Shloka 47

Upamanyu’s Tapas, Shiva’s Indra-Form Test, and the Bestowal of Kshiroda and Gaṇapatya

Devanagari script

दग्धुं स्वदेहम् आग्नेयीं ध्यात्वा वै धारणां तदा अतिष्ठच्च महातेजाः शुष्केन्धनमिवाव्ययः

Transliteration

dagdhuṃ svadeham āgneyīṃ dhyātvā vai dhāraṇāṃ tadā atiṣṭhacca mahātejāḥ śuṣkendhanamivāvyayaḥ

Translation

Dann, die Agneyī-dhāraṇā betrachtend—die feurige yogische Sammlung, die die Begrenzung des eigenen Leibes verbrennt—, stand der von großer Strahlkraft Erfüllte da wie trockenes Holz in Flammen, und doch blieb er innerlich unversehrt, ungeschmälert und unerschöpflich.

Word by Word

• दग्धुम्: to burn

• स्वदेहम्: one’s own body

• आग्नेयीम्: the fiery (Agni-related)

• ध्यात्वा: having meditated upon

• वै: indeed

• धारणाम्: dhāraṇā, concentrated fixation (yogic retention)

• तदा: then

• अतिष्ठत् च: and stood/abided

• महातेजाः: of great splendor/energy

• शुष्केन्धनम्: dry fuel/firewood

• इव: like

• अव्ययः: undecaying, unexhausted, imperishable

Speaker

Suta Goswami (narrating the Purana to the sages of Naimisharanya)

Characters & Entities

• Agni
• Shiva

FAQs

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

It points to inner worship (antar-yajña): the devotee ‘offers’ bodily limitation into the fire of disciplined concentration, aligning the pashu (soul) toward Pati (Shiva) by burning pasha (bondage) through tapas and dhāraṇā.

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

By the image of blazing dry fuel that is still ‘unspent’ (avyaya), it echoes Shiva-tattva as self-luminous consciousness—radiant in manifestation yet untouched by decay, the imperishable ground of all transformative power.

What ritualistic or Yogic practice is highlighted here?

Agneyī dhāraṇā—fiery concentration/retention—where the yogin internalizes Agni as a purifying force to consume impurities and stabilize brilliance (tejas), a Pāśupata-style inner tapas rather than merely external ritual fire.