Shloka 90

Śiva-nāma-sahasraka-kathana

The Recital/Teaching of the Thousand Names of Śiva

Devanagari script

पद्मगर्भो महागर्भो विश्वगर्भो विचक्षणः । परावरज्ञो वरदो वरेण्यश्च महास्वनः

Transliteration

padmagarbho mahāgarbho viśvagarbho vicakṣaṇaḥ | parāvarajño varado vareṇyaśca mahāsvanaḥ

Translation

He is the Womb of the lotus (the source of Brahmā), the Great Womb, the Womb of the whole universe, and the all-discerning One. He knows the higher and the lower (the transcendent and the immanent); He is the Giver of boons, the most adorable and worthy of choice, and He resounds with a mighty, awe-filling resonance.

Word by Word

• padmagarbhaḥ: having a lotus as womb/center
• padmagarbhaḥ: Viśeṣya (विशेष्य) / Karta-samānādhikaraṇa (कर्तृसमानाधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: padma (प्रातिपदिक) + garbha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (padmasya garbhaḥ)

• mahāgarbhaḥ: great-wombed
• mahāgarbhaḥ: Viśeṣya (विशेष्य) / Karta-samānādhikaraṇa (कर्तृसमानाधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mahā (प्रातिपदिक) + garbha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; कर्मधारयः (mahān garbhaḥ)

• viśvagarbhaḥ: whose womb is the universe
• viśvagarbhaḥ: Viśeṣya (विशेष्य) / Karta-samānādhikaraṇa (कर्तृसमानाधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: viśva (प्रातिपदिक) + garbha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (viśvasya garbhaḥ)

• vicakṣaṇaḥ: discerning, wise
• vicakṣaṇaḥ: Viśeṣya (विशेष्य) / Karta-samānādhikaraṇa (कर्तृसमानाधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vicakṣaṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• parāvarajñaḥ: knower of the higher and the lower
• parāvarajñaḥ: Viśeṣya (विशेष्य) / Karta-samānādhikaraṇa (कर्तृसमानाधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: para (प्रातिपदिक) + avara (प्रातिपदिक) + jña (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; द्वन्द्वपूर्वपद-तत्पुरुषः (parāvarayoḥ jñaḥ = knower of higher and lower)

• varadaḥ: boon-giver
• varadaḥ: Viśeṣya (विशेष्य) / Karta-samānādhikaraṇa (कर्तृसमानाधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vara (प्रातिपदिक) + da (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; उपपद-तत्पुरुषः (varān dadāti iti)

• vareṇyaḥ: most excellent, worthy of choice
• vareṇyaḥ: Viśeṣya (विशेष्य) / Karta-samānādhikaraṇa (कर्तृसमानाधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vareṇya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक-अव्यय (conjunction)

• mahāsvanaḥ: of great sound/roar
• mahāsvanaḥ: Viśeṣya (विशेष्य) / Karta-samānādhikaraṇa (कर्तृसमानाधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mahā (प्रातिपदिक) + svana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; कर्मधारयः (mahān svanaḥ)

Speaker

Suta Goswami

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pati

Shiva Form: Sadyojāta

Mantra Metadata

Mantra: पद्मगर्भो महागर्भो विश्वगर्भो विचक्षणः । परावरज्ञो वरदो वरेण्यश्च महास्वनः

Type: stotra

Shakti Dimension

Shakti Form: Pārvatī

Role: creative

Cosmic Context

Cosmic Event: Implied cosmogony: emergence of Brahmā (padma-garbha) and universal manifestation from Śiva as causal ground.

Characters & Entities

• Shiva
• Brahma

FAQs

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

The verse praises Shiva as Pati—the ultimate Lord who is both the transcendent reality and the immanent source of the cosmos, showing that liberation comes from recognizing Him as the ground of all creation and the supreme knower.

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

These epithets are used as devotional names for Saguna Shiva, and in Jyotirlinga/Linga worship they function as contemplative attributes—meditating on Shiva as the universe’s source while offering water, bilva leaves, and mantra-japa.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

Practice nāma-smaraṇa and japa of the Panchakshara (Om Namaḥ Śivāya) while contemplating Shiva as viśvagarbha (the cosmic source), ideally alongside Linga-abhisheka with bilva and a steady, inward listening to the ‘mahāsvana’—the sacred resonance.