Shloka 1

नारीसन्देहभञ्जक-शम्भ्ववतारकथा

The Account of Śambhu’s Incarnation that Dispels Doubts Concerning Women

Devanagari script

नन्दीश्वर उवाच । अथ वक्ष्ये मुनिश्रेष्ठ शम्भोः शृण्ववतारकम् । स्वभक्तदयया विप्र नारीसन्देहभंजकम्

Transliteration

nandīśvara uvāca | atha vakṣye muniśreṣṭha śambhoḥ śṛṇvavatārakam | svabhaktadayayā vipra nārīsandehabhaṃjakam

Translation

Nandīśvara sprach: Nun, o Bester der Weisen, will ich eine Inkarnation Śambhus schildern—höre—o Brāhmaṇa; aus Mitleid mit Seinen eigenen Verehrern angenommen, vernichtet sie die Zweifel der Frauen.

Word by Word

• nandīśvaraḥ: Nandīśvara
• nandīśvaraḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nandīśvara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular; proper noun; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (nandinaḥ īśvaraḥ)

• uvāca: said
• uvāca: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vac (वच् धातु)
• Form: Perfect (लिट्), Parasmaipada, 3rd person, Singular

• atha: then, now
• atha: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: atha (अव्यय)
• Form: Discourse particle (अनन्तरार्थक/आरम्भसूचक-अव्यय)

• vakṣye: I shall tell
• vakṣye: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vac (वच् धातु)
• Form: Future (लृट्), Parasmaipada, 1st person (उत्तमपुरुष), Singular

• muni-śreṣṭha: O best of sages
• muni-śreṣṭha: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: muni (प्रातिपदिक) + śreṣṭha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Vocative (सम्बोधन/8), Singular; संबोधन; तत्पुरुषः (munīnām śreṣṭhaḥ)

• śambhoḥ: of Śambhu (Śiva)
• śambhoḥ: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/षष्ठी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śambhu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Genitive (षष्ठी/6), Singular

• śṛṇu: listen
• śṛṇu: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: śru (श्रु धातु)
• Form: Imperative (लोट्), Parasmaipada, 2nd person (मध्यमपुरुष), Singular

• avatārakam: the (saving) account/teaching
• avatārakam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: avatāraka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine/Neuter, Accusative (द्वितीया/2), Singular; object of ‘listen’ (to this account)

• sva-bhakta-dayayā: by compassion for his own devotees
• sva-bhakta-dayayā: Karaṇa/Hetu (करण/हेतु)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sva (प्रातिपदिक) + bhakta (प्रातिपदिक) + dayā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Instrumental (तृतीया/3), Singular; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (svabhaktānāṃ dayayā)

• vipra: O brāhmaṇa
• vipra: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vipra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Vocative (सम्बोधन/8), Singular

• nārī-sandeha-bhaṃjakam: (that) which dispels women’s doubts
• nārī-sandeha-bhaṃjakam: Karma-viśeṣaṇa (कर्मविशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: nārī (प्रातिपदिक) + sandeha (प्रातिपदिक) + bhaṃjaka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine/Neuter, Accusative, Singular; adjective qualifying avatārakam; तत्पुरुषः (nārīṇāṃ sandehaṃ bhaṃjayati iti)

Speaker

Nandishvara (Nandi)

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pati

Shiva Form: Dakṣiṇāmūrti

Jyotirlinga Context

Sthala Purana: Opens a new avatāra narration by Nandīśvara: Śiva descends out of compassion for devotees, specifically to resolve ‘women’s doubts’—a didactic, reformative purpose rather than a shrine-origin.

Significance: Highlights kathā as pastoral theology: Śiva’s avatāra addresses social-spiritual anxieties; listening is itself a means to clarity and steadiness in dharma.

Shakti Dimension

Role: teaching

Characters & Entities

• Shiva
• Nandi

FAQs

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

It frames Shiva’s avatāra as an act of grace (anugraha) arising from compassion for devotees, emphasizing that doubt (saṃśaya) is a key obstacle to steady bhakti and liberation.

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

By announcing an avatāra of Śambhu, it highlights Saguna Shiva—Shiva who compassionately takes accessible forms for devotees—supporting concrete worship such as Linga-upāsanā grounded in faith rather than doubt.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

The takeaway is to cultivate śraddhā (faith) and attentive listening (śravaṇa) to Shiva’s līlās; this is commonly paired in Shaiva practice with japa of the Panchakshara (Om Namaḥ Śivāya) to stabilize the mind and remove doubt.