Shloka 35

शिवार्चनविधिः — देवतानां पाशुपतव्रतप्राप्तिः तथा पशुपाशविमोक्षणम् (अध्याय ८०)

Devanagari script

स्त्रीसंघैर् देवदेवस्य भवस्य परमात्मनः दृष्ट्वा विस्मयमापन्नास् तस्थुर्देवाः समन्ततः

Transliteration

strīsaṃghair devadevasya bhavasya paramātmanaḥ dṛṣṭvā vismayamāpannās tasthurdevāḥ samantataḥ

Translation

فلما أبصرَتِ الآلهةُ بهافا، الذاتَ العُليا وإلهَ الآلهة، محاطًا بجماعاتٍ غفيرةٍ من النساء، أُخذوا بالعجب ووقفوا من كلِّ جانبٍ مدهوشين.

Word by Word

• स्त्रीसंघैः: by groups/assemblies of women

• देवदेवस्य: of the God of gods

• भवस्य: of Bhava (Shiva)

• परमात्मनः: of the Supreme Self

• दृष्ट्वा: having seen

• विस्मयम्: astonishment/wonder

• आपन्नाः: having attained/overcome by

• तस्थुः: they stood

• देवाः: the gods

• समन्ततः: on all sides/everywhere around

Speaker

Suta Goswami (narrating to the sages of Naimisharanya)

Characters & Entities

• Shiva (Bhava)
• Devas

FAQs

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

It frames Shiva (Bhava) as Devadeva and Paramatman—Pati beyond all forms—so Linga worship is directed to the transcendent Lord whose reality surpasses outward appearances and social categories.

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

By calling him both Devadeva and Paramatman, the verse identifies Shiva as the supreme ontological principle (Pati) whom even the Devas cannot fully comprehend, hence their astonishment when his līlā manifests in an unexpected form.

What ritualistic or Yogic practice is highlighted here?

No specific rite is described; the takeaway is yogic discernment central to Pashupata orientation—seeing the Paramatman (Shiva) as Pati in all manifestations, without being bound (pāśa) by surface-level perception.