Shloka 20

Adhyaya 4: अहोरात्र-युग-मन्वन्तर-कल्पमान तथा प्रलयान्ते सृष्ट्युपक्रमः

Devanagari script

त्रिंशदन्यानि वर्षाणि मतः सप्तर्षिवत्सरः नव यानि सहस्राणि वर्षाणां मानुषाणि तु

Transliteration

triṃśadanyāni varṣāṇi mataḥ saptarṣivatsaraḥ nava yāni sahasrāṇi varṣāṇāṃ mānuṣāṇi tu

Translation

Thirty (divine) years are understood to constitute one “Saptarṣi-year”; and that single Saptarṣi-year is reckoned as nine thousand human years. Thus the Purāṇa sets forth the scale of time by which embodied souls (paśu) measure the unfolding of creation under the Lord (Pati).

Word by Word

• त्रिंशत् (triṁśat): thirty

• अन्यानि (anyāni): other/remaining (i.e., additional, counted as a unit)

• वर्षाणि (varṣāṇi): years

• मतः (mataḥ): is considered/held to be

• सप्तर्षिवत्सरः (saptarṣi-vatsaraḥ): a year of the Seven Sages (Saptarṣis)

• नव (nava): nine

• यानि (yāni): which/that amount

• सहस्राणि (sahasrāṇi): thousands

• वर्षाणाम् (varṣāṇām): of years

• मानुषाणि (mānuṣāṇi): human (years)

• तु (tu): indeed/and

Speaker

Suta Goswami (narrating Linga Purana chronology to the sages at Naimisharanya)

Characters & Entities

• Saptarishis

FAQs

What is the importance of this verse in the context of Linga worship?

It frames Linga-worship within Purāṇic cosmology: the devotee contemplates Mahādeva as Pati who governs vast cycles of time, making daily pūjā a conscious alignment with cosmic order (ṛta) rather than a merely personal rite.

How does this verse describe the nature of Shiva (Shiva-tattva)?

By emphasizing the immensity and structure of time, it indirectly points to Shiva-tattva as the transcendent regulator beyond temporal measures—time is a function within creation, while Shiva as Pati remains the sovereign ground of its unfolding.

What ritualistic or Yogic practice is highlighted here?

A contemplative practice (kāla-anusandhāna) supportive of Pāśupata discipline: meditating on cosmic time-scales reduces attachment (pāśa) and steadies the paśu toward devotion and liberation under the Pati.