• na vayam śraddadhīmahi — We cannot place faith (in his words)
  Contiguous-join (na + vayam + śraddadhīmahi). The royal 'we' wields śraddhā as a lever — Hari withholds it publicly to make Vṛka withhold it too. Gauḍīyas note: śraddhā misplaced or withheld is a hinge of fate.
• dakṣa-śāpāt — by Dakṣa's curse
  Contiguous (dakṣa + śāpāt). The historical reference. The chapter is willing to use intra-deva history to discredit Śiva's reliability in front of Vṛka. The verse's truth is selective but not false.
• paiśācyam — the quality of the Piśācas
  From piśāca — flesh-eating demoniac being. Compound: piśācya = having piśāca-nature. The taunt that lands on Vṛka, who has just been eating his own flesh (v.17). Hari hands him the mirror without naming it.
• preta-piśāca rāṭ — king of the Pretas and Piśācas
  Contiguous-join (preta-piśāca + rāṭ). Rāṭ = ruler. Hari names Śiva by his ghost-king office — not by his cosmic office. The angle is calculated. Gauḍīyas: Bhagavān's strategic speech is itself an instrument of līlā.

• Where could planting one strategic doubt redirect a destructive course?
• When was sown doubt actually the mercy I needed?

A senior judge confidentially tells the witness: 'I would not put weight on what that other official said — there is a record of his being cursed once, you know.' The opening of the trap is judicial: Hari raises a public, attested incident against Śiva, knowing the asura will be the kind of mind that respects gossip over scripture.