Shiva Purana — Rudra Samhita, Shloka 57
देव-गण-समरः
Devas and Śiva’s Gaṇas Engage in Battle
ब्रह्मोवाच । तस्य तद्वचनं श्रुत्वा वीरभद्रस्य बुद्धिमान् । उवाच विहसन् प्रीत्या विष्णुस्त्र सुरेश्वरः
brahmovāca | tasya tadvacanaṃ śrutvā vīrabhadrasya buddhimān | uvāca vihasan prītyā viṣṇustra sureśvaraḥ
梵天说道：听了毗罗跋陀罗的那些话，睿智的毗湿奴——诸天之中的主宰——含笑以慈悦之意开口说道。
Brahma
Tattva Level: pashu
Shiva Form: Vīrabhadra
Shakti Form: Satī
Role: destructive
FAQs
It highlights divine composure and dharmic restraint: even amid intense Shaiva power (Vīrabhadra), a great deity responds with prīti (benevolent devotion), showing that true strength is aligned with harmony and reverence for Śiva’s cosmic order.
The verse sets the tone of respectful dialogue around Śiva’s manifest (saguṇa) governance of the cosmos—Vīrabhadra as Śiva’s empowered form and Viṣṇu as a deva-lord responding without hostility—supporting the Purāṇic view that saguṇa forms guide devotees toward the Supreme Pati.
Cultivate prīti and steadiness in worship: recite the Pañcākṣarī (“Om Namaḥ Śivāya”) with a calm, smiling mind, offering actions and speech without agitation—an inner discipline that complements external practices like bhasma and rudrākṣa.