Shiva Purana — Vayaviya Samhita, Shloka 18
भद्रस्य देवसंघेषु विक्रमः
Bhadra’s Onslaught among the Deva Hosts
स्वाहादेव्यास्तथा देवो दक्षिणं नासिकापुटम् । चकर्त करजाग्रेण वामं च स्तनचूचुकम्
svāhādevyāstathā devo dakṣiṇaṃ nāsikāpuṭam | cakarta karajāgreṇa vāmaṃ ca stanacūcukam
Alors le Seigneur, de la même manière, coupa la narine droite de Svāhādevī avec le bout de son ongle, ainsi que son mamelon gauche.
Suta Goswami
Tattva Level: pati
Shiva Form: Vīrabhadra
Sthala Purana: Episode belongs to Dakṣa-yajña-dhvaṃsa (destruction of Dakṣa’s sacrifice), illustrating Śiva’s supremacy over Vedic deities when sacrifice is divorced from devotion and humility; not a Jyotirliṅga-māhātmya passage.
Significance: Didactic tīrtha-value: warns that ritual (yajña) without Śiva-bhakti and proper reverence culminates in spiritual ‘mutilation’—loss of auspicious faculties and merit.
Cosmic Event: Dakṣa-yajña-dhvaṃsa (ritual catastrophe as cosmic-moral correction)
FAQs
In Shaiva Siddhanta terms, Shiva as Pati is the sovereign purifier: the verse depicts a fierce, corrective intervention that symbolizes the cutting away of impurity (mala) and bondage (pāśa) when dharma is violated.
It reflects Saguna Shiva—Shiva with attributes—who actively protects cosmic order. Linga-worship honors the same Lord as the inner ruler who removes defilements; this episode highlights his role as the authoritative purifier and guardian.
A practical takeaway is disciplined self-restraint (saṃyama) and repentance, supported by japa of the Pañcākṣarī mantra (“Om Namaḥ Śivāya”) and traditional Shaiva purificatory observances such as Tripuṇḍra (bhasma) and Rudrākṣa, undertaken with humility.