Shiva Purana — Rudra Samhita, Shloka 51
तारकवधोत्तरं देवस्तुतिः पर्वतवरप्रदानं च / Devas’ Hymn after Tāraka’s Slaying and the Bestowal of Boons upon the Mountains
दुष्टहंता त्रिलोकेशश्शंकरो भक्तवत्सलः । कर्ता भर्ता च हर्ता च सर्वेषां निर्विकारवान्
duṣṭahaṃtā trilokeśaśśaṃkaro bhaktavatsalaḥ | kartā bhartā ca hartā ca sarveṣāṃ nirvikāravān
Śaṅkara—the destroyer of the wicked, the Lord of the three worlds, and the tender lover of His devotees—is for all beings the doer, the sustainer, and the withdrawer; yet He remains changeless and untouched by modification.
Suta Goswami
Tattva Level: pati
Shiva Form: Rudra
FAQs
It declares Shiva as Pati—the supreme Lord who performs creation, maintenance, and dissolution—while remaining nirvikāra (unchanged). For the devotee, this unites trust in His cosmic governance with bhakti toward His compassionate, protective nature.
The Linga signifies the transcendent, changeless Shiva (nirvikāra), while devotional worship approaches Him as Śaṅkara, trilokeśa, and bhaktavatsala (saguna). The verse supports both: the formless reality indicated by the Linga and the personal Lord who answers devotion.
A practical takeaway is steady japa of the Panchākṣarī—“Om Namaḥ Śivāya”—while contemplating Shiva as the inner doer, sustainer, and withdrawer, yet ever pure and unchanged; this aligns devotion with liberating insight.