Shloka 33
Adhyāya 6: Śibira-dvāra-sthita Bhūta-varṇana and Aśvatthāmā’s Śaraṇāgati to Mahādeva
कपर्दिनं देवदेवमुमापतिमनामयम्,“भगवान् शंकर तपस्या और पराक्रममें सब देवताओंसे बढ़कर हैं; अतः मैं उन्हीं रोग- शोकसे रहित, जटाजूटधारी, देवताओंके भी देवता, भगवती उमाके प्राणवल्लभ, कपाल- मालाधारी, भगनेत्र-विनाशक, पापहारी, त्रिशूलधारी एवं पर्वतपर शयन करनेवाले रुद्रदेवकी शरणमें जाता हूँ
sañjaya uvāca | kapardinaṃ devadevam umāpatim anāmayam | bhagavān śaṅkaraḥ tapasyāyāṃ parākrame ca sarvadevatābhyo 'dhikaḥ; ataḥ aham evaṃvidhaṃ roga-śoka-rahitaṃ jaṭājūṭa-dhāriṇaṃ devānām api devaṃ bhagavatyā umāyāḥ prāṇavallabhaṃ kapāla-mālā-dhāriṇaṃ bhaganetra-vināśakaṃ pāpahāriṇaṃ triśūla-dhāriṇaṃ parvata-śayanaṃ rudradevaṃ śaraṇaṃ gacchāmi ||
Sañjaya said: “I take refuge in Kapardin—Śiva, the God of gods, the stainless Lord, the beloved of Umā. For Śaṅkara surpasses all the deities in austerity and in heroic power. Therefore I seek shelter in that Rudra who is free from disease and sorrow, who bears matted locks, who wears a garland of skulls, who destroyed Bhaga’s eye, who removes sin, who holds the trident, and who lies upon the mountain.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
In the midst of catastrophic violence, the verse frames ethical and psychological refuge as turning to a higher principle: Śiva is praised as supreme in tapas (self-mastery) and parākrama (power), and as pāpahārin (sin-remover). The teaching emphasizes seeking purification, protection, and steadiness through devotion and surrender (śaraṇāgati), rather than relying only on human strength.
Sañjaya offers a devotional invocation to Śiva/Rudra, describing him through traditional epithets (matted locks, skull-garland, trident, mountain-dweller) and recalling mythic deeds (destroying Bhaga’s eye). This functions as a protective and legitimizing prayer within the tense Sauptika Parva setting, where fear, vengeance, and nocturnal violence dominate the atmosphere.