Shiva Purana — Vayaviya Samhita, Shloka 72
श्रद्धामाहात्म्यं तथा देवीप्रश्नः
The Greatness of Śraddhā and Devī’s Question to Śiva
पत्रं पुष्पं फलं तोयं यो मे भक्त्या प्रयच्छति । तस्याहं न प्रणश्यामि स च मे न प्रणश्यति
patraṃ puṣpaṃ phalaṃ toyaṃ yo me bhaktyā prayacchati | tasyāhaṃ na praṇaśyāmi sa ca me na praṇaśyati
Wer Mir in Hingabe ein Blatt, eine Blume, eine Frucht oder Wasser darbringt — für diesen Verehrer gehe Ich niemals verloren, und er geht Mir niemals verloren.
Lord Shiva (as Pati receiving simple devotional offerings, narrated within the Vāyavīyasaṃhitā discourse)
Tattva Level: pati
Shiva Form: Umāpati
Sthala Purana: Not a site-specific (sthala) passage; it teaches the universal principle that simple offerings, when suffused with bhakti, become valid upacāras to Śiva and draw His unfailing grace.
Significance: Affirms that inner devotion (bhakti) is the decisive qualifier; even minimal offerings grant enduring sambandha (bond) with Śiva and steady access to His anugraha.
Mantra: पत्रं पुष्पं फलं तोयं यो मे भक्त्या प्रयच्छति । तस्याहं न प्रणश्यामि स च मे न प्रणश्यति
Type: stotra
Offering: naivedya
FAQs
It teaches that Shiva is pleased primarily by bhakti (devotional intent), not by the costliness of offerings; even simple items become spiritually potent when offered with surrendered love, strengthening the Pati–paśu bond that leads toward liberation.
In Saguna worship—especially Linga-puja—devotees commonly offer water, flowers, fruits, and leaves (notably bilva). The verse affirms that such simple upacāras, when done with devotion, establish abiding closeness with Shiva, who is present through the Linga as an accessible form for grace.
Perform Shiva-puja with sincere devotion by offering water and flowers (and ideally bilva leaves) to the Linga while remembering Shiva through japa such as the Panchakshara mantra “Om Namaḥ Śivāya,” cultivating inner purity alongside outer offering.