देवा उचुः । तारकोऽसौ महारौद्रस्त्वया दत्तवरः पुरा
devā ucuḥ | tārako'sau mahāraudrastvayā dattavaraḥ purā
Les Devas dirent : « Ce Tāraka est d’une férocité extrême ; jadis, il reçut de toi une grâce (un don) ».
Devas
Scene: Devas speak in chorus before Brahmā, pointing to the unseen threat of Tāraka; their posture is reverent yet strained, emphasizing the weight of a boon’s aftermath.
Unchecked boons, when joined with arrogance, become instruments of suffering; divine order ultimately seeks a dhārmic remedy rather than impulsive retaliation.
This verse sits within the Hāṭakeśvara-kṣetra-māhātmya stream of the Nāgara Khaṇḍa, where the wider narrative leads toward seeking Śiva’s darśana connected with sacred geography.
No explicit ritual is stated in this verse; it introduces the crisis that prompts later acts of devotion and seeking Śiva.