Shloka 32
अवंतीस्थ-ब्राह्मणकथा तथा तृतीय-ज्योतिर्लिङ्गोपाख्यान-प्रस्तावना
Avanti Brahmin Narrative and Prelude to the Third Jyotirliṅga
सामान्यस्यापमानो नो ह्याश्रयस्य भवेदिह । पुनश्च किं समर्थस्य शिवस्येह भविष्यति
sāmānyasyāpamāno no hyāśrayasya bhavediha | punaśca kiṃ samarthasya śivasyeha bhaviṣyati
Here, the slighting of an ordinary person may indeed harm one who depends on him; but what, again, could possibly happen here to the all-competent Lord Śiva?
Suta Goswami (narrating the Kotirudra teachings to the sages, emphasizing Śiva’s transcendence and invulnerability)
Tattva Level: pati
Shiva Form: Sadashiva
FAQs
The verse teaches that worldly insult harms only those bound by dependence, whereas Śiva—Pati, the independent and all-capable Lord—remains untouched, guiding devotees to detach from ego and take refuge in the changeless divine.
Linga-worship trains the mind to honor Śiva as the self-existent reality: even when approached through saguna devotion, the devotee remembers that Śiva’s essence is beyond worldly gain, loss, praise, or blame.
Practice humble japa of the Pañcākṣarī—“Om Namaḥ Śivāya”—and offer worship (bilva, water, bhasma/Tripuṇḍra) with the inner resolve to drop reactive pride, since Śiva is not diminished by criticism nor increased by flattery.