Shloka 16
Niṣādasya Bhillasya Itihāsaḥ — Śivarātri-vrata-prabhāvaḥ
The Hunter’s Account and the Efficacy of the Śivarātri Observance
कदा यास्यति कश्चिद्वै कदा हन्यामहं पुनः । इति बुद्धिं समास्थाय स्थितोऽसौ क्षुत्तृषान्वितः
kadā yāsyati kaścidvai kadā hanyāmahaṃ punaḥ | iti buddhiṃ samāsthāya sthito'sau kṣuttṛṣānvitaḥ
Thinking, “When will someone come? When shall I strike again?”, he stood there with his mind fixed on that resolve, afflicted by hunger and thirst.
Suta Goswami
Tattva Level: pashu
Shiva Form: Rudra
Sthala Purana: Not a Jyotirliṅga account; the verse intensifies the hunter’s pāśa (karma-driven violence) and bodily duḥkha (hunger/thirst) that will ironically support an all-night vigil—later counted as a Śiva-oriented vrata-like wakefulness.
Significance: Moral-theological: sustained ‘jāgaraṇa’ without devotion can still become a vehicle for grace when it occurs in Śiva’s sphere; highlights the primacy of anugraha over intention.
FAQs
It shows how a mind seized by craving (hunger and thirst) and aggression becomes bound in pasha (bondage). In Shaiva Siddhanta terms, such intention strengthens karmic bondage and veils the soul from Shiva’s grace, which alone leads to purification and liberation.
Against the backdrop of Kotirudra narratives tied to Jyotirlinga glory, the verse contrasts a restless, harmful mindset with the stabilizing refuge of Saguna Shiva worship (Linga-upasana). Turning the mind from “harming again” to remembrance of Shiva and dharma is the inner pilgrimage that supports outer Jyotirlinga pilgrimage.
A practical takeaway is to steady the mind with japa of the Panchakshara mantra “Om Namah Shivaya,” supported by Tripundra (bhasma) and Rudraksha as aids for restraint and inner cooling—transforming agitation into devotion and self-control.