Shloka 14

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

Devanagari script

किन्न श्रुतन्त्वया तात श्वेतकेतुं यथा पुरा । पाशितं कालपाशेन ररक्ष त्रिपुरान्तकः

Transliteration

kinna śrutantvayā tāta śvetaketuṃ yathā purā | pāśitaṃ kālapāśena rarakṣa tripurāntakaḥ

Translation

My dear child, have you not heard how, in ancient times, Tripurāntaka—Lord Śiva—protected Śvetaketu when he was bound by the noose of Time (Kāla)?

Word by Word

• किम्: what
• किम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: किम् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; interrogative pronoun

• न: not
• न: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/वाक्यसम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेधार्थक-अव्यय (negative particle)

• श्रुतम्: heard
• श्रुतम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Verb
• Root: श्रु (धातु) + त (कृत् प्रत्यय)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (क्त/PPP), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; ‘heard’

• त्वया: by you
• त्वया: Karana (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: युष्मद् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम, द्वितीया? (न) तृतीया (3), एकवचन; Instrumental ‘by you’

• तात: dear one/son
• तात: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तात (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8), एकवचन; vocative address

• श्वेतकेतुम्: Śvetaketu
• श्वेतकेतुम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: श्वेतकेतु (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), एकवचन; समास: श्वेतः केतुः (कर्मधारय)

• यथा: as
• यथा: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/वाक्यसम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यथा (अव्यय)
• Form: उपमान/प्रकारवाचक-अव्यय (comparative/‘as’)

• पुरा: formerly
• पुरा: Adhikarana (अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: पुरा (अव्यय)
• Form: कालवाचक-अव्यय (adverb of time)

• पाशितम्: bound
• पाशितम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पाश (धातु/नामधातु) + इत (कृत्)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (क्त/PPP), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; ‘bound/ensnared’

• कालपाशेन: by the noose of Time
• कालपाशेन: Karana (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कालपाश (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष: कालस्य पाशः

• ररक्ष: protected
• ररक्ष: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: रक्ष् (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (परस्मैपद, perfect), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), एकवचन

• त्रिपुरान्तकः: Tripurāntaka (Śiva, destroyer of Tripura)
• त्रिपुरान्तकः: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: त्रिपुरान्तक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष: त्रिपुरस्य अन्तकः

Speaker

Suta Goswami (narrating within the Shatarudrasaṃhitā dialogue framework)

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pasha

Shiva Form: Tripurantaka

Jyotirlinga Context

Sthala Purana: Not a jyotirliṅga-sthala episode; it recalls an itihāsa-like exemplum: Śiva as Tripurāntaka saving Śvetaketu from Kāla’s pāśa (time/death as bondage).

Significance: Hearing/remembering such līlā strengthens śaraṇāgati and reduces mṛtyu-bhaya; illustrates pāśa (kāla/karma) being overruled by Śiva’s grace.

Shakti Dimension

Role: liberating

Cosmic Context

Cosmic Event: Kāla (Time/Death) personified as binding with a pāśa; emblematic of saṃsāric bondage rather than a calendrical event.

Characters & Entities

• Shiva
• Tripurantaka
• Shvetaketu
• Kala

FAQs

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

It presents Śiva as Pati (the Lord) who can loosen the pasha (bondage) even when it appears as Kāla (time/death), affirming that surrender and grace transcend fate for the devotee.

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

Tripurāntaka is a Saguna form of Śiva—personally protective and responsive. Linga-worship trains the mind to take refuge in that same Lord as the inner ruler who stands beyond time while appearing within time for the devotee’s protection.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

Meditate on Śiva as Kāla-jit (conqueror of time) while repeating the Pañcākṣarī—“Om Namaḥ Śivāya”—and, if practiced, apply Tripuṇḍra (bhasma) as a reminder that all is time-bound except Śiva’s grace.