Shloka 12
Satī Desires to Attend Dakṣa’s Sacrifice; Śiva Warns Against the Pain of Relatives’ Insults
पश्य प्रयान्तीरभवान्ययोषितो ऽप्यलड़्क़ृता: कान्तसखा वरूथश: । यासां व्रजद्भि: शितिकण्ठ मण्डितं नभो विमानै: कलहंसपाण्डुभि: ॥ १२ ॥
paśya prayāntīr abhavānya-yoṣito ’py alaṅkṛtāḥ kānta-sakhā varūthaśaḥ yāsāṁ vrajadbhiḥ śiti-kaṇṭha maṇḍitaṁ nabho vimānaiḥ kala-haṁsa-pāṇḍubhiḥ
Behold, O Unborn One, O blue-throated Lord—not only my relatives, but other women as well, clad in fine garments and adorned with ornaments, are going there in groups with their husbands and companions. Their white, swanlike airplanes have made the whole sky exceedingly beautiful.
Here Lord Śiva is addressed as abhava, which means “one who is never born,” although generally he is known as bhava, “one who is born.” Rudra, Lord Śiva, is actually born from between the eyes of Brahmā, who is called Svayambhū because he is not born of any human being or material creature but is born directly from the lotus flower which grows from the abdomen of Viṣṇu. When Lord Śiva is addressed here as abhava, this may be taken to mean “one who has never felt material miseries.” Satī wanted to impress upon her husband that even those who were not related to her father were also going, to say nothing of herself, who was intimately related with him. Lord Śiva is addressed here as blue-throated. Lord Śiva drank an ocean of poison and kept it in his throat, not swallowing it or allowing it to go down to his stomach, and thus his throat became blue. Since then he has been known as nīlakaṇṭha, or blue-throated. The reason that Lord Śiva drank an ocean of poison was for others’ benefit. When the ocean was churned by the demigods and the demons, the churning at first produced poison, so because the poisonous ocean might have affected others who were not so advanced, Lord Śiva drank all the ocean water. In other words, he could drink such a great amount of poison for others’ benefit, and now, since his wife was personally requesting him to go to her father’s house, even if he did not wish to give that permission, he should do so out of his great kindness.
FAQs
This verse shows Satī drawing Śiva’s attention to the festive departure of Bhavānī’s followers, highlighting her strong pull toward the sacrificial event and the social momentum around it.
Satī points out the many women leaving in groups with companions and flying chariots, implicitly urging Śiva to allow her to go as well, since the entire community is participating.
It reminds us how social currents can strongly influence decisions; a devotee should pause and discern whether participation aligns with dharma and devotion, not merely with public enthusiasm.