Shloka 13
शारभावतारवर्णनम्
Account of Śiva’s Śārabha Manifestation and the Measureless Avatāras
वर्षाणामयुतं तप्त्वा ब्रह्मणो वरमाप सः । न कश्चिन्मारयेन्मां वै त्वत्सृष्टाविति तुष्टतः
varṣāṇāmayutaṃ taptvā brahmaṇo varamāpa saḥ | na kaścinmārayenmāṃ vai tvatsṛṣṭāviti tuṣṭataḥ
പതിനായിരം വർഷം ഘോരതപസ്സു ചെയ്ത് അവൻ ബ്രഹ്മാവിൽ നിന്ന് വരം നേടി. തുഷ്ടനായ ബ്രഹ്മാവ് പറഞ്ഞു—“നിന്റെ സൃഷ്ടിയിൽ ആരും നിന്നെ കൊല്ലാൻ കഴിയരുത്।”
Suta Goswami (narrating the episode as part of the Śatarudra narrative)
Tattva Level: pasha
Shiva Form: Īśāna
Role: teaching
FAQs
It highlights how intense tapas can yield powerful worldly results, yet such boons remain limited within the created order—implying that true freedom (moksha) lies beyond conditional protections and is ultimately under Shiva’s supreme governance.
By showing the limits of Brahmā’s boon (restricted to “your creation”), the Purana points to Shiva as Pati—the transcendent Lord beyond the bounds of created beings—whom devotees approach through Saguna forms like the Linga for protection, purification, and liberation.
The verse emphasizes tapas (disciplined practice); for Shaiva practice this is best oriented as japa of the Panchakshara (“Om Namaḥ Śivāya”) with purity disciplines such as Tripuṇḍra (bhasma) and steady devotion, rather than seeking mere worldly invulnerability.