Shloka 113

Śiva-nāma-sahasraka-kathana

The Recital/Teaching of the Thousand Names of Śiva

Devanagari script

सहस्रार्चिर्भूतिभूषः स्निग्धाकृतिरदक्षिणः । भूतभव्यभवन्नाथो विभवो भूतिनाशनः

Transliteration

sahasrārcirbhūtibhūṣaḥ snigdhākṛtiradakṣiṇaḥ | bhūtabhavyabhavannātho vibhavo bhūtināśanaḥ

Translation

Er leuchtet mit tausend Flammen; geschmückt ist Er mit Vibhūti, der heiligen Asche. Seine Gestalt ist still und glänzend und niemals unheilvoll. Er ist der Herr von Vergangenheit, Zukunft und Gegenwart—mächtig an Glanz, und der Zerstörer weltlicher Prosperität, die die Seele bindet.

Word by Word

• सहस्रार्चिः: having a thousand flames/rays
• सहस्रार्चिः: विशेषण (कर्तृ-सम्बन्धि)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सहस्र + अर्चिस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (सहस्रस्य अर्चिः)

• भूतिभूषः: adorned with prosperity/ashes (bhūti)
• भूतिभूषः: विशेषण (कर्तृ-सम्बन्धि)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: भूति + भूष (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (भूतेः भूषः)

• स्निग्धाकृतिः: of pleasing/smooth form
• स्निग्धाकृतिः: विशेषण (कर्तृ-सम्बन्धि)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: स्निग्ध + आकृति (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; कर्मधारयः (स्निग्धा आकृतिः यस्य)

• अदक्षिणः: not harsh; not partial (lit. not ‘right/mean’)
• अदक्षिणः: विशेषण (कर्तृ-सम्बन्धि)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अ + दक्षिण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; नञ्-समासार्थक-निषेध (not ‘dakṣiṇa’)

• भूतभव्यभवन्नाथः: lord of past, future, and present beings
• भूतभव्यभवन्नाथः: कर्ता (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भूत + भव्य + भवत् + नाथ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; बहुपद-षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (भूतस्य भव्यस्य भवतः च नाथः)

• विभवः: splendour; power
• विभवः: कर्ता (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: विभव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• भूतिनाशनः: destroyer of beings/afflictions; remover of prosperity (of foes)
• भूतिनाशनः: विशेषण (कर्तृ-सम्बन्धि)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: भूति + नाशन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (भूतेः/भूतेः इति व्युत्पत्त्या ‘भूति’—of beings/prosperity—नाशनः)

Speaker

Suta Goswami

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pati

Shiva Form: Nīlakaṇṭha

Jyotirlinga Context

Sthala Purana: Not a Jyotirliṅga account; imagery of bhasma (bhūti) and time-lordship (past/future/present) frames Śiva as the transcendent ruler who both illumines and burns away binding prosperity/attachments.

Significance: General fruit: bhasma-bhūṣaṇa contemplation supports dispassion; remembering Śiva as lord of the three times steadies the mind amid change.

Mantra Metadata

Type: stotra

Ritual Elements

Offering: dhupa

Cosmic Context

Cosmic Event: Implicit tri-kāla lordship (past-present-future) suggesting cosmic governance beyond temporal flow.

Characters & Entities

• Shiva

FAQs

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

The verse praises Shiva as timeless Lord of past, present, and future, whose radiance is infinite. From a Shaiva Siddhanta lens, it points to Shiva as Pati (the Supreme) who removes bondage by destroying attachment to transient “bhūti” (worldly gain), turning the soul toward liberation.

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

The epithets describe Saguna Shiva—radiant, auspicious, and adorned with bhasma—qualities commonly contemplated in Linga worship. Devotees approach the Jyotirlinga as Shiva’s luminous presence, meditating on His auspicious form while recognizing Him as the transcendental Lord beyond time.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

The mention of bhūtibhūṣa (bhasma-adorned) supports Tripuṇḍra/bhasma dhāraṇa with Shiva-mantra japa (especially the Panchakshara, “Om Namaḥ Śivāya”), contemplating Shiva’s thousand-rayed light and praying for freedom from binding attachment to worldly prosperity.