Shloka 26

Sūtasya Punargamanaṃ Kāśyāṃ—Bhasma-Rudrākṣa-Tripuṇḍra-Vidhiśca

Sūta’s Return to Kāśī and the Observances of Bhasma, Rudrākṣa, and Tripuṇḍra

Devanagari script

अनयञ्चतुरो मासानेवन्तत्र मुनीश्वराः । ज्ञानप्रसूनकलिका महादेव्याः प्रसादतः

Transliteration

anayañcaturo māsānevantatra munīśvarāḥ | jñānaprasūnakalikā mahādevyāḥ prasādataḥ

Translation

In this manner, the lordly sages spent four months there. By the gracious favor of Mahādevī, the tender bud of their knowledge blossomed like a flower.

Word by Word

• अनयन्: they spent/led (time)
• अनयन्: क्रिया (Main verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √नी (धातु)
• Form: लङ्-लकार (Imperfect/Past), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), बहुवचन (Plural)

• चतुरः: four
• चतुरः: कर्म (Karma/Object)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: चतुर् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), द्वितीया विभक्ति (Accusative/2nd), बहुवचन (Plural)

• मासान्: months
• मासान्: कर्म (Karma/Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मास (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया विभक्ति (Accusative/2nd), बहुवचन

• एव: indeed, just
• एव: अवधारण (Emphasis)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव (अव्यय)
• Form: निश्चय/अवधारणार्थक अव्यय (emphatic particle)

• तत्र: there
• तत्र: देशाधिकरण (Spatial locus)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: देशवाचक अव्यय (locative adverb)

• मुनीश्वराः: lords among sages
• मुनीश्वराः: कर्ता (Karta/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मुनि + ईश्वर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (मुनीनां ईश्वराः), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), बहुवचन

• ज्ञान-प्रसून-कलिकाः: buds of the flower of knowledge
• ज्ञान-प्रसून-कलिकाः: कर्ता/विशेष्य (Appositional subject descriptor)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ज्ञान (प्रातिपदिक) + प्रसून (प्रातिपदिक) + कलिका (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: बहुपद-तत्पुरुष (ज्ञानस्य प्रसूनस्य कलिकाः / ज्ञानरूप-प्रसूनस्य कलिकाः), स्त्रीलिङ्ग (Feminine), प्रथमा विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• महादेव्याः: of the Great Goddess
• महादेव्याः: सम्बन्ध (Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: महादेवी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, षष्ठी विभक्ति (Genitive/6th), एकवचन

• प्रसादतः: by (her) grace
• प्रसादतः: हेतु/कारण (Cause)
• Type: Noun
• Root: प्रसाद (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी विभक्ति (Ablative/5th), एकवचन

Speaker

Suta Goswami

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: anugraha

Shiva Form: Umāpati

Jyotirlinga Context

Significance: Explicitly attributes the blossoming of jñāna to Mahādevī’s prasāda, reinforcing the Siddhānta doctrine that true knowledge and liberation mature by divine grace rather than mere effort.

Shakti Dimension

Shakti Form: Pārvatī

Role: liberating

Characters & Entities

• Mahadevi
• Parvati

FAQs

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

It highlights anugraha (divine grace): spiritual knowledge matures not merely by time or effort, but by Mahādevī’s prasāda, through which inner jñāna ‘buds’ and begins to flower toward liberation.

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

Though the verse names Mahādevī, it reflects the Shaiva view that Saguna devotion—worship of Shiva along with Shakti—invites grace that ripens knowledge, leading the devotee from form-based worship toward deeper realization.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

Steady sādhana over a vowed period (like cāturmāsya), combined with prayer for grace—especially japa of the Panchākṣarī mantra (Om Namaḥ Śivāya) and devotion to Mahādevī—supports the blossoming of spiritual understanding.