Adhyaya 235

Pārvatī asks Mahādeva why pāṣaṇḍas are to be avoided and why Śiva bears outwardly “non-Vedic” signs such as a skull, ash, and bones. Śiva discloses a secret account: in the Svāyambhuva Manvantara, mighty Daityas devoted to Viṣṇu became unconquerable, and the devas sought refuge in Hari. Viṣṇu then instructed Rudra to assume pāṣaṇḍa-like conduct and to spread tāmasa Purāṇas and heterodox treatises to delude hostile beings, while inwardly remaining devoted to Nārāyaṇa. The chapter marks pāṣaṇḍa identity by rejection of Vāsudeva, deviation from śruti-smṛti, and sectarian insignia, yet it also teaches a liberating discipline: visualize Śrī Rāma and recite the tāraka mantra, preserving inner purity even under an outward disguise.