Shloka 14
Dakṣa Offends Lord Śiva: Cursing and Countercursing in the Sacrificial Assembly
प्रेतावासेषु घोरेषु प्रेतैर्भूतगणैर्वृत: । अटत्युन्मत्तवन्नग्नो व्युप्तकेशो हसन् रुदन् ॥ १४ ॥ चिताभस्मकृतस्नान: प्रेतस्रङ्न्रस्थिभूषण: । शिवापदेशो ह्यशिवो मत्तो मत्तजनप्रिय: । पति: प्रमथनाथानां तमोमात्रात्मकात्मनाम् ॥ १५ ॥
pretāvāseṣu ghoreṣu pretair bhūta-gaṇair vṛtaḥ aṭaty unmattavan nagno vyupta-keśo hasan rudan
He dwells in dreadful places like cremation grounds, surrounded by pretas, bhūtas, and their hordes. Naked like a madman, hair disheveled, he wanders—now laughing, now weeping—smearing his body with funeral ash, neglecting regular bathing, and adorning himself with garlands of skulls and bones. Thus he is called ‘Śiva’ only in name; in truth he is inauspicious and frenzied, dear to beings sunk in the darkness of tamas, and the leader of the pramathas.
Those who do not regularly bathe are supposed to be in association with ghosts and crazy creatures. Lord Śiva appeared to be like that, but his name, Śiva, is actually fitting, for he is very kind to persons who are in the darkness of the mode of ignorance, such as unclean drunkards who do not regularly bathe. Lord Śiva is so kind that he gives shelter to such creatures and gradually elevates them to spiritual consciousness. Although it is very difficult to raise such creatures to spiritual understanding, Lord Śiva takes charge of them, and therefore, as stated in the Vedas, Lord Śiva is all-auspicious. Thus by his association even such fallen souls can be elevated. Sometimes it is seen that great personalities meet with fallen souls, not for any personal interest but for the benefit of those souls. In the creation of the Lord there are different kinds of living creatures. Some of them are in the mode of goodness, some are in the mode of passion, and some are in the mode of ignorance. Lord Viṣṇu takes charge of persons who are advanced Kṛṣṇa conscious Vaiṣṇavas, and Lord Brahmā takes charge of persons who are very much attached to material activities, but Lord Śiva is so kind that he takes charge of persons who are in gross ignorance and whose behavior is lower than that of the animals. Therefore Lord Śiva is especially called auspicious.
FAQs
In this verse, Dakṣa derides Śiva as one who roams in fearful cremation-grounds among ghosts, behaving like a madman—an insulting portrayal used to justify Dakṣa’s condemnation.
Dakṣa, proud and angered, considered Śiva’s ascetic, unconventional conduct unfit and thus publicly criticized him, setting the stage for conflict around the sacrifice (yajña).
This verse illustrates how pride distorts vision; a devotee should avoid fault-finding and cultivate respect, recognizing that divine personalities may act beyond social convention.