Jabali Bound on the Banyan Tree and Nandayanti’s Appeal at Sri-Kantha on the Yamuna
यस्तरेत् सागरं दोर्भ्या पातयेद् भुवि भास्करम् मेरुमुत्पाटयेद् वापि स जयेच्छूलपाणिनम्
yastaret sāgaraṃ dorbhyā pātayed bhuvi bhāskaram merumutpāṭayed vāpi sa jayecchūlapāṇinam
Kẻ nào có thể dùng đôi tay mà vượt biển, có thể kéo Mặt Trời xuống mặt đất, hoặc có thể nhổ bật núi Meru—chỉ người như thế mới có thể chiến thắng Đấng cầm tam xoa (Śiva).
{ "primaryRasa": "adbhuta", "secondaryRasa": "raudra", "rasaIntensity": 0, "emotionalArcPosition": "", "moodDescriptors": [] }
This is a standard Purāṇic rhetorical device (atiśayokti) to mark absolute impossibility: if only someone capable of cosmic impossibilities could win, then in practical terms Śiva is unconquerable.
Meru and the Sāgara are cosmographic constants—symbols of the world’s structure. Invoking them elevates the claim from mere martial boasting to a statement about cosmic order resisting disruption.
In Śaiva usage, ‘śūla’ commonly denotes Śiva’s trident (triśūla), though it can generically mean a spear. ‘Śūlapāṇin’ is a well-established epithet for Śiva as the wielder of the triśūla.