Shloka 4

शङ्खचूडदूतागमनम् — The Arrival of Śaṅkhacūḍa’s Envoy

and Praise of Śiva

Devanagari script

त्रिशूलपट्टिशधरं व्याघ्रचर्मांबरावृतम् । भक्तमृत्युहरं शांतं गौरीकान्तं त्रिलोचनम्

Transliteration

triśūlapaṭṭiśadharaṃ vyāghracarmāṃbarāvṛtam | bhaktamṛtyuharaṃ śāṃtaṃ gaurīkāntaṃ trilocanam

Translation

He bears the trident and the battle-axe, and is clad in a tiger-skin garment. Serene and tranquil, the beloved Lord of Gaurī, the Three-eyed One—he removes even death for his devotees.

Word by Word

• त्रिशूलपट्टिशधरम्: bearing a trident and a battle-axe
• त्रिशूलपट्टिशधरम्: विशेषण (Viśeṣaṇa/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: त्रिशूल + पट्टिश + धर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; तत्पुरुष-समास (त्रिशूलपट्टिशौ धरति इति)

• व्याघ्रचर्मअम्बरावृतम्: clad in tiger-skin garment
• व्याघ्रचर्मअम्बरावृतम्: विशेषण (Viśeṣaṇa/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: व्याघ्र + चर्म + अम्बर + आवृत (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; तत्पुरुष-समास (व्याघ्रचर्माम्बरेण आवृतम्)

• भक्तमृत्युहरम्: remover of devotees’ death
• भक्तमृत्युहरम्: विशेषण (Viśeṣaṇa/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: भक्त + मृत्यु + हर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; तत्पुरुष-समास (भक्तानां मृत्युं हरति इति)

• शान्तम्: peaceful
• शान्तम्: विशेषण (Viśeṣaṇa/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: शान्त (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• गौरीकान्तम्: beloved of Gaurī
• गौरीकान्तम्: विशेषण (Viśeṣaṇa/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: गौरी + कान्त (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; तत्पुरुष-समास (गौर्याः कान्तः)

• त्रिलोचनम्: three-eyed
• त्रिलोचनम्: विशेषण (Viśeṣaṇa/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: त्रि + लोचन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; द्विगु-समास (त्रीणि लोचनानि यस्य)

Speaker

Sūta Gosvāmin (narrating the Shiva Purana account to the sages at Naimiṣāraṇya)

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pati

Shiva Form: Rudra

Jyotirlinga Context

Significance: The epithet bhaktamṛtyuhara (‘remover of death for devotees’) underwrites Śiva-bhakti as a mokṣa-sādhana: surrender to Pati severs pāśa (bondage) and overcomes mṛtyu as saṃsāric limitation.

Mantra Metadata

Type: stotra

Shakti Dimension

Shakti Form: Gaurī

Role: nurturing

Ritual Elements

Offering: pushpa

Characters & Entities

• Shiva
• Parvati (Gauri)

FAQs

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

The verse presents Saguna Śiva’s compassionate sovereignty: though fierce in symbols (trident, axe), he is inwardly śānta and, through grace, destroys the devotee’s mṛtyu—meaning both literal fear of death and the bondage that leads to repeated death (saṃsāra).

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

It supports Saguna-upāsanā by giving a dhyāna-form of Śiva (Trilocana, Gaurīkānta, trident-bearing). In Shaiva practice, such form-meditation naturally culminates in Linga worship, where the same Lord is adored as the all-pervading Pati beyond form.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

Perform dhyāna on Trilocana Śiva—peaceful, tiger-skin-clad, trident-bearing—while repeating the Panchākṣarī mantra “Om Namaḥ Śivāya”; offer bilva leaves or vibhūti (tripuṇḍra) in a spirit of bhakti, praying for freedom from fear and bondage.