Shloka 44

Śiva-nāma-sahasraka-kathana

The Recital/Teaching of the Thousand Names of Śiva

Devanagari script

अनिर्देश्यवपुः श्रीमान्सर्वाचार्यमनोगतिः । बहुश्रुतिर्महामायो नियतात्मा ध्रुवोऽध्रुवः

Transliteration

anirdeśyavapuḥ śrīmānsarvācāryamanogatiḥ | bahuśrutirmahāmāyo niyatātmā dhruvo'dhruvaḥ

Translation

He is the glorious Lord whose form cannot be defined; He is the inner guiding aim of all teachers and sacred disciplines. He is the very essence of the many Vedic revelations, the wielder of the Great Māyā; self-controlled and perfectly established—yet, in His līlā, both the changeless Reality and the One who appears changeful.

Word by Word

• अनिर्देश्यवपुः: whose form is indescribable
• अनिर्देश्यवपुः: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अ (नञ्) + निर्देश्य (प्रातिपदिक; √दिश् धातु से) + वपुस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; कर्मधारय: अनिर्देश्यं वपुः यस्य (indescribable-bodied)

• श्रीमान्: splendid, auspicious
• श्रीमान्: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: श्रीमत् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; मतुप्-प्रत्ययान्त (possessive)

• सर्वाचार्यमनोगतिः: the mind/understanding of all teachers
• सर्वाचार्यमनोगतिः: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सर्व (प्रातिपदिक) + आचार्य (प्रातिपदिक) + मनस् (प्रातिपदिक) + गति (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; बहुपद-तत्पुरुष: सर्वाचार्यस्य मनोगतिः/सर्वाचार्याणां मनोगतिः (mind-course/understanding of all teachers)

• बहुश्रुतिः: much-learned; great learning
• बहुश्रुतिः: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: बहु (प्रातिपदिक) + श्रुति (प्रातिपदिक; √श्रु धातु)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; कर्मधारय: बह्वी श्रुतिः/बहुश्रुतिः (much learning)

• महामायः: of great māyā
• महामायः: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: महा (प्रातिपदिक) + माया (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; कर्मधारय

• नियतात्मा: self-restrained
• नियतात्मा: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: नियत (प्रातिपदिक; √यम् धातु से) + आत्मन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; कर्मधारय: नियतः आत्मा यस्य (self-controlled)

• ध्रुवः: fixed, constant
• ध्रुवः: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ध्रुव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; विशेषण

• अध्रुवः: not fixed; impermanent
• अध्रुवः: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अ (नञ्) + ध्रुव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; नञ्-समास/निषेध

Speaker

Suta Goswami (narrating Shiva’s glory to the sages of Naimisharanya)

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pati

Shiva Form: Dakṣiṇāmūrti

Mantra Metadata

Type: stotra

Shakti Dimension

Role: teaching

Characters & Entities

• Shiva

FAQs

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

It teaches that Shiva is ultimately beyond description (nirguṇa in essence) while also manifesting through Māyā as the perceivable Lord (saguṇa for grace). Realization comes by seeing Him as both the unchanging ground of being and the compassionate presence within changing experience.

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

The Linga is a sacred support for contemplating the indescribable Shiva: it points beyond form while allowing devotion to a manifest focus. The verse affirms that all authentic teachings culminate in Him, so Linga worship becomes a disciplined doorway from form to the formless.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

Meditate on Shiva as ‘dhruva’ (unchanging) while chanting the Panchakshara—Om Namaḥ Śivāya—seeing all changing thoughts as ‘adhruva’ appearances in His Māyā; steady the mind with simple japa and inner restraint (niyatātmā).