Songs of the Cloud Messenger
Tags
Summary
The lyrical long poem Meghaduta centers on love, telling the story of a yaksha who, exiled and separated from his beloved wife, entrusts a rain cloud to convey to her his longing and his fidelity. The poet's imagination is extraordinary and his similes magnificent—truly, "the poet is moved by things, and his associations know no end; he lingers over the ten thousand phenomena, pondering where he sees and hears." The whole poem is heartfelt and unadorned, making the reader feel as though it were happening to them.
Editor's review
Who it's for
A good fit for
- Readers who love world classical literature, especially Eastern poetry
- Enthusiasts interested in exploring Indian culture, philosophy, and aesthetics
- Literary readers seeking poetic language and profound emotional experience
- Readers hoping to expand their reading horizons and encounter non-Western-centric classic texts
Not a good fit for
- Readers of popular fiction who seek fast-paced, plot-driven narratives
- Readers with no patience for poetic form and classical literary expression
Reading tips
- On a first reading, browse the introduction first to learn about Kalidasa's life and the background of classical Indian poetics
- Do not rush; read a small section each day and savor its imagery and rhythm
- While reading, consult a map and follow the cloud messenger's journey to build a connection between space and poetry
About the publisher
Guangxi Normal University Press is a publisher known for literature, foreign literature and history titles. Its 1,175 books in the database show a solid accumulation in classics and prose collections, including foreign literary works such as Les Fleurs du mal: Annotated Poems of Baudelaire, Snow Country, Dubliners and The Wild Palms, as well as modern prose compilations like The Complete Prose of Zhou Zuoren. History and philosophy also hold a notable share, with titles such as Running Dogs: Clerks and Runners in Qing County Yamen and The History and Thought of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom reflecting attention to Qing local administration and modern history. In art literature there is the 16-volume Ten Bamboo Studio Painting and Calligraphy Manual. Its author resources include foreign writers Charles Baudelaire and Yasunari Kawabata, translators and annotators Liu Nanqi and Zou Bo, and scholars such as Zhong Shuhe, Bradly W. Reed and You Chenjun. As public information is limited, this characterization is based only on the books in the database, which together present a profile balancing Chinese and foreign literary classics with academic works in the humanities and social sciences.
Contents
- 版权信息
- 编委会
- 赞曰
- 上部
- 卷一 云使
- 前云
- 后云
- 后赞
- 下部
- 卷二 安陀迦颂
- 序
- 后赞
FAQ
What is the core theme of The Cloud Messenger?
What are the features of this translation?
Do I need prior knowledge of Indian mythology to read it?
Comments
Find this book
This site is an index: you start “Search all sources” in your browser, and the entries it lists all point to third-party sites; please judge their availability yourself.
About the author
Kalidasa is a renowned poet and playwright of classical Sanskrit literature in India. Details of his life are now difficult to verify, and public information is limited, so he is usually understood only through his transmitted works and later legends. In this Chinese book database, one of his works is currently included, namely The Cloud Messenger. This work uses a cloud as a messenger to convey the longing of a separated lover for a distant relative. It is rich in imagination, delicate in emotion, and beautiful in language, embodying the typical method of classical Sanskrit poetry, which expresses deep feeling through natural scenery. Kalidasa's writings have had a profound influence in literary history; his works have long been recited and translated, offering later readers an important window into ancient Indian literature and aesthetic traditions.
Jia Qin is an author about whom little public information is available; his nationality, dates of birth and death, and personal background cannot be confirmed at present. According to the records held here, only one work appears under his name, Song of the Cloud Messenger, classified under literature. This work can be regarded as the main textual basis on which the author comes to readers' attention, and it suggests that his writing falls broadly within the scope of literary creation. The title Song of the Cloud Messenger carries vivid imagery and readily calls to mind an expressive approach centered on natural images or a lyrical tone. However, because summaries, publication background, and critical materials are lacking, the book's specific subject matter, structure, and language style cannot be discussed in detail, and speculation would be inappropriate. Overall, Jia Qin is a writer with few works and scant public information, whose creative profile awaits more materials and works; readers may begin with Song of the Cloud Messenger to gradually come to know his verbal interests and expressive tendencies.
