Shloka 9

घनागमवर्णनम् / Description of the Monsoon’s Onset

Satī’s Address to Śiva

Devanagari script

स्निग्धनीलांजनस्याशु सदिवौघस्य पृष्ठतः । बलाकराजी वात्युच्चैर्यमुनापृष्ठफेनवत्

Transliteration

snigdhanīlāṃjanasyāśu sadivaughasya pṛṣṭhataḥ | balākarājī vātyuccairyamunāpṛṣṭhaphenavat

Translation

Hinter der rasch ziehenden Wolkenmasse—dunkel, glänzend, blau wie Anjana—erschien eine Reihe von Kranichen, vom Wind hoch emporgetrieben, gleich dem Schaum, der auf dem Rücken der Yamunā dahingleitet.

Word by Word

• snigdha-nīla-aṃjanasya: of smooth dark collyrium
• snigdha-nīla-aṃjanasya: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: snigdha (प्रातिपदिक) + nīla (प्रातिपदिक) + aṃjana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Genitive (6th/षष्ठी), Singular (एकवचन); कर्मधारय-समासः: 'snigdhaṃ nīlam aṃjanam' (smooth dark collyrium)

• āśu: quickly; at once
• āśu: Kriya-viseshana (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: āśu (अव्यय)
• Form: Adverb (काल/रीतिवाचक अव्यय)

• sat-iva: as if (it were)
• sat-iva: Upamana-dyotaka (उपमान-द्योतक)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: sat (अव्यय/प्रातिपदिक) + iva (अव्यय)
• Form: Comparative expression; 'sat' used adverbially = 'as if/like (being)'; iva = upamā-particle (उपमावाचक)

• aughasya: of a flood/stream
• aughasya: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ogha/augha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Genitive (6th/षष्ठी), Singular (एकवचन)

• pṛṣṭhataḥ: from behind; at the back
• pṛṣṭhataḥ: Apadana/Adhikarana (अपादान/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: pṛṣṭhataḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: Indeclinable postposition/adverb (अव्यय) meaning 'from behind/at the back of'

• balāka-rājī: a line of cranes
• balāka-rājī: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: balāka (प्रातिपदिक) + rājī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine (स्त्रीलिङ्ग), Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular (एकवचन); षष्ठी/तत्पुरुषप्रायः: 'balākānāṃ rājī' = row/line of cranes

• vāti: blows
• vāti: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √vā वा (धातु)
• Form: Present tense (लट्), Parasmaipada (परस्मैपद), 3rd person (प्रथमपुरुष), Singular (एकवचन)

• uccaiḥ: high/loudly
• uccaiḥ: Kriya-viseshana (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: uccaiḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: Adverb (क्रियाविशेषण अव्यय)

• yamunā-pṛṣṭha-phena-vat: like the foam on the surface of the Yamunā
• yamunā-pṛṣṭha-phena-vat: Kriya-viseshana/Upamana (क्रियाविशेषण/उपमान)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: yamunā (प्रातिपदिक) + pṛṣṭha (प्रातिपदिक) + phena (प्रातिपदिक) + vat (तद्धित प्रत्यय)
• Form: Indeclinable-like adjectival form with -vat (वत्-प्रत्ययान्त), used as upamā: 'like the foam on Yamunā's surface'; internal tatpuruṣa: yamunāyāḥ pṛṣṭha-phenaḥ

Speaker

Sūta Gosvāmin

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pasha

Shiva Form: Mahadeva

Characters & Entities

• Yamunā

FAQs

What is the spiritual significance of this verse in the Shiva Purana?

The verse uses nature-imagery—dark clouds and a wind-swept line of cranes—to convey a charged atmosphere of impending change. In a Shaiva Siddhanta lens, such shifting phenomena remind the devotee that worldly conditions are transient (pāśa-bound), while refuge in Pati (Śiva) alone is steady.

How does this verse relate to the worship of the Linga or Saguna Shiva?

Though it is not a direct linga-ritual verse, it supports Saguna devotion by portraying the universe as responsive within Śiva’s governance. The devotee learns to turn from external turbulence (omens, fear, uncertainty) toward stable worship—dhyāna and pūjā—of Śiva’s manifest form.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

A practical takeaway is to steady the mind when signs appear: recite the Pañcākṣarī mantra ("Om Namaḥ Śivāya") with breath-awareness, and, if following Shaiva practice, apply Tripuṇḍra (bhasma) as a reminder of impermanence and surrender to Śiva.