The Story of Kalidas(Meghdoot)
The Story of Kalidas(Meghdoot)
The king of the Yakshas was called Kubera. Alakapuri was the capital of his kingdom. It was situated in the Himalays.This incident took place long, long ago. One of the Yakshas was entrusted with the duty of bringing flowers to the king every morning. He was easy-going and fond of his wife. One day he chatted with his wife late into the night. Next morning he got up late. As a result, he was late in taking flowers to Kubera.
Kubera was very angry with the Yaksha and as a punishment, he banished the Yaksha from his kingdom for one year. The Yaksha left Alakapuri and went alone to the south. He made his abode on the Ramgiri mountain. The Yaksha was heart-broken and spent the first eight months of his exile, in extreme suffering. He longed to be with his wife.
It was the first of Ashadha. The rain-laden clouds hung in the sky and roused the waves of joy in the hearts of the living beings. Deep longings stirred in the hearts of the Yaksha and he felt very miserable, as he was separated from his wife by long distance and had yet to spend four more months in this wretched condition. He could not remain unmoved at his own pitiable condition.In that state of mind, he spoke to a cloud, as if he was talking to a living being.
He thus addressed the cloud:
"O cloud, my brother, you give succour to the distressed. Kubera's anger banished me from my home. Here, far away from my home and wife, 1 am lonely and unhappy. O brother cloud, please help me and take my message to my wife."Then the Yaksha instructed the cloud how to reach Alakapuri.
’’Passing through Maldesh, Vindhyachal, Vidisha, Ujjain, Brahmavart, Kurukshetra and Kankhal, climb up the Himalayas. In the Himalayas, you shall see many charming and beautiful places. Beyond them, rise higher to the Kailash, the abode of the gods. Here in its lap lies Alakapuri which you can identify by its magnificent palaces kissing the sky. The luminous women of Alakapuri are bewitching in their beauty and bedeck themselves with sweet scented, multi-coloured flowers to heighten their charm.
