Shloka 16
तुलसी-शङ्खचूडोपाख्यानम् — Viṣṇu’s Disguise and the Tulasī Episode
Prelude to Śaṅkhacūḍa’s Fall
कुबेरस्य प्रार्थनया गुणरूपधरो हरः । कैलासवासी गणपः परब्रह्म सतां गतिः
kuberasya prārthanayā guṇarūpadharo haraḥ | kailāsavāsī gaṇapaḥ parabrahma satāṃ gatiḥ
At Kubera’s supplication, Hara assumed a form endowed with divine attributes (saguṇa). Dwelling on Kailāsa, that Lord—leader of the gaṇas— is the Supreme Brahman and the final refuge of the righteous.
Suta Goswami
Tattva Level: pati
Shiva Form: Mahādeva
FAQs
It affirms Śiva as both saguṇa (approachable through form and qualities in response to devotion) and as Parabrahman (the ultimate reality), teaching that sincere prayer draws divine grace and that the highest gati (final end) of the virtuous is Śiva.
By stating that Hara ‘assumes a form with qualities’ in response to Kubera, the verse supports saguna-upāsanā—worship through a manifest form such as the Śiva-liṅga—while simultaneously declaring that the same Lord is Parabrahman beyond form.
A practical takeaway is bhakti-based japa of the Pañcākṣarī mantra “Om Namaḥ Śivāya” with liṅga-pūjā (water/abhisheka), holding the attitude that the compassionate Lord of Kailāsa responds to sincere prayer and leads the devotee toward mokṣa.