Shloka 16
Sukesha's Boon & Twelve Dharmas — Sukesha’s Boon, the Twelve Dharmas of Beings, and the Cosmography of the Seven Dvipas with the Twenty-One Hells
दैत्यानां बाहुशलित्वं मात्सर्यं युद्धसत्क्रिया वेदनं नीतिशास्त्राणां हरभक्तिरुदाहृता
daityānāṃ bāhuśalitvaṃ mātsaryaṃ yuddhasatkriyā vedanaṃ nītiśāstrāṇāṃ harabhaktirudāhṛtā
For the Daityas, strength of arms, jealousy, and proper conduct in battle are stated (as their traits); knowledge of polity/treatises on statecraft, and devotion to Hara (Śiva), are also declared.
{ "primaryRasa": "vira", "secondaryRasa": "raudra", "rasaIntensity": 0, "emotionalArcPosition": "", "moodDescriptors": [] }
FAQs
The verse presents a typology: even groups stereotyped as antagonistic (Daityas) are described with a mixed moral profile—martial excellence and disciplined battle-conduct alongside envy—yet also capable of genuine devotion to Śiva and knowledge of nīti. Ethically, it separates ‘capacity’ (valor, learning, devotion) from ‘tendencies’ (jealousy), implying that dharma is multifaceted and not monopolized by any one class of beings.
It aligns most closely with ancillary didactic material embedded within vaṃśānucarita/character-description (traits of classes of beings) rather than core cosmogony (sarga/pratisarga). It functions as normative-ethical classification within the narrative frame.
By explicitly attributing ‘Hara-bhakti’ to Daityas, the text reinforces the Purāṇa’s non-sectarian and inclusive theology: devotion to Śiva can exist beyond Deva identity. It also subtly normalizes a shared religious field where Śaiva devotion and political/warrior codes coexist, even among asura lineages.