Shloka 9

Devanagari script

वीरं वीरहणं घोरं विरूपं मांसलं पटुम् । महामांसादमुन्मत्तं भैरवं वै महेश्वरम्

Transliteration

vīraṃ vīrahaṇaṃ ghoraṃ virūpaṃ māṃsalaṃ paṭum | mahāmāṃsādamunmattaṃ bhairavaṃ vai maheśvaram

Translation

He is the hero and the slayer of heroes—terrible, awe-inspiring, beyond ordinary appearance; strong-bodied and supremely capable. He is the Great Devourer of all flesh (all embodied existence), intoxicated with His own boundless power—Bhairava indeed, the Great Lord Maheśvara.

Word by Word

• vīram: the heroic one
• vīram: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vīra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), एकवचन; विशेषण/संज्ञा-रूपेण

• vīra-haṇam: slayer of heroes
• vīra-haṇam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vīra (प्रातिपदिक) + haṇa (प्रातिपदिक; √han-घातने से)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (वीराणां हन्ता)

• ghoram: terrible
• ghoram: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ghora (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), एकवचन; विशेषण

• virūpam: misshapen, strange-formed
• virūpam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vi-rūpa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), एकवचन; विशेषण

• māṃsalam: fleshy, muscular
• māṃsalam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: māṃsala (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), एकवचन; विशेषण

• paṭum: skilled, sharp
• paṭum: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: paṭu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), एकवचन; विशेषण

• mahā-māṃsa-ada-unmattam: mad, as if devouring great flesh
• mahā-māṃsa-ada-unmattam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mahā (प्रातिपदिक) + māṃsa (प्रातिपदिक) + ada (प्रातिपदिक; √ad-भक्षणे) + unmatta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), एकवचन; बहुपद-तत्पुरुष (महामांसं अदन् इति; उन्मत्तः)

• bhairavam: Bhairava
• bhairavam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhairava (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), एकवचन; संज्ञा

• vai: indeed
• vai: Sambandha/Avyaya (निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: vai (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (particle/emphatic)

• maheśvaram: Mahēśvara (the Great Lord)
• maheśvaram: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahā (प्रातिपदिक) + īśvara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), एकवचन; कर्मधारय/तत्पुरुष-समास (महान् ईश्वरः)

Speaker

Suta Goswami

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pati

Shiva Form: Bhairava

Jyotirlinga Context

Sthala Purana: This is an ugra-stuti of Bhairava/Maheśvara emphasizing devouring of embodiedness (māṃsa) as a metaphor for total saṃhāra; not a Jyotirliṅga localization.

Significance: Bhairava-smaraṇa is traditionally sought for protection, removal of fear, and cutting of pāśa (bondage) through confrontation with mortality and impermanence.

Mantra Metadata

Mantra: वीरं वीरहणं घोरं विरूपं मांसलं पटुम् । महामांसादमुन्मत्तं भैरवं वै महेश्वरम्

Type: stotra

Shakti Dimension

Shakti Form: Kālī

Role: destructive

Ritual Elements

Offering: dhupa

Characters & Entities

• Shiva
• Bhairava
• Maheshvara

FAQs

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

The verse praises Bhairava as Śiva’s fierce Saguna manifestation who annihilates egoic heroism and embodied limitation; in Shaiva Siddhanta, this destructive power is also grace that cuts pāśa (bondage) so the soul may turn toward liberation.

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

While the Liṅga signifies the transcendent (often approached as nirguṇa-symbol), Bhairava is Saguna Śiva—worshipped as a concrete, protective and transformative deity; both point to the same Pati (Lord), approached through different devotional and meditative modes.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

Meditate on Bhairava as the fear-destroying Lord while repeating the Pañcākṣarī ("Om Namaḥ Śivāya"), and adopt Shaiva markers like Tripuṇḍra (bhasma) and rudrākṣa as reminders of impermanence and Śiva’s protective discipline.