Shloka 70
Śiva-nāmānukīrtana-prastāvaḥ
Prologue to the praise of Śiva and the Upamanyu testimony
इह्ैनं दैवतश्रेष्ठं देवा: सर्षिगणा: पुरा । तपसा ब्रह्मचर्येण सत्येन च दमेन च
ihainaṁ daivataśreṣṭhaṁ devāḥ sarṣigaṇāḥ purā | tapasā brahmacaryeṇa satyena ca damena ca ||
इहैव पुरा देवा ऋषिगणैः सह तपसा ब्रह्मचर्येण सत्येन दमेन च दैवतश्रेष्ठमेनं समाराध्य परमां देवतां प्राप्तवन्तः।
वासुदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that the highest divine goal is approached through ethical and ascetic disciplines—tapas (austerity), brahmacarya (regulated conduct/celibacy), satya (truthfulness), and dama (self-restraint)—rather than through mere status or force.
Vāsudeva recalls an ancient precedent: even the gods, along with assemblies of seers, relied on disciplined practices to honor/attain the supreme divinity, using their example to validate the path of moral restraint and spiritual effort.