Shringarashataka of Bhartrhari – Hundred verses on erotic love – is equally sensuous and instructive. While the charm, grace and capacity of women to allure men are gloriously pictured, there is also, alongside, the suggested occurrence of vanity and fickleness underlying the allurements.
Shringara Shatakam is more than a collection of romantic poems. It presents a gradual philosophical insight:
- Desire creates dependence.
- Attachment often leads to dissatisfaction.
- Beauty is temporary.
- Even the learned can lose discrimination when overcome by passion.
- Lasting peace comes from understanding the mind rather than merely satisfying its desires.
Picture how damsels lure men, Bhartrhari says – through their
smile, features, bashfulness, timidity, asides, coquettish glances, endearing
words, pretended anger, moods – indeed by all their manifestations damsels
ensnare the youth (Sringara Satakam verse 2).
"I constantly think about her, but she has no affection for me. She longs for another man, who in turn loves someone else. Meanwhile, another woman desires me. Shame upon her, upon him, upon Cupid, upon this woman, and upon myself!" (verse 31 to 32). This verse illustrates the endless cycle of human desire. Attachment rarely follows a straight path, reminding us that happiness dependent on others is inherently uncertain.
On female fickleness, Bhartrhari states – she prattles with
one, glances at another and thinks of a third. Who of these is really dear to a
damsel (Sringara Satakam verse 50).
He would, therefore, parry all flirtations while he makes
the readers smile when he points out that love travels in a triangular form. In
this vein Bhartrhari addresses an attractive girl – oh! Flirting damsel! Why cast
your glamorous side glances on me. Stop. Futile will be thy efforts. We have now
changed. Our youth is over. Our longing is for the forest. Our delusions have
been removed and well look at the world even as we would a tuft of wayside
grass (Sringarasataka verse 62).
"Remembering her causes anguish; seeing her produces excitement; touching her leads to delusion. How can she simply be called 'beloved'?" Bhartrhari shows how desire develops step by step—from memory to obsession to attachment. The verse anticipates later philosophical discussions on how the senses influence the mind.
"The lamp of discrimination shines clearly even in the wise—until it is struck by the restless glances of doe-eyed women." The verse humorously observes that intellect alone does not guarantee self-mastery. Wisdom requires control over one's emotions and senses.
One recurring theme throughout the Sringara Satakam is that youth, beauty, and sensual pleasure are transient. Bhartrhari repeatedly compares youth to lightning, flowers, or bubbles that disappear quickly. These reflections prepare the transition to the Vairagya Satakam, where impermanence becomes the basis for detachment and spiritual inquiry.