Shloka 16
ज्योतिर्लिङ्गमाहात्म्य-प्रस्तावना तथा सोमनाथ-प्रसङ्गः
Prologue to the Glory and Origin of the Jyotirliṅgas; Somnātha Episode Begins
चन्द्रोऽपि बलवद्भाविवशान्मेने न तद्वचः । रोहिण्यां च समासक्तो नान्यां मेने कदाचन
candro'pi balavadbhāvivaśānmene na tadvacaḥ | rohiṇyāṃ ca samāsakto nānyāṃ mene kadācana
Doch selbst Candra, überwältigt von der Macht des Schicksals und von seiner eigenen starken Neigung, beachtete jene Weisung nicht. Tief nur an Rohiṇī gebunden, hielt er die anderen Gemahlinnen zu keiner Zeit für ihr gleich.
Suta Goswami
Tattva Level: pashu
Sthala Purana: Not a Jyotirliṅga episode; it is the Dakṣa–Candra domestic-ethical narrative that sets up Candra’s curse and later Śiva’s salvific intervention in the broader mythic cycle.
Significance: Didactic: warns against rāga (exclusive attachment) and adharma in household duties; prompts recourse to Śiva for restoration through grace.
FAQs
It highlights how attachment (rāga) and the momentum of karma can eclipse right discernment, becoming a pasha (bond) that turns one away from dharma—an obstacle Shaiva teaching urges devotees to transcend through Shiva-oriented detachment and devotion.
The narrative illustrates the mind’s tendency to cling to one object of desire; Linga-worship and Saguna Shiva-bhakti re-center that same focus toward Shiva, transforming fixation into disciplined devotion and gradually loosening worldly bonds.
A practical takeaway is steady japa of the Panchakshara mantra (Om Namaḥ Śivāya) with a vow of restraint (niyama), using Shiva-bhakti to reduce possessiveness and cultivate equanimity.