Praise by Devas

Vyasa said

Brahma's son, wise one, supreme among speakers, tell me what happened after that. How did the gods become happy?

Brahma continued

Hearing the infinitely intelligent Vyasa, Sanatkumara remembered Shiva's lotus feet and replied.

Sanatkumara said

The gods, Indra and the rest, were scorched by the daityas' radiance. Wretched, they consulted each other and took refuge with Brahma, bowing to him lovingly. Watching for a chance, they told him unhappily how the asuras had evicted them from everything.

The devas said

Vidhatri, because of Maya and the lords of Tripura, Taraka's sons, all the residents of heaven are being scorched. So, miserable, we have come to you for refuge. Think of a way for them to be killed so that we may be happy.

Sanatkumara said

When the gods told him this, Vidhatri laughed. They were terrified by Maya's power, and he answered.

Brahma said

Gods, you should not be scared, especially of those danavas. Shiva Sharva will think of a way to have them killed. The daityas have prospered through me, so their death should not come through me. In any case, meritorious deeds are growing in the city of Tripura. All of you gods, Vasava included, should pray to Shiva. He is lord of everything. If his mind is pleased he will do your task.

Sanatkumara said

Hearing him, the gods with Vasava left in misery and went to where Vrishadhvaja was. Devotedly they joined their hands and bowed to the lord of the gods, and humbly, shoulders lowered, praised Shankara, who brings welfare to the worlds. In their hymn the gods bowed to him as Hiranyagarbha, who arranges all creation, as Vishnu, who enters all to preserve it, as Hara, who destroys all beings, and as nirguna Shiva of infinite energy, unattached, great-souled, lord of beings, able to bear a great burden, remover of thirst, whose form bears no enmity. Like a forest fire, they said, he burns the great forest of great daityas, and he is the axe that fells the tree of daityas, the trident-bearer who destroys great danavas, Parameshvara, Ambika's husband bearing every weapon, Parvati's lord Maheshvara the paramatman, Nilakantha Rudra, known through Vedanta, beyond all paths, whose form the gunas are, with and without gunas, bringing bliss to the three worlds. They hailed him by the names of the Vishnu forms, Pradyumna, Aniruddha, Vasudeva and Samkarshana, as the one who destroyed Kamsa, crushed Chanura, Damodara, the swallower of poison, Hrishikesha Achyuta, Mridha Shankara, Adhokshaja, the elephant's enemy, Kama's enemy, the divinity Narayana and beyond Narayana, with Narayana as his own form, born from Narayana's body, with every form, destroyer of great hells and of sins, bull-mounted, the measure of time from the kshana up, strengthener of his devotees, crusher of circles of daityas, who treats brahmanas and cows as divinities and has brahmanas' welfare in mind, of a thousand forms and bodies, whose form is dharma and sattva, known through the Vedas, loved by them, whose form they are and from whose mouth they issue, reached by worship and good conduct, whose seat is fame, full of truth and loving truth, reached through truth, the possessor and lord of maya, reached as the brahman, born of Brahma, austerity, lord of austerity and giver of its fruit, the praised and the praise, pleased by praise and by the good conduct the shrutis prescribe, whose own forms are the four kinds, water and land. All the gods, they said, are examples of his potency. Among gods he is Indra, among planets the sun, among worlds Satyaloka, among rivers the one that flows from heaven, among colours white, among lakes Manasa, among mountains Girija's father, among cows kamadhenu, among oceans the ocean of milk, among metals gold, among varnas the brahmana, among men the king, among kshetras that give liberation Kashi, among tirthas the king of tirthas, among stones crystal, among flowers the lotus, among mountains Himalaya, among actions speech, among the wise Bhargava, among winged creatures sharabha, among the violent the lion, among stones the shalagrama, among worshipped forms the Narmada lingam, among animals the bull Nandishvara, among things used in worship the Vedas and Upanishads, among cool things the moon, among heating things fire, among Shiva's devotees Achyuta, among Puranas the Bharata, among aksharas "ma", among bija mantras Pranava, among virulent things poison, among pervasive things the firmament, among atmans the paramatman, among the senses the mind, among gifts the gift of freedom from fear, among purifiers water, among life-giving things amrita, among gains the gain of a son, among the swift the wind, among daily rites the worship at sandhya, among sacrifices the horse sacrifice, among yugas the first, among nakshatras Pushya, among tithis amavasya, among seasons spring, among parva days sankranti, among grasses kusha, among strong trees the vata, among conjunctions vyatipata, among creepers the soma, among intelligences the intelligence of dharma, among friends the wife, among purifiers of a sadhaka pranayama, among jyotirlingams Vishveshvara, among friends dharma, among ashramas the last, among aims liberation, among Rudras Nilalohita, among Adityas Vasudeva, among monkeys Hanuman, among sacrifices japa-yajna, among weapon-bearers Rama, among gandharvas Chitraratha, among Vasus Pavaka, among months the adhimasa, among vows chaturdashi, among lordly elephants Airavata, among siddhas Kapila, among nagas Ananta, among ancestors Aryama, among reckonings time, and among daityas Bali. He rules the whole universe, they said, with one portion inside it and one outside. So all the gods praised Mahadeva Vrishadhvaja in many kinds of divine hymns.

Distressed and driven by their own aims, discerning about their own gain, sage, Vasava and the others lowered their shoulders, cupped their hands and, duly prepared, spoke again.

The devas said

Mahadeva, Bhagavan, the brothers born of Taraka have defeated all the gods along with Vasava. They have brought the three worlds under their sway. The excellent sages and all the siddhas are devastated. They have made the whole universe suffer. Those terrible ones have taken the shares in sacrifices, restrained the rishis and established adharma. It has been decreed that Taraka's sons cannot be killed by any being. Shankara, so they do whatever they like. Let a good policy be found to save the universe and to kill the terrible daityas, the residents of Tripura.

Sanatkumara said

Hearing Indra and the other residents of heaven, Shiva answered them.