Shloka 78

Vyāsotpatti-kathana

Account of the Birth/Origin of Vyāsa

Devanagari script

न मध्यमेश्वरादन्यल्लिंगं काश्यां हि विद्यते । यद्दर्शनार्थमायान्ति देवाः पर्वणिपर्वणि

Transliteration

na madhyameśvarādanyalliṃgaṃ kāśyāṃ hi vidyate | yaddarśanārthamāyānti devāḥ parvaṇiparvaṇi

Translation

In Kāśī, indeed, there is no other Liṅga apart from Madhyameśvara—He for whose darśana (sacred vision) the gods themselves come, festival after festival and holy observance after holy observance.

Word by Word

• na: not
• na: Pratiṣedha (प्रतिषेध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेधार्थक-अव्यय (negation)

• madhyameśvarāt: than Madhyameśvara
• madhyameśvarāt: Apādāna (अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: madhyameśvara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (5th), एकवचन; अपादान (from/than)

• anyat: other
• anyat: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: anya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन; विशेषणम् (qualifies ‘liṅgam’)

• liṅgam: liṅga
• liṅgam: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: liṅga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

• kāśyām: in Kāśī
• kāśyām: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kāśī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th), एकवचन; स्थानवाचक

• hi: indeed
• hi: Nipāta (निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: hi (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (emphasis)

• vidyate: exists/is found
• vidyate: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √vid (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), आत्मनेपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; भावे/कर्तरि प्रयोग (exists/is found)

• yat: which
• yat: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; सम्बन्धक (which/that)

• darśana-artham: for the sake of seeing
• darśana-artham: Prayojana (प्रयोजन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: darśana (प्रातिपदिक) + artha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; प्रयोजनवाचक (purpose)

• āyānti: come
• āyānti: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √yā + ā- (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष, बहुवचन

• devāḥ: gods
• devāḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: deva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन

• parvaṇi: on each festival/occasion
• parvaṇi: Kāla-adhikaraṇa (कालाधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: parvan (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th), एकवचन; कालाधिकरण (on an occasion/festival)

• parvaṇi: again and again (festival after festival)
• parvaṇi: Kāla-adhikaraṇa (कालाधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: parvan (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th), एकवचन; पुनरुक्ति (repetition for distributive sense)

Speaker

Suta Goswami (narrating the māhātmya of Kāśī and Madhyameśvara within the Umāsaṃhitā context)

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pati

Shiva Form: Mahadeva

Jyotirlinga Context

Jyotirlinga: Viśvanātha

Sthala Purana: The verse asserts Madhyameśvara’s unrivaled centrality in Kāśī: even devas repeatedly come on every parvan for darśana, implying the kṣetra’s supremacy among sacred sites.

Significance: Darśana is portrayed as so potent that even devas seek it cyclically; for humans this implies exceptional merit, purification, and proximity to liberation-granting grace.

Ritual Elements

Offering: pushpa

Cosmic Context

Cosmic Event: Recurring parvan observances (ritual-cosmic calendrical nodes)

Characters & Entities

• Shiva (Madhyameśvara)
• Devas

FAQs

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

The verse proclaims Madhyameśvara as the uniquely supreme liṅga-presence in Kāśī, emphasizing that even the devas seek His darśana on every sacred occasion—showing Kāśī as a peak locus of Śiva’s grace and liberation-oriented worship.

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

By highlighting a specific liṅga (Madhyameśvara) as the focus of divine pilgrimage, the text affirms Saguna Śiva worship through the liṅga as a direct, approachable embodiment of Pati (Śiva) who bestows anugraha (grace) through darśana.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

A practical takeaway is to seek Śiva-darśana on parva days through liṅga-pūjā—offering water and bilva, reciting the Pañcākṣarī (“Om Namaḥ Śivāya”), and maintaining inward ध्यान on Śiva as the liberating Lord of Kāśī.