Shiva Purana — Rudra Samhita, Shloka 39

संध्याचरित्रवर्णनम् (Sandhyā-caritra-varṇana) — “Account of Sandhyā’s Story”

Devanagari script

समर्यादेषु मर्यादां तपसा स्थापयिष्यति । तपः कर्तुं गता साध्वी चन्द्रभागाख्यभूधरे

Transliteration

samaryādeṣu maryādāṃ tapasā sthāpayiṣyati | tapaḥ kartuṃ gatā sādhvī candrabhāgākhyabhūdhare

Translation

ولكي تُقيم النظام المقدّس بين من يوقّرون حدود الأدب، عزمت ساتي العفيفة أن تُثبّت الحدود الحقّة بالتقشّف (التَّبَس)؛ ولأداء التَّبَس مضت إلى الجبل المسمّى تشاندربهاگا (Chandrabhāgā).

Word by Word

• समर्यादेषु: among those with proper bounds
• समर्यादेषु: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: स + मर्यादा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी विभक्ति, बहुवचन; उपसर्गसदृश ‘स-’ = ‘with/proper’

• मर्यादाम्: a boundary/limit
• मर्यादाम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मर्यादा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया विभक्ति, एकवचन

• तपसा: by austerity
• तपसा: Karaṇa (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तपस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया विभक्ति, एकवचन

• स्थापयिष्यति: will establish
• स्थापयिष्यति: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: स्था (धातु)
• Form: लृट् (Simple Future), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; causative (णिच्) of स्था = स्थापयति; अर्थ: ‘will establish’

• तपः: austerity
• तपः: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तपस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया विभक्ति, एकवचन (here as object of कर्तुम्)

• कर्तुम्: to perform
• कर्तुम्: Prayojana (प्रयोजन)
• Type: Verb
• Root: कृ (धातु)
• Form: तुमुन्-प्रत्ययान्त (Infinitive), धातु: कृ; अर्थ: ‘to do/perform’

• गता: has gone
• गता: Karta (कर्ता) (with implied ‘अस्ति’)
• Type: Verb
• Root: गम् (धातु)
• Form: कृदन्त: क्त (past active participle), स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; धातु: गम्; अर्थ: ‘gone’

• साध्वी: the virtuous woman
• साध्वी: Karta (कर्ता) (apposition to गता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: साध्वी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा विभक्ति, एकवचन

• चन्द्रभागाख्यभूधरे: on the mountain called Candrabhāgā
• चन्द्रभागाख्यभूधरे: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: चन्द्रभागा (प्रातिपदिक) + आख्य (प्रातिपदिक) + भूधर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी विभक्ति, एकवचन; समास: चन्द्रभागा-आख्यः भूधरः (कर्मधारय within; overall तत्पुरुष)

Speaker

Suta Goswami (narrating to the sages at Naimiṣāraṇya)

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pashu

Shiva Form: Dakṣiṇāmūrti

Jyotirlinga Context

Sthala Purana: The verse locates Satī’s tapas at a mountain named Candrabhāgā; later Śaiva sthala traditions sometimes connect Candrabhāgā with sacred river-sites, but this passage itself does not identify a Jyotirliṅga.

Significance: Tapas at a tīrtha/mountain is framed as restoring maryādā (sacred order), a merit-bearing act that ripens the aspirant toward Śiva’s grace.

Shakti Dimension

Shakti Form: Satī

Role: teaching

Characters & Entities

• Sati
• Shiva

FAQs

What is the spiritual significance of this verse in the Shiva Purana?

It presents tapas as a dharmic power that restores maryādā (right order) and aligns the devotee’s will with Shiva—showing that disciplined austerity can re-establish spiritual and moral boundaries in the world.

How does this verse relate to the worship of the Linga or Saguna Shiva?

Satī’s movement toward tapas reflects the Shaiva path where devotion and self-restraint purify the seeker for communion with Saguna Shiva (the personal Lord), often expressed in Purāṇic practice through focused worship and vow-observance.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

The takeaway is disciplined tapas: undertaking a vow, maintaining purity and restraint, and steady japa/meditation on Shiva—classically supported by practices like bhasma (Tripuṇḍra) and the Panchākṣarī mantra (Om Namaḥ Śivāya) where appropriate.