Shloka 15
Muñjavān on Himavat: Maheśvara’s abode, Śiva-stuti, and sacrificial gold
Chapter 8
क्षेम्याय हरिकेशाय स्थाणवे पुरुषाय च । हरिनेत्राय मुण्डाय क्ुद्धायोत्तरणाय च
kṣemyāya harikeśāya sthāṇave puruṣāya ca | harinetrāya muṇḍāya kruddhāyottaraṇāya ca ||
Saṃvarta said: “Homage to the auspicious and protective One; to the tawny-haired Lord; to the immovable, steadfast One; and to the Supreme Person. Homage to Him whose eyes are tawny; to the shaven-headed ascetic form; to the wrathful aspect; and to the One who carries beings across (beyond danger and bondage).” In context, the verse strings together epithets that hold together seemingly opposite divine qualities—peace and fury, stillness and action—teaching that ethical refuge lies in recognizing a single higher order that can both restrain and redeem.
संवर्त उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches integrated devotion: the same supreme reality is invoked as protector (kṣema), steadfast ground (sthāṇu), and deliverer (uttaraṇa), while also being capable of righteous wrath (kruddha). Ethically, it affirms that divine power supports dharma both by safeguarding the good and by restraining wrongdoing.
Saṃvarta is uttering a sequence of salutations (a stotra-like invocation), naming the deity through multiple epithets. The piling of names functions as a ritual and rhetorical act of seeking protection, legitimacy, and successful passage through a difficult situation by aligning oneself with the supreme order.