Shloka 13

Adhyaya 33: Pashupata Conduct, Bhasma-Vrata, and Shiva’s Boon to the Sages

Devanagari script

अतुलमिह महाभयप्रणाशहेतुं शिवकथितं परमं पदं विदित्वा व्यपगतभवलोभमोहचित्ताः प्रणिपतिताः सहसा शिरोभिर् उग्रम्

Transliteration

atulamiha mahābhayapraṇāśahetuṃ śivakathitaṃ paramaṃ padaṃ viditvā vyapagatabhavalobhamohacittāḥ praṇipatitāḥ sahasā śirobhir ugram

Translation

هنا، بعدما أدركوا المقام الأسمى الذي لا يُضاهى، الذي علّمه شِيفا—وهو سبب زوال الخوف العظيم—تحرّرت قلوبهم من التعلّق بصيرورة الدنيا، ومن الطمع والوهم. فسقطوا في الحال ساجدين، مطأطئين الرؤوس بخشوع أمام الربّ المهيب.

Word by Word

• atulam: incomparable, unsurpassed

• iha: here (in this teaching/context)

• mahābhaya: great fear (existential dread within saṁsāra)

• praṇāśa-hetum: the cause/instrument of destruction

• śiva-kathitam: declared/taught by Śiva

• paramam: supreme

• padam: state/abode/realization (liberating station)

• viditvā: having known/realized

• vyapagata: departed, removed

• bhava: worldly becoming/saṁsāra

• lobha: greed

• moha: delusion

• cittāḥ: those whose minds/heart-consciousness

• praṇipatitāḥ: they prostrated/fell down in obeisance

• sahasā: suddenly/at once

• śirobhiḥ: with (their) heads

• ugram: the fierce/awe-inspiring One (Śiva as Ugra)

Speaker

Suta Goswami (narrating the effect of Shiva’s teaching within the inner dialogue of the Purana)

Characters & Entities

• Shiva

FAQs

What is the importance of this verse in the context of Linga worship?

It frames Shiva-realization as the “parama pada” that destroys mahābhaya; true Linga-upāsanā culminates in surrender (praṇipāta) and inner purification where bhava, lobha, and moha fall away.

How does this verse describe the nature of Shiva (Shiva-tattva)?

Śiva is presented as the teacher of the supreme liberating state and as Ugra—an awe-inspiring Pati whose grace and knowledge cut the pāśas (bondages) that generate fear in the pashu (bound soul).

What ritualistic or Yogic practice is highlighted here?

The verse emphasizes śaraṇāgati expressed as praṇipāta (prostration) alongside the Yogic fruit of Shiva-jñāna: the cessation of saṁsāric tendencies (bhava) and mental afflictions like greed and delusion—core to a Pāśupata-oriented purification.