Shloka 38

Prahlada's Tirtha Circuit — Prahlada’s Pilgrimage Circuit: Tirtha-Mahatmya from Naimisha to Rudrakoti and Shalagrama

Devanagari script

तान् संक्षुब्धान् हरो दृष्ट्वा महर्षीन् दग्धकिल्बिषान् तेषामेवानुकम्पार्थं कोटिमूर्त्तिरभूद् भवः

Transliteration

tān saṃkṣubdhān haro dṛṣṭvā maharṣīn dagdhakilbiṣān teṣāmevānukampārthaṃ koṭimūrttirabhūd bhavaḥ

Translation

കലുഷങ്ങൾ ദഗ്ധമായി ക്ഷുബ്ധരായ മഹർഷിമാരെ കണ്ട ഹരൻ, അവരോടുള്ള അനുകമ്പയ്ക്കായി മാത്രം കോടിമൂർത്തിയുള്ള ‘ഭവ’നായി അവതരിച്ചു।

Speakers

• Narrator continuing the account to the addressed sage (muni).

Primary Deities

• Śiva (Hara/Bhava)

Key Themes

• Divine compassion (anukampā)
• Multiplication/emanation motif (koṭi-mūrti)
• Purification (dagdha-kilbiṣa)
• Tīrtha origin-story (etiology)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

{ "primaryRasa": "karuna", "secondaryRasa": "adbhuta", "rasaIntensity": 0, "emotionalArcPosition": "", "moodDescriptors": [] }

FAQs

How should ‘koṭi-mūrti’ be understood—literal multiplication or theological metaphor?

Within Purāṇic narrative logic it is a literal miracle: Śiva manifests simultaneously in countless forms so each sage receives direct darśana. Theologically it also expresses Śiva’s omnipresence—one reality appearing as many without division.

What does ‘dagdha-kilbiṣa’ add to the story?

It signals that the sages’ agitation is not portrayed as gross sin but as a residual blemish that is ‘burned’ by proximity to Śiva. The phrase frames the event as a purification leading to the establishment of a tīrtha.

Why is Śiva called ‘Bhava’ here?

‘Bhava’ is a classical epithet of Śiva emphasizing his role as the ground of existence and transformation. In tīrtha-māhātmya, such epithets often mark a specific mode of presence tied to the site’s name and ritual memory.