Shloka 18
Anasūyā–Atri Tapas-Varṇana
Description of Anasūyā and Atri’s Austerities
मानसैरुपचारैश्च पूजयामास शंकरम् । तुष्टाव शंकरं भक्त्या संसेवित्वा मुहुर्मुहुः
mānasairupacāraiśca pūjayāmāsa śaṃkaram | tuṣṭāva śaṃkaraṃ bhaktyā saṃsevitvā muhurmuhuḥ
With mental offerings and acts of devotion, she worshipped Śaṅkara. Having served him again and again, she praised Śaṅkara with heartfelt bhakti.
Suta Goswami
Tattva Level: pashu
Shiva Form: Dakṣiṇāmūrti
Type: stotra
Role: teaching
FAQs
It teaches that sincere bhakti expressed through inner worship (mānasa-upacāra), repeated service, and praise pleases Śiva; the Lord responds to devotion grounded in humility and constancy, not merely external display.
Even when Śiva is worshipped in a tangible form such as the Liṅga (saguṇa upāsanā), the verse emphasizes that the mind’s offerings—reverence, attention, and loving praise—complete the worship and make it spiritually effective.
Practice mānasa-pūjā: inwardly offer ācamanīya, flowers, incense, and lamp to Śiva while repeating a Śiva-mantra (such as the Pañcākṣarī, “oṃ namaḥ śivāya”) and concluding with stuti (praise) performed again and again with steadiness.