Shloka 17
Viṣṇoḥ Sahasranāma-stotreṇa Śiva-prasādaḥ
Vishnu’s Thousand-Name Hymn and Shiva’s Grace
विष्णुरुवाच । शृणु देव मया ध्येयं पठनीयं च किं प्रभो । दुःखानां नाशनार्थं हि वद त्वं लोकशंकर
viṣṇuruvāca | śṛṇu deva mayā dhyeyaṃ paṭhanīyaṃ ca kiṃ prabho | duḥkhānāṃ nāśanārthaṃ hi vada tvaṃ lokaśaṃkara
Viṣṇu said: “O Deva, hear me. O Lord, what should I meditate upon, and what should I recite? For the very purpose of destroying sorrows, tell me, O Śaṅkara, benefactor of the worlds.”
Vishnu
Tattva Level: pashu
Shiva Form: Sadāśiva
Significance: Frames Śiva as Lokasaṅkara (world-benefactor) whose upadeśa removes duḥkha; supports the pilgrim’s intent of seeking śiva-anugraha through dhyāna and pāṭha.
FAQs
It frames Shiva as Pati (the liberating Lord) and presents dhyāna (inner contemplation) and pāṭha/japa (sacred recitation) as primary Shaiva means for duḥkha-nāśana—removing sorrow by turning the mind toward Śiva’s grace and knowledge.
By asking what should be meditated on and recited, Viṣṇu points to Saguna-upāsanā: focusing the mind on Śiva (often as the Liṅga or a compassionate form like Śaṅkara) and supporting it with mantra-recitation, which stabilizes devotion and purifies the devotee.
The verse explicitly recommends dhyāna and pāṭha/japa as sorrow-destroying disciplines—practically expressed in Shaiva practice as meditating on Śiva/Śiva-liṅga and reciting a Śiva-mantra (commonly the Pañcākṣarī, “Om Namaḥ Śivāya”).