Sakuntala Quotes

Author

Kalidasa

"beauty finds its ornaments anywhere"

King is saying this about Sakuntala- she's so beautiful she doesnt need extravangant clothes

"a tangle of duckweed adorns a lotus"

Shringara- dark blue- erotic- basically this is the king saying dayyyyum sakuntala

" when he saw the ring, the king remembered that he has married sakuntala in secret and had rejected her in his delusion. since then the king has been tortured by remorse"

chamberlain says this, king is regretting being a dick to sakuntala - his memory came back

"a hunter's belly is taut and lean, his slender body craves exertion; he penetrates the spirit of creatures overcome by fear and rage; his bowman ship is proved by arrows striking a moving target- hunting is falsely called a vice. what sport can rival it?"

general is saying this in a stage whisper to the buffoon

"when i don't even recognize the blunders I commit everyday, how can I keep track of where my subjects stray?"

king asking himself a question- how can i screw up all the time and lead others---- if your dharma is to be a leader it will take a toll on your body, physically

"a lover dare not act on his impulsive thoughts"

king saying this to himself

"only let my thirsting mouth gently drink from your lips, the way a bee sips nectar from a fragile virgin blossom"

king saying this to sakuntala after she's like let me talk to my friends for advice

"let it be! i see the majesty of branham bravery. Friend, where may I sit to divert my eyes with vines that remind me of my love?"

king says this to buffoon he's depressed and is like where can i go to think about her

"in my delusion i once ignored a teardrop burning your lip- let me dry the tear on your lash to end the pain of remorse!"

king says this to saktunala when he meets his son- a second chance, a "second tear"-there's always a second chance in Indian plays

"and so they say the female sex is cunning"

king says this to sakuntala- this is something jason would say

"bee, you touch the quivering corners of her frightened eyes, you hover softly near to whisper secrets in her ear- a hand brushed you away; but you drink her lips treasure- while the truth we seek

king says this- alluding to birds and bees

"we should not disturb the grove! stop the chariot!... one should not enter an ascetics grove in hunting gear. take these!"

king says this- has a strong sense of dharma- when he says he doesn't want to hunt anymore- he has a good sense of who he is and what the people in the forest are all about-

"must i judge whether i married the flawless beauty they offer me now? i cannot love her or leave her, like a bee near filled with a frost at dawn"

king staring a sakuntala- he's like idk you bitch

"a dark spot heightens the moons glow"

king talking about sakuntala, just remember that colors are considered in indian theater- every intricate detail is there for a reason

"father, tell me when the doe gives birth"

saktunatla telling kanva she's pregnant- its a strange natural moment in time, she has to tell him but there's no man around.. who's the dad? akward for kanva but he understands

"though i long to see my husband, my...with sorrow as I start to leave the hermitage"

sakuntala is saying that as she bows and walks- she imagines them to be properly and legally married... she uses her whole body and stares are her feet- indian theater we focus on whole body versus in western culture we look at the face

"i worship at your feet with my son"

sakuntala says this at the end of the play- its traditional and very sexists- she's literally bending over

"how can i go on living in a strange place, torn from my fathers side, like a vine torn from the side of a sandalwood tree growing on a mountain slope"

sakuntala- keeps using the natural world around her to make sense of it- she has to go

***"all right! i may a be self-willed wanton woman! but it was faith in the Puru dynasty that brought me into the power of a man with honey in his words and poison in his heart"****

sakuntlaa says this to the king, she's pissed he forgot her. this is something medea would say about a man

"my noble husband...(she breaks off when this is half spoken)... since our marriage is in doubt, this is no way to address him. Puru king, you do wrong to reject a simple-hearted person with such words after you deceived her in the hermitage"

sakuntuala talking to the king when she realizes he doesnt recognize her, she doesn't address his by king, just a title because he's no longer her husband

"father will i ever see the grove again?"

sakutnala is saying this kanva- realte to chuang chong nothing stays the same, saktunala has to leave the grove like a kid leaving for college- when they return it isnt the same (bedroom now a work out room)

"my lord casts doubt on our marriage. why were my hopes so high?"

sakutunala talking to the king... she's like you promised....

"so....you slight a guest..... since you blind ignore a great sage like me... like a drunkard who forgets a story he just composed!"

voice offstage she's forgetting her dharma (hospitality) so the sage curses the king for forgetting who she is