Shiva Purana — Rudra Samhita, Shloka 61
गजासुरतपः–देवलोकक्षोभः
Gajāsura’s Austerities and the Disturbance of the Worlds
महातपोनलज्वालां प्राप्यापि सुचिरं विभो । न दग्धा कृत्तिरेषा मे पुण्यगंधनिधेस्ततः
mahātaponalajvālāṃ prāpyāpi suciraṃ vibho | na dagdhā kṛttireṣā me puṇyagaṃdhanidhestataḥ
Ô Seigneur, bien qu’exposée longtemps à la flamme ardente de la grande austérité, cette peau (kṛtti) qui est mienne n’a pas été brûlée — car elle provient d’un trésor de parfum sacré et de mérite.
An asura/warrior in the Yuddhakhaṇḍa boasting before Lord Shiva (as narrated by Sūta Gosvāmin)
Tattva Level: pashu
Shiva Form: Gajasamhāramūrti
Sthala Purana: Not a Jyotirliṅga legend; it is part of the post-combat boon/praise where the donor claims the kṛtti remains unburnt even by ascetic fire, implying it is fit for Śiva’s acceptance.
Significance: Teaches that contact with Śiva (and surrender to Him) ‘purifies’ and makes even what is otherwise impure into a vehicle of merit—an allegory for the bound soul becoming fit for grace.
FAQs
It highlights the Shaiva insight that even intense tapas can become a ground for ego; endurance or “invulnerability” is not liberation. True spiritual success is measured by surrender to Pati (Shiva) and the purification of the soul, not by boastful power gained through austerity.
In Saguna worship, the devotee seeks Shiva’s grace to burn impurities (pāśa) rather than merely to acquire strength. The verse contrasts self-claimed protection with the higher Shaiva goal: approaching the Lord (often through Linga worship) for inner transformation and humility.
The implied corrective is Shiva-centered practice—japa of the Pañcākṣarī “Om Namaḥ Śivāya,” worship with bhakti, and purification disciplines such as Tripuṇḍra (bhasma) and Rudrākṣa—so that tapas becomes devotion and dissolves pride.