Shloka 142
Śiva-nāmānukīrtana-prastāvaḥ
Prologue to the praise of Śiva and the Upamanyu testimony
कूर्मो मत्स्यस्तथा शड्ख: प्रवालाड्कुरभूषण:
kūrmo matsyas tathā śaṅkhaḥ pravālāṅkurabhūṣaṇaḥ | kūrma-matsya-śaṅkha-naye-naye pallavānāṃ aṅkuraiḥ suśobhita-vasantādika-rūpeṣu api te eva prakaṭībhavanti | te mahādevaḥ yakṣa-rākṣasa-sarpa-daitya-dānava-pātālavāsināṃ api rūpaṃ dhārayanti |
Dijo Vāsudeva: «Él se manifiesta como la Tortuga, como el Pez y como la Concha, adornado con brotes semejantes al coral. En formas siempre nuevas —como las estaciones que comienzan con la primavera, hermoseadas por retoños frescos— sólo Él aparece. Ese mismo Gran Señor asume también las figuras de los yakṣas, rākṣasas, serpientes, daityas, dānavas y de los seres que habitan el mundo subterráneo (Pātāla).»
वासुदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches the all-pervasiveness of the Supreme: the same divinity manifests as auspicious symbols (like the conch), cosmic/avatāra-like forms (tortoise, fish), natural cycles (spring and other seasons), and even as the various classes of beings across the cosmos. Ethically, it supports a vision of reverence and restraint—recognizing one underlying reality behind diverse appearances.
Vāsudeva is describing the Lord’s manifold manifestations. He lists emblematic forms (Kūrma, Matsya, Śaṅkha), then expands the scope to nature’s recurring renewal (the seasons with fresh sprouts), and finally to cosmological beings—Yakṣas, Rākṣasas, serpents, Daityas, Dānavas, and inhabitants of Pātāla—showing that the divine presence extends through all realms and categories of existence.