Śrī Dāmodara Aṣṭakam VERSE 5
इदं ते मुखाम्भोजमव्यक्तनीलैर्
वृतं कुन्तलैः स्निग्धरक्तैश्च गोप्या
मुहुश्चुम्बितं बिम्बरक्ताधरं मे
मनस्याविरास्तामलं लक्षलाभैः
idaṃ te mukhāmbhojam avyakta-nīlair
vṛtaṃ kuntalaiḥ snigdha-raktaiś ca gopyā
muhuś cumbitaṃ bimba-raktādharaṃ me
manasy āvirāstām alaṃ lakṣa-lābhaiḥ
SYNONYMS
idam: this | te: Your | mukha-ambhojam: lotus face | avyakta-nīlaiḥ: with very dark blue (hair) | vṛtam: surrounded | kuntalaiḥ: by curling locks of hair | snigdha: glossy | raktaiḥ: tinged with red | ca: and | gopyā: by the gopī (Yaśodā) | muhuḥ: again and again | cumbitam: kissed | bimba-rakta-adharam: whose lips are red like the bimba fruit | me: my | manasi: in my mind | āvirāstām: may it be manifest | alam: enough | lakṣa-lābhaiḥ: with millions of attainments |
TRANSLATION
O Lord, the cheeks of Your blackish lotus face, which is encircled by locks of curling hair, have become reddened like bimba fruits due to Mother Yaśodā's kisses. What more can I describe than this? Millions of opulences are of no use to me, but may this vision constantly remain in my mind.
PURPORT
And furthermore, the longing to see Your śrī-mukha, Your divine lotus face that is parama-manohara (supremely enchanting) is stated in this verse beginning with idaṃ te. Sometime while one is meditating deeply within and perceives such indescribable beauty and splendour - that is what is revealed in this verse. His face is praphulla-kamalākara 0 it resembles a fully-blossomed lotus flower; nikhila-santāpa-hari - His face is the remover of all kinds of distress; and paramānanda-rasa-maya - and it is pervaded with the supreme mellows of pure bliss. That lotus face - manasi muhur-āvirāstām - may it be revealed again and again within my mind.
What does that lotus face look like? It is surrounded (vṛtam) by curling hair (kuntala) that is very dark blue (avyakta-nīla), glossy (snigdha) and tinged with red (rakta). The word vṛtam suggests that just as a lotus flower is surrounded with hovering honeybees, similarly the Lord's lotus face is encircled with curly locks that bounce around whenever He moves. The word gopyā ("by the gopī") indicates that His face is kissed again and again by either Sri Yashoda or by Sri Radha. The word muhuḥ (again and again) is relative to this word gopyā, and it reads properly exactly where it is in the verse. This being the case, may that divine lotus face - muhuś-cumbitam - kissed repeatedly by the supremely fortunate gopī-mama manasi - in my mind - āvirāstām - may it manifest even once. This is the meaning.
Or else - the word sadā (always) found in the previous verse carries over to its definitive conclusion in the present verse, thereby indicating "may it always manifest" - this intention can also be accepted. Finally, that lotus face is especially described thus - bimba-vad-raktādharaṃ - He Whose lips are cherry red like the bimba fruit. (If that form is manifest within my mind, I will be fully satisfied). Therefore it is said about lakṣa-lābhaiḥ, the attainment of millions and millions of other types of benedictions - alam - they are of no use to me whatsoever. This is the meaning. This is most definitely the message that is conveyed by the fifth verse. Thus ends Sanatana Goswami's Dig-Darshini-Tika on the fifth shloka of Sri Sri Damodarashtakam.
What does that lotus face look like? It is surrounded (vṛtam) by curling hair (kuntala) that is very dark blue (avyakta-nīla), glossy (snigdha) and tinged with red (rakta). The word vṛtam suggests that just as a lotus flower is surrounded with hovering honeybees, similarly the Lord's lotus face is encircled with curly locks that bounce around whenever He moves. The word gopyā ("by the gopī") indicates that His face is kissed again and again by either Sri Yashoda or by Sri Radha. The word muhuḥ (again and again) is relative to this word gopyā, and it reads properly exactly where it is in the verse. This being the case, may that divine lotus face - muhuś-cumbitam - kissed repeatedly by the supremely fortunate gopī-mama manasi - in my mind - āvirāstām - may it manifest even once. This is the meaning.
Or else - the word sadā (always) found in the previous verse carries over to its definitive conclusion in the present verse, thereby indicating "may it always manifest" - this intention can also be accepted. Finally, that lotus face is especially described thus - bimba-vad-raktādharaṃ - He Whose lips are cherry red like the bimba fruit. (If that form is manifest within my mind, I will be fully satisfied). Therefore it is said about lakṣa-lābhaiḥ, the attainment of millions and millions of other types of benedictions - alam - they are of no use to me whatsoever. This is the meaning. This is most definitely the message that is conveyed by the fifth verse. Thus ends Sanatana Goswami's Dig-Darshini-Tika on the fifth shloka of Sri Sri Damodarashtakam.
