Shloka 6

Durgama’s Seizure of the Vedas and the Gods’ Refuge in Yogamāyā (दुर्गमकृतवेदनाशः—योगमायाशरणगमनम्)

Devanagari script

न दानं न तपोऽत्युग्रं न यागो हवनं न हि । अनावृष्टिस्ततो जाता पृथिव्यां शतवार्षिकी

Transliteration

na dānaṃ na tapo'tyugraṃ na yāgo havanaṃ na hi | anāvṛṣṭistato jātā pṛthivyāṃ śatavārṣikī

Translation

There was neither charity nor severe austerity; neither sacrifice nor oblations into the fire. Therefore, upon the earth, a drought arose that lasted for a hundred years.

Word by Word

• न: not; no
• न: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेधार्थक अव्यय (negation)

• दानम्: charity; giving
• दानम्: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: दान (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1) एकवचन; elliptical 'there was no giving'

• न: nor
• न: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेधार्थक अव्यय

• तपः: austerity; penance
• तपः: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तपस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2) एकवचन; here as subject-like item in list

• अति-उग्रम्: very severe
• अति-उग्रम्: Visheshana (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अति (अव्यय/उपसर्ग) + उग्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2) एकवचन; qualifies तपः; 'excessively fierce'

• न: nor
• न: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेधार्थक अव्यय

• यागः: sacrifice
• यागः: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: याग (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1) एकवचन

• हवनम्: fire-offering
• हवनम्: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: हवन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1) एकवचन

• न: not
• न: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेधार्थक अव्यय

• हि: indeed
• हि: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: हि (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; emphasis/causal particle (indeed/for)

• अनावृष्टिः: drought; lack of rain
• अनावृष्टिः: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अनावृष्टि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1) एकवचन

• ततः: thereupon; from that
• ततः: Hetu/Apadana (हेतु/अपादान)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ततः (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; ablatival adverb 'from that/thereupon'

• जाता: arose; occurred
• जाता: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: जात (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक; जन् धातोः क्त)
• Form: भूतकालिक क्त-प्रत्ययान्त (past participle) used predicatively; स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1) एकवचन; agrees with अनावृष्टिः

• पृथिव्याम्: on the earth
• पृथिव्याम्: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पृथिवी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7) एकवचन

• शत-वार्षिकी: lasting a hundred years
• शत-वार्षिकी: Visheshana (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: शत (प्रातिपदिक) + वार्षिकी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1) एकवचन; adjective of अनावृष्टिः; 'lasting a hundred years'

Speaker

Suta Goswami

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pasha

Shiva Form: Paśupatinātha

Shakti Dimension

Role: nurturing

Cosmic Context

Cosmic Event: Prolonged anāvṛṣṭi (hundred-year drought) as cosmic-ethical consequence

FAQs

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

The verse links the decline of dharmic living—charity, tapas, and yajna—to disharmony in the world. In a Shaiva Siddhanta lens, when right action and Shiva-oriented worship fall away, pāśa (bondage and disorder) intensifies, manifesting as collective suffering such as drought.

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

Yajna and havana are outward supports of Saguna Shiva worship, where devotees honor Shiva through ritual order and offering. The verse implies that when such Shiva-centered practices are neglected, the sustaining rhythm of dharma weakens—hence the need to re-establish devotion and worship (including Linga-pūjā) to restore balance.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

The takeaway is to revive dharmic disciplines: dāna (charity), tapas (self-restraint), and yajna/homa (offerings), complemented by Shiva-bhakti such as Panchakshara japa (Om Namaḥ Śivāya) as a stabilizing daily practice.