Shloka 5

अवंतीस्थ-ब्राह्मणकथा तथा तृतीय-ज्योतिर्लिङ्गोपाख्यान-प्रस्तावना

Avanti Brahmin Narrative and Prelude to the Third Jyotirliṅga

Devanagari script

अवंती नगरी रम्या मुक्तिदा सर्वदेहिनाम् । शिवप्रिया महापुण्या वर्तते लोकपावनी

Transliteration

avaṃtī nagarī ramyā muktidā sarvadehinām | śivapriyā mahāpuṇyā vartate lokapāvanī

Translation

The lovely city of Avantī bestows liberation upon all embodied beings. Beloved of Śiva and supremely meritorious, it stands as a purifier of the worlds.

Word by Word

अवंतीAvanti (name of the city)

नगरीcity

रम्याbeautiful, delightful

मुक्तिदाgiver of liberation

सर्वदेहिनाम्of all embodied beings

शिवप्रियाdear to Shiva

महापुण्याgreatly meritorious, very holy

वर्ततेexists, is found, prevails

लोकपावनीpurifier of the world

Speaker

Suta Goswami

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pati

Shiva Form: Mahākāla

Jyotirlinga Context

Jyotirlinga: Mahākāleśvara

Sthala Purana: Avantī (Ujjayinī) is praised as Śiva-priyā and mokṣa-pradā. In the Mahākāla kṣetra-māhātmya stream, Śiva abides here as Mahākāleśvara, making the city itself a liberating field (kṣetra) where devotion and worship culminate in grace.

Significance: Kṣetra-māhātmya: residence/visit, darśana, and worship in Avantī are extolled as leading to pāpa-kṣaya and mokṣa; the verse explicitly calls it ‘muktidā sarvadehinām’.

Shakti Dimension

Shakti Form: Pārvatī

Role: liberating

Ritual Elements

Offering: pushpa

Characters & Entities

Shiva

Avanti

FAQs

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

It proclaims Avantī as a Śiva-loved kṣetra whose sanctity supports mokṣa: by contact with Śiva’s holy field, the bound soul (paśu) is purified and oriented toward liberation through grace and devotion.

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

Kotirudrasaṃhitā emphasizes Jyotirliṅga-kṣetras; calling Avantī “Śiva-priyā” signals that Saguna worship of Śiva through the Liṅga in this sacred geography is a direct means of purification and release.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

A practical takeaway is kṣetra-sevā: pilgrimage, Liṅga-darśana and abhiṣeka, and japa of the Pañcākṣarī “Om Namaḥ Śivāya,” undertaken with bhakti for inner purification leading toward mokṣa.