Shloka 35

मुक्तयतिदेहसंस्काररहस्यं — The Esoteric Rites for the Bodies of Liberated Ascetics

Devanagari script

वर्णयेयुः स्फुटं प्रीत्या शिवं संस्मारयन्सदा । निर्गुणं परमज्योतिः प्रणम्य विलयावधि

Transliteration

varṇayeyuḥ sphuṭaṃ prītyā śivaṃ saṃsmārayansadā | nirguṇaṃ paramajyotiḥ praṇamya vilayāvadhi

Translation

Mit klaren Worten und in liebevoller Hingabe sollen sie Śiva schildern und Ihn stets im Gedächtnis tragen. Nachdem sie sich vor jenem eigenschaftslosen höchsten Licht verneigt haben, verweilen sie in ehrfürchtiger Versenkung bis zum Ende der Auflösung.

Word by Word

• varṇayeyuḥ: should describe/expound
• varṇayeyuḥ: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: varṇaya (धातु; denominative from varṇa)
• Form: Vidhi-liṅ (Optative), Prathama-puruṣa (3rd), Bahuvacana, Parasmaipada

• sphuṭam: clearly
• sphuṭam: Kriyā-viśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण/Adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: sphuṭa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Kriyā-viśeṣaṇa-avyaya (adverbial accusative/क्रियाविशेषण) = 'clearly'

• prītyā: with affection
• prītyā: Karaṇa (करण/means)
• Type: Noun
• Root: prīti (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Strīliṅga (Feminine/स्त्रीलिङ्ग), Tṛtīyā (Instrumental), Ekavacana

• śivam: Śiva
• śivam: Karma (कर्म/Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śiva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Dvitīyā (Accusative), Ekavacana

• saṃsmārayan: remembering
• saṃsmārayan: Kriyā-viśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण/Concomitant action)
• Type: Verb
• Root: sam-smṛ (धातु)
• Form: Present active participle (śatṛ/शतृ), Puṃliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana; used with implied subject 'they' (collective) as concomitant action

• sadā: always
• sadā: Kāla (काल/Time)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: sadā (अव्यय)
• Form: Kāla-avyaya (temporal adverb/काल) = 'always'

• nirguṇam: without attributes
• nirguṇam: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: nirguṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Dvitīyā, Ekavacana; qualifies śivam (understood)

• parama-jyotiḥ: the supreme light
• parama-jyotiḥ: Viśeṣaṇa/Upapada (विशेषण/अभेद)
• Type: Noun
• Root: parama (प्रातिपदिक) + jyotis (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Napुṃsakaliṅga, Prathamā (Nominative), Ekavacana; karmadhāraya: 'supreme' + 'light'; used appositionally to śiva (accusative sense implied in poetry)

• praṇamya: having bowed
• praṇamya: Pūrvakāla-kriyā (पूर्वकालक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: pra-nam (धातु)
• Form: Absolutive/Gerund (ktvā/ल्यप्) = 'having bowed'

• vilaya-avadhi: until dissolution (of the world)
• vilaya-avadhi: Kāla/Parimāṇa (काल/परिमाण/limit)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: vilaya (प्रातिपदिक) + avadhi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Avyayībhāva compound used adverbially; sense: 'up to dissolution' (limit)

Speaker

Suta Goswami (narrating the Kailasa Samhita teachings to the sages at Naimisharanya)

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pati

Shiva Form: Sadāśiva

Mantra Metadata

Type: stotra

Shakti Dimension

Role: liberating

Cosmic Context

Cosmic Event: pralaya/vilaya (cosmic dissolution) invoked as the outer limit of steadfast reverence

Characters & Entities

• Shiva

FAQs

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

It teaches that liberation-oriented devotion is sustained by two acts together—clear praise (kīrtana/varṇana) and constant remembrance (smaraṇa) of Shiva as the Nirguṇa Paramajyoti, the Supreme Light beyond the guṇas, leading the devotee toward freedom from bondage up to pralaya.

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

Even when one worships Shiva in a saguna form such as the Linga, the inner contemplation is directed to His highest reality—Nirguṇa Shiva as Paramajyoti. The verse points to saguna worship maturing into nirguṇa realization through devotion and steady remembrance.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

Daily Shiva-smaraṇa and spoken praise—reciting stotras or the Panchakshara (Om Namaḥ Śivāya) with clarity and devotion—combined with namaskāra (prostration) and steady contemplation of Shiva as the Supreme Light.