The killing of Shishupala
Magha
The killing of Shishupala Magha ; edited and translated by Paul Dundas. - Cambridge : Harvard University Press, ©2017 - xxxvi, 784 p. ; 22 cm. - Murty classical library of India ; 11 .
Includes bibliographical references and index.
Magha's The Killing of Shishupala, written in the seventh century, is a celebrated example of the Sanskrit genre known as mahākāvya, or great poem. This adaptation from the epic Mahābhārata tells the story of Shishupala, who disrupts Yudhishthira's coronation by refusing to honor Krishna, the king's principal ally and a manifestation of divinity. When Shishupala challenges Krishna to combat, he is immediately beheaded. Magha, who was likely a court poet in western India, draws on the rich stylistic resources of Sanskrit poetry to imbue his work with unparalleled sophistication. He expands the narrative's cosmic implications through elaborate depictions of the natural world and intense erotic sensuality, mixing myth and classical erudition with scenes of political debate and battlefield slaughter. Krishna is variously portrayed as refined prince, formidable warrior, and incarnation of the god Vishnu protecting the world from demonic threat. With this translation of The Killing of Shishupala, presented alongside the original text in Devanagari script, English readers for the first time gain access to a masterwork that has dazzled Indian audiences for a thousand years.--
This is a facing-page volume in English and Sanskrit.
9780674545618
2016015542
Krishna (Hindu deity) --Poetry--Early works to 1800.
Death--Poetry--Early works to 1800.
PK3798.M215 / S513 2017
REF 891.21 / MAG-K
The killing of Shishupala Magha ; edited and translated by Paul Dundas. - Cambridge : Harvard University Press, ©2017 - xxxvi, 784 p. ; 22 cm. - Murty classical library of India ; 11 .
Includes bibliographical references and index.
Magha's The Killing of Shishupala, written in the seventh century, is a celebrated example of the Sanskrit genre known as mahākāvya, or great poem. This adaptation from the epic Mahābhārata tells the story of Shishupala, who disrupts Yudhishthira's coronation by refusing to honor Krishna, the king's principal ally and a manifestation of divinity. When Shishupala challenges Krishna to combat, he is immediately beheaded. Magha, who was likely a court poet in western India, draws on the rich stylistic resources of Sanskrit poetry to imbue his work with unparalleled sophistication. He expands the narrative's cosmic implications through elaborate depictions of the natural world and intense erotic sensuality, mixing myth and classical erudition with scenes of political debate and battlefield slaughter. Krishna is variously portrayed as refined prince, formidable warrior, and incarnation of the god Vishnu protecting the world from demonic threat. With this translation of The Killing of Shishupala, presented alongside the original text in Devanagari script, English readers for the first time gain access to a masterwork that has dazzled Indian audiences for a thousand years.--
This is a facing-page volume in English and Sanskrit.
9780674545618
2016015542
Krishna (Hindu deity) --Poetry--Early works to 1800.
Death--Poetry--Early works to 1800.
PK3798.M215 / S513 2017
REF 891.21 / MAG-K