Shloka 72

न्यासवर्णनम् (Nyāsa-varṇanam) — Description of Nyāsa in the Saṃnyāsa Procedure

Devanagari script

अघोरस्य कलाश्चाष्टौ पूजनीया यथाक्रमम् । पश्चात्त्रयोदशकलाः पायुमेढ्रोरुजानुषु

Transliteration

aghorasya kalāścāṣṭau pūjanīyā yathākramam | paścāttrayodaśakalāḥ pāyumeḍhrorujānuṣu

Translation

Next, the eight divine kalās of Aghora are to be worshipped in due order. Thereafter, the thirteen kalās are to be worshipped upon the anus, the genital organ, the thighs, and the knees, according to the prescribed placement in Śiva’s inner rite.

Word by Word

• aghorasya: of Aghora
• aghorasya: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: aghora (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Ṣaṣṭhī vibhakti (षष्ठी/Genitive), Ekavacana

• kalāḥ: digits/parts (kalās)
• kalāḥ: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kalā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Strīliṅga, Prathamā vibhakti (Nominative), Bahuvacana

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya; conjunction

• aṣṭau: eight
• aṣṭau: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण/Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: aṣṭan (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Numeral; Puṃliṅga, Prathamā vibhakti (Nominative), Bahuvacana (used with kalāḥ)

• pūjanīyāḥ: to be worshipped
• pūjanīyāḥ: Vidheyaviśeṣaṇa (विधेयविशेषण/Predicate adjective)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: pūj (धातु) + -anīya (कृत्, अनीयर्)
• Form: Kṛtya (कृत्य) gerundive; Strīliṅga, Prathamā, Bahuvacana; ‘worthy to be worshipped’

• yathā-kramam: in proper sequence
• yathā-kramam: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण/Adverbial modifier)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yathā (अव्यय) + krama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Avyayībhāva (अव्ययीभाव) adverb; accusative-form used adverbially: ‘in due order’

• paścāt: afterwards
• paścāt: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण/Temporal)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: paścāt (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya; adverb of time (कालवाचक)

• trayodaśa-kalāḥ: the thirteen kalās
• trayodaśa-kalāḥ: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: trayodaśa (प्रातिपदिक, संख्या) + kalā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Dvigu (द्विगु) numerical compound; Strīliṅga, Prathamā, Bahuvacana

• pāyu-meḍhra-ūru-jānuṣu: in the anus, penis, thighs, and knees
• pāyu-meḍhra-ūru-jānuṣu: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण/Location)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pāyu (प्रातिपदिक) + meḍhra (प्रातिपदिक) + ūru (प्रातिपदिक) + jānu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Saptamī vibhakti (Locative), Bahuvacana; dvandva of locations: ‘in anus, penis, thighs, and knees’

Speaker

Suta Goswami

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pasha

Shiva Form: Āghoramūrti

Shakti Dimension

Shakti Form: Kālī

Role: destructive

Characters & Entities

• Shiva
• Aghora

FAQs

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

It teaches a disciplined, sequential worship of Śiva’s manifested powers (kalās), indicating that spiritual ascent requires order, purity, and reverent integration of the body and consciousness as instruments of Śiva-sādhana.

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

The kalās of Aghora represent Saguna Śiva approached through specific, worship-worthy manifestations; such internalized worship parallels external Liṅga-pūjā by relocating devotion and consecration into the practitioner’s embodied field.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

It points to kalā/anga-nyāsa—placing and worshipping mantric powers on designated bodily locations—performed with mantra, purity, and focused awareness as part of an inner Śaiva ritual.