Shloka 35

Sacred Abodes of Vishnu & Shiva — Catalogue of Vishnu and Shiva’s Sacred Abodes (Tirtha-Mahatmya within the Pulastya–Narada Frame)

Devanagari script

रसातले च विख्यातं सहस्रशिरसं मुने कालाग्निरुद्रं तत्रैव तथान्यं कृत्तिवाससम्

Transliteration

rasātale ca vikhyātaṃ sahasraśirasaṃ mune kālāgnirudraṃ tatraiva tathānyaṃ kṛttivāsasam

Translation

اے مُنی، رساتل میں ‘سہسرشِرَس’ (ہزار سروں والا) مشہور ہے؛ وہیں ‘کالVamana Purana

Speakers

• Narrator/teacher voice addressing a sage (mune); specific interlocutors not stated in the given excerpt

Primary Deities

• Shiva (Rudra)
• Kālāgnirudra
• Kṛttivāsas
• Ananta/Śeṣa (implied by sahasraśiras)

Key Themes

• Pātāla cosmography
• Multiplicity of divine forms
• Śaiva theophanies in nether realms
• Cosmic support/dissolution symbolism

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

{ "primaryRasa": "adbhuta", "secondaryRasa": "bhayanaka", "rasaIntensity": 0, "emotionalArcPosition": "", "moodDescriptors": [] }

FAQs

Who is the “thousand-headed” (sahasraśiras) figure in Rasātala?

In Purāṇic cosmology, “thousand-headed” most naturally recalls Ananta/Śeṣa, the serpent of infinity who supports worlds. Some recensions also apply such epithets to vast cosmic forms; the verse’s placement among netherworld identifications supports the Ananta/Śeṣa reading.

Why are fierce Śiva-forms (Kālāgnirudra, Kṛttivāsas) located in Rasātala?

Purāṇas often distribute divine manifestations across all cosmic tiers—heavens, earth, and netherworlds—signaling sovereignty everywhere. Kālāgnirudra represents time-fire and dissolution; Kṛttivāsas signals ascetic/cremation-ground power, thematically resonant with subterranean, liminal realms.

Is this passage a tīrtha description or a cosmological catalogue?

It functions as a cosmological catalogue: it names a loka (Rasātala) and associates it with renowned divine presences, rather than prescribing pilgrimage rites or terrestrial river/forest sites.