Shloka 6

Kālajñāna (Knowledge of Time) and Mṛtyu-cihna (Signs of Death): Śiva’s Instruction to Umā

Devanagari script

ईश्वर उवाच । सत्यं ते कथयिष्यामि शास्त्रं सर्वोत्तमं प्रिये । येन शास्त्रेण देवेशि नरैः कालः प्रबुध्यते

Transliteration

īśvara uvāca | satyaṃ te kathayiṣyāmi śāstraṃ sarvottamaṃ priye | yena śāstreṇa deveśi naraiḥ kālaḥ prabudhyate

Translation

Īśvara said: “Beloved, I shall tell you the truth—the most excellent sacred teaching. O Goddess, by this teaching human beings awaken to the reality of Kāla, Time, and become spiritually alert.”

Word by Word

• īśvaraḥ: Īśvara (Lord)
• īśvaraḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: īśvara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Nominative (प्रथमा/1), Singular (एकवचन)

• uvāca: said
• uvāca: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vac (धातु)
• Form: Perfect (लिट्), 3rd person (प्रथमपुरुष), Singular (एकवचन), Parasmaipada (परस्मैपद)

• satyam: truthfully / the truth
• satyam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: satya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Accusative (द्वितीया/2), Singular (एकवचन); adverbial use (क्रियाविशेषणवत्)

• te: to you
• te: Sampradana (सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tvad (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Pronoun (सर्वनाम), Dative (चतुर्थी/4), Singular (एकवचन)

• kathayiṣyāmi: I will tell
• kathayiṣyāmi: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: kathaya (धातु; कथयति-रूपेण, √kath/कथ् causative)
• Form: Future (लृट्), 1st person (उत्तमपुरुष), Singular (एकवचन), Parasmaipada (परस्मैपद)

• śāstram: scripture/teaching
• śāstram: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śāstra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Accusative (द्वितीया/2), Singular (एकवचन)

• sarvottamam: the सर्वोत्तम / best of all
• sarvottamam: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sarva + uttama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Accusative (द्वितीया/2), Singular (एकवचन); superlative sense (उत्तम) qualifying śāstram

• priye: O beloved
• priye: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: priya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine (स्त्रीलिङ्ग), Vocative (सम्बोधन/8), Singular (एकवचन)

• yena: by which
• yena: Karana (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Pronoun (सर्वनाम), Instrumental (तृतीया/3), Singular (एकवचन), Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग)

• śāstreṇa: by the scripture
• śāstreṇa: Karana (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śāstra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Instrumental (तृतीया/3), Singular (एकवचन)

• deveśi: O Deveśī (lady of the gods)
• deveśi: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: deva + īśī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine (स्त्रीलिङ्ग), Vocative (सम्बोधन/8), Singular (एकवचन); ‘deveśī’ = goddess, mistress of gods

• naraiḥ: by men
• naraiḥ: Kartr̥/Agent-instrument (कर्ता/करण-भावे)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Instrumental (तृतीया/3), Plural (बहुवचन)

• kālaḥ: time
• kālaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kāla (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Nominative (प्रथमा/1), Singular (एकवचन)

• prabudhyate: is awakened/understood
• prabudhyate: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: pra + budh (धातु)
• Form: Present (लट्), 3rd person (प्रथमपुरुष), Singular (एकवचन), Ātmanepada (आत्मनेपद); passive/intransitive sense ‘awakens/is understood’

Speaker

Lord Shiva (Ishvara)

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pati

Shiva Form: Dakṣiṇāmūrti

Jyotirlinga Context

Jyotirlinga: Viśvanātha

Sthala Purana: As ‘Lord of the universe’ who grants liberating knowledge, Viśvanātha at Kāśī is famed for tāraka-upadeśa at death; this verse’s promise of a ‘sarvottama śāstra’ that awakens humans to Kāla resonates with Kāśī’s liberation-through-awareness of death and time.

Significance: Kāla-jñāna leading to vigilance (prabodha) and detachment; Kāśī is sought for mokṣa and right remembrance at life’s end.

Mantra Metadata

Type: stotra

Shakti Dimension

Shakti Form: Pārvatī

Role: teaching

Cosmic Context

Cosmic Event: Kāla as cosmic principle foregrounded (awakening to Time)

Characters & Entities

• Shiva
• Parvati
• Kāla (Time)

FAQs

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

Shiva frames his instruction as the “highest shastra,” implying a liberating knowledge that awakens the seeker to Kāla—life’s impermanence and cosmic order—thereby turning the mind toward sādhana and moksha.

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

By awakening to Kāla, a devotee becomes vigilant and disciplined, which supports steady Saguna worship—especially Linga-upāsanā—where regular pūjā, mantra, and remembrance transform time-bound life into a path of liberation.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

The takeaway is daily, time-bound discipline: consistent japa (such as the Panchākṣarī/“Om Namaḥ Śivāya”) and regular Shiva worship performed at fixed times to cultivate alertness and detachment from fleeting pleasures.