Shloka 91

Praṇava-Māhātmya and the Twofold Mantra (Sūkṣma–Sthūla) in Śaiva Sādhanā

Devanagari script

पुनःकारणरुद्र स्य लोकाष्टाविंशका मताः । पुनश्च कारणेशस्य षट्पंचाशत्तदूर्ध्वगाः

Transliteration

punaḥkāraṇarudra sya lokāṣṭāviṃśakā matāḥ | punaśca kāraṇeśasya ṣaṭpaṃcāśattadūrdhvagāḥ

Translation

Again it is taught that Kāraṇa-Rudra possesses twenty-eight worlds. And above those, further still, are the fifty-six worlds belonging to Kāraṇeśa, the Causal Lord.

Word by Word

• punaḥ: again
• punaḥ: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: punaḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya (अव्यय), adverb (पुनरुक्ति/again)

• kāraṇa-rudrasya: of Kāraṇa-Rudra
• kāraṇa-rudrasya: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/genitive)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kāraṇa (प्रातिपदिक) + rudra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Genitive (षष्ठी), Singular; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः ‘of Kāraṇa-Rudra’

• lokāḥ: worlds
• lokāḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: loka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative (प्रथमा), Plural

• aṣṭā-viṃśakāḥ: twenty-eight (in number)
• aṣṭā-viṃśakāḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: aṣṭā (अष्टन्/संख्या) + viṃśati (विंशति/संख्या) + -ka (क-प्रत्यय)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative (प्रथमा), Plural; द्विगु-समासः numeral adjective qualifying lokāḥ

• matāḥ: are considered
• matāḥ: Kriyā (क्रिया/predicative)
• Type: Verb
• Root: man (मन् धातु) → mata (कृदन्त)
• Form: Past passive participle (क्त), Masculine, Nominative (प्रथमा), Plural; predicative with lokāḥ

• punaḥ: again
• punaḥ: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: punaḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya, adverb

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya, conjunction

• kāraṇa-īśasya: of Kāraṇeśa
• kāraṇa-īśasya: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/genitive)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kāraṇa (प्रातिपदिक) + īśa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Genitive (षष्ठी), Singular; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः ‘of Kāraṇeśa’

• ṣaṭ-paṃcāśat: fifty-six
• ṣaṭ-paṃcāśat: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ṣaṭ (षट्/संख्या) + pañcāśat (पञ्चाशत्/संख्या)
• Form: Numeral compound used adjectivally; here as indeclinable-like numeral in compound; ‘fifty-six’ (56)

• tad-ūrdhva-gāḥ: situated above that / higher
• tad-ūrdhva-gāḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: tad (तद् सर्वनाम) + ūrdhva (प्रातिपदिक) + ga (ग/√gam ‘going’, प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative (प्रथमा), Plural; ‘going above that’ = higher than those; qualifies (lokāḥ) understood

Speaker

Suta Goswami

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pati

Shiva Form: Sadāśiva

Cosmic Context

Cosmic Event: lokabheda (graded worlds above Kāraṇa-Rudra culminating in higher causal lordship)

Characters & Entities

• Shiva
• Rudra
• Karaneśa

FAQs

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

It maps a Shaiva cosmology where progressively subtler realms culminate in the domain of the Causal Lord (Kāraṇeśa), implying that liberation is attained by turning from worldly planes toward Shiva as Pati, the ultimate cause beyond all lokas.

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

By presenting Shiva as the causal ruler of increasingly higher realms, it supports Linga worship as a Saguna focus that leads the devotee beyond limited worlds toward the supreme Kāraṇeśa, the transcendent source indicated by the Linga.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

Contemplate Shiva as the Causal Lord while performing Linga-puja with the Panchakshara mantra (Om Namaḥ Śivāya), using the practice to transcend attachment to lower lokas and orient the mind toward moksha.