Shiva Purana — Vayaviya Samhita, Shloka 46

भक्ताधिकारि-द्विजधर्म-योगिलक्षणवर्णनम् / Duties of Qualified Devotees and Marks of Yogins

Devanagari script

ज्ञानं ज्ञेयमनुष्ठेयमधिकारो ऽथ साधनम् । साध्यं चेति षडर्थानां संग्रहत्वेष संग्रहः

Transliteration

jñānaṃ jñeyamanuṣṭheyamadhikāro 'tha sādhanam | sādhyaṃ ceti ṣaḍarthānāṃ saṃgrahatveṣa saṃgrahaḥ

Translation

Knowledge, the knowable Reality, what is to be practiced, the qualified aspirant, the means, and the goal—these are the six topics; this teaching is a compendium that gathers them all in summary.

Word by Word

• ज्ञानम्: knowledge
• ज्ञानम्: विषय (Topic/Item)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ज्ञान (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन — Nom./Acc. singular (item in enumeration)

• ज्ञेयम्: the knowable
• ज्ञेयम्: विषय (Topic/Item)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ज्ञा (धातु) → ज्ञेय (कृदन्त)
• Form: तव्यत्/यत्-प्रत्ययान्त (gerundive), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन — ‘that which is to be known/knowable’

• अनुष्ठेयम्: the to-be-performed (practice)
• अनुष्ठेयम्: विषय (Topic/Item)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अनु + स्था (धातु) → अनुष्ठेय (कृदन्त)
• Form: तव्यत्/यत्-प्रत्ययान्त (gerundive), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन — ‘that which is to be performed’

• अधिकारः: eligibility/authority
• अधिकारः: विषय (Topic/Item)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अधिकार (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), एकवचन — Nominative singular (item in enumeration)

• अथ: and
• अथ: समुच्चय (Conjunction)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अथ (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय/अनन्तर-अव्यय — ‘and then/also’

• साधनम्: means/instrument
• साधनम्: विषय (Topic/Item)
• Type: Noun
• Root: साधन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन — Nom./Acc. singular (means)

• साध्यम्: the attainable (goal)
• साध्यम्: विषय (Topic/Item)
• Type: Noun
• Root: साध्य (प्रातिपदिक/कृदन्त)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन — Nom./Acc. singular (goal to be accomplished)

• च: and
• च: समुच्चय (Conjunction)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय-अव्यय — ‘and’

• इति: thus
• इति: वाक्य-समाप्ति/उद्धरण (Quotative)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: इति (अव्यय)
• Form: उद्धरण/समाप्ति-अव्यय — quotative ‘thus’

• षडर्थानाम्: of the six meanings/categories
• षडर्थानाम्: सम्बन्ध (Sambandha/Genitival relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: षट् + अर्थ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/सम्बन्ध), बहुवचन — Genitive plural; द्विगु ‘of the six categories’

• संग्रहत्वे: in (its) compendiousness
• संग्रहत्वे: अधिकरण (Adhikaraṇa/Location)
• Type: Noun
• Root: संग्रहत्व (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/अधिकरण), एकवचन — Locative singular ‘in the state of being a compendium’

• एषः: this
• एषः: कर्ता (Kartā/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: एतद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), एकवचन — Nominative singular ‘this’

• संग्रहः: compendium/summary
• संग्रहः: कर्ता (Kartā/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: संग्रह (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), एकवचन — Nominative singular

Speaker

Suta Goswami

Characters & Entities

• Shiva

FAQs

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

It outlines a complete Shaiva roadmap: right knowledge, the Supreme to be known (Śiva), the required disciplines, the seeker’s qualification, the effective means, and the final goal—Śiva-realization and liberation from pāśa (bondage).

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

By listing “means” and “practice,” it accommodates Saguna worship—such as Linga pūjā, mantra-japa, and devotion—as valid sādhanas that mature the aspirant toward realizing the jñeya (Śiva) beyond limitation.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

The verse points generally to sādhana and anuṣṭhāna; in Shaiva practice this commonly includes Panchākṣarī japa (Om Namaḥ Śivāya), Linga worship, and yogic meditation aimed at liberation (sādhya).