Shloka 58
Rudra-Śiva: Names, Two Natures, and the Logic of Epithets (रुद्रनाम-बहुरूपत्व-प्रकरणम्)
स शूद्र: संशिततपा: सत्यवादी जितेन्द्रिय: । शुश्रूषुरतिथिं प्राप्त तप: संचिनुते महत्
sa śūdraḥ saṃśitatapāḥ satyavādī jitendriyaḥ | śuśrūṣur atithiṃ prāptaṃ tapaḥ saṃcinute mahat ||
Mahādeva bersabda: “Śūdra itu—terlatih dalam pertapaan, berpegang pada kebenaran, dan menguasai inderanya—apabila ia melayani tetamu yang tiba dengan penuh hormat, menghimpun pahala tapas yang besar. Baginya, dharma yang terzahir sebagai khidmat itu sendiri menjadi suatu austeriti yang keras.”
श्रीमहेश्वर उवाच
Educational Q&A
Ethical excellence is measured by conduct: truthfulness, self-mastery, and hospitality. Serving an unexpected guest is presented as a form of tapas, generating great spiritual merit.
Mahādeva is instructing about dharma, highlighting that a Śūdra who practices truth, restraint, and devoted service to an arriving guest attains great tapas through service itself.