Shloka 27
The Account of Sukalā (Vena-Episode Continuation): Padmāvatī, Gobhila’s Deception, and the Threat of a Curse
कथं भोक्ष्याम्यहं गत्वा कामो मामति पीडयेत् । अभुक्त्वैनां यदा यास्ये तत्स्यान्मृत्युर्ममैव हि
kathaṃ bhokṣyāmyahaṃ gatvā kāmo māmati pīḍayet | abhuktvaināṃ yadā yāsye tatsyānmṛtyurmamaiva hi
میں جا کر اس سے کیسے کامرانی حاصل کروں، جب خواہش مجھے اس قدر سخت ستا رہی ہے؟ اگر میں اسے بغیر پائے واپس لوٹ جاؤں تو وہ میرے لیے یقیناً موت ہی ہوگی۔
Unspecified (context required from surrounding verses in Bhūmi-khaṇḍa 49)
Concept: Unchecked kāma is experienced as bondage and even ‘death’; desire’s tyranny eclipses discernment.
Application: Notice craving’s catastrophizing (‘I cannot live without it’); pause, redirect attention to japa/puja/service, and avoid impulsive choices made under agitation.
Primary Rasa: shringara
Secondary Rasa: karuna
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"A lone figure sits in a dim inner chamber, head bowed, hands clenched, as if crushed by an invisible weight of longing. Shadows coil around him like smoke, while a distant doorway glows faintly—suggesting the moral exit he cannot yet choose.","primary_figures":["Gobhila (or the desiring protagonist)"],"setting":"palace interior or secluded room with a low lamp, curtained doorway, and scattered ornaments symbolizing temptation","lighting_mood":"temple lamp-lit","color_palette":["deep maroon","smoky indigo","lamp-gold","ashen gray","muted sandalwood beige"],"tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore painting style: a richly dressed man seated in anguish within a palace chamber, heavy gold-leaf borders and halo-like lamp glow, ornate pillars, jewel-toned reds and greens, embossed ornaments scattered near his feet symbolizing temptation, expressive eyes showing torment, traditional South Indian detailing.","pahari_prompt":"Pahari miniature style: an introspective figure in a quiet room, delicate linework and soft shading, cool twilight palette, a small oil lamp casting a gentle pool of light, lyrical minimalism, refined facial expression of longing and fear, patterned textiles and a distant doorway hinting escape.","kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural style: bold black outlines, stylized anguished face with large eyes, warm red-yellow-green palette, interior chamber with lamp and curling dark motifs representing kāma, traditional mural ornamentation framing the scene.","pichwai_prompt":"Pichwai cloth painting style: symbolic composition where dark floral-vine motifs of desire encircle a human figure, while a small central lotus and faint Vishnu-padma motif suggest the devotional alternative; intricate borders, deep blues and gold, temple-textile aesthetic."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"dramatic","suggested_raga":"Bhairavi","pace":"moderate-narrative","voice_tone":"emotional","sound_elements":["low drone (tanpura)","soft temple bells in distance","night insects","brief silence between lines"]}
Sandhi Resolution Notes: भोक्ष्याम्यहं = भोक्ष्यामि + अहम्; मामति = माम् + अति; अभुक्त्वैनाम् = अभुक्त्वा + एनाम्; तत्स्यान्मृत्युर्ममैव = तत् + स्यात् + मृत्युः + मम + एव (तत्+स्यात्→तत्स्यात्; त्+म→न्; ः+म→र्म)।
FAQs
It depicts overpowering kāma (desire) and the speaker’s sense that unfulfilled passion feels unbearable—so severe that leaving without gratification is equated with “death.”
As a standalone line, it reports the speaker’s inner compulsion rather than prescribing it. In Purāṇic narratives, such admissions commonly function as a warning about the force of lust and the ethical peril it can create.
Unchecked desire can distort judgment and make a person feel enslaved to impulse. The implied lesson is to cultivate restraint (dama) and discernment (viveka) before desire dictates action.