Shloka 31
Pātivratya-kathana
The Narrative of the Pativrata
सुकुमारोऽपि तन्वंगीं पीनोरुजघनस्तनीम् । मेने वर्षायुतसमामात्मानं च त्रिवत्सरम् ॥ ३१ ॥
sukumāro'pi tanvaṃgīṃ pīnorujaghanastanīm | mene varṣāyutasamāmātmānaṃ ca trivatsaram || 31 ||
താൻ സുകുമാരയൗവനനായിരുന്നിട്ടും, സുന്ദരസൂക്ഷ്മാംഗിയായ—പുഷ്ടമായ തുടകളും നിതംബവും സ്തനങ്ങളും ഉള്ള—ആ സ്ത്രീയെ പത്തായിരം വർഷം പ്രായമുള്ളവളെന്നപോലെ കരുതി; താനോ മൂന്നു വയസ്സുകാരനെന്നപോലെ വിചാരിച്ചു.
Narrator (within the Narada Purana’s Uttara-bhaga narration)
Vrata: none
Primary Rasa: shringara
Secondary Rasa: adbhuta
FAQs
It highlights how desire distorts perception: even a youthful person can project exaggerated maturity onto an attractive object, revealing the mind’s delusion (moha) and the need for self-mastery.
By showing the mind’s tendency to be captivated by sensual appearance, the verse implicitly points to bhakti—steady remembrance of Bhagavan—as a purifying counter-force that redirects attention from sense-objects to the divine.
Vyākaraṇa/semantic precision is relevant: compounds like pīnorujaghanastanīm compress descriptive meaning, showing how Sanskrit structure conveys psychological emphasis; the practical takeaway is careful reading of compounds to grasp narrative intent.