Shloka 33
तुलसी-शङ्खचूडोपाख्यानम् — Viṣṇu’s Disguise and the Tulasī Episode
Prelude to Śaṅkhacūḍa’s Fall
तुलस्युवाच । हे विष्णो ते दया नास्ति पाषाणसदृशं मनः । पतिधर्मस्य भंगेन मम स्वामी हतः खलु
tulasyuvāca | he viṣṇo te dayā nāsti pāṣāṇasadṛśaṃ manaḥ | patidharmasya bhaṃgena mama svāmī hataḥ khalu
Tulasī said: “O Viṣṇu, you have no compassion; your mind is like stone. By the breaking of a wife’s sacred dharma, my lord has indeed been slain.”
Tulasī
Tattva Level: pashu
Sthala Purana: Not tied to a Jyotirliṅga; it is a dharma-centric denunciation that sets up the curse transforming the offender into stone (śilā) in the next verse.
Significance: Used in discourse to underline pativratā-dharma ideals and the ethical weight of deceit; also frames later sacral objects (stone/plant) as born of narrative causality.
Shakti Form: Satī
Role: teaching
FAQs
The verse highlights the karmic and dharmic weight of violating sacred vows; in Shaiva thought, dharma is upheld under the Lord’s governance, and compassion must be aligned with righteous order, not mere sentiment.
Though addressed to Viṣṇu, the Yuddhakhaṇḍa context underscores that worldly powers and relationships are judged by dharma under the supreme Lord’s ordinance; worship of Saguna Shiva (including the Liṅga) is presented in the Purāṇa as a refuge that restores order, purity, and right conduct.
A practical takeaway is dharma-sādhana: daily japa of the Pañcākṣarī (“Om Namaḥ Śivāya”) with a vow of truthfulness and restraint, supported by simple Śiva-pūjā (water offering to the Liṅga) to purify intention and align actions with dharma.