Shloka 19
Viśveśvara-māhātmya and the Nirguṇa–Saguṇa Emergence of Śiva (Śakti–Puruṣa/Prakṛti Discourse)
ब्रह्मांडे कर्मणा बद्धा प्राणिनो मां कथं पुनः । प्राप्स्यंतीति विचिन्त्यैतत्पंचक्रोशी विमोचिता
brahmāṃḍe karmaṇā baddhā prāṇino māṃ kathaṃ punaḥ | prāpsyaṃtīti vicintyaitatpaṃcakrośī vimocitā
In Gedanken: „Wie werden die Lebewesen, im Brahmāṇḍa durch ihr Karma gebunden, Mich wieder erlangen?“, offenbarte der Herr daher das befreiende heilige Gebiet namens Pañcakrośī.
Suta Goswami
Tattva Level: pashu
Shiva Form: Paśupatinātha
Jyotirlinga: Viśvanātha
Sthala Purana: Śiva, seeing jīvas bound by karma within the brahmāṇḍa, manifests the liberating kṣetra—Pañcakrośī/Avimukta—so that beings may attain Him; Kāśī becomes the privileged locus of anugraha where bondage is cut.
Significance: Pañcakrośī-yātrā and residence/death in Kāśī are extolled as accelerants to liberation; the kṣetra is portrayed as a direct conduit of Śiva’s grace overcoming karmic pāśa.
Role: liberating
Offering: pushpa
Cosmic Event: karmic bondage within brahmāṇḍa contrasted with kṣetra as a localized ‘exit’ via anugraha
FAQs
It highlights the Shaiva Siddhanta idea that beings (paśu) are bound by karma (pāśa) within the world, and that Shiva (Pati), out of compassion, provides a liberating means—here, the sanctifying Pañcakrośī kshetra—through which grace and purification lead toward attainment of Him.
In Koṭirudrasaṃhitā, liberation is often connected to sacred places and Jyotirlinga-centered devotion; the verse implies that approaching Shiva through consecrated kshetras and Saguna worship (darśana, pūjā, pradakṣiṇā) becomes a practical doorway for karma-bound souls to reach Him.
Undertaking the Pañcakrośī pilgrimage/circumambulation with Shiva-bhakti—supported by mantra-japa (especially “Om Namaḥ Śivāya”), worship of the Linga, and disciplined conduct—functions as a purificatory practice aimed at release from karmic bondage.