Shloka 25

Muñjavān on Himavat: Maheśvara’s abode, Śiva-stuti, and sacrificial gold

Chapter 8

Devanagari script

क्रोधनायानृशंसाय मृदवे बाहुशालिने । दण्डिने तप्ततपसे तथैवाक्रूरकर्मणे

Transliteration

krodhanāyānṛśaṃsāya mṛdave bāhuśāline | daṇḍine taptatapase tathaivākrūrakarmaṇe ||

Translation

Saṃvarta said: “(This offering/this reverence is) for one who is given to wrath and harshness, yet also gentle and strong-armed; for one who wields punishment, who has performed austere penances, and likewise for one whose deeds are not cruel.” The verse juxtaposes seemingly opposite traits—severity and gentleness—suggesting a moral portrait in which disciplined power (daṇḍa) and tapas are meant to restrain cruelty and uphold order.

Word by Word

• क्रोधनाय: to/for the wrathful one
• क्रोधनाय: Sampradana
• Type: Noun
• Root: क्रोधन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Dative, Singular

• अनृशंसाय: to the non-cruel/compassionate one
• अनृशंसाय: Sampradana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अनृशंस (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Dative, Singular

• मृदवे: to the gentle one
• मृदवे: Sampradana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: मृदु (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Dative, Singular

• बाहुशालिने: to the strong-armed one
• बाहुशालिने: Sampradana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: बाहुशालिन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Dative, Singular

• दण्डिने: to the wielder of the staff/punisher
• दण्डिने: Sampradana
• Type: Noun
• Root: दण्डिन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Dative, Singular

• तप्ततपसे: to the one of practiced/austere penance
• तप्ततपसे: Sampradana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: तप्ततपस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Dative, Singular

• तथा: thus; likewise
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा

• एव: indeed; just
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव

• अक्रूरकर्मणे: to the one whose deeds are not cruel
• अक्रूरकर्मणे: Sampradana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अक्रूरकर्मन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Dative, Singular

Speaker

संवर्त उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Saṃvarta

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Power and discipline (daṇḍa), even when associated with anger or severity, are ethically justified only when restrained by tapas and directed away from cruelty—so that governance becomes protection and order rather than violence.

What is happening in the narrative?

Saṃvarta is describing (or invoking) a person characterized by a complex blend of traits—wrathful/harsh yet gentle, strong, punitive, and ascetically disciplined—highlighting the tension between force and compassion that underlies righteous authority.