Shloka 42
ब्रह्मोवाच । एत उत्पन्नमात्रा हि मारयेत्यवदन् वचः । मुहुर्मुहुरतोमीषां नाम मारेति जायताम्
brahmovāca | eta utpannamātrā hi mārayetyavadan vacaḥ | muhurmuhuratomīṣāṃ nāma māreti jāyatām
Brahmā said: “No sooner were they born than they repeatedly cried, ‘Kill!’ Therefore their name came to be ‘Māra’—the killers—again and again.”
Brahma
Tattva Level: pasha
Shiva Form: Rudra
Mantra: māraya
Role: destructive
Cosmic Event: emergence of obstructive/violent impulses as part of tirodhāna—concealment that drives beings into karma
FAQs
It highlights how a being’s repeated inner impulse and speech (vṛtti and vāk) shape identity and destiny; Shaiva teaching implies such destructive tendencies are to be purified by turning the mind toward Śiva, the Pati who liberates the bound soul (paśu) from its limiting impulses.
The verse depicts raw, violent instinct arising at birth; worship of the Śiva-liṅga (Saguna focus) is presented in the Purana as a stabilizing practice that transforms tamasic drives into devotion, restraint, and auspiciousness (śivattva).
A practical takeaway is to counter harmful speech and impulses with japa of Śiva-mantra (especially the Panchākṣarī, “Om Namaḥ Śivāya”) and a sāttvika discipline (e.g., bhasma/Tripuṇḍra with remembrance of Śiva) to redirect the mind toward non-violence and liberation.