किञ्जल्काम्भोजवलिता भ्रमद्भृङ्गकदम्बका । सीत्कारगायदामोदिमधुरानिललोलिता ॥ १८ ॥
kiñjalkāmbhōjavalitā bhramadbhṛṅgakadambakā | sītkāragāyadāmōdimadhurānilalōlitā || 18 ||
Translation
it was wreathed with lotuses full of their filaments, with swarms of bees circling, and it was stirred by a sweet, fragrant breeze that sang with a soft hissing;
Word by word
- kiñjalka
- full of their filaments
- ambhōja
- with lotuses
- valitā
- it was wreathed
- bhramad
- (bhramat) circling
- bhṛṅga
- of bees
- kadambakā
- with swarms
- sītkāra
- with a soft hissing
- gāyad
- (gāyat) that sang
- āmōdi
- fragrant
- madhura
- sweet
- anila
- by a breeze
- lōlitā
- it was stirred
Meaning
The rain is alive. Lotuses with their golden filaments (kiñjalka) fall in it, with bees circling round them; and a breeze, sweet and scented, moves it gently. The breeze "sings with a hiss" (sītkāra-gāyat), the sound people make, the commentary says, when a touch is pleasant: the indrawn breath of delight. Every sense is touched: sight, sound, scent, and now the skin. The reader may notice how the description slows the mind, inviting it to stay with one sense at a time.