peace. But should one become careless, Kaamdeo will attack with viciousness. He is
like a resident enemy who hits from within.]øı0. ŒÁπ ⁄U‚Ê‹ Á’≈U¬ ’⁄U ‚ÊπÊ – ÃÁ„U ¬⁄U ø...∏U©U ◊ŒŸÈ ◊Ÿ ◊ÊπÊH 1H
caupā’ī.
dēkhi rasāla biṭapa bara sākhā. tēhi para caṛhē'u madanu mana mākhā. 1.
Madan (Kaamdeo) saw a thick green branch of a mango tree^1. He climbed it angrily^2
(because he was determined to wreak venegeance upon Lord Shiva for spurning all
his efforts to be lured and fall in his trap, and remaining steady in his meditation). (1)
[Note—^1 Kaamdeo had climbed the branch of a mango tree for three reasons: One was
that he wished to hide himself and shoot his arrow at Lord Shiva from a secure place
where the chances of his getting located or traced were remote. So he hid himself
behind thick foliage of the mango tree. The other reason is that Kaamdeo wanted a
vantage point from where he could properly see and aim at Shiva who was meditating
quietly at some place. And the third reason is that the mango fruit is very sweet and
succulent, and it is a metaphor that fits in well with the enticing lure of passion and
lust which Kaamdeo stood for in a symbolic way.
(^2) Kaamdeo was angry because this was the first time that he faced the humiliating
prospect of failure. The gods had assigned him the task of waking up Lord Shiva
from his meditative trance, and inspite of all his best of efforts Kaamdeo had failed to
move Shiva. Kaamdeo had prided himself as being invincible when it came to luring
a creature into the honey-trap of passions and lust as is proved by the fact that even
the wisest of sages and hermits had fallen victims to his schemes as is clearly narrated
in Ram Charit Manas, Baal Kand, Chaupai line no. 8 and Chanda line no. 1 that
precede Doha no. 85.
Now, he would have to face scorn and ridicule at the hands of his peers if he went
back and told the gods that he accepts defeat. The gentleman who has defeated him
for the first time in his life was Shiva, and it was too much for Kaamdeo to bear this
failure. This filled him with enemity for Shiva.
From a broader perspective the message in this verse is clear that passions and
lust are so great an evil thing that if their intentions are not met they turn hostile
towards the person harbouring them, making him or her frustrated and agitated to
such an extent that all sense of propriety and wisdom abandon him or her, and this
leads to the ruin of the person as was the case with Kaamdeo who lost control over
himself and was ultimately punished by Lord Shiva who killed him by burning him to
death.]
‚È◊Ÿ øʬ ÁŸ¡ ‚⁄U ‚¢œÊŸ – •Áà Á⁄U‚ ÃÊÁ∑§ üÊflŸ ‹Áª ÃÊŸH 2H
¿UÊ«∏U Á’·◊ Á’Á‚π ©U⁄U ‹Êª – ¿ÍUÁ≈U ‚◊ÊÁœ ‚¢÷È Ã’ ¡ÊªH 3H
sumana cāpa nija sara sandhānē. ati risa tāki śravana lagi tānē. 2.
chāṛē biṣama bisikha ura lāgē. chūṭi samādhi sambhu taba jāgē. 3.
Kaamdeo mounted his arrow on the bow made of flowers^1 , and angrily looking
towards Shiva he pulled the string back to his ears^2. (2)
Then he shot his formidable sharp arrow which went and slammed at the heart
of Lord Shiva. Being thus hit, Lord Shiva woke up from his meditative trance. (3)
[Note—^1 Refer: Ram Charit Manas, Baal Kand, Chaupai line no. 8 that precedes Doha
no. 83 and its accompanying note.