Shloka 55

शिवपुराण-प्रशंसा (Praise of the Śiva Purāṇa) / Śivapurāṇa Māhātmya

Devanagari script

वायवीयं खाब्धिशतं घर्मं रविसहस्रकम् । तदेवं लक्षसंख्याकं शैवसंख्याविभेदतः

Transliteration

vāyavīyaṃ khābdhiśataṃ gharmaṃ ravisahasrakam | tadevaṃ lakṣasaṃkhyākaṃ śaivasaṃkhyāvibhedataḥ

Translation

In the Śaiva mode of enumeration, a hundred “sky-oceans” is called vāyavīya, and a thousand suns is called gharma. Thus, through these distinct Śaiva numerical terms, the count is expressed up to the measure of a lakṣa (one hundred thousand).

Word by Word

• vāyavīyam: (the text) Vāyavīya
• vāyavīyam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vāyavīya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; नाम (ग्रन्थ-नाम)

• kha-abdhi-śatam: a hundred (in the ‘kha-abdhi’ reckoning)
• kha-abdhi-śatam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kha (प्रातिपदिक) + abdhi (प्रातिपदिक) + śata (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः/द्विगु-प्रायः (ख-अब्धि = ‘sky-ocean’ = 0?; here numeric/measure usage), ‘śatam’ = hundred

• gharmam: ‘gharma’ (a named number/measure)
• gharmam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: gharma (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग (प्रयोगे भेदः), प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; नाम/संख्या-परिभाषा

• ravi-sahasrakam: a thousand of ‘ravi’ (sun-units)
• ravi-sahasrakam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ravi (प्रातिपदिक) + sahasraka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः (रवेः सहस्रकम्)

• tat: that
• tat: Anuvāda/Prayojya (अनुवाद/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• evam: thus
• evam: Avyaya-sambandha (अव्यय-सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: evam (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; प्रकारवाचक (adverb of manner)

• lakṣa-saṃkhyākam: amounting to a lakh (100,000)
• lakṣa-saṃkhyākam: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: lakṣa (प्रातिपदिक) + saṃkhyāka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः; विशेषणम् (‘having the number of a lakṣa’)

• śaiva-saṃkhyā-vibhedataḥ: according to the divisions of Śaiva numeration
• śaiva-saṃkhyā-vibhedataḥ: Hetu/Adhikaraṇa (हेतु/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: śaiva (प्रातिपदिक) + saṃkhyā (प्रातिपदिक) + vibheda (प्रातिपदिक) + tas (अव्यय-प्रत्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (तसिल्/तस्-प्रत्ययान्त) = ‘-from/according to’; पूर्वपद-तत्पुरुषः (शैव-संख्या-विभेद)

Speaker

Suta Goswami

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pashu

Shiva Form: Īśāna

Jyotirlinga Context

Sthala Purana: A technical note on Śaiva saṃkhyā-vibheda (special number-words): ‘vāyavīya’ and ‘gharma’ are defined via metaphorical large-number expressions, culminating in lakṣa-scale counting.

Significance: Highlights the Śaiva scholastic culture of precise textual transmission; knowing such conventions supports accurate parāyaṇa, teaching lineages, and preservation of scripture.

Shakti Dimension

Role: teaching

Characters & Entities

• Shiva

FAQs

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

It shows that Shaiva tradition preserves its own sacred technical language—even for numbers—supporting disciplined practice (niyama) such as precise mantra-japa counts, which Shaiva Siddhanta treats as a steady aid toward purification and Shiva-realization.

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

Lakṣa-count practices (like lakṣa-japa) are commonly performed as offerings to Saguna Shiva—often before the Linga—where number, repetition, and devotion combine into a structured upacāra (service) that matures bhakti and steadies the mind.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

It points to mantra-japa with defined counts (e.g., lakṣa-japa), typically done with a rudrākṣa mālā and supported by Shaiva observances such as bhasma (tripuṇḍra) and focused meditation on Shiva.