Shloka 15

उपमन्युकुमारस्य क्षीरार्थ-प्रार्थना तथा शिवप्रसाद-निबन्धनम् | Upamanyu’s Longing for Milk and the Doctrine of Shiva’s Grace

Devanagari script

हिमवत्पर्वतगतः वायुभक्षस्समाहितः । अष्टेष्टकाभिः प्रासादं कृत्वा लिंगं च मृन्मयम्

Transliteration

himavatparvatagataḥ vāyubhakṣassamāhitaḥ | aṣṭeṣṭakābhiḥ prāsādaṃ kṛtvā liṃgaṃ ca mṛnmayam

Translation

Nachdem er das Himalaya-Gebirge erreicht hatte, blieb er gefasst und in Sammlung versunken, nur vom Hauch der Luft lebend. Aus acht Ziegeln errichtete er ein kleines Heiligtum und formte zudem einen Liṅga aus Ton zur Verehrung.

Word by Word

• himavat-parvata-gataḥ: gone to the Himavat mountain
• himavat-parvata-gataḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: himavat (प्रातिपदिक) + parvata (प्रातिपदिक) + gata (कृदन्त, √gam गम्)
• Form: Tatpuruṣa chain compound; Puṃliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana; viśeṣaṇa (of implied subject, e.g., saḥ)

• vāyu-bhakṣaḥ: air-eating (living on air)
• vāyu-bhakṣaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vāyu (प्रातिपदिक) + bhakṣa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Tatpuruṣa (vāyoḥ bhakṣaḥ), Puṃliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana; ‘one who feeds on air’

• samāhitaḥ: composed / concentrated
• samāhitaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sam-ā-√dhā (धा) (कृदन्त)
• Form: Kta past participle (क्त), Puṃliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana; ‘collected/absorbed’

• aṣṭa-iṣṭakābhiḥ: with eight bricks
• aṣṭa-iṣṭakābhiḥ: Karaṇa (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: aṣṭa (संख्या-प्रातिपदिक) + iṣṭakā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Dvigu samāsa (द्विगु), Strīliṅga, Tṛtīyā, Bahuvacana (Plural/बहुवचन)

• prāsādam: a shrine / building
• prāsādam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: prāsāda (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Dvitīyā, Ekavacana

• kṛtvā: having made
• kṛtvā: Pūrvakāla-kriyā (पूर्वकालक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √kṛ (कृ) (कृदन्त)
• Form: Ktvā absolutive (क्त्वा), pūrvakāla-kriyā

• liṅgam: liṅga (emblem)
• liṅgam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: liṅga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Napuṃsaka, Dvitīyā, Ekavacana

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha-sūcaka (सम्बन्धसूचक)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: Samucchaya-nipāta

• mṛnmayam: made of clay
• mṛnmayam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mṛd (प्रातिपदिक) + mayaṭ (मयट्)
• Form: Taddhita derivative with -maya (मयट्) ‘made of’; Napuṃsaka, Dvitīyā, Ekavacana; viśeṣaṇa of liṅgam

Speaker

Suta Goswami (narrating to the sages of Naimisharanya)

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pashu

Jyotirlinga Context

Jyotirlinga: Kedāranātha

Sthala Purana: Himālaya tapas and liṅga worship evoke the Kedāra-Himavat sacred complex where Śiva is approached through severe austerity; while this verse is not the Kedāra origin story, it resonates with the Himalayan sthala ethos of penance and liṅga-sevā.

Significance: Himalayan kṣetra symbolizes inner ascent: austerity, restraint, and focused worship leading to purification of pāśa (bondage).

Characters & Entities

• Shiva
• Himalaya

FAQs

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

It highlights Shaiva sadhana where intense tapas (self-discipline) and inner samadhi are joined with simple, sincere Liṅga-upāsanā—showing that devotion and concentration, not external luxury, make worship spiritually potent.

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

By crafting a clay Liṅga and a small shrine, the seeker approaches the Nirguṇa Lord through a Saguna support (the Liṅga), focusing the mind and offering reverence to Śiva as Pati, the liberating Lord.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

Austere living with breath-restraint/air-focused discipline (vayu-bhaksha as tapas), paired with humble home-style worship: establishing a simple altar and worshiping a mṛn-maya Liṅga with steady meditation and mantra-japa (such as the Panchakshara, "Om Namaḥ Śivāya").