मम भक्तास्तु ते दैत्या मया वध्या कथं सुराः । विचार्यतां भवद्भिश्च धर्मज्ञैरेव धर्मतः
mama bhaktāstu te daityā mayā vadhyā kathaṃ surāḥ | vicāryatāṃ bhavadbhiśca dharmajñaireva dharmataḥ
“Those Dāityas are truly My devotees; they are to be slain by Me—how then can the Devas do so? Consider this rightly, all of you who know dharma, in accordance with dharma alone.”
Lord Shiva
Tattva Level: pati
Shiva Form: Mahādeva
It presents Shiva as Pati (the Supreme Lord) who alone has the authority to dispense karmic justice: even when beings are His devotees, the resolution must still align with dharma, not factional loyalty.
In Saguna form, Shiva actively governs the cosmos and its moral order; worship of the Linga honors that sovereign reality where devotion is sacred, yet the Lord’s actions remain dharma-grounded and for cosmic balance.
A practical takeaway is dharma-vicāra with japa: chant the Pañcākṣarī (“Om Namaḥ Śivāya”) while examining one’s motives and actions, seeking Shiva’s guidance so devotion matures into righteous conduct.