Shloka 20

Tīrtha-māhātmya and Rudra’s Samanvaya Teaching

Maṅkaṇaka Episode

Devanagari script

सोमेश्वरं तीर्थवरं रुद्रस्य परमेष्ठिनः / सर्वव्याधिहरं पुण्यं रुद्रसालोक्यकारणम्

Transliteration

someśvaraṃ tīrthavaraṃ rudrasya parameṣṭhinaḥ / sarvavyādhiharaṃ puṇyaṃ rudrasālokyakāraṇam

Translation

Someshvara ist der vortrefflichste aller Tīrthas, Rudra, dem höchsten Herrn, zugehörig. Er ist heilig, nimmt alle Leiden hinweg und wird zur Ursache, Rudras Sālokya zu erlangen: in derselben göttlichen Welt wie Rudra zu weilen.

Word by Word

• सोमेश्वरम्: Someśvara
• सोमेश्वरम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: soma-īśvara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया एकवचन (Acc. sg.); समासः षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (सोमस्य ईश्वरः)

• तीर्थवरम्: the excellent tīrtha
• तीर्थवरम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tīrtha-vara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया एकवचन (Acc. sg.); समासः कर्मधारयः (वरं तीर्थम्)

• रुद्रस्य: of Rudra
• रुद्रस्य: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/षष्ठी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rudra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी एकवचन (Gen. sg.)

• परमेष्ठिनः: of the Supreme Lord (Parameṣṭhin)
• परमेष्ठिनः: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/षष्ठी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: parameṣṭhin (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी एकवचन (Gen. sg.), ‘रुद्रस्य’ इति सम्बन्धे विशेषण-रूपेण (appositional genitive)

• सर्वव्याधिहरम्: remover of all diseases
• सर्वव्याधिहरम्: Visheshana (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sarva-vyādhi-hara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया एकवचन (Acc. sg.), विशेषण (of ‘तीर्थवरम्/सोमेश्वरम्’); समासः षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (सर्वेषां व्याधीनां हरः)

• पुण्यम्: holy; meritorious
• पुण्यम्: Visheshana (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: puṇya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया एकवचन (Acc. sg.), विशेषण

• रुद्रसालोक्यकारणम्: cause of attaining Rudra’s world (sālokya)
• रुद्रसालोक्यकारणम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rudra-sālokya-kāraṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया एकवचन (Acc. sg.); समासः तत्पुरुषः (रुद्रस्य सालोक्यस्य कारणम्)

Speaker

Lord Kurma (Vishnu) instructing sages (Kurma Purana narrative voice) on tīrtha-mahātmya

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: shanta

Secondary Rasa: adbhuta

Characters & Entities

• Someshvara
• Rudra (Shiva)
• Rudra-salोक्य (sālokya)

More Details (4 sections)

FAQs

How does this verse explain the nature of the Supreme Self (Atman)?

Indirectly: by presenting Rudra as parameṣṭhin (the Highest Lord), the verse points to a supreme divine reality whose proximity (sālokya) is a liberating goal, aligning devotion and merit (puṇya) with transcendence.

What Yoga or Meditative practices are highlighted here?

This specific verse emphasizes tīrtha-sevā (pilgrimage, sacred bathing, worship) as a purificatory discipline; in Kurma Purana’s broader Shaiva-Pashupata frame, such purification supports steadiness for mantra, dhyāna, and Rudra-bhakti leading toward sālokya and higher liberation.

How does this verse depict the relationship between Shiva and Vishnu?

With Vishnu (as Kurma) praising a Rudra-tīrtha as salvific, the text models Shaiva–Vaishnava synthesis: devotion to Rudra is affirmed within a Vaishnava narrative voice, treating both as aligned in dharma and liberation-oriented practice.