Shloka 15

उपमन्युकुमारस्य क्षीरार्थ-प्रार्थना तथा शिवप्रसाद-निबन्धनम् | Upamanyu’s Longing for Milk and the Doctrine of Shiva’s Grace

Devanagari script

हिमवत्पर्वतगतः वायुभक्षस्समाहितः । अष्टेष्टकाभिः प्रासादं कृत्वा लिंगं च मृन्मयम्

Transliteration

himavatparvatagataḥ vāyubhakṣassamāhitaḥ | aṣṭeṣṭakābhiḥ prāsādaṃ kṛtvā liṃgaṃ ca mṛnmayam

Translation

Having gone to the Himālaya mountain, he remained composed and absorbed, living only on air. With eight bricks he built a small shrine, and he also fashioned a clay Liṅga for worship.

Word by Word

• himavat-parvata-gataḥ: gone to the Himavat mountain
• himavat-parvata-gataḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: himavat (प्रातिपदिक) + parvata (प्रातिपदिक) + gata (कृदन्त, √gam गम्)
• Form: Tatpuruṣa chain compound; Puṃliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana; viśeṣaṇa (of implied subject, e.g., saḥ)

• vāyu-bhakṣaḥ: air-eating (living on air)
• vāyu-bhakṣaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vāyu (प्रातिपदिक) + bhakṣa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Tatpuruṣa (vāyoḥ bhakṣaḥ), Puṃliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana; ‘one who feeds on air’

• samāhitaḥ: composed / concentrated
• samāhitaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sam-ā-√dhā (धा) (कृदन्त)
• Form: Kta past participle (क्त), Puṃliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana; ‘collected/absorbed’

• aṣṭa-iṣṭakābhiḥ: with eight bricks
• aṣṭa-iṣṭakābhiḥ: Karaṇa (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: aṣṭa (संख्या-प्रातिपदिक) + iṣṭakā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Dvigu samāsa (द्विगु), Strīliṅga, Tṛtīyā, Bahuvacana (Plural/बहुवचन)

• prāsādam: a shrine / building
• prāsādam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: prāsāda (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Dvitīyā, Ekavacana

• kṛtvā: having made
• kṛtvā: Pūrvakāla-kriyā (पूर्वकालक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √kṛ (कृ) (कृदन्त)
• Form: Ktvā absolutive (क्त्वा), pūrvakāla-kriyā

• liṅgam: liṅga (emblem)
• liṅgam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: liṅga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Napuṃsaka, Dvitīyā, Ekavacana

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha-sūcaka (सम्बन्धसूचक)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: Samucchaya-nipāta

• mṛnmayam: made of clay
• mṛnmayam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mṛd (प्रातिपदिक) + mayaṭ (मयट्)
• Form: Taddhita derivative with -maya (मयट्) ‘made of’; Napuṃsaka, Dvitīyā, Ekavacana; viśeṣaṇa of liṅgam

Speaker

Suta Goswami (narrating to the sages of Naimisharanya)

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pashu

Jyotirlinga Context

Jyotirlinga: Kedāranātha

Sthala Purana: Himālaya tapas and liṅga worship evoke the Kedāra-Himavat sacred complex where Śiva is approached through severe austerity; while this verse is not the Kedāra origin story, it resonates with the Himalayan sthala ethos of penance and liṅga-sevā.

Significance: Himalayan kṣetra symbolizes inner ascent: austerity, restraint, and focused worship leading to purification of pāśa (bondage).

Characters & Entities

• Shiva
• Himalaya

FAQs

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

It highlights Shaiva sadhana where intense tapas (self-discipline) and inner samadhi are joined with simple, sincere Liṅga-upāsanā—showing that devotion and concentration, not external luxury, make worship spiritually potent.

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

By crafting a clay Liṅga and a small shrine, the seeker approaches the Nirguṇa Lord through a Saguna support (the Liṅga), focusing the mind and offering reverence to Śiva as Pati, the liberating Lord.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

Austere living with breath-restraint/air-focused discipline (vayu-bhaksha as tapas), paired with humble home-style worship: establishing a simple altar and worshiping a mṛn-maya Liṅga with steady meditation and mantra-japa (such as the Panchakshara, "Om Namaḥ Śivāya").