Shiva Purana — Vayaviya Samhita, Shloka 66
श्रद्धामाहात्म्यं तथा देवीप्रश्नः
The Greatness of Śraddhā and Devī’s Question to Śiva
मदनुग्रहतस्तेषां भावो मयि समर्पितः । फलं परमनिर्वाणं प्रयच्छति बलादिव । महात्मनामनन्यानां मयि संन्यस्तचेतसाम् । अष्टधा लक्षणं प्राहुर्मम धर्माधिकारिणाम्
madanugrahatasteṣāṃ bhāvo mayi samarpitaḥ | phalaṃ paramanirvāṇaṃ prayacchati balādiva | mahātmanāmananyānāṃ mayi saṃnyastacetasām | aṣṭadhā lakṣaṇaṃ prāhurmama dharmādhikāriṇām
Durch Meine Gnade wird ihre innere Gesinnung Mir dargebracht. Diese Darbringung verleiht, gleichsam unwiderstehlich, die Frucht des höchsten Nirvāṇa. Von den großen Seelen, die keinen anderen suchen und deren Geist ganz in Mir niedergelegt ist, verkünden die Weisen ein achtfaches Merkmal—das sind die Befähigungen derer, die zu Meinem Dharma berechtigt sind.
Lord Shiva
Tattva Level: pati
Shiva Form: Īśāna
Significance: Defines liberation as ‘parama-nirvāṇa’ arising from Śiva’s anugraha; pilgrimage/vrata are secondary to grace that turns bhāva into total self-offering.
Shakti Form: Pārvatī
Role: liberating
FAQs
It teaches that liberation is not merely self-effort but arises through Shiva’s anugraha (grace) when the devotee’s bhāva is fully offered to Him; such surrender ripens into parama-nirvāṇa.
The verse emphasizes offering one’s inner bhāva into Shiva; in practice, this is fulfilled through Saguna worship—especially Linga-upāsanā—where external ritual becomes the vehicle for inner surrender and Shiva’s grace.
Cultivate ananya-bhakti and saṁnyasta-cetas (mind-surrender) through daily Shiva pūjā, japa of the Pañcākṣarī “Om Namaḥ Śivāya,” and steady meditation on Shiva as the sole refuge, seeking His anugraha.