Shiva Purana — Vayaviya Samhita, Shloka 72
अनुग्रह-स्वातन्त्र्य-प्रमाणविचारः | Inquiry into Pramāṇa, Divine Autonomy, and Grace
मलो ऽप्यामश्च पक्वश्च भवेत्संसारकारणम् । आमे त्वधरता पुंसां पक्वे तूत्तरता क्रमात्
malo 'pyāmaśca pakvaśca bhavetsaṃsārakāraṇam | āme tvadharatā puṃsāṃ pakve tūttaratā kramāt
Even impurity (mala), whether unripe (āma) or ripened (pakva), becomes a cause of worldly bondage. When it is unripe, it leads a person toward lower states; when it is ripened, it leads, in due course, toward higher states.
Suta Goswami
Tattva Level: pasha
FAQs
It explains that mala (impurity/bondage) is the root of saṃsāra; when immature it pulls consciousness downward into denser ignorance, and when matured it can become a stage in the soul’s gradual refinement toward liberation under Shiva’s grace.
By highlighting mala as the cause of bondage, it implies the need for purifying devotion and discipline centered on Shiva—often through Saguna worship such as Linga-upāsanā—so the soul moves from lower tendencies to higher, Shiva-facing awareness.
A practical takeaway is steady purification through Shiva-oriented sādhana—japa of the Pañcākṣarī (Om Namaḥ Śivāya), wearing Rudrākṣa, and applying Tripuṇḍra (bhasma)—to reduce the “unripe” state of impurity and support gradual ascent.
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