Shloka 25

Ṣaḍvidhārtha-Parijñāna: Praṇavārtha and the Sixfold Unity of Meaning (षड्विधार्थपरिज्ञानम् / प्रणवार्थपरिज्ञानम्)

Devanagari script

ईशानस्यैव देवस्य चतुर्व्यूहपदे स्थितम् । पुरुषाद्यं च सद्यांतं ब्रह्मरूपं चतुष्टयम्

Transliteration

īśānasyaiva devasya caturvyūhapade sthitam | puruṣādyaṃ ca sadyāṃtaṃ brahmarūpaṃ catuṣṭayam

Translation

Allein in der vierfachen Emanationsstätte (Caturvyūha) des Herrn Īśāna ist die Brahman-Gestalt als Vierheit gegründet—beginnend mit Puruṣa und endend mit Sadya.

Word by Word

• ईशानस्य: of Īśāna
• ईशानस्य: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/षष्ठी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ईशान (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, षष्ठी-विभक्ति (सम्बन्ध), एकवचन

• एव: indeed/only
• एव: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव (अव्यय)
• Form: अवधारण-अव्यय (particle of emphasis)

• देवस्य: of the god
• देवस्य: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/षष्ठी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: देव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, षष्ठी-विभक्ति (सम्बन्ध), एकवचन

• चतुर्-व्यूह-पदे: in the state/place of the fourfold emanation
• चतुर्-व्यूह-पदे: Adhikarana (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: चतुर् + व्यूह + पद (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (अधिकरण), एकवचन; समासः—चतुरः व्यूहाः यस्मिन् तत् पदम् (तत्पुरुष)

• स्थितम्: situated/established
• स्थितम्: Kriya (क्रिया/भाव)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: स्था (धातु) + क्त (कृदन्त)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे, प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त (past passive participle)

• पुरुषाद्यम्: beginning with Puruṣa
• पुरुषाद्यम्: Visheshana (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पुरुष + आद्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे, प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; समासः—पुरुषः आदिः यस्य (तत्पुरुष)

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय-अव्यय (conjunction)

• सद्य-अन्तम्: ending with Sadya (Sadyōjāta)
• सद्य-अन्तम्: Visheshana (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सद्य + अन्त (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे, प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; समासः—सद्यः अन्तः यस्य (तत्पुरुष)

• ब्रह्म-रूपम्: the Brahman-form
• ब्रह्म-रूपम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ब्रह्मन् + रूप (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे, प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; समासः—ब्रह्मणः रूपम् (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष)

• चतुष्टयम्: a tetrad (set of four)
• चतुष्टयम्: Karta (कर्ता/विधेय)
• Type: Noun
• Root: चतुष्टय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे, प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; समूहवाचक (a set of four)

Speaker

Suta Goswami

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pati

Shiva Form: Īśāna

Characters & Entities

• Shiva (Ishana)

FAQs

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

It teaches that the supreme Lord Īśāna (Shiva as Pati) is the ground of the fourfold manifestation—Brahman is not separate from Shiva, but abides in Him as ordered aspects, guiding the seeker from conceptual understanding toward liberation.

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

By presenting Īśāna as the locus of the fourfold Brahman-form, the verse supports Saguna worship (such as Linga-upāsanā) as a valid doorway: the devotee approaches the manifest Lord, while realizing that the manifest forms rest in the one supreme Shiva.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

Meditate on Īśāna as the inner ruler while reciting the Panchākṣarī (Om Namaḥ Śivāya), contemplating the Lord as the source of the fourfold manifestation; this aligns mantra-japa with tattva-vicāra (philosophical contemplation).