Shloka 45
वीरभद्र–देवयुद्धवर्णनम्
Vīrabhadra and the Battle with the Devas
समुपद्रवमालक्ष्य विध्वस्तं च महामखम् । मृगस्वरूपो यज्ञो हि महाभीतोऽपि दुद्रुवे
samupadravamālakṣya vidhvastaṃ ca mahāmakham | mṛgasvarūpo yajño hi mahābhīto'pi dudruve
മഹാ ഉപദ്രവം കണ്ടും മഹാമഖം തകർന്നതറിഞ്ഞും, യജ്ഞം മൃഗരൂപം ധരിച്ചു മഹാഭീതിയോടെ ഓടിപ്പോയി।
Sūta Gosvāmin (narrating to the sages at Naimiṣāraṇya)
Tattva Level: pasha
Shiva Form: Bhairava
Sthala Purana: In the Dakṣa-yajña legend, the personified Yajña flees as a deer when the rite collapses—symbolizing the insufficiency of sacrifice when severed from Śiva; later traditions connect the ‘deer’ motif to Śiva’s mastery over the sacrificial principle.
Offering: naivedya
FAQs
It shows that ritual power (yajña) collapses when severed from reverence to Pati (Śiva); when ego and disrespect dominate, even the “sacrifice” itself becomes fearful and unstable, pointing to devotion and right orientation as the soul of worship.
The ruin of Dakṣa’s sacrifice underscores that Saguna Śiva is not an optional deity within ritual but the very Lord of all sacred acts; honoring Śiva (often through Liṅga-worship) is portrayed as essential for any rite to be spiritually fruitful.
A key takeaway is to perform worship with Śiva-bhakti—daily pañcākṣarī japa (“Om Namaḥ Śivāya”) and offering with humility—so outer ritual is supported by inner surrender rather than pride.