Shloka 20

Adhyāya 283: Varṇa-vṛtti, Nyāya-ārjana, and the Decline-and-Restoration of Dharma (वर्णवृत्तिः न्यायार्जनं च)

Devanagari script

दक्ष उवाच सन्ति नो बहवो रुद्रा: शूलहस्ता: कपर्दिन: । एकादशस्थानगता नाहं वेझि महेश्वरम्‌,दक्षने कहा--हाथोंमें शूल और मस्तकपर जटाजूट धारण करनेवाले बहुत-से रुद्र हमारे यहाँ रहते हैं। वे ग्यारह हैं और ग्यारह स्थानोंमें निवास करते हैं। उनके सिवा दूसरे किसी महेश्वरको मैं नहीं जानता

Transliteration

dakṣa uvāca santi no bahavo rudrāḥ śūlahastāḥ kapardinaḥ | ekādaśasthānagatā nāhaṃ vedi maheśvaram ||

Translation

Dakṣa dit : «Parmi nous, il y a de nombreux Rudra—tenant le trident et portant les cheveux en mèches emmêlées. Ils sont au nombre de onze et demeurent en onze lieux. En dehors d’eux, je ne reconnais aucun autre Maheśvara.»

Word by Word

दक्षःDaksha

उवाचsaid

सन्तिare/exist

नःof us/our

बहवःmany

रुद्राःRudras

शूलहस्ताःhaving tridents in their hands

कपर्दिनःwearing matted hair/topknot

एकादशस्थानगताःgone to/abiding in eleven places

नnot

अहम्I

वेद्मिknow

महेश्वरम्Maheshvara (the Great Lord)

Speaker

दक्ष उवाच

Characters & Entities

Dakṣa

Rudras

Śūla (trident)

Maheśvara (Śiva)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights a theological standpoint: the divine may be spoken of as multiple manifestations (the eleven Rudras), yet recognition of the supreme form (Maheśvara) depends on one’s understanding; Dakṣa claims knowledge only of the Rudras known in his tradition and denies any other Maheśvara beyond them.

What is happening in the narrative?

Dakṣa is speaking about Rudra-forms present ‘among us,’ describing their iconography (trident, matted hair) and their number and abodes (eleven). He then asserts that apart from these eleven Rudras he does not acknowledge another Maheśvara.