Shloka 29
उपमन्युकुमारस्य क्षीरार्थ-प्रार्थना तथा शिवप्रसाद-निबन्धनम् | Upamanyu’s Longing for Milk and the Doctrine of Shiva’s Grace
उपमन्युरुवाच । त्वयैवं कथितं सर्वं भवनिन्दा रतेन वैः । प्रसंगाद्देवदेवस्य निर्गुणत्वं पिशाचता
upamanyuruvāca | tvayaivaṃ kathitaṃ sarvaṃ bhavanindā ratena vaiḥ | prasaṃgāddevadevasya nirguṇatvaṃ piśācatā
Upamanyu said: All this has indeed been spoken by you—one who delights in reviling the Lord. And, by a perverse turn of speech, you have branded the Lord of gods as “nirguṇa,” as though it were a piśāca-like, demonic notion.
Upamanyu
Tattva Level: pati
Shiva Form: Rudra
FAQs
The verse condemns Shiva-nindā (reviling the Lord) and warns that careless philosophical talk can become spiritually degrading; true knowledge of Śiva must be joined with reverence and purity of intention.
It implies that declaring Śiva “nirguṇa” should not be used to dismiss His worshipful forms; in Shaiva Siddhanta, the transcendent (nirguṇa) and gracious manifest presence (saguṇa—such as the Liṅga) are complementary, not contradictory.
A practical takeaway is to maintain śuddha-vāk (pure speech) and bhakti while repeating Śiva-mantra (e.g., pañcākṣarī—Om Namaḥ Śivāya) and avoiding nindā, which is treated as a serious obstacle to sādhana.