Shiva Purana — Vayaviya Samhita, Shloka 6

अर्धनारीश्वरप्रादुर्भावः

Manifestation of Ardhanārīśvara and the Impulse for Procreative Creation

Devanagari script

निर्गुणा निष्प्रपञ्चा च निष्कला निरुपप्लवा । निरंतरतरा नित्या नित्यमीश्वरपार्श्वगा

Transliteration

nirguṇā niṣprapañcā ca niṣkalā nirupaplavā | niraṃtaratarā nityā nityamīśvarapārśvagā

Translation

هي متعالية عن الغونات، متجاوزة للكون المتجلّي؛ بلا أجزاء وبلا اضطراب. أعمق اتصالًا في الباطن، أزلية؛ دائمة المقام إلى جوار الربّ (إيشڤارا).

Word by Word

• nirguṇā: without qualities
• nirguṇā: Karta (कर्ता) / Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: nirguṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Strīliṅga (स्त्रीलिङ्ग), Prathamā (1st/प्रथमा), Ekavacana (एकवचन); viśeṣaṇa (adjective)

• niṣprapañcā: free from the manifested world
• niṣprapañcā: Karta (कर्ता) / Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: niṣprapañca (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Strīliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana; viśeṣaṇa

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya; samuccaya-nipāta (conjunction/समुच्चय-निपात)

• niṣkalā: partless; without divisions
• niṣkalā: Karta (कर्ता) / Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: niṣkala (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Strīliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana; viśeṣaṇa

• nirupaplavā: undisturbed; without calamity
• nirupaplavā: Karta (कर्ता) / Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: nirupaplava (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Strīliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana; viśeṣaṇa

• niraṃtaratarā: more continuous; more unbroken
• niraṃtaratarā: Karta (कर्ता) / Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: niraṃtaratara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Strīliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana; tārātamya (comparative/तर), viśeṣaṇa

• nityā: eternal
• nityā: Karta (कर्ता) / Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: nitya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Strīliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana; viśeṣaṇa

• nityam: always
• nityam: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: nityam (अव्यय/नित्य)
• Form: Avyaya; kāla-avyaya (adverb of time/काल-अव्यय)

• īśvara-pārśva-gā: abiding at the Lord’s side
• īśvara-pārśva-gā: Karta (कर्ता) / Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: īśvara (प्रातिपदिक) + pārśva (प्रातिपदिक) + gā (गम् धातु, क्तिन्-प्रत्ययान्त/प्रातिपदिकरूप)
• Form: Strīliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana; samāsa (तत्पुरुष): īśvarasya pārśve gacchatīti/tiṣṭhatīti (one who is at the Lord’s side); viśeṣaṇa

Speaker

Suta Goswami

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pati

Shiva Form: Sadāśiva

Mantra Metadata

Type: stotra

Shakti Dimension

Shakti Form: Umā

Role: liberating

Ritual Elements

Offering: dhupa

Characters & Entities

• Shiva

FAQs

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

It describes the highest, undisturbed, transcendent state associated with the Lord—beyond guṇas and worldly appearance—pointing the seeker toward liberation through inner continuity (unbroken awareness) and nearness to Īśvara.

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

Though the verse speaks in nirguṇa terms, Shaiva tradition holds that saguna worship (such as Linga-pūjā) purifies the mind and leads the devotee to realize the same partless, unshaken reality of Shiva beyond manifestation.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

Meditation on uninterrupted awareness (nirantara smaraṇa) with japa of the Panchākṣarī “Om Namaḥ Śivāya,” supported by simple Shiva-upāsanā like Tripuṇḍra (bhasma) and Rudrākṣa, aligns the mind toward the undisturbed, nirguṇa goal.