Shloka 12
ब्राह्मणीस्वर्गतिवर्णनम्
Brāhmaṇī-Svargati-Varṇana: Account of a Brāhmaṇa Woman’s Ascent to Heaven
किं कर्त्तव्यं क्व गंतव्यं कर्मबद्धा वयं यतः । कृतं चैव यथापूर्वं भुज्यते च तथाधुना
kiṃ karttavyaṃ kva gaṃtavyaṃ karmabaddhā vayaṃ yataḥ | kṛtaṃ caiva yathāpūrvaṃ bhujyate ca tathādhunā
“What, then, should we do, and where should we go, since we are bound by karma? Whatever was done formerly is indeed being experienced now in the same manner.”
Suta Goswami (narrating the karmic principle within the Kotirudrasaṃhitā discourse)
Tattva Level: pasha
Shiva Form: Sadāśiva
Role: teaching
FAQs
The verse highlights the law of karma: present experiences arise from past actions. From a Shaiva Siddhanta lens, bondage (pāśa) persists until one turns toward Pati (Shiva) through devotion and right conduct, seeking His grace to transcend karmic limitation.
Feeling ‘bound by karma’ naturally leads seekers to take refuge in Saguna Shiva—worship of the Shiva-linga, pilgrimage, and prayer—because Shiva is the Lord who can purify and burn karmic residues, guiding the devotee from worldly compulsion toward liberation.
A practical takeaway is steady japa of the Panchakshara mantra (“Om Namaḥ Śivāya”) with sincere repentance and resolve, supported by Shiva-linga worship (abhisheka) and, where traditional, Tripuṇḍra bhasma and Rudrāksha as aids to remembrance of Shiva.