Devotion and refinement. A description of the six seasons in Tulasīdāsa’s Rāmacaritamānasa and Keśavadāsa’s Rāmacandrikā

The poetic description of the six seasons is a typical kāvya literature theme that was dealt with by two classical Hindi authors such as Tulasīdāsa and Keśavadāsa in their masterpieces about Rāma’s story. Having recourse to ṣaḍṛtu’s poetic theme, these two authors merged their own stylistic trend with a traditional feature which completely matched the topic of Rāma's story. The latter, being a widespread theme, has become associated by now with theological implications besides its epic significance. Both poets had a precise awareness of the literary value of nature elements such as the six seasons. Nevertheless, Tulasīdāsa’s point of view seems not purely naturalistic, since, even when describing nature on its own, he perceives divine references. Thus his use of traditional poetic elements such as the six seasons serves his syncretistic tendency in literature as well as in religion. Keśavadāsa, instead, draws upon the canonical theme of the six seasons in terms of its original poetic value, in order to express his affiliation to kāvya literature. Due to items such as the six seasons, belonging to the Sanskrit poetic inheritance, Hindi authors could create an autonomous literary heritage for the Hindi language.