Shloka 28
स्नानविधिः — गायत्र्यावाहन, सूर्यवन्दन, तर्पण, पञ्चमहायज्ञ, भस्मस्नान, मन्त्रस्नान
पुण्यानामितिहासानां शैवादीनां तथैव च श्रोत्रे स्पृशेद्धि तुष्ट्यर्थं हृद्देशं तु ततः स्पृशेत्
puṇyānāmitihāsānāṃ śaivādīnāṃ tathaiva ca śrotre spṛśeddhi tuṣṭyarthaṃ hṛddeśaṃ tu tataḥ spṛśet
Wenn man verdienstvolle heilige Erzählungen hört — besonders śaivische Berichte — soll man zur inneren Befriedung und Empfänglichkeit die Ohren berühren; danach die Herzgegend berühren und die gehörte Dharma im Herzen verankern, wo die Bhakti zum Pati (Śiva) ihren Sitz hat.
Suta Goswami (narrating Shaiva ritual observances while recounting Linga Purana teachings to the sages of Naimisharanya)
FAQs
It links external śravaṇa (hearing Shaiva sacred history) to internal worship: touching the ears honors the act of receiving Śiva-dharma, and touching the heart signifies installing that teaching as devotion and orientation toward Pati (Śiva), which supports Linga-pūjā as both ritual and inner practice.
Śiva-tattva is implied as the indwelling Pati to be realized inwardly: the teaching is not meant to remain mere sound at the ear, but to be seated in the heart where the pashu turns from pasha-bound distraction toward the Lord’s presence and grace.
A śravaṇa-saṁskāra within Shaiva practice: a simple bodily gesture that sacralizes listening and then internalizes it. Yogically, it mirrors the movement from indriya (sense reception) to hṛdaya-niṣṭhā (heart-abidance), supporting bhakti and Pāśupata-oriented inner discipline.