Shloka 18
गिरिराजस्य शिवनिमन्त्रणम् / The Mountain-King Invites Śiva
Hospitality to Śiva and the Devas
तदानीम्पुरनार्यश्च गालीदानम्व्यधुर्मुदा । मृदुवाण्या हसन्त्यश्च पश्यन्त्यो यत्नतश्च तान्
tadānīmpuranāryaśca gālīdānamvyadhurmudā | mṛduvāṇyā hasantyaśca paśyantyo yatnataśca tān
Just then, the women of the city, delighted, began to shower taunts as if offering them as a gift—speaking gently yet laughing—while carefully watching those men.
Sūta Gosvāmin
Tattva Level: pasha
Sthala Purana: No Jyotirliṅga linkage; the verse depicts worldly social play—women teasing onlookers—introducing the texture of māyā-bound behavior around a sacred event.
Significance: Serves as a moral-psychological vignette: even near divine presence, social mockery and distraction can arise—an illustration of tirodhāna (concealment) operating through māyā and vāsanā.
FAQs
It highlights how worldly speech—praise or ridicule—arises from social emotion, while the seeker is tested in patience and detachment; Shaiva devotion matures by remaining steady amid such external reactions.
Although the verse is narrative, it supports Saguna-bhakti by showing that devotion to Shiva (and reverence for the divine play around Parvati) should not depend on public approval; true worship is inner steadiness directed to Pati (Shiva) rather than social noise.
A practical takeaway is mantra-japa with restraint of speech—quiet repetition of the Panchākṣarī (“Om Namaḥ Śivāya”) and cultivating kṣamā (forbearance) when faced with ridicule, as a discipline aligned with Shaiva conduct.