Shloka 6
त्रिपुरवर्णनम् (Tripura-varṇanam) — “Description of Tripura”
सनत्कुमार उवाच । शृणु व्यास महाप्राज्ञ चरितं शशिमौलिनः । यथा ददाह त्रिपुरं बाणेनैकेन विश्व हृत्
sanatkumāra uvāca | śṛṇu vyāsa mahāprājña caritaṃ śaśimaulinaḥ | yathā dadāha tripuraṃ bāṇenaikena viśva hṛt
Sanatkumāra said: Listen, O Vyāsa, greatly wise one, to the sacred deeds of the Moon-crested Lord—how the Stealer of the worlds’ hearts burned Tripura, the three cities, with a single arrow.
Sanatkumara
Tattva Level: pati
Shiva Form: Tripurāntaka
Sthala Purana: This verse is a narrative preface to the Tripuradāha episode (Śiva as Tripurāntaka burning the three aerial cities). It is not framed as a Jyotirliṅga-māhātmya in this locus.
Significance: Hearing/reciting the Tripurāntaka-carita is traditionally treated as śravaṇa-bhakti that strengthens devotion and dispassion, and reinforces Śiva’s supremacy as the remover of adharmic powers.
Offering: pushpa
FAQs
It introduces Śiva’s Tripura-dahana as a symbol of divine grace overcoming the “threefold” bondage—ego, karma, and ignorance—showing that the Lord’s single act (one arrow) can dissolve vast accumulated impurity when approached with devotion.
By praising the Moon-crested Lord’s concrete deed, the verse supports saguna-upāsanā—worship of Śiva with form and qualities. Such līlās are contemplated in Linga worship as expressions of the same Supreme Pati who protects devotees and destroys bondage.
A practical takeaway is to meditate on Śiva as “Śaśimauli” while repeating the Pañcākṣarī (Om Namaḥ Śivāya), offering bilva leaves to the Liṅga, and inwardly praying that one pointed devotion may “burn” the three impurities (mala-traya) in the heart.