कन्यासंप्रदानम्The giving of the bride
Verse 253
दाता कामो गृहीताऽपि कामायाऽदाच्च कामिनीम् । कामेन त्वां प्रगृह्णामि कामः पूर्णोऽस्तु चावयोः ॥ २५३ ॥
dātā kāmō gṛhītā’pi kāmāyā’dācca kāminīm | kāmēna tvāṁ pragṛhṇāmi kāmaḥ pūrṇō’stu cāvayōḥ || 253 ||
Translation
"Kāma is the giver, Kāma the receiver too; Kāma gave the beloved to Kāma. With love I take you: may the love of us both be fulfilled."
Word by word
- dātā
- the giver
- kāmaḥ
- (kāmaḥ) Kāma
- gṛhītā
- the receiver
- api
- too
- kāmāya
- (kāmāya) to Kāma
- adāt
- gave
- ca
- and
- kāminīm
- (kāminīm) the beloved
- kāmēna
- with love
- tvāṁ
- you
- pragṛhṇāmi
- I take
- pūrṇaḥ
- (pūrṇaḥ) fulfilled
- astu
- may be
- āvayōḥ
- of us both
Meaning
The praise of Kāma: love, desire, is at work on both sides. The father gives out of his wish, the bridegroom takes out of his; Kāma, the god of love, is giver and receiver, and gives the beloved woman (kāminī) to himself. The bridegroom then addresses his wife directly.
Commentary
Hariharānanda Bhāratī’s Sanskrit commentary, translated
He gives the praise of Kāma itself, "dātā kāmaḥ". Kāma is the giver, Kāma alone is the receiver; Kāma gave the beloved woman (kāminī) to Kāma. "O wife, with love (kāma) I take you; may the love (kāma) of us two be fulfilled."