दधीचाश्रमगमनम् — Viṣṇu’s Disguise and Dadhīca’s Fearlessness
Kṣu’s Request
दग्धुं देवान् मतिं चक्रे सायुधं सशिखं च तत् । प्रज्वलत्सर्वतश्शैवं युगांताग्र्यधिकप्रभम्
dagdhuṃ devān matiṃ cakre sāyudhaṃ saśikhaṃ ca tat | prajvalatsarvataśśaivaṃ yugāṃtāgryadhikaprabham
Dia bertekad untuk membakar para dewa. Maka kuasa Śaiva itu pun menjadi bersenjata dan berjambul api, menyala dari segala arah dengan sinar yang melampaui api teragung pada penghujung zaman.
Sūta Gosvāmin (narrating to the sages at Naimiṣāraṇya)
Tattva Level: pati
Shiva Form: Rudra
Cosmic Event: yugānta/pralaya-imagery (end-of-age fire as simile)
It portrays Śiva-tattva as the supreme, all-pervading power whose light can exceed even pralaya-fire; it warns that ego-driven hostility toward dharma is consumed by the higher Shaiva radiance, while devotion aligns one with that transcendent protection.
The verse emphasizes a manifest (saguṇa) expression of Shaiva power—flame-crested and armed—yet its radiance points to the deeper truth of Śiva as the ultimate Light (often symbolized by the Liṅga as jyoti), before whom even cosmic forces are subordinate.
Meditate on Śiva as the inner jyoti (light) and recite the Pañcākṣarī—“Om Namaḥ Śivāya”—to purify anger and fear; applying tripuṇḍra (bhasma) and wearing rudrākṣa are traditional Shaiva supports for steadiness in such contemplation.