Shiva Purana — Rudra Samhita, Shloka 31
वसन्त-प्रभावः तथा काम-उद्दीपन-वर्णनम् | Spring’s Influence and the Arousal of Kāma
शिव उवाच । कि मुखं किं शशांकश्च किं नेत्रे चोत्पले च किम् । भ्रुकुट्यौ धनुषी चैते कंदर्पस्य महात्मनः
śiva uvāca | ki mukhaṃ kiṃ śaśāṃkaśca kiṃ netre cotpale ca kim | bhrukuṭyau dhanuṣī caite kaṃdarpasya mahātmanaḥ
شِو نے فرمایا— ‘چہرہ کیا ہے اور چاند کیا؟ آنکھیں کیا ہیں اور کنول کیا؟ یہ دونوں کمانی دار بھنویں تو مہاتما کندرپ (کام دیو) کے کمان ہیں۔’
Lord Shiva
Tattva Level: pati
Shiva Form: Umāpati
Type: stotra
Shakti Form: Pārvatī
Role: nurturing
FAQs
Śiva poetically redefines worldly standards of beauty, pointing to how desire (Kāma) operates through the senses, while implying that the devotee should recognize and transcend such sense-born fascination through devotion to Pati (Śiva).
In Saguna worship, devotees may approach Śiva through form, beauty, and līlā; this verse acknowledges the power of attraction yet subtly places it under Śiva’s sovereignty—guiding the mind from sensory charm toward steady Linga-bhakti and inner stillness.
Practice japa of the Pañcākṣarī (“Om Namaḥ Śivāya”) with breath awareness, and consciously withdraw attention from sense-objects (rūpa, rasa, etc.), offering the arising of desire into Śiva as an inner oblation.