Shloka 42

Devanagari script

अतस्त्वया महादेव सुरर्षिप्राणरक्षक । साधूनां रक्षणार्थाय हंतव्या म्लेच्छजातयः

Transliteration

atastvayā mahādeva surarṣiprāṇarakṣaka | sādhūnāṃ rakṣaṇārthāya haṃtavyā mlecchajātayaḥ

Translation

Therefore, O Mahādeva—protector of the very life of the gods and the ṛṣis—for the safeguarding of the righteous, the mleccha hordes, who uphold adharma and oppress the good, must be slain.

Word by Word

• atas: therefore
• atas: Hetu (हेतु/Reason)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: atas (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya (अव्यय), adverbial particle (निपात), meaning 'therefore/from this reason'

• tvayā: by you
• tvayā: Karana (करण/Instrument; agent in passive)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yusmad (युष्मद्-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Pronoun (सर्वनाम), Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया), Singular (एकवचन)

• mahādeva: O Mahādeva
• mahādeva: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन/Address)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahā + deva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Vocative (8th/सम्बोधन), Singular; compound: 'great + god'

• sura-ṛṣi-prāṇa-rakṣaka: O protector of the lives of gods and sages
• sura-ṛṣi-prāṇa-rakṣaka: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन/Address)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sura + ṛṣi + prāṇa + rakṣaka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Vocative (8th/सम्बोधन), Singular; ṣaṣṭhī-tatpuruṣa sense: 'protector of the lives of gods and sages'

• sādhūnām: of the righteous (people)
• sādhūnām: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sādhu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Genitive (6th/षष्ठी), Plural (बहुवचन)

• rakṣaṇa-arthāya: for the purpose of protection
• rakṣaṇa-arthāya: Prayojana (प्रयोजन/Purpose)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rakṣaṇa + artha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Dative (4th/चतुर्थी), Singular; compound: 'for the purpose (artha) of protection (rakṣaṇa)'

• hantavyāḥ: must be slain
• hantavyāḥ: Vidheyāḥ (विधेय/Predicate; obligation)
• Type: Verb
• Root: han (हन्-धातु) + tavya (तव्य-प्रत्यय)
• Form: Kṛdanta (कृदन्त) gerundive/obligative (तव्यत्), Feminine (स्त्रीलिङ्ग), Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Plural; passive necessity: 'are to be killed'

• mleccha-jātayaḥ: the mleccha tribes
• mleccha-jātayaḥ: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mleccha + jāti (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Plural; compound: 'mleccha-births/tribes'

Speaker

Suta Goswami (narrating the Yuddhakhaṇḍa dialogue to the sages at Naimiṣāraṇya; the verse reflects an appeal addressed to Mahādeva within the narrative)

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pati

Shiva Form: Mahādeva

Characters & Entities

• Shiva

FAQs

What is the spiritual significance of this verse in the Shiva Purana?

It presents Śiva as Pati—the compassionate protector of devas, ṛṣis, and sādhus—who removes adharma when it threatens the spiritual order, showing that divine “destruction” is ultimately protective and purifying.

How does this verse relate to the worship of the Linga or Saguna Shiva?

As Saguna Śiva, Mahādeva responds to the cries of the righteous and restores dharma; Linga-worship trains the devotee to seek that same shelter in Śiva’s protective grace and to surrender egoistic violence while trusting divine justice.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

Take refuge in Śiva through japa of the Pañcākṣarī (Om Namaḥ Śivāya) with a dhārmic resolve (saṅkalpa) for protection of virtue; accompany it with Tripuṇḍra (bhasma) and Rudrākṣa as reminders of Śiva’s purifying guardianship.