Shloka 5
Sarasvatī-Śāpavimokṣa, Rākṣasa-Mokṣa, and Aruṇā-Tīrtha
Indra–Namuci Expiation
यत्र स्थाणुर्महाराज तप्तवान् परमं तप: । तत्रास्य कर्म तद् घोरं प्रवदन्ति मनीषिण:,महाराज! जहाँ भगवान् स्थाणुने बड़ी भारी तपस्या की थी, वहाँ मनीषी पुरुष उनके घोर तपका वर्णन करते हैं
yatra sthāṇur mahārāja taptavān paramaṃ tapaḥ | tatrāsya karma tad ghoraṃ pravadanti manīṣiṇaḥ ||
Vaiśampāyana berkata: “Wahai raja agung, di tempat itulah Tuhan Sthāṇu pernah menjalankan tapa yang tertinggi; di sana para bijaksana menceritakan perbuatan dahsyat yang dikaitkan dengan-Nya—mengingati kuasa yang menggerunkan serta akibat dari tapas itu.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the moral and spiritual weight of tapas: supreme austerity generates formidable power, and the tradition remembers not only the ascetic achievement but also the grave, fearsome consequences of the deeds connected with it.
Vaiśampāyana points out a specific sacred location and notes that sages describe how Sthāṇu (Śiva) practiced intense austerity there, along with a ‘ghora karma’—a dreadful associated act or episode—thus framing the place as charged with divine ascetic history.