Shloka 12
चाण्डालीसद्गतिवर्णनम् (Cāṇḍālī-sadgati-varṇanam) — “Account of the Cāṇḍālī’s Attainment of a Good Destiny”
कदाचिद्भर्तरि क्वापि याते पीतसुराथ सा । इयेष पिशिताहारं सौमिनी व्यभिचारिणी
kadācidbhartari kvāpi yāte pītasurātha sā | iyeṣa piśitāhāraṃ sauminī vyabhicāriṇī
Once, when her husband had gone away somewhere, that Sauminī—having drunk liquor and being unchaste—developed a desire to eat flesh.
Suta Goswami
Tattva Level: pashu
Shiva Form: Paśupatinātha
FAQs
It depicts how intoxication and moral transgression weaken discernment (viveka), allowing tamasic cravings to rise—setting the stage for karmic consequences, a recurring ethical theme in Shaiva Purana narration.
By contrast: Linga-worship and devotion to Saguna Shiva are taught as disciplines that purify conduct and restrain tamas; the verse highlights the inner decline that devotion and vrata are meant to prevent.
A practical takeaway is to adopt a Shaiva vrata of sobriety and restraint—supporting japa of the Panchakshara ("Om Namaḥ Śivāya") and simple purity disciplines (such as bhasma/tripundra and sattvic conduct) to steady the mind.