Shloka 53
Praṇava-Māhātmya and the Twofold Mantra (Sūkṣma–Sthūla) in Śaiva Sādhanā
पुरश्चरणमेवं तु कृत्वा मन्त्रीभवेन्नरः । पुनश्च पंचलक्षेण सर्वपापक्षयो भवेत्
puraścaraṇamevaṃ tu kṛtvā mantrībhavennaraḥ | punaśca paṃcalakṣeṇa sarvapāpakṣayo bhavet
Having thus performed the prescribed puraścaraṇa, a man becomes accomplished in the mantra. And further, by repeating it five lakhs (five hundred thousand times), the destruction of all sins comes about.
Suta Goswami
Tattva Level: pashu
Shiva Form: Dakṣiṇāmūrti
FAQs
It teaches that disciplined mantra-practice (puraścaraṇa) ripens into mantra-siddhi, and extensive japa purifies the practitioner by exhausting accumulated pāpa, aligning the soul (paśu) toward Shiva (Pati).
Mantra-japa is a core limb of Saguna Shiva worship, often performed with devotion before the Shiva-linga; the verse emphasizes that steady repetition and observance make the worship efficacious and purifying.
Perform puraścaraṇa for the Shiva mantra (commonly the Pañcākṣarī, “Om Namaḥ Śivāya”) and undertake sustained japa—here indicated as five lakh repetitions—for purification and mantra-accomplishment.