Shiva Purana — Vayaviya Samhita, Shloka 31

मन्वन्तर-कल्प-प्रश्नोत्तरम् / Discourse on Manvantaras, Kalpas, and Re-creation

Devanagari script

ततस्स सलिले मग्नां पृथिवीं पृथिवींधरः । उद्धृत्यालिंग्य दंष्ट्राभ्यामुन्ममज्ज रसातलात्

Transliteration

tatassa salile magnāṃ pṛthivīṃ pṛthivīṃdharaḥ | uddhṛtyāliṃgya daṃṣṭrābhyāmunmamajja rasātalāt

Translation

Then the Bearer of the Earth lifted up the Earth that had sunk in the waters, embraced her with His tusks, and rose up from Rasātala, the nether depths.

Word by Word

• tataḥ: then
• tataḥ: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Avyaya, adverb of sequence

• saḥ: he
• saḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• salile: in the water
• salile: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: salila (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Locative (सप्तमी/7), Singular

• magnām: submerged
• magnām: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: magna (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक; √maj (धातु) + क्त)
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular; past participle qualifying pṛthivīm

• pṛthivīm: the earth
• pṛthivīm: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pṛthivī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular

• pṛthivī-dharaḥ: the earth-bearer
• pṛthivī-dharaḥ: Karta (कर्ता; apposition to saḥ)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pṛthivī (प्रातिपदिक) + dhara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular; Tatpuruṣa: ‘earth-bearer/supporter’ (epithet)

• uddhṛtya: having lifted
• uddhṛtya: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण; pūrvakāla)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ud-√hṛ (धातु) absolutive (क्त्वा)
• Form: Absolutive/Gerund (क्त्वान्त) ‘having lifted up’

• āliṅgya: having embraced
• āliṅgya: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण; pūrvakāla)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ā-√liṅg (धातु) absolutive (ल्यप्)
• Form: Absolutive/Gerund (ल्यपन्त) ‘having embraced’

• daṃṣṭrābhyām: with (his) two tusks
• daṃṣṭrābhyām: Karaṇa (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: daṃṣṭrā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Instrumental (तृतीया/3), Dual (द्विवचन)

• unmamajja: rose up/emerged
• unmamajja: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ud-√maj (धातु)
• Form: Laṅ (लङ्), 3rd person, Singular, Parasmaipada; intensive/augment with ud- ‘rose up’

• rasātalāt: from Rasātala
• rasātalāt: Apādāna (अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rasātala (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Ablative (पञ्चमी/5), Singular

Speaker

Suta Goswami

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pashu

Jyotirlinga Context

Sthala Purana: Earth’s retrieval from the cosmic waters is narrated as a preservative act; in the surrounding Liṅga-centered frame it underscores that even world-support is derivative of Śiva’s sovereignty.

Significance: Recalling the ‘uddhāra’ (uplift) motif supports faith in divine rescue from saṃsāric submergence—an allegory for the soul lifted from pāśa by grace.

Shakti Dimension

Role: nurturing

Cosmic Context

Cosmic Event: Cosmic waters and underworld ascent (symbolic of pralaya-waters and restoration)

Characters & Entities

• Pṛthivī (Earth)
• Pṛthivīndhara (Earth-bearer)

FAQs

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

It portrays divine compassion restoring dharma: when the world sinks into chaos (the waters), the Lord as Pati uplifts and stabilizes it—teaching the devotee to rely on Shiva’s grace for inner and outer re-ordering.

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

The act of lifting the Earth is a Saguna leela—Shiva’s accessible, form-based mercy. Linga worship trains the mind to see that the same formless Supreme (Nirguna) also acts through compassionate forms (Saguna) to protect and uplift.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

Meditate on Shiva as the rescuer who lifts the submerged mind from tamas; accompany it with steady japa of the Panchakshara mantra “Om Namaḥ Śivāya” and simple Linga-abhiṣeka with water as a symbol of purification.