Shloka 3

भैरवावतारलीलावर्णनम् (Bhairava-avatāra-līlā-varṇanam) — “Narration of the Divine Play of Bhairava’s Descent”

Devanagari script

कपालपाणिर्विश्वात्मा चचार भुवनत्रयम् । नात्याक्षीच्चापि तं देवं ब्रह्महत्यापि दारुणा

Transliteration

kapālapāṇirviśvātmā cacāra bhuvanatrayam | nātyākṣīccāpi taṃ devaṃ brahmahatyāpi dāruṇā

Translation

Bearing a skull in His hand, Śiva—the Universal Self—wandered through the three worlds. Yet even the dreadful sin of brahmahatyā, the slaying of a brāhmaṇa, could not truly overpower or subdue that God.

Word by Word

• kapāla-pāṇiḥ: Skull-in-hand (Śiva)
• kapāla-pāṇiḥ: Kartā (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kapāla (प्रातिपदिक) + pāṇi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Prathamā (1st), Ekavacana; ṣaṣṭhī-tatpuruṣa ‘one whose hand (holds) a skull’ (lexicalized epithet)

• viśva-ātmā: the universal self
• viśva-ātmā: Kartā (कर्ता) (apposition)
• Type: Noun
• Root: viśva (प्रातिपदिक) + ātman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana; karmadhāraya ‘whose self is the universe / universal self’

• cacāra: wandered, roamed
• cacāra: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: car (चर् धातु)
• Form: Liṭ-lakāra (लिट्, perfect), Prathama-puruṣa (3rd), Ekavacana; parasmaipada

• bhuvana-trayam: the three worlds
• bhuvana-trayam: Karma (कर्म) (object of roaming)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhuvana (प्रातिपदिक) + traya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Napumsaka, Dvitīyā, Ekavacana; dvigu ‘the three worlds’

• na: not
• na: Nishedha (निषेध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya; negation particle (निषेध)

• atyākṣīt: saw/observed (closely), noticed
• atyākṣīt: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ati + akṣ (अक्ष् धातु, ‘to see’)
• Form: Luṅ-lakāra (लुङ्, aorist), Prathama-puruṣa (3rd), Ekavacana; parasmaipada; with upasarga ati-

• ca: and
• ca: Samuccaya (समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya; conjunction

• api: also, even
• api: Sambandha/Emphasis (सम्बन्ध/अवधारण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: api (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya; particle (अपि) = also/even

• tam: him
• tam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Dvitīyā, Ekavacana

• devam: the god
• devam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: deva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Dvitīyā, Ekavacana; in apposition to tam

• brahma-hatyā: Brahmahatyā (sin of brahmin-slaying, personified)
• brahma-hatyā: Kartā (कर्ता) (subject of atyākṣīt)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brahman (प्रातिपदिक) + hatyā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Strīliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana; tatpuruṣa ‘Brahmin-slaying (sin/personified)’

• api: even
• api: Avadhāraṇa (अवधारण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: api (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya; ‘even/also’

• dāruṇā: terrible, dreadful
• dāruṇā: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: dāruṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Strīliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana; adjective qualifying brahmahatyā

Speaker

Suta Goswami (narrating to the sages at Naimisharanya)

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pati

Shiva Form: Bhikṣāṭana

Jyotirlinga Context

Sthala Purana: The verse evokes the Kapālī/Bhikṣāṭana motif (Śiva roaming with a skull-bowl after the Brahmā-śiras episode), but no specific Jyotirliṅga is named here.

Significance: Establishes Śiva’s transcendence over pāpa and karmic taint; devotion to Him is portrayed as superior to mere expiatory travel.

Characters & Entities

• Shiva

FAQs

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

It asserts Śiva as viśvātmā (the universal Self) and Pati (the Supreme Lord) who is ultimately untouched by pāśa—bondage such as karma and sin—though He may assume forms and narratives for cosmic order and instruction.

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

Kāpālapāṇi is a Saguna manifestation—Śiva taking a visible, instructive form. Linga-worship focuses on the same Lord as the transcendent Pati, reminding devotees that while impurities bind the soul, Śiva remains sovereign and grants purification and liberation.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

Meditate on Śiva as viśvātmā while chanting the Pañcākṣarī (Om Namaḥ Śivāya); as a purification practice, adopt Śaiva disciplines such as Tripuṇḍra (bhasma) and rudrākṣa with repentance and devotion, seeking Śiva’s grace to loosen karmic bonds.