Shloka 132

वासिष्ठकथनम् (आदित्य–सोमवंशवर्णनम् तथा रुद्रसहस्रनाम-प्रशंसा)

Devanagari script

प्राणेशो बन्धकी वृक्षो नकुलश् चाद्रिकस् तथा ह्रस्वग्रीवो महाजानुर् अलोलश् च महौषधिः

Transliteration

prāṇeśo bandhakī vṛkṣo nakulaś cādrikas tathā hrasvagrīvo mahājānur alolaś ca mahauṣadhiḥ

Translation

He is Prāṇeśa, Lord of the life-breaths; He is Bandhakī-vṛkṣa, the binding and sheltering Tree. He is Nakula and also Ādrika, the Mountain-born. He is Hrasva-grīva, the Short-necked; Mahā-jānu, the Great-kneed; Alola, the Unwavering; and Mahauṣadhi, the Supreme Healing Herb—Śiva, the Pati who loosens the pāśas that bind the paśu.

Word by Word

• प्राणेशः (prāṇeśaḥ): Lord of prāṇa (life-breath)

• बन्धकी (bandhakī): binder/protector, that which fastens or supports

• वृक्षः (vṛkṣaḥ): tree

• नकुलः (nakulaḥ): Nakula (mongoose/heroic name), one who destroys serpents/poisons

• च (ca): and

• आद्रिकः (ādrikaḥ): mountain-related, mountain-born, of the hills

• तथा (tathā): likewise

• ह्रस्वग्रीवः (hrasva-grīvaḥ): short-necked

• महाजानुः (mahā-jānuḥ): great-kneed, mighty-limbed

• अलोलः (alolaḥ): steady, not wavering

• च (ca): and

• महौषधिः (mahauṣadhiḥ): great medicine, supreme healing herb

Speaker

Suta Goswami (reciting the Shiva Sahasranama to the sages of Naimisharanya)

Characters & Entities

• Shiva

FAQs

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

As a segment of the Shiva Sahasranama, this verse supports Linga-puja through nāma-japa: invoking Shiva as Prāṇeśa and Mahauṣadhi frames worship as inner regulation of prāṇa and healing of karmic bondage (pāśa) for the paśu (soul).

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

It presents Shiva as Pati—the sovereign of prāṇa and the unwavering ground of being (Alola)—who also manifests with form and attributes, becoming the cosmic support (Bandhakī-vṛkṣa) and the liberating healer (Mahauṣadhi) that dissolves impurity and bondage.

What ritualistic or Yogic practice is highlighted here?

Nāma-japa within Linga-puja is implied: chanting these names as prāṇa-centered contemplation (Prāṇeśa) and as inner purification/therapy (Mahauṣadhi), aligned with Pāśupata-oriented liberation from pāśa.