Shiva Purana — Vayaviya Samhita, Shloka 29

अनुग्रह-स्वातन्त्र्य-प्रमाणविचारः | Inquiry into Pramāṇa, Divine Autonomy, and Grace

Devanagari script

तच्छासनानुवर्तित्वं साधुभावस्य लक्षणम् । विपरीतसमाधोः स्यान्न सर्वं तत्तु दृश्यते

Transliteration

tacchāsanānuvartitvaṃ sādhubhāvasya lakṣaṇam | viparītasamādhoḥ syānna sarvaṃ tattu dṛśyate

Translation

Jener rechten Weisung zu folgen, ist das Kennzeichen einer wahrhaft sādhūhaften Natur. Doch bei dem, dessen Versenkung verkehrt (fehlgeleitet) ist, zeigt sich dies nicht in jeder Hinsicht.

Word by Word

• tat-śāsana-anuvartitvam: obedience to that command
• tat-śāsana-anuvartitvam: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक) + śāsana (प्रातिपदिक) + anuvartin (प्रातिपदिक) + -tva (प्रत्यय)
• Form: Napुंसकलिङ्ग, Prathamā (1st/प्रथमा), Ekavacana; tatpuruṣa: 'the state of following that command' (tasya śāsanasya anuvartitvam)

• sādhu-bhāvasya: of virtuousness
• sādhu-bhāvasya: Sambandha/Genitive (षष्ठी-सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sādhu (प्रातिपदिक) + bhāva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Ṣaṣṭhī (6th/षष्ठी), Ekavacana; tatpuruṣa: 'of the state of being good/virtuous'

• lakṣaṇam: the characteristic
• lakṣaṇam: Pradhāna (प्रधान/विधेय)
• Type: Noun
• Root: lakṣaṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Napुंसकलिङ्ग, Prathamā (1st/प्रथमा), Ekavacana

• viparīta-samādhoḥ: of the opposite (wrong) samādhi
• viparīta-samādhoḥ: Sambandha/Genitive (षष्ठी-सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: viparīta (प्रातिपदिक) + samādhi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Ṣaṣṭhī (6th/षष्ठी), Ekavacana; tatpuruṣa: 'of the contrary/incorrect samādhi'

• syāt: would be / may be
• syāt: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √as (अस् धातु)
• Form: Vidhi-liṅ (विधिलिङ्/optative), Prathama-puruṣa (3rd person), Ekavacana; parasmaipada

• na: not
• na: Pratiṣedha (प्रतिषेध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya; niṣedha-nipāta (negation)

• sarvam: everything
• sarvam: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Napुंसकलिङ्ग, Prathamā (1st/प्रथमा), Ekavacana

• tat: that
• tat: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Napुंसकलिङ्ग, Prathamā (1st/प्रथमा), Ekavacana; anaphoric pronoun

• tu: but
• tu: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tu (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya; adversative particle (विरोध/अवधारण)

• dṛśyate: is seen / appears
• dṛśyate: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √dṛś (दृश् धातु)
• Form: Laṭ (लट्/present), Prathama-puruṣa (3rd person), Ekavacana; ātmanepada; karmaṇi-prayoga (passive)

Speaker

Suta Goswami

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pashu

Shiva Form: Dakṣiṇāmūrti

Shakti Dimension

Role: teaching

Characters & Entities

• Shiva

FAQs

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

It defines sādhubhāva (the character of a true spiritual person) as faithful alignment with right instruction; mere inner absorption is not reliable if the mind’s contemplation is misdirected away from truth and dharma.

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

Linga/Saguna-Śiva worship is meant to discipline the mind and conduct according to Śiva’s śāsana; when devotion and ritual are aligned with right teaching, they mature into steady contemplation, rather than becoming a self-willed or distorted ‘samādhi’.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

Practice japa of the Panchākṣarī (Om Namaḥ Śivāya) with ethical restraint and scriptural discipline; let outer observance (pujā, vrata, purity) and inner meditation agree, so contemplation is not ‘viparīta’ (misaligned).