Shiva Purana — Vayaviya Samhita, Shloka 29
मनु-शतरूपा-प्रसूतिः तथा दक्षकन्याविवाहाः
Manu–Śatarūpā, Prasūti, and the Marriages of Dakṣa’s Daughters
षष्टिस्तानि सहस्राणि वालखिल्या इति स्मृताः । अनूरोरग्रतो यांति परिवार्य दिवाकरम् । अत्रेर्भार्यानुसूया च पञ्चात्रेयानसूयत । कन्यकां च श्रुतिं नाम माता शंखपदस्य च
ṣaṣṭistāni sahasrāṇi vālakhilyā iti smṛtāḥ | anūroragrato yāṃti parivārya divākaram | atrerbhāryānusūyā ca pañcātreyānasūyata | kanyakāṃ ca śrutiṃ nāma mātā śaṃkhapadasya ca
They are remembered as the Vālakhilyas—sixty thousand in number—who, surrounding the Sun, move before him, in front of his thigh. And Anasūyā, the wife of Atri, gave birth to five sons known as the Ātreyas; she also bore a maiden named Śruti, who became the mother of Śaṅkhapada.
Suta Goswami
Tattva Level: pashu
Shiva Form: Mahādeva
Role: nurturing
Cosmic Event: Sūrya’s daily course attended by Vālakhilyas (cosmic procession motif)
FAQs
It portrays the ordered cosmos—sages, deities, and lineages moving in harmony—reflecting how all beings function within divine law (ṛta) under the supreme governance of Pati (Śiva), even when the verse narrates solar attendants and rishi genealogy.
By emphasizing cosmic hierarchy and sacred lineages, it supports the Shaiva view that Saguna manifestations (like the Sun’s divine retinue) operate within Śiva’s overarching reality; Linga-worship aligns the devotee with that cosmic order and leads the bound soul (paśu) toward Śiva (Pati).
No specific rite is prescribed in this verse; the takeaway is contemplative—meditate on the disciplined, circumambulatory movement (parivāra) around the divine, mirroring devotional practice such as pradakṣiṇā around the Śiva-liṅga with the Panchākṣarī mantra (Om Namaḥ Śivāya).