Shiva Purana — Vayaviya Samhita, Shloka 3
योगप्रकारनिर्णयः
Classification and Definition of Yoga
यद्यस्ति मरणं पूर्वं योगाद्यनुपमर्दतः । सद्यः साधयितुं शक्यं येन स्यान्नात्महा नरः
yadyasti maraṇaṃ pūrvaṃ yogādyanupamardataḥ | sadyaḥ sādhayituṃ śakyaṃ yena syānnātmahā naraḥ
Wenn aufgrund von Störung oder Versagen von Yoga und verwandten Übungen ein vorzeitiger Tod droht, gibt es ein Mittel, das sogleich vollzogen werden kann—durch das der Mensch nicht zum „Mörder des Selbst“ (Ātman) wird, also nicht in Selbstzerstörung und geistigen Ruin fällt.
Suta Goswami (narrating the Vāyavīyasaṃhitā teachings to the sages at Naimiṣāraṇya)
Tattva Level: pashu
Shiva Form: Mahādeva
Jyotirlinga: Vaidyanātha
Sthala Purana: Vaidyanātha is famed as Śiva the divine physician who removes fear of death and grants protection; the verse’s concern with premature death and ‘ātma-hatyā’ resonates with Śiva’s healing/anugraha function.
Significance: Protection from untimely death, relief from afflictions, and restoration of right spiritual course through Śiva’s grace.
Mantra: oṃ tryambakaṃ yajāmahe sugandhiṃ puṣṭivardhanam | urvārukamiva bandhanān mṛtyor mukṣīya māmṛtāt ||
Type: mahamrityunjaya
Role: nurturing
Offering: dhupa
FAQs
It teaches that even when one’s yogic discipline is shaken and danger is near, a prompt Shaiva remedy exists that preserves spiritual integrity—so one does not become an ātmahā, a person who ruins his own liberation-oriented path.
In the Vāyavīya philosophical frame, the “immediate means” is typically grounded in taking refuge in Pati (Shiva) through concrete Saguna supports—Linga-worship, mantra, and disciplined observance—when inner yoga becomes unstable.
The verse points to an immediately doable sādhana: re-establishing steadiness through Shiva-oriented practice such as japa of the Panchākṣarī (Om Namaḥ Śivāya), along with purificatory observances like bhasma (Tripuṇḍra) and focused meditation on Shiva as the protector of prāṇa and dharma.