Shloka 1
स्वायम्भुव-मन्वन्तर-वंशवर्णनम्
Genealogy of Svāyambhuva Manu and the Dhruva Episode
सूत उवाच । संसृष्टासु प्रजास्वेव आपवोऽथ प्रजाप्रतिः । लेभे वै पुरुषः पत्नीं शतरूपामयो निजाम्
sūta uvāca | saṃsṛṣṭāsu prajāsveva āpavo'tha prajāpratiḥ | lebhe vai puruṣaḥ patnīṃ śatarūpāmayo nijām
Sūta said: When the progeny had thus been brought forth, then Prajāpati Āpava, Lord of creatures, obtained for that Puruṣa his own consort—Śatarūpā, endowed with manifold forms.
Suta Goswami
Tattva Level: pasha
FAQs
It frames worldly order—progeny, marriage, and continuation of creation—as arising through a divinely governed process, with māyā enabling multiplicity; in Shaiva terms, such manifestation belongs to the realm where the soul (paśu) becomes entangled in bonds (pāśa) until it turns to Pati (Śiva) for liberation.
By highlighting māyā and the structured emergence of forms, it points to Saguna worship—approaching Śiva through form (liṅga, icon, mantra) within creation—while remembering that the ultimate Pati transcends these forms even as He supports them.
A practical takeaway is to meditate on Śiva as the inner ruler beyond māyā while performing daily japa of the Pañcākṣarī (“Om Namaḥ Śivāya”), using tripuṇḍra (bhasma) and rudrākṣa as aids to keep awareness anchored in Pati rather than in changing forms.