Shiva Purana — Rudra Samhita, Shloka 9
तारकवाक्य-शक्रविष्णुवीरभद्रयुद्धवर्णनम् — Account of Tāraka’s declarations and the battle involving Śakra (Indra), Viṣṇu, and Vīrabhadra
इति श्रीशिवमहापुराणे द्वितीयायां रुद्रसंहितायां चतुर्थे कुमारखंडे तारकवाक्यशक्रविष्णुवी रभद्रयुद्धवर्णनं नाम नवमोऽध्यायः
iti śrīśivamahāpurāṇe dvitīyāyāṃ rudrasaṃhitāyāṃ caturthe kumārakhaṃḍe tārakavākyaśakraviṣṇuvī rabhadrayuddhavarṇanaṃ nāma navamo'dhyāyaḥ
Sa gayon nagtatapos ang ikasiyam na kabanata, na pinamagatang "Ang ulat ng mga salita ni Tāraka, ang mga papel nina Śakra at Viṣṇu, at ang paglalarawan ng labanan kay Vīrabhadra," sa ikaapat na bahagi, ang Kumāra-khaṇḍa, ng ikalawang dibisyon (Rudra-saṃhitā) ng Śrī Śiva Mahāpurāṇa.
Sūta Gosvāmin (traditional Purāṇic colophon context, narrating to the sages of Naimiṣāraṇya)
Sthala Purana: Colophon (iti…): a textual closure naming the chapter’s scope—Tāraka’s speech, Indra and Viṣṇu’s roles, and Vīrabhadra’s battle—serving as a Purāṇic indexing device rather than a tīrtha-origin.
Significance: Liturgical reading marker: used to structure pāraayaṇa (serial recitation) and to preserve adhikāra (context) for the narrative’s theological import.
FAQs
This is a colophon marking the completion of a chapter, emphasizing that the events—Tāraka’s speech and the battle involving Vīrabhadra—are to be read as expressions of Śiva’s supreme lordship (Pati) guiding cosmic order, not merely as historical warfare.
By naming Vīrabhadra (a fierce, saguna manifestation aligned with Śiva’s will), it supports saguna-upāsanā: devotees contemplate Śiva’s manifest powers as protectors of dharma, which culminates in steadiness of devotion to the Liṅga as Śiva’s accessible presence.
A practical takeaway is śaraṇāgati (surrender) through japa of the Pañcākṣarī—“Om Namaḥ Śivāya”—while applying tripuṇḍra (bhasma) and mentally offering the fruits of action to Śiva, remembering that divine power restores order when ego and hostility arise.