Verse 18

Yagyavalkya

Sanskrit (Devanagari)

केशकज्जलधारिण्यो दुःस्पर्शा लोचनप्रियाः ।

दुष्कृताग्निशिखा नार्यो दहन्ति तृणवन्नरम् ॥१८॥

Padapatha (Word Split)

केश-कज्जल-धारिण्यः । दुः-स्पर्शाः । लोचन-प्रियाः ।

दुष्कृत-अग्नि-शिखाः । नार्यः । दहन्ति । तृण-वत् । नरम् ॥१८॥

IAST Transliteration

keśakajjaladhāriṇyo duḥsparśā locanapriyāḥ |

duṣkṛtāgniśikhā nāryo dahanti tṛṇavan naram ||18||

Translation

முடியும் மைவும் (காஜல்) அணிந்தவர்கள், தொடுதற்கு கடினமாயினும் கண்களுக்கு இனியவர்கள்—தீயகர்மத்தின் அக்கினிச் சுடர்போல் பெண்கள் ஆணை புல்லைப் போலச் சுட்டெரிக்கச் செய்கின்றனர்॥১৮॥

Academic Translation

Women, bearing hair and collyrium, hard to touch yet pleasing to the eyes—like flames of the fire of misdeeds—burn a man as if (he were) grass.

Verse Context

• Kāma–rāga as bondage; vairāgya and indriya-nigraha (sense-control) as aids to mokṣa
• Mahavakya: Indirect: emphasizes removal of obstacles (rāga-dveṣa) so that mahāvākya contemplation can culminate in aparokṣa-jñāna; no direct mahāvākya content.
• Yajur
• Śukla-Yajurveda (Vājasaneyī) Shakha
• Chandas: Anuṣṭubh (śloka)