Sattasaí

An anthology of ancient Indian poetry. Poems by various male and female authors were compiled into a collection titled Sattasai, traditionally by King Hāla of the Sātavāhana dynasty, who ruled in the early 1st century in the territory of modern-day Andhra Pradesh. According to other versions, the anthology's creation is dated to roughly the 2nd to 4th centuries AD. This so-called 'Collection of Seven Hundred Stanzas' contains verses inspired by the beauty of nature, rural life, and above all, the joys and torments of love. In them, we encounter shepherds, a miller's wife, gardeners, and hunters. The lyrical poems, occasionally sparkling with humour, are written in Prakrit, which—unlike the 'high' Sanskrit—is the vernacular, full of earthiness and playfulness. Selected verses from this anthology were translated and poetically rendered by Oldřich Friš in 1947. Nearly eighty years later, the leading Czech actress Alena Vránová has breathed new life into them with her extraordinary performance. 'I have had the SATTASAI collection in my library for many years and I often love to return to it. I wished to recite it aloud. Now you can listen to my performance of it. I believe it will delight you!' – Alena Vránová 'I listened to it over and over again for a few days. Each time, the story unfolded more for me. I haven't read any poetry for a long time; the narrative has many layers, and Alena Vránová has narrated it brilliantly. There's a great deal of acting prowess in it! Truly, hats off to her.' – Ilona Polanski, a leading Czech illustrator (including for this cover and the audiobook packaging). My husband's away and the night is dark. The walls groan with loneliness. Come, neighbour, to my aid, what if thieves should come. On the water lily leaves motionless in the shade a flamingo sat, as if upon a patch of pure turquoise it had cast a gleam of pearls. Secretly and hidden you love me and I love you: when one of us dies, under what pretext will the other don mourning clothes? He gazes at her, entranced, she drowns herself in him, thus blissfully they both stand, as if they were alone in the world. – excerpts from the text