Shloka 18

Adhyaya 45: Rudra as Sarvatma—Seven Lokas, Seven Talas, and the Cosmic Body of Shiva

Devanagari script

वैनायकादिभिश्चैव कालनेमिपुरोगमैः पूर्वदेवैः समाकीर्णं सुतलं च तथापरैः

Transliteration

vaināyakādibhiścaiva kālanemipurogamaiḥ pūrvadevaiḥ samākīrṇaṃ sutalaṃ ca tathāparaiḥ

Translation

وسوتَلَة (Sutala) أيضًا مكتظّةٌ بالآلهةِ الأوائل، يتقدّمهم كالانِمي (Kālanemi)، ومعهم جموعٌ مثل الوَينايَكَة (Vaināyaka)، ومع أصنافٍ كثيرةٍ أخرى من الكائنات كذلك.

Word by Word

• वैनायकादिभिः: by the Vaināyakas and similar hosts

• च एव: and indeed

• कालनेमि-पुरोगमैः: with Kālanemi as the foremost/leader

• पूर्व-देवैः: by the former/ancient devas (primeval divine beings)

• समाकीर्णम्: crowded, filled, thronged

• सुतलम्: Sutala (a netherworld realm)

• च: and

• तथा: likewise

• अपरैः: by others (other groups of beings).

Speaker

Suta Goswami (narrating to the sages of Naimisharanya)

Characters & Entities

• Vainayakas
• Kalanemi
• Purvadevas
• Sutala

FAQs

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

By mapping Sutala as a populated realm within Shiva’s ordered cosmos, the verse supports the Purāṇic vision that all lokas function under Pati (Shiva) and are ultimately transcended through Shiva-bhakti and Linga-pūjā, not merely through worldly status in any realm.

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

Indirectly, it presents Shiva-tattva as the supreme governance that holds even the netherworlds in a structured order; the many classes of beings in Sutala indicate a cosmos operating under niyati (cosmic law) within pāśa (bondage), which the soul (paśu) can surpass only by turning to Pati.

What ritualistic or Yogic practice is highlighted here?

No specific rite is prescribed in this verse; its takeaway is contemplative—use cosmological knowledge to cultivate vairāgya and orient practice toward Pāśupata-aligned Shiva-upāsanā and Linga-pūjā as the means to rise beyond all lokas.