Shloka 14

Gift of Sudarshana — The Gift of Sudarshana: Shiva’s Boon to Vishnu and the Sanctification of Virupaksha

Devanagari script

तन्मातुर्वचनं श्रुत्वा वीतमन्युसुतो ऽब्रवीत् को ऽयं विरूपाक्ष इति त्वयाराध्यस्तु कीर्तितः

Transliteration

tanmāturvacanaṃ śrutvā vītamanyusuto 'bravīt ko 'yaṃ virūpākṣa iti tvayārādhyastu kīrtitaḥ

Translation

“Hearing his mother’s words, the son of Vītamanyu said: ‘Who is this Virūpākṣa, described by you as the one to be worshipped?’”

Speakers

• Son of Vītamanyu to his mother (question-response setup)

Primary Deities

• Śiva (Virūpākṣa)

Key Themes

• Inquiry leading to theology (devatā-paricaya)
• Transmission of tīrtha knowledge within family frame
• Śaiva devotion
• Narrative framing device

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

{ "primaryRasa": "adbhuta", "secondaryRasa": "shanta", "rasaIntensity": 0, "emotionalArcPosition": "", "moodDescriptors": [] }

FAQs

Who is ‘Vītamanyu’ and why is the son identified through him?

The verse uses a patronymic-style identifier (‘son of Vītamanyu’) to anchor the episode in a recognizable lineage or narrative unit; such naming is common in Purāṇic tīrtha narratives to authenticate the frame and cue the listener that a specific story-cycle is underway.

What does the son’s question accomplish in the chapter’s structure?

It functions as a narrative hinge: the instruction to worship is followed by a request for identification, inviting an ensuing description (names, attributes, possibly the local manifestation at a tīrtha) that supports the māhātmya’s theological and geographical aims.

Is Virūpākṣa here a local liṅga or the cosmic Śiva?

The diction supports both: the prior verse calls him ‘jagaddhāman’ (cosmic), while tīrtha-māhātmya contexts commonly localize that cosmic deity in a specific shrine/spot. The explicit localization, however, is not present in 56.14 itself.