Shloka 26

गुरुत्व-परम्परा-शौचविधि-प्रश्नः

Questions on Guruhood, Lineage, and Purificatory Discipline

Devanagari script

वस्त्राम्रदलदूर्वाग्रनारिकेलसुमैस्ततः । तं घटं वस्तुभिश्चान्यैस्संकुर्यात्समलंकृतम्

Transliteration

vastrāmradaladūrvāgranārikelasumaistataḥ | taṃ ghaṭaṃ vastubhiścānyaissaṃkuryātsamalaṃkṛtam

Translation

Then, with cloth, mango leaves, the tips of dūrvā grass, and coconut-flowers, one should arrange and decorate that water-pot; and with other suitable sacred items as well, one should prepare it fully adorned for Śiva’s worship.

Word by Word

• vastra-āmra-dala-dūrvā-agra-nārīkela-sumaiḥ: with cloth, mango leaves, dūrvā tips, coconut flowers
• vastra-āmra-dala-dūrvā-agra-nārīkela-sumaiḥ: Karaṇa (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vastra + āmra + dala + dūrvā + agra + nārīkela + suma (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग) collective, Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया), Plural (बहुवचन); समाहार-द्वन्द्व: “with cloth, mango-leaves, tips of dūrvā grass, coconut-flowers”

• tataḥ: then/thereafter
• tataḥ: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tataḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: Adverb (क्रियाविशेषण अव्यय) of sequence

• tam: that
• tam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Pronoun (सर्वनाम), Masculine, Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular (एकवचन)

• ghaṭam: pot
• ghaṭam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ghaṭa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular (एकवचन)

• vastubhiḥ: with materials/things
• vastubhiḥ: Karaṇa (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vastu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया), Plural (बहुवचन)

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: Conjunction/particle (समुच्चयबोधक अव्यय)

• anyaiḥ: with other (items)
• anyaiḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: anya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine/Neuter, Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया), Plural (बहुवचन)

• saṃkuryāt: should arrange/prepare
• saṃkuryāt: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: saṃ√kṛ (धातु)
• Form: Optative (विधिलिङ्), Parasmaipada (परस्मैपद), 3rd person (प्रथमपुरुष), Singular (एकवचन)

• sam-alaṃkṛtam: well-adorned
• sam-alaṃkṛtam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sam + alaṃkṛta (कृदन्त)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular (एकवचन); past participle (क्त) from √alaṃkṛ ‘to adorn’, with prefix sam-

Speaker

Suta Goswami (narrating Śiva-pūjā procedure to the sages at Naimiṣāraṇya, inferred from Purāṇic dialogue style in Kailāsa-saṃhitā)

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pasha

Shakti Dimension

Role: nurturing

Ritual Elements

Offering: pushpa

Characters & Entities

• Shiva

FAQs

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

It teaches that outer order and sacred arrangement (decorating the kalasha with auspicious, life-symbolizing items) supports inner purity and focused bhakti, making the worship-space fit for invoking Pati (Śiva) with reverence.

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

The decorated kalasha functions as a sanctified support in Saguna worship—an aid for offering, invocation, and consecration—through which the devotee approaches Śiva’s manifest presence (including Liṅga-pūjā) with disciplined ritual purity.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

Prepare and adorn a pūjā-kalaśa using cloth, mango leaves, dūrvā tips, and flowers, then proceed with Śiva-upacāras while maintaining mantra-focused attention (e.g., steady japa of the Pañcākṣarī, ‘Om Namaḥ Śivāya’).