Shloka 5
Glorification of Vārāṇasī: Kapardīśvara Liṅga and the Piśācamocana Tīrtha
धावमाना सुसंभ्रांता व्याघ्रस्य वशमागता । तां विदार्य नखैस्तीक्ष्णैः शार्दूलः स महाबलः
dhāvamānā susaṃbhrāṃtā vyāghrasya vaśamāgatā | tāṃ vidārya nakhaistīkṣṇaiḥ śārdūlaḥ sa mahābalaḥ
അവൾ അത്യന്തം ഭ്രമിച്ച് ഓടിക്കൊണ്ടിരിക്കെ വ്യാഘ്രത്തിന്റെ അധീനതയിൽപ്പെട്ടു. അപ്പോൾ മഹാബലനായ ശാർദൂലൻ മൂർച്ചയുള്ള നഖങ്ങളാൽ അവളെ കീറി ആക്രമിച്ചു.
Narrator (contextual speaker not specified in the provided excerpt)
Primary Rasa: bhayanaka
Secondary Rasa: karuna
Type: forest
Sandhi Resolution Notes: वशम् + आगता → वशमागता; नखैः + तीक्ष्णैः → नखैस्तीक्ष्णैः (विसर्ग/स्-आदेश संधि)
FAQs
It depicts a frightened figure running into danger and being attacked—first coming under a tiger’s control, then being torn by a powerful śārdūla with sharp claws.
Śārdūla commonly denotes a fierce predatory animal—often rendered as leopard/panther (sometimes generically “tiger”). Here it is distinguished from “vyāghra” (tiger), so “leopard/panther” fits the contrast.
The verse uses stark danger imagery to underscore vulnerability under fear and loss of control—often a narrative device in Purāṇic storytelling to highlight the consequences of circumstance (and, in broader context, karma and protection through dharma).