Shloka 2

युद्धप्रस्थान-वर्णनम्

Departure to the Battlefield and the Śaiva Overlordship over the Devas

Devanagari script

प्रागेव विदितं युद्धं ब्रह्मविष्ण्वोर्मयासुराः । भवतामभितापेन पौनरुक्त्येन भाषितम्

Transliteration

prāgeva viditaṃ yuddhaṃ brahmaviṣṇvormayāsurāḥ | bhavatāmabhitāpena paunaruktyena bhāṣitam

Translation

O Asuras, that battle between Brahmā and Viṣṇu is already well known. Yet, because of your insistence and agitation, it has been spoken of again, even at the cost of repetition.

Word by Word

• प्राक्: previously, earlier
• प्राक्: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: प्राक् (अव्यय)
• Form: कालवाचक-अव्यय (temporal adverb)

• एव: indeed, just
• एव: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव (अव्यय)
• Form: निश्चय/अवधारण-अव्यय (emphatic particle)

• विदितम्: known
• विदितम्: Kriyā (क्रिया/Predicative)
• Type: Verb
• Root: विद् (धातु) + क्त (कृदन्त-प्रत्यय)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (past passive participle/क्त), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; विधेय (predicate)

• युद्धम्: battle, war
• युद्धम्: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: युद्ध (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन; (विदितम्) इति विशेष्य

• ब्रह्मविष्ण्वोः: of Brahmā and Viṣṇu
• ब्रह्मविष्ण्वोः: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Genitive)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ब्रह्मन् (प्रातिपदिक) + विष्णु (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/षष्ठी), द्विवचन; द्वन्द्व-समास (ब्रह्मा च विष्णुश्च)

• मया: by me
• मया: Karana (करण/Instrument)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अस्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: उत्तमपुरुष-सर्वनाम, तृतीया (3rd/तृतीया), एकवचन

• असुराः: demons
• असुराः: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: असुर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), बहुवचन

• भवताम्: of you (honorific, plural)
• भवताम्: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Genitive)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भवत् (प्रातिपदिक/सर्वनाम-आदरार्थ)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (आदरार्थ), षष्ठी (6th/षष्ठी), बहुवचन

• अभितापेन: by distress/affliction
• अभितापेन: Hetu (हेतु/Cause)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अभिताप (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/तृतीया), एकवचन

• पौनरुक्त्येन: with repetition
• पौनरुक्त्येन: Karana (करण/Instrument/Mode)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पौनरुक्त्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/तृतीया), एकवचन

• भाषितम्: spoken, said
• भाषितम्: Kriyā (क्रिया/Predicative)
• Type: Verb
• Root: भाष् (धातु) + क्त (कृदन्त-प्रत्यय)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (past passive participle/क्त), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; (युद्धम्) इत्यस्य विधेय

Speaker

Suta Goswami

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pati

Shiva Form: Sadāśiva

Jyotirlinga Context

Jyotirlinga: Viśvanātha

Sthala Purana: The narrative frame belongs to Kāśī’s Viśveśvara-mahātmya milieu: Śiva is the supreme witness beyond Brahmā–Viṣṇu rivalry; recounting the famed conflict functions to reorient listeners toward Viśveśvara as the transcendent Lord over both.

Significance: Hearing/remembering Śiva’s supremacy in Kāśī is presented as dispelling delusion about relative divinities and strengthening śaraṇāgati (refuge) in Pati.

Characters & Entities

• Brahma
• Vishnu
• Asuras

FAQs

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

It shows that the Purana repeats crucial episodes to correct misunderstanding and ego: even well-known events are retold to drive home the Shaiva conclusion that the Supreme (Śiva/Pati) transcends limited claims of supremacy.

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

This verse points to the famous Brahmā–Viṣṇu episode that culminates in Śiva’s manifestation as the Liṅga, establishing Saguna worship (Liṅga-upāsanā) as the accessible doorway to realizing the transcendent Lord.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

The takeaway is śravaṇa (devotional listening) with humility—hearing Śiva-tattva narratives repeatedly while remembering the Panchākṣarī, “Om Namaḥ Śivāya,” to dissolve pride and fix the mind in devotion.