Shloka 5

पापभेदवर्णनम्

Classification of Sins / Taxonomy of Pāpa

Devanagari script

सभृत्यपरिवारस्य पशुधान्यधनस्य च । कुप्यधान्यपशुस्तेयमपां व्यापावनं तथा

Transliteration

sabhṛtyaparivārasya paśudhānyadhanasya ca | kupyadhānyapaśusteyamapāṃ vyāpāvanaṃ tathā

Translation

Stealing the livestock, grain, and wealth of a household together with its servants and family; stealing valuables, grain, and cattle; and likewise contaminating or spoiling water—these too are (grave) sinful acts.

Word by Word

• सभृत्यपरिवारस्य: of (one’s) retinue with servants
• सभृत्यपरिवारस्य: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Genitive)
• Type: Noun
• Root: स + भृत्य + परिवार (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/सम्बन्ध), एकवचन; तत्पुरुष-समास (भृत्यैः सह परिवारः)

• पशुधान्यधनस्य: of cattle, grain, and wealth
• पशुधान्यधनस्य: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Genitive)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पशु + धान्य + धन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी, एकवचन; समाहार-द्वन्द्व (cattle, grain, and wealth as a collection)

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक-अव्यय (conjunction)

• कुप्यधान्यपशुस्तेयम्: theft of valuables, grain, and cattle
• कुप्यधान्यपशुस्तेयम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कुप्य + धान्य + पशु + स्तेय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; बहुपद-तत्पुरुष (कुप्यस्य/धान्यस्य/पशोः स्तेयम् = theft of valuables, grain, cattle)

• अपाम्: of water
• अपाम्: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Genitive)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अप् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, षष्ठी, बहुवचन; अप्-शब्द (water)

• व्यापावनम्: polluting/defiling
• व्यापावनम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वि + आ + पावन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; भाववाचक (act/state)

• तथा: also
• तथा: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय/क्रियाविशेषण-अव्यय (also/likewise)

Speaker

Suta Goswami

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pasha

Shiva Form: Paśupatinātha

Jyotirlinga Context

Sthala Purana: Not a Jyotirliṅga passage; the verse functions as a dharma-śāstric catalogue of pāpa (sin) that increases āṇava–karma–māyīya bondage, especially through harm to communal sustenance (grain, cattle) and the shared element of water.

Significance: Ethical purity (ahiṃsā, asteya, śauca) is presented as a prerequisite for Śiva-bhakti and for eligibility for tīrtha/vrata fruits; avoiding these acts is framed as removing karmic obstruction (mala) to grace.

Characters & Entities

• Shiva

FAQs

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

It frames dharma as the foundation for Shaiva purification: harming others through theft or by polluting shared resources creates pāpa that binds the paśu (individual soul) more tightly in pāśa (bondage), delaying grace and liberation under Pati (Shiva).

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

Linga-worship emphasizes śauca (purity) and ahiṃsā in conduct; this verse highlights that devotion to Saguna Shiva is incomplete if one violates basic dharma through theft or by defiling water, which undermines the very purity expected in Shaiva worship.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

A practical takeaway is ethical restraint (yama-like discipline) alongside Shiva-upāsanā—daily japa of the Pañcākṣarī (Om Namaḥ Śivāya) with a vow of non-stealing and maintaining purity of water used for ācamana and abhiṣeka.