Shiva Purana — Rudra Samhita, Shloka 37
हिरण्यनेत्रस्य तपः — Hiraṇyanetra’s Austerity and the Boon
दुर्योधनो वैधसहस्तिसंज्ञौ तन्मंत्रिणौ दानवसत्तमस्य । ते वै कदाचिद्गिरिसुस्थले हि नारीं सुरूपां ददृशुस्त्रयोऽपि
duryodhano vaidhasahastisaṃjñau tanmaṃtriṇau dānavasattamasya | te vai kadācidgirisusthale hi nārīṃ surūpāṃ dadṛśustrayo'pi
Duryodhana, zusammen mit Vaidhasa und Hasti—Ministern jenes Vornehmsten unter den Dānavas—sah einst, als sie an einem Ort im Gebirge weilten, mit allen dreien eine Frau von erlesener Schönheit.
Sūta Gosvāmin (narrating to the sages of Naimiṣāraṇya)
Tattva Level: pasha
FAQs
This verse introduces a moment where perception of beauty becomes a trigger for desire and further action. In a Shaiva Siddhanta lens, it illustrates how the bonds (pāśa)—especially kāma and moha—arise through the senses and can propel beings of asuric disposition toward adharmic choices, delaying clarity and grace (anugraha) that lead to liberation.
Though the verse is narrative, its implied teaching supports Saguna Shiva worship as a corrective: turning the mind from sense-objects to Shiva’s auspicious form and the Linga as the steady focus. Devotion and remembrance of Shiva sublimate desire into bhakti, transforming impulse into spiritual discipline.
A practical takeaway is sense-restraint supported by japa of the Pañcākṣarī (“Om Namaḥ Śivāya”) and mental offering of all perceptions to Shiva. If following Shiva Purana practice, one may also reinforce steadiness with Tripuṇḍra (bhasma) and regular Shiva-nāma smaraṇa to prevent the mind from being pulled outward by fascination.