Shloka 14
Indra's Campaign on Mount Malaya — Indra’s Campaign on Mount Malaya and the Birth of the Maruts (Origin of the Epithet Gotrabhid)
तत्र नाम विभुर्लोभे शासनत्वात् शरैर्दृढैः पाकशासनतां शक्रः सर्वामरपतिर्विभुः
tatra nāma vibhurlobhe śāsanatvāt śarairdṛḍhaiḥ pākaśāsanatāṃ śakraḥ sarvāmarapatirvibhuḥ
[{"question": "Who are the ‘Pramathas’ mentioned here?", "answer": "Pramathas are Śiva’s fierce gaṇas—attendant hosts associated with cremation-ground power, protection, and battle. In Andhaka narratives they function as Śiva’s frontline forces before Śiva’s own decisive intervention."}, {"question": "Why does Andhaka ask to be taken ‘near Hara’ if he intends to fight the host first?", "answer": "The command reflects battlefield strategy and bravado: closing distance to Śiva (Hara) while simultaneously attempting to break the protective screen of Pramathas and allied Devas with arrow volleys."}, {"question": "Does ‘vāhinī’ imply a specific named army or place-based regiment?", "answer": "Here vāhinī is generic—‘host/army’—and not tied to a named region. The verse remains within mythic battle description without the geographical cataloging typical of tīrtha sections."}]
{ "primaryRasa": "adbhuta", "secondaryRasa": "vira", "rasaIntensity": 0, "emotionalArcPosition": "", "moodDescriptors": [] }
FAQs
It pauses the action to provide nirukti—an explanatory etymology—linking a well-known epithet of Indra (‘Pākaśāsana’) to a specific punitive act against a named adversary, Pāka.
Grammatically and contextually it characterizes the adversarial figure (Pāka) as associated with greed, reinforcing the moral contrast: the deva’s ‘discipline’ subdues a greed-driven opponent.
They serve mnemonic and theological purposes: epithets become anchored in narrative deeds, making divine names meaningful as summaries of cosmic functions (here, Indra as the punisher/subduer of disruptive forces).