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THE SŪRYAŚATAKA OF MAYŪRA
135
The light of (Sürya), the Shining One, [is] the sole eye¹ of the
three worlds, [but is] different from an ordinary eye;
For it does not take away, but, on the contrary, makes more
lovely the beauty of the lotuses,²
And it does not support, but indeed always very quickly obscures
the splendor of the stars,³
And it is unable to <make> a wink, although it can <create> the
noble day.*
May that light of (Sürya), the Shining One, be the destroyer
of your sin!
Note. 1. For other instances where Sürya is called an 'eye,' see stanza
13, note 2. 2. An ordinary eye does appropriate the beauty of a lotus,
as evidenced by the common Sanskrit epithet, 'lotus eye.' The com-
mentary, however, says: 'But the other (i.e. the ordinary) eye takes away
the beauty of the lotuses, with the idea that it is indeed an imitation of
them.' Perhaps this means that the pupil of the eye is like the heart of
a lotus, while the lashes are like the petals. Besides, an eye opens and
shuts, like a lotus. 3. In this päda, the words dhatte tarakābham are
capable of a double rendering, on which is based the distinction between
Surya, as the eye of the three worlds, and an ordinary eye; thus: 'Surya
does not support the splendor of the stars >, but an ordinary eye does
<maintain the brightness of its pupil>.' 4. An ordinary eye cannot
refrain from winking, but is unable, like Sürya, to make day and night.
Bernheimer (see Introd., p. 105) sees a slightly different meaning. He
renders: 'esso non può battere nel tempo di un istante (come quello dei
mortali) ma nel tempo di un giorno'; and in a footnote he explains:
'L'occhio dei mortali batte cioè si apre e si chiude in un istante; quello
del sole si apre al mattino e si chiude alla sera, batte dunque in un giorno.'
That is, it takes the sun a whole day to make one wink. 5. On the
euphonic combination bhasvatastän (for bhasvataḥ stan), cf. Whitney,
Skt. Grammar, 173, a.
6. The distinction drawn in this stanza between
Surya and an ordinary eye is an instance of the rhetorical figure vyatireka;
cf. stanza 23, note 1, where this figure is discussed at length.
V.L. (b) K nadhatte tārakābhām; V niratām afu. (c) V trilokyām.
22
kṣmām kṣepīyaḥ kṣapāmbhaḥśiśiratarajalasparśatarṣād ṛteva
drāg āśā netum āśādviradakarasaraḥpuṣkarāṇī 'va bodham
prātaḥ prollanghya viṣṇoḥ padam api ghṛṇayevā 'tivegād
daviyasy
135
The light of (Sürya), the Shining One, [is] the sole eye¹ of the
three worlds, [but is] different from an ordinary eye;
For it does not take away, but, on the contrary, makes more
lovely the beauty of the lotuses,²
And it does not support, but indeed always very quickly obscures
the splendor of the stars,³
And it is unable to <make> a wink, although it can <create> the
noble day.*
May that light of (Sürya), the Shining One, be the destroyer
of your sin!
Note. 1. For other instances where Sürya is called an 'eye,' see stanza
13, note 2. 2. An ordinary eye does appropriate the beauty of a lotus,
as evidenced by the common Sanskrit epithet, 'lotus eye.' The com-
mentary, however, says: 'But the other (i.e. the ordinary) eye takes away
the beauty of the lotuses, with the idea that it is indeed an imitation of
them.' Perhaps this means that the pupil of the eye is like the heart of
a lotus, while the lashes are like the petals. Besides, an eye opens and
shuts, like a lotus. 3. In this päda, the words dhatte tarakābham are
capable of a double rendering, on which is based the distinction between
Surya, as the eye of the three worlds, and an ordinary eye; thus: 'Surya
does not support the splendor of the stars >, but an ordinary eye does
<maintain the brightness of its pupil>.' 4. An ordinary eye cannot
refrain from winking, but is unable, like Sürya, to make day and night.
Bernheimer (see Introd., p. 105) sees a slightly different meaning. He
renders: 'esso non può battere nel tempo di un istante (come quello dei
mortali) ma nel tempo di un giorno'; and in a footnote he explains:
'L'occhio dei mortali batte cioè si apre e si chiude in un istante; quello
del sole si apre al mattino e si chiude alla sera, batte dunque in un giorno.'
That is, it takes the sun a whole day to make one wink. 5. On the
euphonic combination bhasvatastän (for bhasvataḥ stan), cf. Whitney,
Skt. Grammar, 173, a.
6. The distinction drawn in this stanza between
Surya and an ordinary eye is an instance of the rhetorical figure vyatireka;
cf. stanza 23, note 1, where this figure is discussed at length.
V.L. (b) K nadhatte tārakābhām; V niratām afu. (c) V trilokyām.
22
kṣmām kṣepīyaḥ kṣapāmbhaḥśiśiratarajalasparśatarṣād ṛteva
drāg āśā netum āśādviradakarasaraḥpuṣkarāṇī 'va bodham
prātaḥ prollanghya viṣṇoḥ padam api ghṛṇayevā 'tivegād
daviyasy