In times of great calamity—when the earth quakes, forests burn, sand rains from the sky, meteors fall, winds rage, droughts wither the land, or rains pour in excess—a learned devotee of Shiva, steadfast in his vows, who recites or listens to the supreme hymn in its entirety, finds refuge. Such devotion elevates the soul: he attains the state of Rudra and becomes an attendant of Rudra himself. Now, Romaharshana, steadfast in his vows, was asked by the sages: “Tell us, O wise one, how the matted-haired Lord, destroyer of Bhaga’s eye, once slew Jalandhara, who was mighty as Jambha. Speak of Jalandhara, famed as born from the circle of water.” Jalandhara was a formidable being, his appearance as dreadful as Death itself, his strength forged through fierce austerity. By his might, he overcame the gods, Gandharvas, Yakshas, Nagas, and Rakshasas; none could withstand him—not even Brahma, the unborn Lord. Having conquered the host of gods, Jalandhara subdued Brahma. Not content, Jalandhara confronted Vishnu, the Lord of gods, destroyer of the universe, and teacher of all. Between them raged a battle, unceasing day and night. In the end, Vishnu—Madhusudana—was defeated. Jalandhara, victorious, overcame Janardana, the god of gods. Then, addressing the sons of Diti, wise in justice, Jalandhara declared, “All have been vanquished by me in battle; only Shankara remains unconquered.” Having subdued all—including Ishana, with his attendants and Nandi in an instant—he boasted, “I alone shall become you, Brahma, and Vishnu as well. I shall grant you the status of Indra, O foremost among Danavas.” Hearing Jalandhara’s words, the Danavas roared loudly, wicked and eager to face death. Together with the Daityas, their chariots, elephants, and horses, fully armed, they prepared for battle and advanced against Sharva. Bhava, beholding the king of Daityas standing like the peak of Meru, and hearing of his invulnerability—how he had destroyed Bhaga’s and Netra’s eyes—upheld Brahma’s command to protect the worlds. Samba, with Sanandi and his attendants, spoke, almost laughing, “What is the use, Lord of Asuras, of this battle now?” Jalandhara, his body pierced by arrows and ready to die with joy, heard these words, which stung his ears. The Lord of the non-gods’ army then addressed the Lord of gods: “Enough of words, mighty-armed one, O God of gods, bearer of the bull-banner!” Having come to fight, O Hara, with weapons shining like moonbeams, Jalandhara’s challenge was met by the wielder of the trident. With a mere touch of his big toe, Shiva playfully fashioned a terrible discus weapon in the great ocean. Having made the white discus in the ocean, the Blessed Lord remembered how this weapon had destroyed the three worlds, the gods, Daksha, Andhaka, the triple city, and sacrificial rites. Laughing, he spoke: “O Jalandhara, if you are strong enough, stand and fight, for this discus, created by my foot in the great ocean, is to be lifted; otherwise, do not.” Hearing these words, Jalandhara’s eyes blazed with anger. As if burning the three worlds with his gaze, he spoke: “Having raised my mace, I will slay Nandi and you, O Shankara, and, having killed the worlds and the gods, I will strike the Dundubha drums as Garuda did. I am capable of destroying all that moves and does not move, along with Indra and his followers. Who, O Maheshvara, in the three worlds, is invulnerable to my arrows?” He continued, “Even in childhood, the Blessed Lord was conquered by austerity; Brahma, mighty in his youth, by sages and the foremost of gods. In a moment, the entire three worlds, with all that moves and does not move, were burned by austerity. Why, Rudra, have you not been conquered, even though you are the Blessed Lord? Indra, Agni, Yama, Kubera, Vayu, Varuna, and others could not endure, just as serpents cannot bear the scent of Garuda.” Jalandhara boasted further: “Not finding my arms, O Shankara, either in heaven or on earth, I rubbed them against all the mountains, O Lord of the Ganas. The illustrious king of mountains, Mandara, the beautiful Nila, and Meru, were all rubbed by my arm-staff, to relieve an itch. The Ganga was blocked by my arms for sport on Mount Himavat; for my female servants, the thunderbolt of the gods was bound. The mouth of the submarine fire was broken and seized by my hand, and in that instant, all became a single ocean. Elephants like Airavata were hurled onto the waters of the ocean, and even Lord Indra, with his chariot, was thrown a hundred yojanas. Even Garuda was bound by me with the serpent noose, O Vishnu; noble women like Urvashi were led by me into another prison. Somehow, Indra regained only one wife, Shachi, after bowing to me. Do you not know me, O Lord of Daityas? I am Jalandhara, O Consort of Uma.” Thus addressed, the great god created a chariot, agitated by a mere fraction of the fire from his eye. With horses and elephants of unmatched strength belonging to the Daityas, and surrounded by serpents, the lord of Daityas, seeing the enemy of Tripura, spoke these words to the Lord of Devas, though of little understanding: “What is the need for me to fight with the hosts of gods and demons? I am able to destroy all this in a moment. Therefore, there is no fear for me here in battle, O Lord; yet, this desire to fight is indeed very great—there is no doubt about it.” He challenged Mahadeva: “You, enemy of Madana, Daksha, and the sacrificer, foe of Tripura, if you have strength here to fight against me with my own heroes, lords of spirits, Hari, and the hosts of gods, then stand firm.” Having spoken thus to Mahadeva, the son of Mahadeva’s enemy did not move, nor did he recall his relatives slain in battle. Arrogant and undisciplined in mind, he struck his arms together in his weakness, and, taking the discus called Sudarshana, prepared to kill.