Shloka 13

Gṛhapati’s Vow: Turning Grief into Mṛtyuñjaya–Mahākāla Sādhana (गृहपतेः प्रतिज्ञा—मृत्युंजय-महाकालजपः)

Devanagari script

तद्वच्च शरणं शम्भोर्नातः परतरं हि तत् । मनोरथपथातीत कारिणः पापहारिणः

Transliteration

tadvacca śaraṇaṃ śambhornātaḥ parataraṃ hi tat | manorathapathātīta kāriṇaḥ pāpahāriṇaḥ

Translation

Likewise, there is truly no refuge higher than that—taking shelter in Śambhu. He accomplishes what lies beyond the mind’s imagined paths, and He is the remover of sins.

Word by Word

• tadvat: likewise
• tadvat: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक) + vat (प्रत्यय)
• Form: तद्वत्-शब्दः अव्ययवत् प्रयोगः (adverbial: likewise/in the same way)

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयार्थक-अव्यय (and)

• śaraṇam: refuge
• śaraṇam: Karma (कर्म/object of seeking/statement)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śaraṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया एकवचन (refuge)

• śambhoḥ: of Śambhu (Śiva)
• śambhoḥ: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/genitive)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śambhu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी एकवचन (of Śambhu)

• na: not
• na: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/negation)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेधार्थक-अव्यय (not)

• ataḥ: than this / from this
• ataḥ: Apādāna (अपादान/standard of comparison)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ataḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: हेतौ/अपादाने अव्यय (from this/therefore; also ‘than this’ in comparison)

• parataram: more superior
• parataram: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण/predicate adjective)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: paratara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया एकवचन; तुलनात्मक-विशेषण (higher/superior)

• hi: indeed
• hi: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/emphasis)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: hi (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (indeed)

• tat: that (refuge)
• tat: Karta (कर्ता/subject of implied ‘asti’)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया एकवचन (that/it)

• manoratha-patha-atīta: beyond the path of imagination
• manoratha-patha-atīta: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण of implied ‘te’)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: manoratha (प्रातिपदिक) + patha (प्रातिपदिक) + atīta (कृदन्त/प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा बहुवचन (as read with following adjectives); तत्पुरुषः—‘मनोरथस्य पथः’ तस्मात् अतीताः (beyond the path/range of imagination)

• kāriṇaḥ: doers (agents)
• kāriṇaḥ: Karta (कर्ता/subject, implied)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kārin (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा बहुवचन; कर्तृवाचक-नाम (doers/agents)

• pāpa-hāriṇaḥ: removers of sin
• pāpa-hāriṇaḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण of kāriṇaḥ/te)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: pāpa (प्रातिपदिक) + hārin (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा बहुवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः—‘पापस्य हारी’ (sin-removing)

Speaker

Suta Goswami

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pati

Shiva Form: Sadashiva

Jyotirlinga Context

Jyotirlinga: Visvanatha

Sthala Purana: Kāśī Viśvanātha is famed as the supreme śaraṇa where Śiva grants taraka-upadeśa and pāpa-kṣaya; the verse’s claim ‘no refuge higher than Śambhu’ resonates with Kāśī’s mokṣa-kṣetra theology.

Significance: Pāpa-haraṇa and śaraṇāgati-phala; assurance of Śiva’s protection beyond ordinary mental calculations (manoratha-patha-atīta).

Mantra Metadata

Type: stotra

Shakti Dimension

Role: liberating

Ritual Elements

Offering: pushpa

Characters & Entities

• Shiva

FAQs

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

It declares Śambhu as the highest refuge (śaraṇa): surrender to Shiva surpasses mental striving and grants grace that removes pāpa and leads the soul toward liberation in a Shaiva Siddhanta sense—Pati (Shiva) freeing the pashu (soul) from bondage.

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

Taking refuge in Śambhu is concretely expressed through Saguna upāsanā—especially Linga worship—where devotion, humility, and reliance on Shiva’s grace are central; the verse emphasizes that Shiva’s power exceeds conceptual thought, aligning with both the accessible Linga form and the transcendent reality it signifies.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

Adopt śaraṇāgati (surrender) through daily Shiva-japa—especially the Panchakshara “Om Namaḥ Śivāya”—along with simple Linga pūjā; the intent is inner refuge in Shiva, trusting His pāpa-haraṇa (sin-removing) grace.