Canonical Ref: SL 91
Sanskrit (Devanāgarī)
पदन्यासक्रीडापरिचयमिवारब्धुमनसः
स्खलन्तस्ते खेलं भवनकलहंसान न जहति ।
अतस्तेषां शिक्षां सुभगमणिमञ्जीररणित-
च्छलादाचक्षाणं चरणकमलं चारुचरिते ॥ ९१॥
स्खलन्तस्ते खेलं भवनकलहंसान न जहति ।
अतस्तेषां शिक्षां सुभगमणिमञ्जीररणित-
च्छलादाचक्षाणं चरणकमलं चारुचरिते ॥ ९१॥
English Scholarly Translation
O beautiful-moving one! The inexperienced palace geese, stumbling as if
trying to begin to acquire familiarity with the play of your footstep-placement, do not abandon your
sport. Therefore, O beautiful-moving one, your lotus-foot — under the pretext of the ringing of its
beautiful gem-anklets — is teaching them their lesson.
trying to begin to acquire familiarity with the play of your footstep-placement, do not abandon your
sport. Therefore, O beautiful-moving one, your lotus-foot — under the pretext of the ringing of its
beautiful gem-anklets — is teaching them their lesson.
व्याख्या / Traditional Commentary & Notes
Classical Exegesis
【Title: The Feet That Teach the Palace Geese Their Dance】
The haṃsa (goose or swan) gait is celebrated in Sanskrit poetry as the
most graceful natural walk — the haṃsa-gati (goose-step) is the standard comparison for a
beautiful woman's walk. This verse inverts the compliment: the Goddess walks so beautifully that even
the palace geese cannot imitate her and stumble trying. The pretense (chala) is that the foot's
anklets are "teaching" the geese by ringing out the rhythm — as if offering a music lesson.
Āranabdhum (trying to begin) places the geese at the earliest stage of learning, underscoring
how impossibly graceful the Goddess's gait is.
Padaccheda: पद-न्यास-क्रीडा-परिचयम् इव · आरब्धुम् · अनसः · स्खलन्तः · ते · खेलम् · भवन-कलहंसान् · न ·
जहति · अतः · तेषाम् · शिक्षाम् · सुभग-मणि-मञ्जीर-रणित-च्छलात् · आचक्षाणम् · चरण-कमलम् · चारु-चरिते
Canonical CTS URN Reference
Saundaryalaharī, SL 91. Poorvam Open Research Engine (PORE) Corpus.