स्मितदीपप्रभोद्भासि क्षणमानन्दसुन्दरम् । क्षणं व्याप्तं तमःपूरैर्नेष्टं देहगृहं मम ॥ ३३ ॥
smitadīpaprabhōdbhāsi kṣaṇamānandasundaram | kṣaṇaṁ vyāptaṁ tamaḥpūrairnēṣṭaṁ dēhagṛhaṁ mama || 33 ||
Translation
For a moment lit by the lamplight of a smile, for a moment lovely with joy, for a moment filled with floods of darkness: the house of the body is not wanted by me.
Word by word
- smita
- of a smile
- dīpa
- by the lamp
- prabhā
- light
- udbhāsi
- lit
- kṣaṇam
- for a moment
- ānanda
- with joy
- sundaram
- lovely
- kṣaṇaṁ
- for a moment
- vyāptaṁ
- filled
- tamaḥ
- of darkness
- pūrair
- (pūraiḥ) with floods
- na
- not
- iṣṭaṁ
- wanted
- dēha
- of the body
- gṛhaṁ
- the house
- mama
- by me
Meaning
A house at night is lit for a moment by a lamp, cheerful; then the lamp goes out and darkness floods in. The body's lamp is the smile; its joy lasts a moment; then the darkness of ignorance, as the commentary says, fills it again. The repeated "for a moment" (kṣaṇam) carries the meaning. No light in this house lasts. The reader is asked to notice how quickly their moods change, and what that says about building happiness on them.