Mahakavya, also known as sargabandha, is a genre of Indian epic poetry in Classical Sanskrit, characterized by ornate and elaborate descriptions of scenery, love and battles; typical examples include the Kumarasambhava and the Kiratarjuniya. The genre evolved from the earlier epics the Mahabharata and the Ramayana, though a mahakavya, typically fifteen to thirty cantos and roughly fifteen hundred to three thousand verses long, is far shorter than either.
Facts
Place of OriginClassical Sanskrit literature of India; the genre evolved from the earlier epics the Mahabharata and the Ramayana. 1 Notable ExampleKalidasa's Kumarasambhava (5th century CE), one of the five traditionally recognized model mahakavyas, telling of the wedding of Shiva and Parvati and the birth of Kumara in seventeen cantos. 1 Defining TraitOrnate and elaborate descriptions of scenery, love and battles, with more emphasis on description than on narration; composed of a varying number of cantos in a metre fitting the subject matter of each. 1 Defining Trait FAQs
Which works are traditionally counted as model mahakavyas?
Tradition names five: Kālidāsa's Kumārasambhava and Raghuvaṃśa, Bharavi's Kiratarjuniya, Shriharsha's Naiśadha-carita and Māgha's Śiśupāla-vadha. A sixth, Bhaṭṭi's Bhaṭṭikāvya, is sometimes added; it describes the events of the Ramayana while illustrating the principles of Sanskrit grammar.
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Subgenre Of
Epic, Genres Source Mahakavya (Wikipedia)
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Source Mahakavya (Wikipedia)tier 2
Sources
1. Mahakavya (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia FoundationLead section, sentence 2
The genre is characterised by ornate and elaborate descriptions of phenomena such as scenery, love, and battles.
Classical examples section
Kumārasambhava by Kālidāsa in 5th century CE: the wedding of Shiva and Parvati, and the birth of Kumara, in 17 cantos
Lead section, paragraph 2
The genre evolved from earlier epics, the Mahabharata and the Ramayana.
Lead paragraph, defining sentence
Mahākāvya (lit. great kāvya, court epic), also known as sargabandha, is a genre of Indian epic poetry in Classical Sanskrit.
Subgenre Of: Epic, Lead paragraph
is a genre of Indian epic poetry in Classical Sanskrit
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