Shloka 76
न्यासवर्णनम् (Nyāsa-varṇanam) — Description of Nyāsa in the Saṃnyāsa Procedure
अष्टत्रिंशत्कलान्यासमेवं कृत्वा तु सर्वशः । पश्चात्प्रणवविद्धीमान्प्रणवन्यासमाचरेत् । बाहुद्वये कूर्परयोस्तथा च मणिबन्धयोः । पार्श्वतोदरजंघेषु पादयोः पृष्ठतस्तथा
aṣṭatriṃśatkalānyāsamevaṃ kṛtvā tu sarvaśaḥ | paścātpraṇavaviddhīmānpraṇavanyāsamācaret | bāhudvaye kūrparayostathā ca maṇibandhayoḥ | pārśvatodarajaṃgheṣu pādayoḥ pṛṣṭhatastathā
Having thus performed the nyāsa of the thirty-eight kalās in every respect, the adept who knows the proper rule should thereafter perform the nyāsa of the Praṇava (Oṃ). He should place it on both arms, on the elbows, and also on the wrists; on the sides, the belly, the thighs, the feet, and likewise on the back.
Suta Goswami (narrating Śaiva ritual procedure to the sages at Naimiṣāraṇya, as typical of Purāṇic transmission)
Tattva Level: pashu
Shiva Form: Īśāna
Mantra: oṃ (praṇava)
Type: gayatri
Role: liberating
FAQs
The verse teaches bodily sanctification through nyāsa: the sādhaka maps Śiva’s śakti (kalās) and the Praṇava onto the body, turning the embodied “paśu” into a fit vessel for Śiva-upāsanā and inner stillness, aligned with Shaiva Siddhānta’s purification (śuddhi) before realization.
Nyāsa prepares the worshipper to approach Saguna Śiva—often as the Liṅga—by consecrating limbs with mantra-power, so external Liṅga-pūjā is mirrored by internalized worship where the body becomes a ritual field dedicated to Śiva.
It prescribes Praṇava (Oṃ) nyāsa after the thirty-eight-kalā nyāsa, placing Oṃ on specific limbs (arms, elbows, wrists, sides, belly, thighs, feet, and back) as a meditative consecration prior to mantra-japa and Śiva-pūjā.