Shloka 44

कामशापानुग्रहः (Kāmaśāpānugraha) — “The Curse and Grace Concerning Kāma”

Devanagari script

कथं कामोपि मंदात्मा प्राबल्यात्सोधुनैव हि । विकृतान्बाणैः कृतवानकालज्ञोल्पचेतनः

Transliteration

kathaṃ kāmopi maṃdātmā prābalyātsodhunaiva hi | vikṛtānbāṇaiḥ kṛtavānakālajñolpacetanaḥ

Translation

How indeed has Kāma—though dull-minded, driven by force and arrogance—just now acted with his distorted arrows, being untimely in judgment and small in understanding?

Word by Word

• katham: how?
• katham: Prayojaka (प्रश्न)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: katham (अव्यय)
• Form: Interrogative adverb (प्रश्न-अव्यय)

• kāmaḥ: Kāma (god of desire)
• kāmaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kāma (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुं), Nominative (प्रथमा/1), Singular (एकवचन)

• api: even; also
• api: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: api (अव्यय)
• Form: Nipāta (निपात) ‘also/even’

• manda-ātmā: dull-minded one
• manda-ātmā: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: manda (प्रातिपदिक) + ātman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Karmadhāraya (कर्मधारय) ‘mandaḥ ātmā yasya/manda ātmā’; Masculine (पुं), Nominative (प्रथमा/1), Singular (एकवचन)

• prābalyāt: from (his) strength; due to force
• prābalyāt: Hetu (हेतु)
• Type: Noun
• Root: prābalya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter (नपुंसक), Ablative (पञ्चमी/5), Singular (एकवचन)

• saḥ: he
• saḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Pronoun, Masculine, Nominative, Singular; refers to Kāma

• dhunā: now
• dhunā: Kāla (काल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: dhunā (अव्यय)
• Form: Adverb (कालवाचक-अव्यय) ‘now/just now’

• eva: indeed; just
• eva: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (अव्यय)
• Form: Emphatic particle (निपात)

• hi: for; indeed
• hi: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: hi (अव्यय)
• Form: Particle (निपात) giving reason/emphasis

• vikṛtān: distorted; strange
• vikṛtān: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vikṛta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुं), Accusative (द्वितीया/2), Plural (बहुवचन); qualifies ‘bāṇān’ (implied)

• bāṇaiḥ: with arrows
• bāṇaiḥ: Karaṇa (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bāṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुं), Instrumental (तृतीया/3), Plural (बहुवचन)

• kṛtavān: did; has done
• kṛtavān: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: kṛ (धातु) → kṛtavat (कृदन्त, क्तवत्)
• Form: Periphrastic perfect/agentive past (क्तवत् used predicatively), Masculine (पुं), Nominative (प्रथमा/1), Singular; ‘has done/did’

• akāla-jñaḥ: one who does not know the proper time
• akāla-jñaḥ: Karta-sāmānādhikaraṇa (कर्तृ-सामानाधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: a (नञ्) + kāla (प्रातिपदिक) + jña (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Tatpuruṣa with negation (नञ्-तत्पुरुष) ‘not knowing time’; Masculine, Nominative, Singular; qualifies subject

• alpa-cetanaḥ: of little understanding
• alpa-cetanaḥ: Karta-sāmānādhikaraṇa (कर्तृ-सामानाधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: alpa (प्रातिपदिक) + cetana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Karmadhāraya (कर्मधारय) ‘alpaḥ cetanaḥ’; Masculine, Nominative, Singular; qualifies subject

Speaker

Suta Goswami

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pasha

Shiva Form: Mahādeva

Jyotirlinga Context

Sthala Purana: Not a Jyotirliṅga narrative; it personifies kāma as a binding power whose ‘distorted arrows’ disrupt propriety—an emblem of pāśa operating under concealment (tirodhāna) until checked by Śiva’s supremacy.

Significance: Moral-theological lesson: recognize kāma as a force that deranges discernment (akālajña); encourages turning to Śiva for mastery over desire.

Characters & Entities

• Kama

FAQs

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

The verse critiques Kāma as “akalajña” and “alpacetana,” indicating that desire, when impulsive and arrogant, becomes a binding force (pāśa) that disrupts dharma; Shaiva Siddhanta emphasizes mastering such impulses through Shiva-bhakti and grace.

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

In the Sati narrative, desire attempts to disturb Shiva’s ascetic absorption; worship of Saguna Shiva in the Liṅga form centers the mind in the Lord, transforming restless kāma into devotion and steadiness.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

A practical takeaway is japa of the Pañcākṣarī mantra (Om Namaḥ Śivāya) with restraint of the senses, supported by simple Shaiva observances like vibhūti (tripuṇḍra) and mindful meditation to overcome impulsive desire.