Shloka 31
ब्राह्मणीस्वर्गतिवर्णनम्
Brāhmaṇī-Svargati-Varṇana: Account of a Brāhmaṇa Woman’s Ascent to Heaven
पुनश्च ब्रह्महत्याया नाशो यत्र भवेदिह । तत्स्थलं च मया दृष्टं हत्या मे हि गमिष्यति
punaśca brahmahatyāyā nāśo yatra bhavediha | tatsthalaṃ ca mayā dṛṣṭaṃ hatyā me hi gamiṣyati
“Moreover, I have seen here the sacred place where the sin of brahma-hatyā (the slaying of a brāhmaṇa) is destroyed. To that very place this brahma-hatyā will indeed depart from me.”
Suta Goswami (narrating the Kotirudra Saṃhitā account to the sages, describing the purifying power of a Jyotirlinga-tirtha)
Tattva Level: pasha
Shiva Form: Vaidyanātha
Jyotirlinga: Vaidyanātha
Sthala Purana: A purificatory Śiva-sthala is identified as the place where brahmahatyā is destroyed; the sin is personified as departing upon reaching the sacred locus—typical of Jyotirliṅga/tīrtha-mahātmya narratives where Śiva’s presence burns pāpa and restores dharma.
Significance: Removal of grave sins (mahāpātaka), especially brahmahatyā; restoration of purity and eligibility for Vedic/Śaiva rites; assurance of Śiva’s healing grace.
Type: mahamrityunjaya
FAQs
The verse highlights the Shiva Purana theme that sincere repentance combined with Shiva-tirtha darśana can dissolve even the gravest karmic stains; the “departure” of brahma-hatyā implies inner purification by Lord Shiva’s grace and the sanctity of the Jyotirlinga-field.
In Koṭirudrasaṃhitā, the purifying ‘place’ is typically a Jyotirlinga-tirtha where Saguna Shiva is approached through linga-darśana, pūjā, and surrender; the linga becomes the accessible form through which Shiva’s saving power operates in the world.
A practical takeaway is tirtha-yātrā with linga-darśana and confession-like repentance, supported by japa of the Panchākṣarī (“Om Namaḥ Śivāya”) and disciplined purity (e.g., bhasma/Tripuṇḍra and Rudrākṣa) as complementary Shaiva observances where appropriate.