Shiva Purana — Rudra Samhita, Shloka 36
तारकवधोत्तरं देवस्तुतिः पर्वतवरप्रदानं च / Devas’ Hymn after Tāraka’s Slaying and the Bestowal of Boons upon the Mountains
दण्डहस्ताय कालाय पाशहस्ताय ते नमः । वेदमंत्रप्रधानाय शतजिह्वाय ते नमः
daṇḍahastāya kālāya pāśahastāya te namaḥ | vedamaṃtrapradhānāya śatajihvāya te namaḥ
杖を御手に持つカーラ（時）としての御身に敬礼する。縄（パーシャ）を御手に執る御身に敬礼する。ヴェーダの真言の精髄にして権威なる御身に敬礼する。百の舌を持つかのごとく讃嘆尽きず、その発語が聖なる言葉となる御身に敬礼する。
Suta Goswami (narrating the hymn/praise as part of the Kumārakhaṇḍa discourse)
Tattva Level: pati
Shiva Form: Mahākāla
Jyotirlinga: Mahākāleśvara
Sthala Purana: Mahākāla as the Lord of Time who grants liberation from fear of death; the Ujjayinī liṅga is famed as a svayaṃbhū manifestation where Śiva is worshipped as Mahākāla, subduing Kāla and protecting devotees.
Significance: Protection from untimely death and fear, strength in dharma, and a strong association with mokṣa through Kāla-tattva mastery.
Mantra: दण्डहस्ताय कालाय पाशहस्ताय ते नमः । वेदमंत्रप्रधानाय शतजिह्वाय ते नमः
Type: stotra
Shakti Form: Kālī
Role: destructive
Offering: dhupa
Cosmic Event: Kāla principle (time/death) foregrounded as a cosmic force mastered/embodied by Śiva.
FAQs
The verse worships Shiva as Kāla (the cosmic power of time that dissolves all bondage) and as the Lord who holds the pāśa (noose) symbolizing control over karmic fetters; it affirms that liberation comes by taking refuge in Pati (Shiva), the source and sovereign of sacred mantra.
It praises Saguna Shiva through iconic attributes—staff and noose—so the devotee can meditate on the Lord’s governing and liberating functions while worshiping the Shiva-Linga as the accessible form of the transcendent Reality.
Japa with Shiva-mantras (especially the Panchakshara, “Om Namaḥ Śivāya”) combined with contemplation of Shiva as the remover of pāśa (bondage) is implied; the verse naturally supports stotra-recitation during daily Linga-puja and Mahashivratri worship.