Shloka 14
दधीचाश्रमगमनम् — Viṣṇu’s Disguise and Dadhīca’s Fearlessness
Kṣu’s Request
दधीच उवाच । न बिभेमि सदा क्वापि कुतश्चिदपि किंचन । प्रभावाद्देवदेवस्य शंभोस्साक्षात्पिनाकिनः
dadhīca uvāca | na bibhemi sadā kvāpi kutaścidapi kiṃcana | prabhāvāddevadevasya śaṃbhossākṣātpinākinaḥ
Dadhīca said: “I never fear anything—anywhere, at any time, from anyone—because of the manifest might of Śambhu, the God of gods, the very Pinākin, bearer of the bow Pināka.”
Sage Dadhichi
Tattva Level: pati
Shiva Form: Rudra
Sthala Purana: Not tied to a specific Jyotirliṅga; it is a doctrinal assertion that Śambhu’s direct prabhāva (manifest power) grants abhayam to the devotee.
Significance: General phala: Śiva’s grace makes the devotee fearless; pilgrims are encouraged to seek not mere boons but inner abhayatā through Śiva’s presence.
Type: stotra
FAQs
The verse teaches that fear dissolves when one takes refuge in Pati—Śiva, the Lord of lords—whose manifest grace (prabhāva) gives the devotee steadfast courage and inner sovereignty.
By praising Śambhu as “sākṣāt pinākin,” the verse emphasizes Saguna Śiva—personally present and powerful—whom devotees worship through the Liṅga as the accessible, protective form of the Supreme.
A practical takeaway is fearless remembrance (smaraṇa) of Śiva—japa of the Pañcākṣarī “Om Namaḥ Śivāya” with devotion, mentally invoking Śiva as Pinākin for protection and steadiness.