Shloka 34

Strī-svabhāva-kathanam: Nārada–Pañcacūḍā-saṃvāda

Discourse on Dispassion via the Nārada–Pañcacūḍā Dialogue

Devanagari script

अन्तकश्शमनो मृत्युः पातालं वडवामुखम् । क्षुरधारा विषं सर्पो वह्निरित्येकतः स्त्रियः

Transliteration

antakaśśamano mṛtyuḥ pātālaṃ vaḍavāmukham | kṣuradhārā viṣaṃ sarpo vahnirityekataḥ striyaḥ

Translation

Antaka, Yama, Death; the netherworlds; the mare-faced submarine fire; the razor’s edge; poison; a serpent; and fire—on one side stand these terrors; and on the other, women are spoken of as comparable in power to bewilder and bind the mind.

Word by Word

• antakaḥ: Death (Antaka)
• antakaḥ: Karta (कर्ता/subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: antaka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/कर्ता), एकवचन

• śamanaḥ: Yama (Śamana)
• śamanaḥ: Karta (कर्ता/subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śamana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• mṛtyuḥ: death
• mṛtyuḥ: Karta (कर्ता/subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mṛtyu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• pātālam: the netherworld
• pātālam: Karta (कर्ता/subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pātāla (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Nom/Acc), एकवचन; अत्र प्रथमा (enumeration)

• vaḍavā-mukham: the mare-faced (submarine fire)
• vaḍavā-mukham: Karta (कर्ता/subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vaḍavā (प्रातिपदिक) + mukha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; तत्पुरुष-समास (वडवायाः मुखम्)

• kṣura-dhārā: razor-edge
• kṣura-dhārā: Karta (कर्ता/subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kṣura (प्रातिपदिक) + dhārā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; तत्पुरुष-समास (क्षुरस्य धारा)

• viṣam: poison
• viṣam: Karta (कर्ता/subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: viṣa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; अत्र प्रथमा (enumeration)

• sarpaḥ: snake
• sarpaḥ: Karta (कर्ता/subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sarpa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• vahniḥ: fire
• vahniḥ: Karta (कर्ता/subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vahni (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• iti: thus
• iti: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/quotative)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: iti (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, इति-शब्दः (quotative/marker of enumeration)

• ekataḥ: as one (set); altogether
• ekataḥ: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ekataḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, एकतः (adverb: 'on one side/altogether/as one class')

• striyaḥ: women
• striyaḥ: Karta (कर्ता/subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: strī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/कर्ता), बहुवचन

Speaker

Suta Goswami (narrating the Shiva Purana discourse as received in the Uma Samhita tradition)

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pasha

Shiva Form: Bhairava

Shakti Dimension

Shakti Form: Kālī

Role: destructive

Characters & Entities

• Yama

FAQs

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

The verse warns that sense-delusion and attachment can bind the soul (paśu) as powerfully as the most feared dangers; Shaiva Siddhanta frames this as pasha—bondage that must be transcended through devotion, discipline, and the grace of Pati (Shiva).

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

It reinforces why devotees take refuge in Saguna Shiva—Linga worship steadies the mind, purifies desire, and redirects attention from binding attachments toward Shiva as the liberating Lord (Pati).

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

Practice japa of the Panchakshara (Om Namah Shivaya), maintain inner restraint (indriya-nigraha), and support it with Shaiva disciplines like Tripundra (bhasma) and Rudraksha as aids for recollection and dispassion.