Shiva Purana — Rudra Samhita, Shloka 10

नारदस्य विष्णूपदेशवर्णनम् — Nārada and Viṣṇu: Instruction after Delusion

Devanagari script

कृतं समुचितन्नैव शिवेन परमात्मना । तत्प्रभावबलं ध्यात्वा स्वतंत्रकृतिकारकः

Transliteration

kṛtaṃ samucitannaiva śivena paramātmanā | tatprabhāvabalaṃ dhyātvā svataṃtrakṛtikārakaḥ

Translation

Das höchste Selbst, Herr Śiva, vollbrachte keineswegs das, was für den unmittelbaren Zweck angemessen gewesen wäre. In Betrachtung der Stärke und Wirkkraft Seiner Macht schritt der Schöpfungswirkende—eigenständig handelnd—zur Tat der Erschaffung.

Word by Word

• कृतम्: done/made
• कृतम्: Karma (कर्म/Object)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: कृ (धातु) → कृत (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (past passive participle), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd Nom/Acc), एकवचन; विधेय-विशेषण (predicate/qualifier)

• समुचितम्: proper/appropriate
• समुचितम्: Karma (कर्म/Object)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: समुचित (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; विशेषण

• न: not
• न: Pratiṣedha (प्रतिषेध/Negation)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेधार्थक-अव्यय (negation particle)

• एव: indeed/just
• एव: Avadhāraṇa (अवधारण/Emphasis)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अवधारण (emphatic particle)

• शिवेन: by Śiva
• शिवेन: Karaṇa (करण/Instrument/Agent in passive sense)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शिव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental), एकवचन

• परमात्मना: by the Supreme Self
• परमात्मना: Karaṇa (करण/Instrument/Agent in passive sense)
• Type: Noun
• Root: परम-आत्मन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental), एकवचन; कर्मधारय-समासः (supreme self)

• तत्-प्रभाव-बलम्: that power/force (of influence)
• तत्-प्रभाव-बलम्: Karma (कर्म/Object of ध्यात्वा)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक) + प्रभाव (प्रातिपदिक) + बल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (its power/strength of influence)

• ध्यात्वा: having meditated upon
• ध्यात्वा: Kriyā (क्रिया/Non-finite verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ध्यै (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त-अव्यय (gerund/absolutive), पूर्वकाल (having done earlier)

• स्वतन्त्र-कृति-कारकः: one who acts as an independent doer/agent
• स्वतन्त्र-कृति-कारकः: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: स्वतन्त्र (प्रातिपदिक) + कृति (प्रातिपदिक) + कारक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; बहुपद-तत्पुरुषः (maker/agent of independent action)

Speaker

Suta Goswami (narrating the Rudrasaṃhitā account of creation to the sages at Naimiṣāraṇya)

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pati

Shiva Form: Sadāśiva

Shakti Dimension

Role: creative

Cosmic Context

Cosmic Event: Sṛṣṭi (cosmogonic transition into manifest creation)

Characters & Entities

• Shiva

FAQs

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

It highlights Śiva as Paramātmā whose supreme power (prabhāva-bala) governs creation, and it points to contemplative recognition of that divine sovereignty as spiritually transformative in a Shaiva Siddhanta sense (Pati as the ultimate Lord).

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

Meditating on Śiva’s prabhāva-bala naturally supports Saguna upāsanā: the devotee contemplates the Lord’s manifest majesty and lordship, commonly approached through Liṅga worship as the accessible, sacred focus of the transcendent Paramātmā.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

A clear takeaway is dhyāna (meditation) on Śiva’s power and grace—practically supported by japa of the Pañcākṣarī (Om Namaḥ Śivāya) and focused contemplation before the Śiva-liṅga, even if specific items like bhasma or rudrākṣa are not explicitly named in this verse.