Shloka 102
Śiva-stavarāja: Upamanyu’s Preface and Initiation of the Śarva-Nāma Enumeration
Anuśāsana-parva 17
बहुधा निन्दित: शर्व: शड्कर: शड्करो5धन: । अमरेशो महादेवो विश्वदेव: सुरारिहा,५९७ बहुधा निन्दित:--दक्ष और उनके समर्थकोंद्वारा अनेक प्रकारसे निन्दित, ५९८ शर्व:--प्रलयकालमें सबका संहार करनेवाले, ५९९ शड्कर:--कल्याणकारी, ६०० शड़्कर:--भक्तोंको आनन्द देनेवाले, ६०१ अधनः--सांसारिक धनसे रहित, ६०२ अमरेश:--देवताओंके भी ईश्वर, ६०३ महादेव:--देवताओंके भी पूजनीय, ६०४ विश्वदेव:--सम्पूर्ण विश्वके आराध्यदेव, ६०५ सुरारिहा-देवशत्रुओंका वध करनेवाले
bahudhā ninditaḥ śarvaḥ śaṅkaraḥ śaṅkaro 'dhanaḥ | amareśo mahādevo viśvadevaḥ surārihā ||
Vāyu said: “Though Śarva has been reviled in many ways by Dakṣa and those who sided with him, he is Śarva—the destroyer at the time of dissolution; Śaṅkara—the beneficent one; Śaṅkara again—the giver of joy to his devotees; ‘the wealthless’—free from worldly possessions; the Lord even of the gods; the Great God, worship-worthy even for the deities; the deity adored by the whole universe; and the slayer of the enemies of the gods.”
वायुदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
Worldly blame does not diminish true greatness: the verse reframes criticism of Śiva by listing his essential qualities—auspiciousness, protection of devotees, renunciation of worldly wealth, cosmic sovereignty, and the upholding of divine order by destroying hostile forces.
Vāyu responds to the context of Dakṣa’s party disparaging Śiva, asserting that despite such censure, Śiva’s established nature and roles remain supreme, expressed through a chain of honorific names (epithets).