Vamana Purana — Daksha's Sacrifice & Kapalin Rudra, Shloka 40
Daksha’s Sacrifice and the Origin of Kapalin Rudra (Pulastya–Narada Dialogue)
स प्राह गच्छ दुर्बुद्धे मा त्वां शूलिन् निपातये भवान् पापसमायुक्तः पापिष्ठं को जिघांसति
sa prāha gaccha durbuddhe mā tvāṃ śūlin nipātaye bhavān pāpasamāyuktaḥ pāpiṣṭhaṃ ko jighāṃsati
તેણે કહ્યું—“હે દુર્બુદ્ધે, જા. હે શૂલધારી, હું તને પાતાળે પાડી નાશ કરું નહીં. તું પાપથી ભરેલો છે; અતિ પાપિષ્ઠને કોણ મારવા ઇચ્છે?”
{ "primaryRasa": "raudra", "secondaryRasa": "shanta", "rasaIntensity": 0, "emotionalArcPosition": "", "moodDescriptors": [] }
FAQs
Even when one has the power to punish, restraint is praised; destroying the deeply sinful is portrayed as spiritually unrewarding, implying that correction, withdrawal, or non-engagement may be superior to violent retribution.
This is best classified under Vamśānucarita/Carita-type narrative material (didactic episode within a story), rather than cosmology (sarga/pratisarga) or genealogies proper.
Rudra as Śūlin represents punitive cosmic force; the speaker’s refusal to ‘strike down’ suggests that dharma includes discrimination in the use of power, and that tapas/kshetra-oriented sanctity (developed in the next verses) can redirect even fierce divinity toward higher aims.