Umā-caritra-prārthanā: Ṛṣayaḥ Sūtaṃ Pṛcchanti
Request for the Account of Umā
को विरज्येत मतिमान् गुणश्रवणकर्मणि । श्रीमातुर्ज्ञानिनो यानि न त्यजन्ति कदाचन
ko virajyeta matimān guṇaśravaṇakarmaṇi | śrīmāturjñānino yāni na tyajanti kadācana
أيُّ عاقلٍ يزهد في ممارسة سماع الصفات الإلهية للرب؟ حتى الحكماء—العارفون بمجد الأمِّ العليا—لا يتركون هذه الشعائر المقدسة في أي وقت.
Suta Goswami (narrating Purāṇic teaching to the sages, inferred from Shiva Purana discourse style in Umāsaṃhitā)
Tattva Level: pashu
Shiva Form: Umāpati
Significance: Śravaṇa (hearing) of divine guṇas is itself treated as a sanctifying sādhana; it purifies the paśu and prepares for Śiva-Śakti anugraha.
Type: stotra
Shakti Form: Umā
Role: teaching
It praises śravaṇa (devotional hearing) as a practice so purifying and grace-invoking that even realized knowers do not abandon it; in Shaiva Siddhanta, such devotion supports the soul’s movement from bondage (pāśa) toward Shiva’s liberating grace.
Hearing the Lord’s guṇas is a Saguna-bhakti practice: listening to Shiva-kathā and the Mother’s glory steadies the mind, making outer worship (Liṅga-pūjā) and inner recollection (smaraṇa) continuous rather than occasional.
Regular Shiva-kathā/Devī-kathā śravaṇa (scriptural listening) and nāma-japa—especially the Pañcākṣarī mantra—are implied as daily disciplines that should not be dropped, particularly on Mahāśivarātri and other vrata days.