Shiva Purana — Rudra Samhita, Shloka 28

रुद्ररथ-निर्माणवर्णनम् / Description of Rudra’s Divine Chariot Construction

Devanagari script

अनीकं विषसंभूतं वायवो वाजका स्मृताः । ऋषयो व्यासमुख्याश्च वाहवाहास्तथाभवन्

Transliteration

anīkaṃ viṣasaṃbhūtaṃ vāyavo vājakā smṛtāḥ | ṛṣayo vyāsamukhyāśca vāhavāhāstathābhavan

Translation

Jenes Kampfheer entstand aus Gift; die Winde galten als schnelle Rosse. Auch die Weisen—allen voran Vyāsa—wurden in jenem Streit zu Trägern und Beförderern der göttlichen Kräfte.

Word by Word

• anīkam: army/host
• anīkam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: anīka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा/द्वितीया (Nom./Acc.), एकवचन (Singular)

• viṣa-sambhūtam: born from poison
• viṣa-sambhūtam: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: viṣa (प्रातिपदिक) + sambhūta (कृदन्त; √bhū/भू + सम्, क्त)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त विशेषण (past passive participle)

• vāyavaḥ: winds
• vāyavaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vāyu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा (Nominative), बहुवचन (Plural)

• vājakāḥ: impellers/chargers (drivers)
• vājakāḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vājaka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन

• smṛtāḥ: were called/considered
• smṛtāḥ: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √smṛ (स्मृ) + क्त (कृदन्त)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (PPP); पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; ‘are called/considered’ (passive sense)

• ṛṣayaḥ: sages
• ṛṣayaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ṛṣi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन

• vyāsa-mukhyāḥ: with Vyāsa as the chief
• vyāsa-mukhyāḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vyāsa (प्रातिपदिक) + mukhya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; विशेषण—‘having Vyāsa as chief/foremost’

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक अव्यय (conjunction)

• vāha-vāhāḥ: carriers and bearers (drivers)
• vāha-vāhāḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vāha (प्रातिपदिक) + vāha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; द्वन्द्व—‘carriers and bearers/drivers’

• tathā: thus/so
• tathā: Kriyā-viśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tathā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (adverb)

• abhavan: became/were
• abhavan: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √bhū (भू) लङ्
• Form: लङ् (Imperfect), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), बहुवचन (Plural), परस्मैपद

Speaker

Suta Goswami (narrating the Rudrasaṃhitā account to the sages of Naimisharanya)

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pasha

Shiva Form: Rudra

Cosmic Context

Cosmic Event: Poison-born host motif (viṣa) recalling cosmic crisis imagery (hālāhala-type) within a battle cosmology.

Characters & Entities

• Vyasa
• Rishis
• Vayu (the winds)

FAQs

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

The verse uses battle imagery to show that even destructive forces (symbolized by “poison”) can be reorganized under divine order, while prāṇa (the winds) becomes the driving power. In a Shaiva Siddhanta reading, Shiva as Pati can turn the pasha-like toxins of bondage into instruments for restoring dharma.

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

Saguna Shiva is the Lord who governs the cosmos in concrete forms—armies, winds, and sages all functioning as His instruments. Linga-worship trains the devotee to see every power (including prāṇa and adversity) as belonging to Shiva’s governance rather than to ego.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

A practical takeaway is prāṇa-sādhana with Shiva-mantra: steady the “winds” through calm breathing while mentally repeating the Panchākṣarī (Om Namaḥ Śivāya), offering inner “poison” (anger, fear, craving) into Shiva’s presence like an oblation.