Shloka 49
भैरवावतारवर्णनम् (Bhairavāvatāra-varṇanam) — “Description of the Descent/Manifestation of Bhairava”
यतः पापानि भक्तानां भक्षयिष्यसि तत्क्षणात् । पापभक्षण इत्येव तव नाम भविष्यति
yataḥ pāpāni bhaktānāṃ bhakṣayiṣyasi tatkṣaṇāt | pāpabhakṣaṇa ityeva tava nāma bhaviṣyati
Because you will instantly consume the sins of the devotees, therefore your name shall indeed be “Pāpabhakṣaṇa”—the Devourer of sin.
Suta Goswami
Tattva Level: pati
Shiva Form: Bhairava
Jyotirlinga: Vaidyanātha
Sthala Purana: Vaidyanātha is famed as the ‘physician’ Śiva who removes afflictions; the verse’s ‘instant consumption of sins’ aligns with the jyotirliṅga’s healing-and-purifying soteriology (pāpa-kṣaya).
Significance: Pilgrims seek rapid purification of sins and relief from suffering; devotion is framed as immediate grace (anugraha) removing pāśa (bondage).
Type: stotra
Role: liberating
FAQs
The verse declares Shiva’s grace as immediate and transformative: when a devotee takes refuge in him, the binding impurities (pāpa/karma) are “consumed,” pointing to purification and readiness for liberation (moksha) through bhakti.
In Saguna worship—especially of the Shiva Linga—Shiva is approached as the compassionate Lord who accepts offerings and devotion; this verse frames Linga-bhakti as a direct means to purification, where the Lord’s presence burns accumulated sin and obstruction.
A practical takeaway is sincere Shiva-bhakti with japa of the Panchakshara ("Om Namaḥ Śivāya"), along with purification-oriented observances like applying Tripuṇḍra bhasma and maintaining a vowful, repentant mind—seeking Shiva as the remover of pāpa.