Shloka 1
ऋषयः ऊचुः । बंधमोक्षस्वरूपं हि ब्रूहि सर्वार्थवित्तम । सूत उवाच । बंधमोक्षं तथोपायं वक्ष्येऽहं शृणुतादरात्
ṛṣayaḥ ūcuḥ | baṃdhamokṣasvarūpaṃ hi brūhi sarvārthavittama | sūta uvāca | baṃdhamokṣaṃ tathopāyaṃ vakṣye'haṃ śṛṇutādarāt
The sages said: “O knower of the meaning of all things, declare indeed the true nature of bondage and liberation.” Sūta said: “I shall expound bondage and liberation, and also the means to attain them—listen with reverent attention.”
Suta Goswami (responding to the sages of Naimisharanya)
Shiva Form: Dakṣiṇāmūrti
Role: teaching
FAQs
It introduces a core Shaiva Siddhanta theme: understanding bondage (pāśa) and liberation (mokṣa) and the practical means to transcend limitation through Shiva-centered knowledge and discipline.
By framing moksha as something attained through an “upāya” (method), it prepares for Vidyeśvara Saṃhitā’s emphasis on Shiva worship—often through Saguna forms like the Linga—as a direct, purifying path toward liberation.
The verse itself signals attentive śravaṇa (reverent listening) as the first practice; in the Vidyeśvara context, this typically unfolds into Shiva-upāsanā such as japa of the Panchākṣarī (Om Namaḥ Śivāya) and disciplined worship.