Shloka 2

अविद्या-पञ्चक, नवसर्ग-क्रमः, प्रजापति-प्रसवः

Vibhaga 1, Adhyaya 5

Devanagari script

तमो मोहो महामोहस् तामिस्रश्चान्धसंज्ञितः अविद्या पञ्चधा ह्येषा प्रादुर्भूता स्वयम्भुवः

Transliteration

tamo moho mahāmohas tāmisraścāndhasaṃjñitaḥ avidyā pañcadhā hyeṣā prādurbhūtā svayambhuvaḥ

Translation

Oscuridad, ilusión, gran ilusión, tiniebla cegadora y lo llamado ‘ceguera’: así la ignorancia (avidyā) se manifiesta en cinco formas, surgidas de Svayambhū, el Auto-nacido. Por ellas, el paśu (alma atada) queda velado y retenido en el pāśa (atadura), hasta volverse hacia Pati, el Señor Śiva, para la liberación.

Word by Word

• तमः: darkness, spiritual inertia

• मोहः: delusion, mistaken cognition

• महामोहः: great delusion, intensified attachment

• तामिस्रः: blinding gloom, destructive confusion

• अन्धसंज्ञितः: termed ‘blindness’, loss of discernment

• अविद्या: ignorance, non-recognition of the Self and Pati

• पञ्चधा: in five ways, fivefold

• हि: indeed

• एषा: this

• प्रादुर्भूता: manifested, came forth

• स्वयम्भुवः: from Svayambhū (the Self-born creator principle)

Speaker

Suta (narrating the teaching contextually to the sages of Naimisharanya)

Characters & Entities

• Svayambhu (Brahma)

FAQs

What is the importance of this verse in the context of Linga worship?

It identifies five modes of avidyā that veil the paśu; Linga worship is a Shaiva upāya to pierce this veiling by fixing awareness on Pati (Śiva) and dissolving delusion and spiritual blindness.

How does this verse describe the nature of Shiva (Shiva-tattva)?

By implication, Śiva-tattva is the Pati beyond the fivefold avidyā; ignorance may arise in creation, but liberation occurs when the soul recognizes Śiva as the transcendent Lord untouched by tamas and moha.

What ritualistic or Yogic practice is highlighted here?

The verse points to the need for Pāśupata-oriented discipline—discriminative knowledge (viveka), mantra-japa, and steady Śiva-bhakti—aimed at removing the fivefold avidyā that binds the soul.