Shloka 24
अनरण्यसुता–पिप्पलादचरितम् / The Episode of Anaraṇya’s Daughter and Sage Pippalāda
वसिष्ठ उवाच । श्रुत्वा धर्मस्सतीशापं नृप मूर्तिं विहाय च । धृत्वा स्वमूर्तिं देवेशः कम्पमान उवाच सः
vasiṣṭha uvāca | śrutvā dharmassatīśāpaṃ nṛpa mūrtiṃ vihāya ca | dhṛtvā svamūrtiṃ deveśaḥ kampamāna uvāca saḥ
Vasiṣṭha said: “O King, having heard Satī’s curse upon Dharma, the Lord of the gods cast aside that assumed form. Taking up His own true form again, trembling, He spoke.”
Vasistha
Tattva Level: pati
Shiva Form: Mahādeva
Shakti Form: Satī
Role: teaching
FAQs
The verse highlights the moral-spiritual power of Satī’s tapas and truth: even cosmic principles like Dharma are accountable, and the Lord’s response shows that divine order (dharma) is upheld through humility, truth, and the restoration of what is proper.
By describing the Lord ‘abandoning an assumed form’ and ‘taking His own form,’ the text points to Shiva’s freedom to manifest in saguna forms for līlā and instruction, while remaining the supreme reality; Linga-worship similarly honors the manifest sign of the unbounded Lord.
A practical takeaway is to steady the mind in dharma through japa of the Pañcākṣarī (“Om Namaḥ Śivāya”) and cultivate inner truthfulness; this supports devotion when emotions ‘tremble’ and restores spiritual composure.