Shloka 142

बन्धमोक्षवर्णनम्

Bondage and Liberation: The Prakṛti–Karma Wheel and Śiva as the Transcendent Cause

Devanagari script

बलिपीठं समारभ्य प्रादक्षिण्यक्रमेण वै । पदे पदांतरं गत्वा बलिपीठं समाविशेत्

Transliteration

balipīṭhaṃ samārabhya prādakṣiṇyakrameṇa vai | pade padāṃtaraṃ gatvā balipīṭhaṃ samāviśet

Translation

Vom bali-pīṭha aus beginnend soll man die Pradakṣiṇā in glückverheißender Reihenfolge im Uhrzeigersinn vollziehen. Schritt für Schritt zum nächsten Ort gehend, soll man dann (zurück) in den bali-pīṭha eintreten.

Word by Word

• balipīṭham: the offering-altar
• balipīṭham: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bali-pīṭha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गम्, द्वितीया एकवचनम् (acc. sg.); समासः: बल्यर्थं पीठम् (tatpuruṣa)

• samārabhya: having begun (from)
• samārabhya: Pūrvakāla-kriyā (पूर्वकालक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: sam-ā-rabh (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त (absolutive/gerund), अव्ययभावः; ‘having begun/starting’

• prādakṣiṇyakrameṇa: by the sequence of circumambulation
• prādakṣiṇyakrameṇa: Karaṇa (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: prā-dakṣiṇya-krama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गम्, तृतीया एकवचनम् (instrumental sg.); समासः: प्रादक्षिण्यस्य क्रमः (ṣaṣṭhī-tatpuruṣa)

• vai: indeed
• vai: Emphasis (निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: vai (अव्यय)
• Form: निपातः (emphatic particle)

• pade: at (each) step
• pade: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pada (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गम्, सप्तमी एकवचनम् (locative sg.), ‘in/at a step’

• padāntaram: the interval between steps
• padāntaram: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pada-antara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गम्, द्वितीया एकवचनम् (acc. sg.); समासः: पदस्य अन्तरम् (ṣaṣṭhī-tatpuruṣa)

• gatvā: having gone
• gatvā: Pūrvakāla-kriyā (पूर्वकालक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: gam (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त (absolutive/gerund), अव्ययभावः; ‘having gone’

• balipīṭham: the offering-altar
• balipīṭham: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bali-pīṭha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गम्, द्वितीया एकवचनम् (acc. sg.)

• samāviśet: should enter
• samāviśet: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: sam-ā-viś (धातु)
• Form: लकारः विधिलिङ् (optative), प्रथमपुरुषः (3rd person), एकवचनम् (singular), परस्मैपदम्

Speaker

Suta Goswami

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pashu

Shiva Form: Umāpati

Jyotirlinga Context

Jyotirlinga: Viśvanātha

Sthala Purana: As part of the Kāśī/Viśveśvara worship-frame, pradakṣiṇā around the Lord’s seat is taught as a bodily enactment of keeping Śiva at one’s right (dakṣiṇa) and returning to the ritual center (bali-pīṭha) after completing the circuit.

Significance: Pradakṣiṇā in Kāśī is held to purify karmic accretions and stabilize bhakti through disciplined bodily devotion centered on the Liṅga.

Shakti Dimension

Shakti Form: Pārvatī

Role: nurturing

Characters & Entities

• Shiva

FAQs

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

It teaches disciplined, reverential movement in worship—clockwise circumambulation as an outer expression of placing Shiva (Pati) at the center of one’s awareness and devotion.

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

Pradakṣiṇā is performed around the sacred locus of Saguna Shiva worship (the Linga and its ritual space). Returning to the bali-pīṭha emphasizes completing the prescribed sequence of offerings and honoring the sanctified perimeter of the shrine.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

Perform clockwise pradakṣiṇā mindfully, step by step, maintaining steadiness and remembrance of Shiva—optionally coordinating the movement with japa of the Panchakshara (Om Namaḥ Śivāya) as per Shaiva devotional practice.