Shloka 22
भैरवावतारवर्णनम् (Bhairavāvatāra-varṇanam) — “Description of the Descent/Manifestation of Bhairava”
नन्दीश्वर उवाच । इत्याकर्ण्य तयोर्वाचं पुनस्ते हि ऋगादयः । अवदंस्तत्त्वतः सर्व्वे संस्मरतो परं प्रभुम्
nandīśvara uvāca | ityākarṇya tayorvācaṃ punaste hi ṛgādayaḥ | avadaṃstattvataḥ sarvve saṃsmarato paraṃ prabhum
Nandīśvara said: Hearing the words of those two, the Ṛg and the other Vedas spoke again—each declaring the truth as it is—while remembering the Supreme Lord.
Nandīśvara (Nandi)
Tattva Level: pati
Shiva Form: Paśupatinātha
Sthala Purana: The Vedas, personified, speak ‘remembering the Supreme Lord’—a Purāṇic device that makes śruti itself testify to Śiva’s supremacy, preparing the Liṅgodbhava-style resolution of Brahmā–Viṣṇu dispute.
Significance: Teaches that true scriptural speech arises from smaraṇa of the Supreme (paraṃ prabhuṃ); pilgrimage/ritual gains potency when grounded in remembrance rather than mere formalism.
Type: stotra
Role: teaching
FAQs
It teaches that true knowledge (tattva) arises when consciousness is anchored in remembrance of the Supreme Lord—here, Śiva—showing that even the Vedas speak rightly when oriented toward Pati, the highest Reality.
By calling Śiva the “Supreme Lord” and stressing remembrance, the verse supports Saguna upāsanā (devotional focus such as Liṅga worship) as a valid means to hold the mind in Śiva, through which the Vedic truth becomes living realization.
The implied practice is smaraṇa (remembrance) of Śiva—done through japa of the Pañcākṣarī “Om Namaḥ Śivāya,” along with steady devotional contemplation during daily pūjā (including Liṅga worship where applicable).