This book uses the perspectives of humanistic geography and classical philology to explore the representation of space in Kālidāsa’s works. It identifies three spatial levels – macro, mezzo and micro – reflecting the focaliser’s movement within the narratives. Readers of this book are invited to embark on an imaginary journey to Kālidāsa’s world, where places from his time and his imagination are revealed simultaneously. This journey provides an opportunity to accompany Raghu on his conquest of the Earth, sit beside Rāma in his aerial car, and to fly with the Cloud Messenger to discover Kālidāsa’s vision of harmony between civilisation and nature.

Péter Száler is employed as an assistant research fellow in the Department of Indian Studies at Eötvös Loránd University in Budapest. As an Indian mythology specialist, he is a member of an ELTE research group investigating the process of canonisation in South Asia. His recent works cover Sanskrit epics and purāṇas, paying particular attention to the figure of Kṛṣṇa and recurring motifs in mythological stories. He is deeply committed to introducing and popularising Indian mythology to Hungarian readers.