Shloka 48

Paramātma-Svarūpa-Nirṇaya: Strī–Puṃ–Napuṃsaka-Vicāra

Inquiry into the Supreme Self and Gendered Forms

Devanagari script

एतद्द्वयं पराशक्तेः प्रथमं स्पंदतां गतम् । एतामेव परां शक्तिं श्वेताश्वतरशाखिनः

Transliteration

etaddvayaṃ parāśakteḥ prathamaṃ spaṃdatāṃ gatam | etāmeva parāṃ śaktiṃ śvetāśvataraśākhinaḥ

Translation

This pair (of principles) is the first vibration that arose from the Supreme Power. That very Supreme Śakti is what the followers of the Śvetāśvatara (Upaniṣad) tradition proclaim.

Word by Word

• etat: this
• etat: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: etad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular (एकवचन); used with ‘dvayam’ as demonstrative

• dvayam: pair / twofold (set)
• dvayam: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dvaya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular (एकवचन)

• parāśakteḥ: of the Supreme Śakti
• parāśakteḥ: Sambandha (षष्ठी-सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: parā + śakti (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine (स्त्रीलिङ्ग), Genitive (6th/षष्ठी), Singular (एकवचन); ‘of the supreme power’

• prathamam: first
• prathamam: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: prathama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular (एकवचन); predicate adjective with ‘dvayam’

• spandatām: of the vibrating (principles)
• spandatām: Sambandha (षष्ठी-सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: spandat (वर्तमानकृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक; √spand)
• Form: Feminine (स्त्रीलिङ्ग), Genitive (6th/षष्ठी), Plural (बहुवचन); present active participle stem used substantively: ‘of those that vibrate’

• gatam: gone/attained (i.e., has become)
• gatam: Kriya (क्रियाविशेषण/भाव)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: √gam (गम् धातु) + ta (क्त)
• Form: Past passive participle (क्त), Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular (एकवचन); agrees with ‘dvayam’

• etām: this (her/this)
• etām: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: etad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine (स्त्रीलिङ्ग), Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular (एकवचन)

• eva: indeed / alone
• eva: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (अव्यय)
• Form: Emphatic particle (निश्चय/अवधारण अव्यय)

• parām: supreme
• parām: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: parā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine (स्त्रीलिङ्ग), Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular (एकवचन); qualifies ‘śaktim’

• śaktim: power
• śaktim: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śakti (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine (स्त्रीलिङ्ग), Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular (एकवचन)

• śvetāśvataraśākhinaḥ: the Śvetāśvatara-śākhā followers
• śvetāśvataraśākhinaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śvetāśvatara + śākhin (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Plural (बहुवचन); ‘those belonging to the Śvetāśvatara-branch (of Veda)’

Speaker

Suta Goswami

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pasha

Shiva Form: Sadāśiva

Shakti Dimension

Shakti Form: Pārvatī

Role: creative

Cosmic Context

Cosmic Event: cosmogonic first pulsation (spanda) from Parāśakti

Characters & Entities

• Shiva
• Parashakti

FAQs

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

It teaches that the first manifest movement of reality is the primordial ‘spanda’ (vibration) of Parāśakti, through which the One Supreme (Pati, Shiva) becomes knowable as creation and consciousness without losing transcendence.

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

The Liṅga is revered as the stable sign of the Transcendent Shiva, while Śakti’s spanda is the power by which that same Shiva appears as accessible Saguna forms for devotion; worship honors both the unchanging Pati and His manifesting power.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

Meditate on Shiva as the still center and Śakti as the subtle inner pulsation (spanda), supporting japa of the Panchakshara (Om Namaḥ Śivāya) with steady breath-awareness to perceive the divine movement within.