Shiva Purana — Rudra Samhita, Shloka 30
देवदैत्यसामान्ययुद्धवर्णनम् — Description of the General Battle Between Devas and Daityas
असुरास्तेऽपि युयुधुस्तारकासुरजीविनः । बलोत्कटा महावीरा मर्दयन्तो गणान् रुषा
asurāste'pi yuyudhustārakāsurajīvinaḥ | balotkaṭā mahāvīrā mardayanto gaṇān ruṣā
Ces asuras aussi—soutenus par la puissance de Tārakāsura—poursuivirent le combat. Terribles de force et grands de vaillance, dans leur colère ils écrasaient et harcelaient les gaṇas de Śiva.
Sūta Gosvāmin (narrating to the sages of Naimiṣāraṇya)
Tattva Level: pasha
FAQs
It depicts the clash between forces bound to egoic power (asuras sustained by Tārakāsura) and the Lord’s divine order (Śiva’s gaṇas). In Shaiva thought, such battles symbolize the struggle between pasha-driven impulses like anger and the soul’s alignment with Pati (Śiva).
The gaṇas are the living retinue of Saguna Śiva—His manifest governance in the world. Remembering Śiva through Linga-worship and devotion aligns the practitioner with that divine order, rather than with dependence on worldly power like the asuras’ reliance on Tārakāsura.
A practical takeaway is to pacify wrath (ruṣā) through japa of the Pañcākṣarī—“Om Namaḥ Śivāya”—and steadying practices like vibhūti (Tripuṇḍra) and Rudrākṣa as reminders to remain under Śiva’s protection rather than anger’s momentum.