Shloka 3

Indra’s Account: Shilada’s Tapas and Shiva’s Manifestation as Nandi

Devanagari script

वल्मीकेनावृताङ्गश् च लक्ष्यः कीटगणैर्मुनिः वज्रसूचीमुखैश्चान्यै रक्तकीटैश् च सर्वतः

Transliteration

valmīkenāvṛtāṅgaś ca lakṣyaḥ kīṭagaṇairmuniḥ vajrasūcīmukhaiścānyai raktakīṭaiś ca sarvataḥ

Translation

その四肢は蟻塚に覆われ、聖仙は虫の群れの格好の標的となった。金剛の針のごとき口をもつもの、血のごとく赤い虫どもが、四方より襲いかかった。されど彼はタパスに堅く、耐え忍び、身に宿る痛みの結び目を忍耐の火で焼き尽くしつつ、主宰パティ（シヴァ）へと向かう道を歩んだ。

Word by Word

• valmīkena: by an anthill

• āvṛta-aṅgaḥ: whose limbs were covered

• ca: and

• lakṣyaḥ: a target/mark

• kīṭa-gaṇaiḥ: by multitudes of insects

• muniḥ: the sage

• vajra-sūcī-mukhaiḥ: with mouths like a vajra-needle (hard, piercing)

• ca anyaiḥ: and by others

• rakta-kīṭaiḥ: by blood-red worms/insects

• ca: and

• sarvataḥ: from all sides/everywhere

Speaker

Suta Goswami (narrating to the sages of Naimisharanya)

Characters & Entities

• Shiva

FAQs

What is the importance of this verse in the context of Linga worship?

It frames the ascetic’s unwavering tapas as the inner prerequisite for true Liṅga-bhakti—steadiness that purifies the pashu (individual soul) so it can approach Pati (Śiva) beyond bodily disturbance.

How does this verse describe the nature of Shiva (Shiva-tattva)?

By implication, Śiva-tattva is the unshaken ground of consciousness: the sage’s endurance mirrors the Shaiva ideal of abiding in the Self while pasha—pain, fear, and bodily limitation—attempts to dominate.

What ritualistic or Yogic practice is highlighted here?

Tapas as a limb of Pāśupata discipline—patient endurance and withdrawal from body-identification—showing how austerity weakens pasha and stabilizes the seeker in devotion to Śiva.