In this episode, we dive into the enchanting world of Abhijnana Shakuntala, the immortal Sanskrit play by the great poet Kalidasa. It is a tale of love, destiny, and divine reunion.

Shakuntala, the gentle daughter of sage Vishwamitra and the celestial nymph Menaka, grows up in the peaceful forest hermitage of Sage Kanva. One day, King Dushyanta arrives while hunting and meets Shakuntala. Their eyes meet, and a tender love blossoms. The two marry in secret through the Gandharva custom, and Dushyanta gives her a royal ring as a token of remembrance.

But fate plays a cruel trick — the sage Durvasa, angered when Shakuntala fails to greet him lost in her thoughts of love, curses her that the one she dreams of will forget her. Only when Dushyanta sees the ring again will he remember her.

When Shakuntala travels to the palace, she loses the ring in a river — swallowed by a fish. Dushyanta, unable to recognize her, turns her away. Heartbroken, Shakuntala vanishes into divine care. Later, when the lost ring is found, Dushyanta’s memory returns, and he repents deeply. In the end, guided by fate and the gods, he reunites with Shakuntala and their little son Bharata, the future emperor of India.

This timeless story reminds us that true love, though tested by time and fate, always finds its way back