Shloka 43

Umā-caritra-prārthanā: Ṛṣayaḥ Sūtaṃ Pṛcchanti

Request for the Account of Umā

Devanagari script

बद्ध्वाञ्जलिमिमां वाचमुवाच नृपतिर्मुनिम् । भगवन्नावयोर्मोहं छेत्तुमर्हसि साम्प्रतम्

Transliteration

baddhvāñjalimimāṃ vācamuvāca nṛpatirmunim | bhagavannāvayormohaṃ chettumarhasi sāmpratam

Translation

With palms joined in reverence, the king addressed the sage: “O Blessed One, please now deign to cut away the delusion that has arisen in us.”

Word by Word

• baddhvā: having joined (hands)
• baddhvā: Pūrvakāla-kriyā (पूर्वकालक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √bandh (बन्ध् धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त-अव्ययकृदन्त (absolutive/gerund), ‘having bound/joined’

• añjalim: añjali (folded hands)
• añjalim: Karma (कर्म/object of ‘baddhvā’)
• Type: Noun
• Root: añjali (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन

• imām: this
• imām: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: idam (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; सर्वनाम; वाचम् इति विशेषण

• vācam: speech, words
• vācam: Karma (कर्म/thing spoken)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vāc (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन

• uvāca: said
• uvāca: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √vac (वच् धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• nṛpatiḥ: the king
• nṛpatiḥ: Karta (कर्ता/subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nṛpati (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

• munim: the sage
• munim: Karma (कर्म/addressee as object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: muni (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन

• bhagavan: O Blessed Lord / venerable one
• bhagavan: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन/address)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhagavat (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (Vocative), एकवचन

• nāvayoḥ: of us two
• nāvayoḥ: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/possessor)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nau (अस्मद्-द्विवचन-षष्ठी/सप्तमी सर्वनाम) + āvayoḥ (आवाम्-षष्ठी/सप्तमी द्विवचन)
• Form: षष्ठी (6th) द्विवचन-रूप (genitive dual) ‘of us two’; sandhi form nāvayoḥ = nau+āvayoḥ

• moham: delusion
• moham: Karma (कर्म/object to be cut)
• Type: Noun
• Root: moha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन

• chettum: to cut off, to remove
• chettum: Prayojana (प्रयोजन/purpose)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √chid (छिद् धातु)
• Form: तुमुन्-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त (infinitive)

• arhasi: you are able/ought
• arhasi: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √arh (अर्ह् धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), मध्यमपुरुष (2nd), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• sāmpratam: now, at present
• sāmpratam: Kālādhi karaṇa (कालाधिकरण/time)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: sāmpratam (अव्यय)
• Form: कालवाचक-अव्यय (temporal adverb: ‘now/at present’)

Speaker

The king (nṛpati), speaking to a sage (muni) within the Umāsaṃhitā narration

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pashu

Shiva Form: Dakṣiṇāmūrti

Shakti Dimension

Role: teaching

Characters & Entities

• Shiva

FAQs

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

It highlights the Shaiva path of humility and surrender: delusion (moha), a form of pāśa (bond), is removed through seeking right instruction from a realized teacher, ultimately pointing to Śiva’s grace as the true liberator.

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

The king’s folded-hands approach models bhakti toward the divine as mediated through the guru; in Shiva Purana practice, such reverence supports Saguna Śiva worship (including Liṅga-pūjā) as a means to purify the mind and dispel moha.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

A practical takeaway is guru-vandana and śaraṇāgati (reverent surrender), paired with steady japa—especially the Pañcākṣarī “Om Namaḥ Śivāya”—to weaken delusion and stabilize discernment.