हंस-वराह-रूपग्रहण-कारणम्
The Reason for Assuming the Swan and Boar Forms
नारद उवाच । विधे ब्रह्मन् महाप्राज्ञ संशयो हृदि मे महान् । कृपां कृत्वातुलां शीघ्रं तं नाशयितुमर्हसि
nārada uvāca | vidhe brahman mahāprājña saṃśayo hṛdi me mahān | kṛpāṃ kṛtvātulāṃ śīghraṃ taṃ nāśayitumarhasi
Nārada said: O Ordainer (Brahmā), O Brahman, O greatly wise one—there is a great doubt in my heart. Showing incomparable compassion, swiftly dispel it.
Nārada
Tattva Level: pashu
Role: teaching
It highlights that inner doubt (saṃśaya) is a primary obstacle to right understanding, and that it is removed through the compassionate clarification of a qualified teacher—preparing the seeker for Shaiva knowledge that leads toward liberation.
By seeking the removal of doubt from Brahmā, Nārada models the attitude needed for Linga/Saguna worship: humble inquiry and receptivity to instruction, which turns ritual and devotion into informed, transformative practice.
The verse suggests the core practice of śravaṇa and praśna—listening and asking with humility; in Shaiva practice this is commonly supported by steady japa of the Panchākṣarī (Om Namaḥ Śivāya) to calm doubt and stabilize devotion.