Shloka 154
Śiva-nāmānukīrtana-prastāvaḥ
Prologue to the praise of Śiva and the Upamanyu testimony
नन्दते कुप्यते चापि तथा हुंकारयत्यपि । चक्री शूली गदापाणिर्मुसली खड्गपट्टिशी
nandate kupyate cāpi tathā huṅkārayaty api | cakrī śūlī gadāpāṇir musalī khaḍgapaṭṭiśī ||
Vāsudeva said: “He sometimes rejoices and gladdens others; sometimes, becoming wrathful, he displays anger; and sometimes he utters a fierce roar. He is the bearer of the discus, the spear, and the mace; he also wields the pestle, the sword, and the battle-axe.”
वासुदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights a protector-figure whose emotional expressions (joy, anger, fierce resolve) accompany the capacity to uphold order through strength. Ethically, it suggests that power and weaponry are not merely for aggression but can serve dharma—protecting others, restraining wrongdoing, and restoring balance when gentler means fail.
Vāsudeva describes a formidable being by listing characteristic reactions (delight, wrath, war-cry) and by enumerating the weapons he bears—discus, spear, mace, pestle, sword, and battle-axe—thereby emphasizing martial potency and readiness to act.