Shloka 44
त्रिपुरवर्णनम् (Tripura-varṇanam) — “Description of Tripura”
पुराणि त्रीणि नो देहि निर्मायात्यद्भुतानि हि । सर्वसंपत्समृद्धान्य प्रधृष्याणि दिवौकसाम्
purāṇi trīṇi no dehi nirmāyātyadbhutāni hi | sarvasaṃpatsamṛddhānya pradhṛṣyāṇi divaukasām
“Grant us three wondrous cities, fashioned by your unrivalled power of manifestation—cities overflowing with every prosperity, impregnable and unconquerable even to the gods who dwell in heaven.”
The three sons of Tārakāsura (Tripurāsuras)
Tattva Level: pasha
Shiva Form: Tripurāntaka
Sthala Purana: This verse is part of the Tripura prelude: the asuras request three fortified cities created through māyā; later Śiva destroys Tripura as Tripurāntaka, establishing the moral that constructed invincibility collapses before divine ordinance.
Role: creative
FAQs
The verse shows how asuric intention seeks permanence and invincibility through māyā-made structures and worldly abundance; in Shaiva Siddhānta, such power remains within bondage (pāśa) when not surrendered to Pati (Śiva), and therefore cannot yield liberation.
By portraying even the devas as potentially overpowered by māyā-born fortresses, the narrative elevates Saguna Śiva as the supreme Lord whose grace alone dissolves bondage; Linga-worship centers the devotee on that sovereign reality beyond both deva and asura power.
A practical takeaway is to counter the pull of “unconquerable” worldly aims by steady japa of the Pañcākṣarī (Om Namaḥ Śivāya) and daily Tripuṇḍra (bhasma) application with remembrance of Śiva as the remover of māyā and bondage.