Sanskrit messenger poems evoke the pain of separated sweethearts through the formula of an estranged lover pleading with a messenger to take a message to his or her beloved. The plea includes a
lyrical description of the route the messenger will take, as well as the message itself.
In the fifth century C.E., Sanskrit's finest poet, Kali dasa, composed "The Cloud Messenger." The beautiful and pure expression of an exiled lover's longing is among the best known and most
treasured of all Sanskrit poems.
In the twelfth century, Dhoyi imitated Kali dasa's masterpiece in "The Wind Messenger." Dhoyi's sentiments of love are blended with praise of the poet's royal patron King Lakshmana sena of
Gauda (Bengal).
Numerous more followed, including the third in the CSL selection, the sixteenth-century "Swan Messenger," composed also in Bengal by Rupa Go svamin, a devotee of Krishna. Here romantic and
religious love combine in a poem that shines with the intensity of love for the god Krishna.
