Shloka 8

Adhyaya 72 — Puradāha: Rudra’s Cosmic Chariot, Pāśupata-Vrata, and Brahmā’s Shiva-Stuti

Devanagari script

मुहूर्ता बन्धुरास्तस्य शम्याश्चैव कलाः स्मृताः तस्य काष्ठाः स्मृता घोणा चाक्षदण्डाः क्षणाश् च वै

Transliteration

muhūrtā bandhurāstasya śamyāścaiva kalāḥ smṛtāḥ tasya kāṣṭhāḥ smṛtā ghoṇā cākṣadaṇḍāḥ kṣaṇāś ca vai

Translation

For that reckoning of time, muhūrtas are taught as its ‘bandhurā’ units; and śamyās are remembered as kalās. Likewise, its smaller divisions are declared to be kāṣṭhās, ghoṇās, akṣa-daṇḍas, and also kṣaṇas (moments).

Word by Word

• मुहूर्ताः: muhūrtas (fixed time-periods)

• बन्धुराः: bandhurā units/denominations (named subdivisions)

• तस्य: of that (time-reckoning)

• शम्याः: śamyā divisions (a named measure)

• च एव: and indeed

• कलाः: kalās (parts/minutes

• स्मृताः: remembered/traditionally stated

• तस्य: of that (same system)

• काष्ठाः: kāṣṭhās (small time-units)

• स्मृताः: stated/known

• घोणा: ghoṇā (a named minute subdivision)

• च: and

• अक्षदण्डाः: akṣa-daṇḍas (a named time-measure)

• क्षणाः: kṣaṇas (instants/moments)

• च वै: and also/indeed.

Speaker

Suta Goswami (narrating the Purana to the sages of Naimisharanya)

FAQs

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

It frames ritual time as a sacred, ordered continuum—useful for selecting muhūrtas and structuring Shiva-puja so the devotee (pashu) aligns action with the cosmic order upheld by Pati (Shiva).

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

By detailing time’s subdivisions, it implies that kāla is measurable and governed within creation, while Shiva-tattva as Pati stands as the transcendent ground that orders and witnesses time without being bound by it.

What ritualistic or Yogic practice is highlighted here?

Kṣaṇa-awareness: training attention to the instant supports Pashupata-style discipline, while muhūrta and kalā divisions support precise timing in Shiva-puja and vrata observances.