Shiva Purana — Rudra Samhita, Shloka 24
कार्त्तिकेयान्वेषण-नन्दिसंवाद-वर्णनम्
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गिरिरुवाच । वीर्यं सोढुमशक्तोऽहं तव शंकर लोकप । गंगायां प्राक्षिपं सद्यो दुस्सहं परमेश्वर
giriruvāca | vīryaṃ soḍhumaśakto'haṃ tava śaṃkara lokapa | gaṃgāyāṃ prākṣipaṃ sadyo dussahaṃ parameśvara
Gunung (Himālaya) berkata: “Wahai Śaṅkara, pelindung segala alam, aku tidak mampu menanggung tenaga sakti-Mu yang dahsyat. Maka, wahai Parameśvara, segera aku mencampakkan kuasa yang tak tertahan itu ke dalam Sungai Gaṅgā.”
Giri (Himālaya, the Mountain-king)
Tattva Level: pasha
Shiva Form: Paśupatinātha
Sthala Purana: Himālaya, unable to bear Śiva’s tejas even on Kailāsa’s mountain-range, casts it into the Gaṅgā—preparing the river’s role as purifier and carrier of divine power.
Significance: Highlights Gaṅgā as the sanctifying medium capable (yet still strained) to bear Śiva’s power—supporting tīrtha-theology of rivers as conduits of grace.
FAQs
It highlights that Śiva’s divine śakti (vīrya) is infinitely intense and must be received through a fit vessel; sacred mediators like Gaṅgā symbolize purification and the regulated descent of transcendental power into the world.
As Saguna Śiva (Śaṅkara, Lokapa), the Lord engages in cosmic action, yet His power remains overwhelming; Linga-worship trains devotion and reverence toward that same boundless reality in a form accessible to devotees.
Approach Śiva’s power with humility and purification: japa of the Pañcākṣarī ("Om Namaḥ Śivāya"), and traditional Śaiva practices like Tripuṇḍra (bhasma) and Rudrākṣa help cultivate steadiness to receive grace without agitation.