Shiva Purana — Rudra Samhita, Shloka 40
देवर्षि-प्रश्नः तथा असुर-वध-हेतुनिवेदनम् | The Devas’ Petition and the Cause for Slaying Asuras
यमक्षरं वेदविदो निगदंति मनीषिणः । ज्योतीरूपं शिवं ते च चिंतयिष्ये सनातनम्
yamakṣaraṃ vedavido nigadaṃti manīṣiṇaḥ | jyotīrūpaṃ śivaṃ te ca ciṃtayiṣye sanātanam
Jene unvergängliche höchste Silbe, die die Kenner der Veden und die Weisen verkünden—ich will den ewigen Śiva betrachten, dessen Gestalt selbst Licht ist.
Satī (speaking in devotional contemplation of Śiva within the Satīkhaṇḍa narrative)
Tattva Level: pati
Shiva Form: Liṅgodbhava
Sthala Purana: The verse evokes Śiva as jyotiḥ-svarūpa (light-form), thematically resonant with Jyotirliṅga revelation narratives where the infinite pillar of light establishes Śiva’s supremacy.
Significance: Meditation on jyotiḥ-svarūpa Śiva is presented as a direct means to inner purification and grace (anugraha).
Type: stotra
Shakti Form: Satī
Role: liberating
Offering: dipa
FAQs
It identifies Śiva with the Akṣara (imperishable sacred principle) praised by Vedic knowers and presents Him as Jyoti—pure, self-revealing consciousness—inviting steady contemplation as the means toward liberation under the Lord’s grace.
Calling Śiva “jyotīrūpa” bridges Saguna and Nirguna: the devotee may worship the Liṅga as the visible support for meditation while realizing that its inner truth is the formless, imperishable Light (Pati) beyond all change.
Dhyāna and mantra-japa: contemplate Śiva as the luminous Akṣara while repeating a Śaiva mantra such as the Pañcākṣarī (“Om Namaḥ Śivāya”), optionally with bhasma (tripuṇḍra) and rudrākṣa as aids to steadiness and devotion.