Shloka 20
तारकासुर-पूर्ववृत्त-प्रश्नः (Questions on Tārakāsura and Śivā’s tapas) / “Inquiry into Tārakāsura’s origin and Śivā–Śiva narrative”
दितिस्सुखमतीवाप दृष्ट्वा शक्रादिदुर्दशाम् । अमरा अपि शक्राद्या जग्मुर्दुःखं स्वकर्मतः
ditissukhamatīvāpa dṛṣṭvā śakrādidurdaśām | amarā api śakrādyā jagmurduḥkhaṃ svakarmataḥ
ಶಕ್ರಾದಿ ದೇವರ ದುರ್ಡಶೆಯನ್ನು ನೋಡಿ ದಿತಿಯು ಅತ್ಯಂತ ಸಂತೋಷಪಟ್ಟಳು. ಆದರೆ ಅಮರರೂ—ಶಕ್ರಾದಿಗಳು—ತಮ್ಮದೇ ಕರ್ಮಫಲದಿಂದ ದುಃಖಕ್ಕೆ ಒಳಗಾದರು.
Suta Goswami
Tattva Level: pasha
FAQs
It underscores the Shiva Purana’s karmic moral: status—even deva-hood—does not exempt one from the fruits of action; suffering or prosperity arises from one’s own karma, while liberation ultimately requires turning toward Shiva as Pati beyond worldly rise and fall.
By showing that even Indra is bound by karma, the verse implicitly points devotees toward Saguna Shiva worship (Linga-upasana) as a stabilizing refuge that purifies karma and orients the mind to Shiva’s grace, rather than relying on worldly power or celestial rank.
A practical takeaway is daily Panchakshara japa ("Om Namaḥ Śivāya") with Tripuṇḍra (bhasma) and Rudrākṣa as reminders of karma’s law and Shiva’s protecting grace, cultivating humility and steadiness amid fortune and misfortune.