Design and Rhetoric in a Sanskrit Court Epic: The Kiratarjuniya of Bharavi

Indira Viswanathan Peterson provides an introduction to the Sanskrit court epic (mahaμkaμvya), an important genre in classical Indian poetry, and the first study of a celebrated sixth-century poem, the Kiraμtaμrjuniμya (Arjuna and the Hunter) of Bhaμravi. Sanskrit court epics are shown to be characterized both by formalism and a deep engagement with enduring Indian values.

The Kiraμtaμrjuniμya is the earliest literary treatment of the narrative of the Paμn