his companion. His charioteer. Raivataka, a door-keeper. Bhadrasena, a general. Karabhaka, a servant. Parvatayana, a chamberlain. Somarata, a chaplain. Kanva, hermit-father. Sharngarava, Sharadvata, Harita, his pupils. Durvasas, an irascible sage. The chief of police. Suchaka, Januka, Policemen. A fisherman. Shakuntala, foster-child of Kanva. Anusuya, Priyamvada, her friends. Gautami, hermit-mother. Kashyapa, father of the gods. Aditi, mother of the gods. Matali, charioteer of heavenÕs king. Galava, a Pupil in heaven. Mishrakeshi, a heavenly nymph. Stage-director and actress (in the prologue), hermits and hermit-women, two court poets, palace attendants, invisible fairies. The first four acts pass in KanvaÕs forest hermitage; acts five and six in the kingÕs palace; act seven on a heavenly mountain. The time is perhaps seven years. 2.

PROLOGUE BENEDICTION UPON THE AUDIENCE Eight forms has Shiva, lord of all and king: And these are water, first created thing; And fire, which speeds the sacrifice begun; The priest; and timeÕs dividers, moon and sun; The all-embracing ether, path of sound; The earth, wherein all seeds of life are found; And air, the breath of life: may he draw near, Revealed in these, and bless those gathered here. The stage-director. Enough of this! (Turning toward the dressing-room.) Madam, if you are ready, pray come here. (Enter an actress.) Actress. Here I am, sir. What am I to do? Director. Our audience is very discriminating, and we are to offer them a new play, called Shakuntala and the ring of recognition, written by the famous Kalidasa. Every member of the cast must be on his mettle. Actress. Your arrangements are perfect. Nothing will go wrong. Director (smiling). To tell the truth, madam, Until the wise are satisfied, I cannot feel that skill is shown; The best-trained mind requires support, And does not trust itself alone. Actress. True. What shall we do first? Director. First, you must sing something to please the ears of the audience. 3.

Actress. What season of the year shall I sing about? Director. Why, sing about the pleasant summer which has just begun. For at this time of year A mid-day plunge will temper heat; The breeze is rich with forest flowers. To slumber in the shade is sweet; And charming are the twilight hours. Actress (sings). The siris-blossoms fair, With pollen laden, Are plucked to deck her hair By many a maiden, But gently; flowers like these Are kissed by eager bees. Director. Well done! The whole theatre is captivated by your song, and sits as if painted. What play shall we give them to keep their good-will? Actress. Why, you just told me we were to give a new play called Shakuntala and the ring. Director. Thank you for reminding me. For the moment I had quite forgotten. Your charming song had carried me away As the deer enticed the hero of our play. (Exeunt ambo.) 4.

ACT I THE HUNT (Enter, in a chariot, pursuing a deer, King Dushyanta, bow and arrow in hand; and a charioteer.) Charioteer (looking at the king and the deer). Your Majesty, I see you hunt the spotted deer With shafts to end his race, As though God Shiva should appear In his immortal chase. King. Charioteer, the deer has led us a long chase. And even now His neck in beauty bends As backward looks he sends At my pursuing car That threatens death from far. Fear shrinks to half the body small; See how he fears the arrowÕs fall! The path he takes is strewed With blades of grass half-chewed From jaws wide with the stress Of fevered weariness. He leaps so often and so high, He does not seem to run, but fly. (In surprise.) Pursue as I may, I can hardly keep him in sight. Charioteer. Your Majesty, I have been holding the horses back because the ground was rough. This checked us and gave the deer a lead. Now we are on level ground, and you will easily overtake him. King. Then let the reins hang loose. 5.

Charioteer. Yes, your Majesty. ( He counterfeits rapid motion.) Look, your Majesty! The lines hang loose; the steeds unreined Dart forward with a will. Their ears are pricked; their necks are strained; Their plumes lie straight and still. They leave the rising dust behind; They seem to float upon the wind. King (joyfully). See! The horses are gaining on the deer. As onward and onward the chariot flies, The small flashes large to my dizzy eyes. What is cleft in twain, seems to blur and mate; What is crooked in nature, seems to be straight. Things at my side in an instant appear Distant, and things in the distance, near. A voice behind the scenes. O King, this deer belongs to the hermitage, and must not be killed. Charioteer (listening and looking). Your Majesty, here are two hermits, come to save the deer at the moment when your arrow was about to fall. King (hastily). Stop the chariot. Charioteer. Yes, your Majesty. (He does so. Enter a hermit with his pupil.) Hermit (lifting his hand). O King, this deer belongs to the hermitage. Why should his tender form expire, As blossoms perish in the fire? How could that gentle life endure The deadly arrow, sharp and sure? Restore your arrow to the quiver; To you were weapons lent The broken-hearted to deliver, Not strike the innocent. King (bowing low). It is done. (He does so.) Hermit (joyfully). A deed worthy of you, scion of PuruÕs race, and shining example of kings. May you beget a son to rule earth and heaven. King (bowing low). I am thankful for a BrahmanÕs blessing. The two hermits. O King, we are on our way to gather firewood. Here, along the bank of the Malini, you may see the hermitage of Father Kanva, 6.

over which Shakuntala presides, so to speak, as guardian deity. Unless other deities prevent, pray enter here and receive a welcome. Besides, Beholding pious hermit-rites Preserved from fearful harm, Perceive the profit of the scars On your protecting arm. King. Is the hermit father there? The two hermits. No, he has left his daughter to welcome guests, and has just gone to Somatirtha, to avert an evil fate that threatens her. King. Well, I will see her. She shall feel my devotion, and report it to the sage. The two hermits. Then we will go on our way. (Exit hermit with pupil.) King. Charioteer, drive on. A sight of the pious hermitage will purify us. Charioteer. Yes, your Majesty. (He counterfeits motion again.) King (looking about). One would know, without being told, that this is the precinct of a pious grove. Charioteer. How so? King. Do you not see? Why, here Are rice-grains, dropped from bills of parrot chicks Beneath the trees; and pounding-stones where sticks A little almond-oil; and trustful deer That do not run away as we draw near; And river-paths that are besprinkled yet From trickling hermit-garments, clean and wet. Besides, The roots of trees are washed by many a stream That breezes ruffle; and the flowersÕ red gleam Is dimmed by pious smoke; and fearless fawns Move softly on the close-cropped forest lawns. Charioteer. It is all true. King (after a little). We must not disturb the hermitage. Stop here while I dismount. Charioteer. I am holding the reins. Dismount, your Majesty. King (dismounts and looks at himself). One should wear modest garments on entering a hermitage. Take these jewels and the bow. (He 7.

gives them to the charioteer.) Before I return from my visit to the hermits, have the horsesÕ backs wet down. Charioteer. Yes, Your Majesty. (Exit.) King (walking and looking about). The hermitage! Well, I will enter. (As he does so, he feels a throbbing in his arm.) A tranquil spot! Why should I thrill? Love cannot enter thereÑ Yet to inevitable things Doors open everywhere. A voice behind the scenes. This way, girls! King (listening). I think I hear some one to the right of the grove. I must find out. (He walks and looks about.) Ah, here are hermit-girls, with watering-pots just big enough for them to handle. They are coming in this direction to water the young trees. They are charming! The city maids, for all their pains, Seem not so sweet and good; Our garden blossoms yield to these Flower-children of the wood. I will draw back into the shade and wait for them. (He stands, gazing toward them. Enter Shakuntala, as described, and her two friends.) First friend. It seems to me, dear, that Father Kanva cares more for the hermitage trees than he does for you. You are delicate as a jasmine blossom, yet he tells you to fill the trenches about the trees. Shakuntala. Oh, it isnÕt FatherÕs bidding so much. I feel like a real sister to them. (She waters the trees.) Priyamvada. Shakuntala, we have watered the trees that blossom in the summer-time. Now letÕs sprinkle those whose flowering-time is past. That will be a better deed, because we shall not be working for a reward. Shakuntala. What a pretty ideal (She does so.) King (to himself). And this is KanvaÕs daughter, Shakuntala. (In surprise.) The good Father does wrong to make her wear the hermitÕs dress of bark. The sage who yokes her artless charm With pious pain and grief, Would try to cut the toughest vine 8.

With a soft, blue lotus-leaf. Well, I will step behind a tree and see how she acts with her friends. (He conceals himself.) Shakuntala. Oh, Anusuya! Priyamvada has fastened this bark dress so tight that it hurts. Please loosen it. (Anusuya does so.) Priyamvada (laughing). You had better blame your own budding charms for that. King. She is quite right. Beneath the barken dress Upon the shoulder tied, In maiden loveliness Her young breast seems to hide, As when a flower amid The leaves by autumn tossedÑ Pale, withered leavesÑlies hid, And half its grace is lost. Yet in truth the bark dress is not an enemy to her beauty. It serves as an added ornament. For The meanest vesture glows On beauty that enchants: The lotus lovelier shows Amid dull water-plants; The moon in added splendour Shines for its spot of dark; Yet more the maiden slender Charms in her dress of bark. Shakuntala (looking ahead). Oh, girls, that mango-tree is trying to tell me something with his branches that move in the wind like fingers. I must go and see him. (She does so.) Priyamvada. There, Shakuntala, stand right where you are a minute. Shakuntala. Why? Priyamvada. When I see you there, it looks as if a vine were clinging to the mango-tree. Shakuntala. I see why they call you the flatterer. King. But the flattery is true. Her arms are tender shoots; her lips 9.

Are blossoms red and warm; Bewitching youth begins to flower In beauty on her form. Anusuya. Oh, Shakuntala! Here is the jasmine-vine that you named Light of the Grove. She has chosen the mango-tree as her husband. Shakuntala (approaches and looks at it, joyfully). What a pretty pair they make. The jasmine shows her youth in her fresh flowers, and the mango-tree shows his strength in his ripening fruit. (She stands gazing at them.) Priyamvada (smiling). Anusuya, do you know why Shakuntala looks so hard at the Light of the Grove? Anusuya. No. Why? Priyamvada. She is thinking how the Light of the Grove has found a good tree, and hoping that she will meet a fine lover. Shakuntala. ThatÕs what you want for yourself. (She tips her watering-pot.) Anusuya. Look, Shakuntala! Here is the spring-creeper that Father Kanva tended with his own handsÑjust as he did you. You are forgetting her. Shakuntala. IÕd forget myself sooner. (She goes to the creeper and looks at it, joyfully.) Wonderful! Wonderful! Priyamvada, I have something pleasant to tell you. Priyamvada. What is it, dear? Shakuntala. It is out of season, but the spring-creeper is covered with buds down to the very root. The two friends (running up). Really? Shakuntala. Of course. CanÕt you see? Priyamvada (looking at it joyfully). And I have something pleasant to tell you. You are to be married soon. Shakuntala (snappishly). You know thatÕs just what you want for yourself. Priyamvada. IÕm not teasing. I really heard Father Kanva say that this flowering vine was to be a symbol of your coming happiness. Anusuya. Priyamvada, that is why Shakuntala waters the spring-creeper so lovingly. 10.

Shakuntala. She is my sister. Why shouldnÕt I give her water? (She tips her watering-pot.) King. May I hope that she is the hermitÕs daughter by a mother of a different caste? But it must be so. Surely, she may become a warriorÕs bride; Else, why these longings in an honest mind? The motions of a blameless heart decide Of right and wrong, when reason leaves us blind. Yet I will learn the whole truth. Shakuntala (excitedly). Oh, oh! A bee has left the jasmine vine and is flying into my face. (She shows herself annoyed by the bee.) King (ardently). As the bee about her flies, Swiftly her bewitching eyes Turn to watch his flight. She is practising to-day Coquetry and glancesÕ play Not from love, but fright. (Jealously.) Eager bee, you lightly skim OÕer the eyelidÕs trembling rim Toward the cheek a-quiver. Gently buzzing round her cheek, Whispering in her ear, you seek Secrets to deliver. While her hands that way and this Strike at you, you steal a kiss, LoveÕs all, honeymaker. I know nothing but her name, Not her caste, nor whence she cameÑ You, my rival, take her. Shakuntala. Oh, girls! Save me from this dreadful bee! The two friends (smiling). Who are we, that we should save you? Call upon Dushyanta. For pious groves are in the protection of the king. 11.

King. A good opportunity to present myself. Have noÑ (He checks himself. Aside.) No, they would see that I am the king. I prefer to appear as a guest. Shakuntala. He doesnÕt leave me alone! I am going to run away. (She takes a step and looks about.) Oh, dear! Oh, dear! He is following me. Please save me. King (hastening forward). Ah! A king of PuruÕs mighty line Chastises shameless churls; What insolent is he who baits These artless hermit-girls? (The girls are a little flurried on seeing the king.) Anusuya. It is nothing very dreadful, sir. But our friend (indicating Shakuntala) was teased and frightened by a bee. King (to Shakuntala). I hope these pious days are happy ones. (ShakuntalaÕs eyes drop in embarrassment.) Anusuya. Yes, now that we receive such a distinguished guest. Priyamvada. Welcome, sir. Go to the cottage, Shakuntala, and bring fruit. This water will do to wash the feet. King. Your courteous words are enough to make me feel at home. Anusuya. Then, sir, pray sit down and rest on this shady bench. King. You, too, are surely wearied by your pious task. Pray be seated a moment. Priyamvada (aside to Shakuntala). My dear, we must be polite to our guest. Shall we sit down? (The three girls sit.) Shakuntala (to herself). Oh, why do I have such feelings when I see this man? They seem wrong in a hermitage. King (looking at the girls). It is delightful to see your friendship. For you are all young and beautiful. Priyamvada (aside to Anusuya). Who is he, dear? With his mystery, and his dignity, and his courtesy? He acts like a king and a gentleman. Anusuya. I am curious too. I am going to ask him. (Aloud.) Sir, you are so very courteous that I make bold to ask you something. What royal family do you adorn, sir? What country is grieving at your absence? Why does a gentleman so delicately bred submit to the weary journey into our pious grove? 12.

Shakuntala (aside). Be brave, my heart. Anusuya speaks your very thoughts. King (aside). Shall I tell at once who I am, or conceal it? (He reflects.) This will do. (Aloud.) I am a student of Scripture. It is my duty to see justice done in the cities of the king. And I have come to this hermitage on a tour of inspection. Anusuya. Then we of the hermitage have some one to take care of us. (Shakuntala shows embarrassment.) The two friends (observing the demeanour of the pair. Aside to Shakuntala). Oh, Shakuntala! If only Father were here to-day. Shakuntala. What would he do? The two friends. He would make our distinguished guest happy, if it took his most precious treasure. Shakuntala (feigning anger). Go away! You mean something. IÕll not listen to you. King. I too would like to ask a question about your friend. The two friends. Sir, your request is a favour to us. King. Father Kanva lives a lifelong hermit. Yet you say that your friend is his daughter. How can that be? Anusuya. Listen, sir. There is a majestic royal sage named KaushikaÑ King. Ah, yes. The famous Kaushika. Anusuya. Know, then, that he is the source of our friendÕs being. But Father Kanva is her real father, because he took care of her when she was abandoned. King. You waken my curiosity with the word Òabandoned.Ó May I hear the whole story? Anusuya. Listen, sir. Many years ago, that royal sage was leading a life of stern austerities, and the gods, becoming strangely jealous, sent the nymph Menaka to disturb his devotions. King. Yes, the gods feel this jealousy toward the austerities of others. And thenÑ Anusuya. Then in the lovely spring-time he saw her intoxicating beautyÑ(She stops in embarrassment.) King. The rest is plain. Surely, she is the daughter of the nymph. Anusuya. Yes. King. It is as it should be. 13.

To beauty such as this No woman could give birth; The quivering lightning flash Is not a child of earth. (Shakuntala hangs her head in confusion.) King (to himself). Ah, my wishes become hopes. Priyamvada (looking with a smile at Shakuntala). Sir, it seems as if you had more to say. (Shakuntala threatens her friend with her finger.) King. You are right. Your pious life interests me, and I have another question. Priyamvada. Do not hesitate. We hermit people stand ready to answer all demands. King. My question is this: Does she, till marriage only, keep her vow As hermit-maid, that shames the ways of love? Or must her soft eyes ever see, as now, Soft eyes of friendly deer in peaceful grove? Priyamvada. Sir, we are under bonds to lead a life of virtue. But it is her fatherÕs wish to give her to a suitable lover. King (joyfully to himself). O heart, your wish is won! All doubt at last is done; The thing you feared as fire, Is the jewel of your desire. Shakuntala (pettishly). Anusuya, IÕm going. Anusuya. What for? Shakuntala. I am going to tell Mother Gautami that Priyamvada is talking nonsense. (She rises.) Anusuya. My dear, we hermit people cannot neglect to entertain a distinguished guest, and go wandering about. (Shakuntala starts to walk away without answering.) King (aside). She is going! (He starts up as if to detain her, then checks his desires.) A thought is as vivid as an act, to a lover. Though nurture, conquering nature, holds Me back, it seems As had I started and returned 14.

In waking dreams. Priyamvada (approaching Shakuntala). You dear, peevish girl! You mustnÕt go. Shakuntala (turns with a frown). Why not? Priyamvada. You owe me the watering of two trees. You can go when you have paid your debt. (She forces her to come back.) King. It is plain that she is already wearied by watering the trees. See! Her shoulders droop; her palms are reddened yet; Quick breaths are struggling in her bosom fair; The blossom oÕer her ear hangs limply wet; One hand restrains the loose, dishevelled hair. I therefore remit her debt. (He gives the two friends a ring. They take it, read the name engraved on it, and look at each other.) King. Make no mistake. This is a presentÑfrom the king. Priyamvada. Then, sir, you ought not to part with it. Your word is enough to remit the debt. Anusuya. Well, Shakuntala, you are set free by this kind gentlemanÑor rather, by the king himself. Where are you going now? Shakuntala (to herself). I would never leave him if I could help myself. Priyamvada. Why donÕt you go now? Shakuntala. I am not your servant any longer. I will go when I like. King (looking at Shakuntala. To himself). Does she feel toward me as I do toward her? At least, there is ground for hope. Although she does not speak to me, She listens while I speak; Her eyes turn not to see my face, But nothing else they seek. A voice behind the scenes. Hermits! Hermits! Prepare to defend the creatures in our pious grove. King Dushyanta is hunting in the neighbourhood. The dust his horsesÕ hoofs have raised, Red as the evening sky, Falls like a locust-swarm on boughs Where hanging garments dry. King (aside). Alas! My soldiers are disturbing the pious grove in their search for me. 15.

The voice behind the scenes. Hermits! Hermits! Here is an elephant who is terrifying old men, women, and children. One tusk is splintered by a cruel blow Against a blocking tree; his gait is slow, For countless fettering vines impede and cling; He puts the deer to flight; some evil thing He seems, that comes our peaceful life to mar, Fleeing in terror from the royal car. (The girls listen and rise anxiously.) King. I have offended sadly against the hermits. I must go back. The two friends. Your Honour, we are frightened by this alarm of the elephant. Permit us to return to the cottage. Anusuya (to Shakuntala). Shakuntala dear, Mother Gautami will be anxious. We must hurry and find her. Shakuntala (feigning lameness). Oh, oh! I can hardly walk. King. You must go very slowly. And I will take pains that the hermitage is not disturbed. The two friends. Your honour, we feel as if we knew you very well. Pray pardon our shortcomings as hostesses. May we ask you to seek better entertainment from us another time? King. You are too modest. I feel honoured by the mere sight of you. Shakuntala. Anusuya, my foot is cut on a sharp blade of grass. and my dress is caught on an amaranth twig. Wait for me while I loosen it. (She casts a lingering glance at the king, and goes out with her two friends.) King (sighing). They are gone. And I must go. The sight of Shakuntala has made me dread the return to the city. I will make my men camp at a distance from the pious grove. But I cannot turn my own thoughts from Shakuntala. It is my body leaves my love, not I; My body moves away, but not my mind; For back to her my struggling fancies fly Like silken banners borne against the wind. (Exit.) 16.

ACT II THE SECRET (Enter the clown.) Clown (sighing). Damn! Damn! Damn! IÕm tired of being friends with this sporting king. ÒThereÕs a deer!Ó he shouts, ÒThereÕs a boar!Ó And off he chases on a summer noon through woods where shade is few and far between. We drink hot, stinking water from the mountain streams, flavoured with leavesÑnasty! At odd times we get a little tepid meat to eat. And the horses and the elephants make such a noise that I canÕt even be comfortable at night. Then the hunters and the bird-chasersÑdamn ÕemÑwake me up bright and early. They do make an ear-splitting rumpus when they start for the woods. But even that isnÕt the whole misery. ThereÕs a new pimple growing on the old boil. He left us behind and went hunting a deer. And there in a hermitage they say he foundÑoh, dear! oh, dear! he found a hermit-girl named Shakuntala. Since then he hasnÕt a thought of going back to town. I lay awake all night, thinking about it. What can I do? Well, IÕll see my friend when he is dressed and beautified. (He walks and looks about.) Hello! Here he comes, with his bow in his hand, and his girl in his heart. He is wearing a wreath of wild flowers! IÕll pretend to be all knocked up. Perhaps I can get a rest that way. (He stands, leaning on his staff. Enter the king, as described.) King (to himself). Although my darling is not lightly won, She seemed to love me, and my hopes are bright; Though love be balked ere joy be well begun, 17.

A common longing is itself delight. (Smiling.) Thus does a lover deceive himself. He judges his loveÕs feelings by his own desires. Her glance was lovingÑbut Õtwas not for me; Her step was slowÑÕtwas grace, not coquetry; Her speech was shortÑto her detaining friend. In things like these love reads a selfish end! Clown (standing as before). Well, king, I canÕt move my hand. I can only greet you with my voice. King (looking and smiling). What makes you lame? Clown. Good! You hit a man in the eye, and then ask him why the tears come. King. I do not understand you. Speak plainly. Clown. When a reed bends over like a hunchback, do you blame the reed or the river-current? King. The river-current, of course. Clown. And you are to blame for my troubles. King. How so? Clown. ItÕs a fine thing for you to neglect your royal duties and such a sure jobÑto live in the woods! WhatÕs the good of talking? Here I am, a Brahman, and my joints are all shaken up by this eternal running after wild animals, so that I canÕt move. Please be good to me. Let us have a rest for just one day. King (to himself). He says this. And I too, when I remember KanvaÕs daughter, have little desire for the chase. For The bow is strung, its arrow near; And yet I cannot bend That bow against the fawns who share Soft glances with their friend. Clown (observing the king). He means more than he says. I might as well weep in the woods. King (smiling). What more could I mean? I have been thinking that I ought to take my friendÕs advice. Clown (cheerfully). Long life to you, then. (He unstiffens.) King. Wait. Hear me out. Clown. Well, sir? 18.

King. When you are rested, you must be my companion in another taskÑan easy one. Clown. Crushing a few sweetmeats? King. I will tell you presently. Clown. Pray command my leisure. King. Who stands without? (Enter the door keeper.) Door-keeper. I await your MajestyÕs commands. King. Raivataka, summon the general. Door-keeper. Yes, your Majesty. (He goes out, then returns with the general.) Follow me, sir. There is his Majesty, listening to our conversation. Draw near, sir. General (observing the king, to himself). Hunting is declared to be a sin, yet it brings nothing but good to the king. See! He does not heed the cruel sting Of his recoiling, twanging string; The mid-day sun, the dripping sweat Affect him not, nor make him fret; His form, though sinewy and spare, Is most symmetrically fair; No mountain-elephant could be More filled with vital strength than he. (He approaches.) Victory to your Majesty! The forest is full of deer-tracks, and beasts of prey cannot be far off. What better occupation could we have? King. Bhadrasena, my enthusiasm is broken. Madhavya has been preaching against hunting. General (aside to the clown). Stick to it, friend Madhavya. I will humour the king a moment. (Aloud.) Your Majesty, he is a chattering idiot. Your Majesty may judge by his own case whether hunting is an evil. Consider: The hunterÕs form grows sinewy, strong, and light; He learns, from beasts of prey, how wrath and fright Affect the mind; his skill he loves to measure With moving targets. ÕTis lifeÕs chiefest pleasure. Clown (angrily). Get out! Get out with your strenuous life! The king has come to his senses. But you, you son of a slave-wench, can go chasing 19.

from forest to forest, till you fall into the jaws of some old bear that is looking for a deer or a jackal. King. Bhadrasena, I cannot take your advice, because I am in the vicinity of a hermitage. So for to-day The horn•d buffalo may shake The turbid water of the lake; Shade-seeking deer may chew the cud, Boars trample swamp-grass in the mud; The bow I bend in hunting, may Enjoy a listless holiday. General. Yes, your Majesty. King. Send back the archers who have gone ahead. And forbid the soldiers to vex the hermitage, or even to approach it. Remember: There lurks a hidden fire in each Religious hermit-bower; Cool sun-stones kindle if assailed By any foreign power. General. Yes, your Majesty. Clown. Now will you get out with your strenuous life? (Exit general.) King (to his attendants). Lay aside your hunting dress. And you, Raivataka, return to your post of duty. Raivataka. Yes, your Majesty. (Exit.) Clown. You have got rid of the vermin. Now be seated on this flat stone, over which the trees spread their canopy of shade. I canÕt sit down till you do. King. Lead the way. Clown. Follow me. (They walk about and sit down.) King. Friend Madhavya, you do not know what vision is. You have not seen the fairest of all objects. Clown. I see you, right in front of me. King. Yes, every one thinks himself beautiful. But I was speaking of Shakuntala, the ornament of the hermitage. Clown (to himself). I mustnÕt add fuel to the flame. (Aloud.) But you canÕt have her because she is a hermit-girl. What is the use of seeing her? King. Fool! And is it selfish longing then, 20.

That draws our souls on high Through eyes that have forgot to wink, As the new moon climbs the sky? Besides, DushyantaÕs thoughts dwell on no forbidden object. Clown. Well, tell me about her. King. Sprung from a nymph of heaven Wanton and gay, Who spurned the blessing given, Going her way; By the stern hermit taken In her most need: So fell the blossom shaken, Flower on a weed. Clown (laughing). You are like a man who gets tired of good dates and longs for sour tamarind. All the pearls of the palace are yours, and you want this girl! King. My friend, you have not seen her, or you could not talk so. Clown. She must be charming if she surprises you. King. Oh, my friend, she needs not many words. She is GodÕs vision, of pure thought Composed in His creative mind; His reveries of beauty wrought The peerless pearl of womankind. So plays my fancy when I see How great is God, how lovely she. Clown. How the women must hate her! King. This too is in my thought. She seems a flower whose fragrance none has tasted, A gem uncut by workmanÕs tool, A branch no desecrating hands have wasted, Fresh honey, beautifully cool. No man on earth deserves to taste her beauty, Her blameless loveliness and worth, Unless he has fulfilled manÕs perfect dutyÑ And is there such a one on earth? 21.

Clown. Marry her quick, then, before the poor girl falls into the hands of some oily-headed hermit. King. She is dependent on her father, and he is not here. Clown. But how does she feel toward you? King. My friend, hermit-girls are by their very nature timid. And yet When I was near, she could not look at me; She smiledÑbut not to meÑand half denied it; She would not show her love for modesty, Yet did not try so very hard to hide it. Clown. Did you want her to climb into your lap the first time she saw you? King. But when she went away with her friends, she almost showed that she loved me. When she had hardly left my side, ÒI cannot walk,Ó the maiden cried, And turned her face, and feigned to free The dress not caught upon the tree. Clown. She has given you some memories to chew on. I suppose that is why you are so in love with the pious grove. King. My friend, think of some pretext under which we may return to the hermitage. Clown. What pretext do you need? ArenÕt you the king? King. What of that? Clown. Collect the taxes on the hermitsÕ rice. King. Fool! It is a very different tax which these hermits payÑone that outweighs heaps of gems. The wealth we take from common men, Wastes while we cherish; These share with us such holiness As neÕer can perish. Voices behind the scenes. Ah, we have found him. King (listening). The voices are grave and tranquil. These must be hermits. (Enter the door-keeper.) Door-keeper. Victory, O King. There are two hermit youths at the gate. King. Bid them enter at once. 22.