Shloka 13

दक्षयज्ञे सत्या अपमानबोधः — Satī Encounters Disrespect at Dakṣa’s Sacrifice

Devanagari script

किं शिवं सुरसामान्यं मत्याकार्षीरनादरम् । भ्रष्टबुद्धिर्भवानद्य जातोसि जनकाधम

Transliteration

kiṃ śivaṃ surasāmānyaṃ matyākārṣīranādaram | bhraṣṭabuddhirbhavānadya jātosi janakādhama

Translation

Why have you shown disrespect to Śiva—who is beyond the ordinary gods—taking Him to be merely like the other devas? Today your understanding has fallen into ruin; you have become a disgrace among fathers.

Word by Word

• kim: why?/what?
• kim: Sambandha/Anvaya (सम्बन्ध/अन्वय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: kim (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्ययवत् प्रश्नवाचक (interrogative particle)

• śivam: Śiva
• śivam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śiva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (Accusative), एकवचन

• sura-sāmānyam: as merely an ordinary god
• sura-sāmānyam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sura + sāmānya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (Accusative), एकवचन; तत्पुरुष: सुराणां सामान्यं (common/ordinary among gods)

• matyā: by (your) thought/opinion
• matyā: Karaṇa (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mati (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, तृतीया (Instrumental), एकवचन

• akārṣīḥ: you made/considered
• akārṣīḥ: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √kṛ (धातु)
• Form: लुङ् (Aorist), मध्यमपुरुष (2nd), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• anādaram: disrespect
• anādaram: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: an-ādara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (Accusative), एकवचन

• bhraṣṭa-buddhiḥ: one of perverted intellect
• bhraṣṭa-buddhiḥ: Sambodhana/Viśeṣaṇa (सम्बोधन/विशेषण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhraṣṭa + buddhi (प्रातिपदik)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (Nominative), एकवचन; कर्मधारय: भ्रष्टा बुद्धिः यस्य (as epithet)

• bhavān: you
• bhavān: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhavat (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (Nominative), एकवचन; आदरार्थ-प्रयोग (honorific ‘you’)

• adya: today/now
• adya: Kālādhi-karaṇa (कालाधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: adya (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; कालवाचक (time adverb)

• jātaḥ: born/become
• jātaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √jan (धातु)
• Form: क्त (Past Passive Participle), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (Nominative), एकवचन; ‘born/become’

• asi: are
• asi: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √as (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), मध्यमपुरुष (2nd), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• janaka-adhama: O lowest of fathers (wretch)
• janaka-adhama: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: janaka + adhama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (Vocative), एकवचन; तत्पुरुष: जनकानाम् अधमः

Speaker

Satī (addressing Dakṣa)

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pati

Shiva Form: Mahādeva

Jyotirlinga Context

Significance: Functions as a doctrinal warning: treating Pati as ‘one among many’ is avidyā/tirodhāna leading to ritual downfall and moral disgrace.

Shakti Dimension

Shakti Form: Satī

Role: teaching

Characters & Entities

• Shiva
• Daksha
• Devas

FAQs

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

The verse warns that treating Śiva as merely one among many gods is a fall of understanding; in Shaiva Siddhanta, Śiva is Pati (the Supreme Lord), and disrespect toward Him becomes a direct cause of inner decline and bondage.

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

Linga-worship trains the devotee to recognize Śiva’s supremacy beyond limited comparisons; this verse condemns the attitude that reduces Śiva to a ‘common deva,’ which undermines true Saguna devotion and the reverence that Linga-upāsanā embodies.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

A practical takeaway is to remove Śiva-aparādha through humble japa of the Pañcākṣarī (Om Namaḥ Śivāya) and reverential worship (pūjā with vibhūti/Tripuṇḍra), maintaining honor toward Śiva and His devotees.