Shiva Purana — Rudra Samhita, Shloka 53
विष्णुचेष्टितवर्णनम् / Account of Viṣṇu’s Stratagem and Its Aftermath
ततो विस्मृतदुःखोऽसौ विष्णुस्ताभ्यां सहैव तु । वैकुंठमगमत्तुष्टस्सर्वदेवैर्नमस्कृतः । कार्तिके मासि विप्रेन्द्र धात्री च तुलसी सदा । सर्वदेवप्रियाज्ञेया विष्णोश्चैव विशेषतः
tato vismṛtaduḥkho'sau viṣṇustābhyāṃ sahaiva tu | vaikuṃṭhamagamattuṣṭassarvadevairnamaskṛtaḥ | kārtike māsi viprendra dhātrī ca tulasī sadā | sarvadevapriyājñeyā viṣṇoścaiva viśeṣataḥ
その後、ヴィシュヌは憂いを忘れ、かの二者と共に進み、諸天に礼拝されて満ち足り、ヴァイクンタへと帰還した。おお婆羅門の中の最勝者よ、カールティカ月において、ダートリー（アーマラキー）とトゥラシーは常に諸神に愛されるもの、ことにヴィシュヌに最も愛されるものと知るべきである。さらにシヴァ・シッダーンタの見地からは、神々でさえ宇宙の主宰者（パティ）の至高の秩序のもとに安らぎと回復を得ること、また時にかなう聖なる行（カールティカ）と聖樹が、ダルマのうちで信愛と功徳を支える拠り所となることが示される。
Sūta Gosvāmi (narrating to the sages at Naimiṣāraṇya; addressing a leading brāhmaṇa as 'viprendra')
Tattva Level: pati
Shiva Form: Sadāśiva
Sthala Purana: Kārtika-māsa observance is highlighted as a time when dhātrī (āmalakī) and tulasī become especially dear; while not a Jyotirliṅga episode, it functions like a vrata-māhātmya segment within the narrative.
Significance: Merit through Kārtika devotion and offering/association with dhātrī and tulasī; supports sāttvika bhakti and ritual purity.
Role: nurturing
Offering: pushpa
FAQs
It highlights restoration through dharma: Viṣṇu’s grief is dispelled and he returns to his divine abode, while Kārtika is praised as a potent sacred time where offerings like Dhātrī and Tulasī amplify devotion and merit—showing that divine well-being is sustained within the cosmic order governed by the Supreme (Pati).
Though the verse names Viṣṇu, the Shiva Purana’s frame presents all deities as functioning within Śiva’s overarching sovereignty; thus, honoring sacred observances (vrata-kāla) and pure offerings supports Saguna worship—including Liṅga-pūjā—by cultivating sattva, devotion, and alignment with dharma.
Observe Kārtika with devotional discipline: offer or venerate Tulasī and Dhātrī (Āmalakī) with purity and mantra-japa; as a Śaiva practice, pair this with Liṅga-arcana and Panchākṣarī japa ("Om Namaḥ Śivāya") for steadiness of mind and merit.