Shloka 15
द्वन्द्वयुद्धवर्णनम् / Description of the Duel-Combats
ततोऽतिक्रुद्धश्शुंभोऽपि बाणदृष्ट्या गणाधिपम् । मूषकं च त्रिभिर्विद्ध्वा ननाद जलदस्वनः
tato'tikruddhaśśuṃbho'pi bāṇadṛṣṭyā gaṇādhipam | mūṣakaṃ ca tribhirviddhvā nanāda jaladasvanaḥ
Then Śumbha, exceedingly enraged, set his arrow-aim upon the Lord of the Gaṇas; and having pierced his mouse-vāhana with three arrows, he roared like thunderclouds.
Sūta Gosvāmin
Tattva Level: pasha
FAQs
Śumbha’s thunderous rage and his attack on Gaṇeśa’s mount symbolize the asuric impulse to strike at dharma by disrupting the devotee’s stability; the Purāṇic battle is also an inner battle where pride and wrath confront the Lord’s guardianship (Gaṇādhipatva) that protects the path to Śiva.
Gaṇeśa, as Śiva’s foremost attendant and Gaṇādhipa, represents Saguna Śiva’s accessible grace that removes obstacles to worship; assaults in the narrative highlight why devotees seek refuge in Śiva’s manifest forms (Liṅga, Gaṇeśa, and the divine retinue) for protection and steadiness in sādhana.
A practical takeaway is to counter anger and agitation with japa of the Pañcākṣarī (“Om Namaḥ Śivāya”) and a brief centering before the Liṅga; maintaining Tripuṇḍra (bhasma) and a sattvic discipline supports inner steadiness when ‘Śumbha-like’ impulses arise.