Shloka 34
न्यासवर्णनम् (Nyāsa-varṇanam) — Description of Nyāsa in the Saṃnyāsa Procedure
ग्रामण्यश्च तथा यक्षान्यातुधानांस्तथा हयान् । सप्तच्छन्दोमयांश्चैव वालखिल्यांश्च पूजयेत्
grāmaṇyaśca tathā yakṣānyātudhānāṃstathā hayān | saptacchandomayāṃścaiva vālakhilyāṃśca pūjayet
He should also offer worship to the divine hosts—Grāmaṇyas (guardians of communities), the Yakṣas, the Yātudhānas, and the celestial horses; and likewise to those embodying the seven Vedic metres, as well as to the Vālakhilya sages—honouring them all as attendants within Lord Śiva’s sacred order.
Suta Goswami
Tattva Level: pati
Shiva Form: Ishana
Sthala Purana: Not a Jyotirliṅga episode; it enumerates subsidiary beings and chandas-personifications to be honored as part of Śiva’s encompassing sacred polity (gaṇa-viśva).
Significance: Teaches ‘sarva-devatā-samanvaya’ within Śaiva worship: honoring attendant classes cultivates harmony, protection, and unobstructed ritual success (vighna-śānti).
Offering: pushpa
Cosmic Event: Ritual-cosmological ordering: integrating diverse beings (yakṣa, yātudhāna, etc.) and chandas-deities into a single Śaiva mandalic hierarchy.
FAQs
It teaches that Śiva-pūjā is cosmic in scope: devotion to Pati (Śiva) naturally includes reverence for the ordered hosts and principles that function under Him, cultivating humility, harmony, and dharmic alignment.
In Saguna Śiva worship (such as Liṅga-pūjā), honoring attendant beings and Vedic principles is an extension of honoring Śiva’s manifested governance (īśvaratva), recognizing the entire sacred hierarchy as resting in Him.
As part of Śiva-pūjā, one may offer respectful salutations (namaskāra), water/flowers, or mental homage to Śiva’s attendant classes and Vedic chandas—while maintaining mantra-centered focus (e.g., Pañcākṣarī: “Om Namaḥ Śivāya”).