Shloka 27

The Greatness of Śrī Rādhāṣṭamī

Rādhā’s Birth-Eighth Observance

Devanagari script

ततो यमाज्ञया दूताः पाशमुद्गरपाणयः । आगतास्तां समानेतुं बबंधुरतिकृच्छ्रतः

Transliteration

tato yamājñayā dūtāḥ pāśamudgarapāṇayaḥ | āgatāstāṃ samānetuṃ babaṃdhuratikṛcchrataḥ

Translation

তাৰপিছত যমৰ আজ্ঞাত, পাশ আৰু মুদ্গৰ হাতত ধৰা দূতসকল তাইক লৈ যাবলৈ আহিল; আৰু অতি কষ্টে তাইক বান্ধিলে।

Word by Word

• tataḥ: then
• tataḥ: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tataḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: Adverb (क्रियाविशेषण) = 'then/thereupon'

• yama-ājñayā: by Yama’s command
• yama-ājñayā: Hetu (हेतु) / Nimitta (निमित्त) (by order of)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yama (प्रातिपदिक) + ājñā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine (स्त्रीलिङ्ग), Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया), Singular (एकवचन); compound: yamasya ājñā (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष) 'Yama’s command'

• dūtāḥ: messengers
• dūtāḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dūta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Plural (बहुवचन)

• pāśa-mudgara-pāṇayaḥ: having nooses and clubs in their hands
• pāśa-mudgara-pāṇayaḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण) of 'dūtāḥ'
• Type: Adjective
• Root: pāśa (प्रातिपदिक) + mudgara (प्रातिपदिक) + pāṇi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Plural (बहुवचन); bahuvrīhi: yeṣāṃ pāśaś ca mudgaraś ca pāṇau (सप्तमी/अधिकरण-भाव) = 'those whose hands hold noose and club'

• āgatāḥ: came
• āgatāḥ: Kriyā (क्रिया) (predicate with 'dūtāḥ')
• Type: Verb
• Root: √gam (गम्) (धातु) → ā-gata (कृदन्त; क्त) with prefix ā-
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Plural (बहुवचन); past participle (क्त) used predicatively = 'having come'

• tām: her
• tām: Karma (कर्म) (object of 'babaṃdhuḥ' / 'samānetum')
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine (स्त्रीलिङ्ग), Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular (एकवचन)

• samānetum: to take/bring (her)
• samānetum: Prayojana (प्रयोजन) (purpose)
• Type: Verb
• Root: sam-ā-√nī (नी) (धातु) → samānetum (तुमुन्)
• Form: Infinitive (तुमुन्) = 'to bring/lead together'

• babaṃdhuḥ: they bound/tied
• babaṃdhuḥ: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √bandh (बन्ध्) (धातु)
• Form: Perfect (लिट्), 3rd person (प्रथमपुरुष), Plural (बहुवचन)

• ati-kṛcchrataḥ: with extreme difficulty
• ati-kṛcchrataḥ: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ati (उपसर्ग/अव्यय) + kṛcchra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Avyayībhāva compound used adverbially; ablative-form adverb (पञ्चमी-अर्थे) = 'with great difficulty/very painfully'

Speaker

Narrator (contextual; specific dialogue speaker not identifiable from this single verse alone)

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: bhayanaka

Secondary Rasa: raudra

Geographic Context

Type: celestial_realm

Sandhi Resolution Notes

Sandhi Resolution Notes: yamājñayā = yama + ājñayā; āgatāstāṃ = āgatāḥ + tām.

Characters & Entities

• Yama
• Yama-dūtas

FAQs

Who are the messengers described in this verse?

They are Yama’s dūtas (messengers/agents), depicted with a pāśa (noose) and mudgara (club), traditional symbols of restraint and punishment in afterlife narratives.

What is the ethical or karmic implication of being ‘bound’ by Yama’s messengers?

The binding signifies the inescapability of karmic consequence: actions generate results that, when ripe, lead the soul to undergo appropriate judgment and experience.

Why does the verse say they bound her ‘with great difficulty’?

It suggests resistance—either physical, spiritual, or karmic—implying the person’s strong attachment, fear, or exceptional circumstance that makes the act of seizing and leading her away unusually hard.