Shloka 36
तपः–मन्त्रजप–ध्यानविधिः
Protocol of Tapas, Mantra-Japa, and Śiva-Dhyāna
अथ वा बहु चाल्पं हि भोग्यं निस्तीर्य शंकरः । कदाचिदिच्छया तस्य दूरीकुर्य्यान्न संशयः
atha vā bahu cālpaṃ hi bhogyaṃ nistīrya śaṃkaraḥ | kadācidicchayā tasya dūrīkuryyānna saṃśayaḥ
Or else—after causing him to pass through the enjoyments to be undergone, whether many or few—Śaṅkara, at some time, by His own will, removes those bondages/afflictions from him; of this there is no doubt.
Suta Goswami
Tattva Level: pati
Shiva Form: Mahadeva
Sthala Purana: General doctrine: Śaṅkara may allow prārabdha-bhoga (experience of karmic fruits) to complete—many or few—and then, by sovereign will, remove remaining afflictions/bondage.
Significance: Reassures devotees that delayed relief is not denial: prārabdha may be ‘crossed over’ first, after which Śiva’s anugraha decisively liberates.
Role: liberating
FAQs
The verse emphasizes that while karmic experiences (bhogya) may be many or few, ultimate release from bondage happens by Śiva’s sovereign grace (icchā). In Shaiva Siddhanta terms, Pati (Śiva) can dissolve pasha (bondage) when the soul becomes fit, making liberation a divine act rather than mere self-effort.
Worship of the Linga as Saguna Śiva is a direct approach to Śaṅkara’s grace: devotion, surrender, and mantra-japa orient the devotee toward the Lord whose will can ‘remove at a time’ the binding forces of karma and impurity, beyond what ordinary worldly enjoyment can exhaust.
The practical takeaway is surrender-based devotion: daily Panchakshara japa (Om Namaḥ Śivāya), Linga-abhiṣeka, and disciplined living, done with the intention that Śiva’s grace—not mere karmic exhaustion—brings the removal of bondage.