Kalidasa Translations of Shakuntala and Other Works

Nothing apart from his works is known with certainty about the life of K?lid?sa such as where he lived or the dates of his birth and death. According to legend he was known for his beauty which brought him to the attention of Princess Vidyottama and she married him. However as legend has it K?lid?sa had grown up without much education and the princess was ashamed of his ignorance and coarseness. A devoted worshipper of Kali (by other accounts of Saraswati) K?lid?sa is said to have called upon his goddess for help when he was going to commit suicide in a well after he was humiliated by his wife and was rewarded with a sudden and extraordinary gift of wit. He is then said to have become the most brilliant of the nine gems at the court of the king Vikramaditya of Ujjain. Legend also has it that he was murdered by a courtesan in Sri Lanka during the reign of Kumaradasa.