Shloka 10

Adhyaya 72 — Puradāha: Rudra’s Cosmic Chariot, Pāśupata-Vrata, and Brahmā’s Shiva-Stuti

Devanagari script

धर्मो विरागो दण्डो ऽस्य यज्ञा दण्डाश्रयाः स्मृताः दक्षिणाः संधयस्तस्य लोहाः पञ्चाशदग्नयः

Transliteration

dharmo virāgo daṇḍo 'sya yajñā daṇḍāśrayāḥ smṛtāḥ dakṣiṇāḥ saṃdhayastasya lohāḥ pañcāśadagnayaḥ

Translation

Für diese kosmische Gestalt, die dem Stab der Zucht (daṇḍa) entspricht, werden Dharma und Entsagung (vairāgya) als sein eigener Stab verkündet. Die Opferhandlungen (yajñas) sollen auf diesem Stab ruhen; seine Gaben (dakṣiṇās) sind seine Gelenke; und seine Metalle sind die fünfzig Feuer—Sinnbild der vielen Ritualfeuer, die durch Ordnung und Verzicht getragen werden.

Word by Word

• धर्मः: righteousness/cosmic law

• विरागः: dispassion/detachment

• दण्डः: staff, discipline, chastening power

• अस्य: of this (being/form)

• यज्ञाः: sacrifices/ritual offerings

• दण्ड-आश्रयाः: resting on/grounded in discipline

• स्मृताः: are remembered/declared

• दक्षिणाः: priestly fees, sacrificial gifts

• संधयः: joints, junctions

• तस्य: of it/of him

• लोहाः: metals/iron-like substances

• पञ्चाशत्-अग्नयः: fifty fires (many ritual fires)

Speaker

Suta Goswami (narrating the Purana to the sages, with a descriptive doctrinal passage)

Characters & Entities

• Shiva
• Agni

FAQs

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

It frames outer ritual (yajña, dakṣiṇā, agni) as dependent on inner foundations—dharma and vairāgya—aligning Linga worship with disciplined, purified intention rather than mere ceremony.

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

Shiva-tattva is implied as the Pati who upholds cosmic order: the many fires and rites function rightly only when rooted in dharma (right order) and vairāgya (freedom from binding desire), which loosen pāśa and steady the paśu toward liberation.

What ritualistic or Yogic practice is highlighted here?

A synthesis of yajña and yoga is hinted: ritual action is ‘supported by the staff’ of self-discipline (daṇḍa) and detachment—core Pāśupata-oriented virtues that convert external worship into inner purification.