Shloka 15

Praṇava-Māhātmya and the Twofold Mantra (Sūkṣma–Sthūla) in Śaiva Sādhanā

Devanagari script

शिवः शक्तिस्तयोरैक्यं मकारं तु त्रिकात्मकम् । ह्रस्वमेवं हि जाप्यं स्यात्सर्वपापक्षयैषिणाम्

Transliteration

śivaḥ śaktistayoraikyaṃ makāraṃ tu trikātmakam | hrasvamevaṃ hi jāpyaṃ syātsarvapāpakṣayaiṣiṇām

Translation

Śiva, Śakti und die Einheit der beiden—dies alles wird durch die Silbe „ma“ ausgedrückt, die dreifacher Natur ist. Darum soll sie von denen, die die Vernichtung aller Sünden begehren, in japa in kurzer Form wiederholt werden.

Word by Word

• शिवः: Śiva
• शिवः: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शिव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• शक्तिः: Śakti (power)
• शक्तिः: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शक्ति (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• तयोः: of those two
• तयोः: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), द्विवचन

• ऐक्यम्: unity
• ऐक्यम्: Samānādhikaraṇa (समानााधिकरण/Predicative)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ऐक्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd Nom/Acc), एकवचन

• मकारम्: the letter ‘ma’
• मकारम्: Karma (कर्म/Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मकार (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन

• तु: but/indeed
• तु: Sambandha-bodhaka (सम्बन्धबोधक/connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, निपात (particle/contrastive)

• त्रिकात्मकम्: of threefold nature
• त्रिकात्मकम्: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण/Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: त्रि (संख्या-प्रातिपदिक) + आत्मक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd Nom/Acc), एकवचन; विशेषण (qualifier)

• ह्रस्वम्: short (vowel/measure)
• ह्रस्वम्: Karma (कर्म/Object)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ह्रस्व (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd Nom/Acc), एकवचन; विशेषण

• एवम्: thus
• एवम्: Kriyā-viśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण/Adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एवम् (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, क्रियाविशेषण (adverb)

• हि: indeed
• हि: Sambandha-bodhaka (सम्बन्धबोधक/connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: हि (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, निपात (particle/emphasis)

• जाप्यम्: to be recited (as japa)
• जाप्यम्: Samānādhikaraṇa (समानााधिकरण/Predicative)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: जप् (धातु) + य (प्रत्यय) → जाप्य (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd Nom/Acc), एकवचन; विधेय-विशेषण (to-be-recited)

• स्यात्: should be
• स्यात्: Kriyā (क्रिया/Verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: अस् (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन

• सर्वपापक्षयैषिणाम्: of those who seek the destruction of all sins
• सर्वपापक्षयैषिणाम्: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सर्व (प्रातिपदिक) + पाप (प्रातिपदिक) + क्षय (प्रातिपदिक) + एषिन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), बहुवचन; ‘क्षयम् एषन्ते’ इति (desiring destruction)

Speaker

Suta Goswami (narrating Shiva’s mantra-teaching to the sages of Naimisharanya)

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pati

Shiva Form: Ardhanārīśvara

Jyotirlinga Context

Significance: The verse’s ‘sarva-pāpa-kṣaya’ theme aligns with tīrtha-yātrā logic: mantra-japa as inner pilgrimage that burns pāśa (bondage) through Śiva’s grace.

Mantra Metadata

Mantra: (Implied) ‘ma’ as a compact praṇava/seed used for japa; no full mantra is quoted in the verse.

Type: panchakshara

Shakti Dimension

Shakti Form: Pārvatī

Role: liberating

Characters & Entities

• Shiva
• Shakti

FAQs

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

It teaches that Shiva and Shakti are inseparable and that mantra-syllables encode this truth; japa performed with this understanding becomes a means to purify karmic impurity (pāpa) and move toward Shiva’s grace and liberation.

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

In the Vidyeshvara context, Linga-worship is supported by mantra-japa: the devotee approaches Saguna Shiva (worshipful form) while contemplating the deeper unity of Shiva-Shakti indicated by the mantra’s syllabic meaning.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

It recommends mantra-japa—specifically repeating the indicated syllable in its short (hrasva) form—done with devotional focus and the insight of Shiva-Shakti unity, as a purificatory discipline.